E3 Press Conference: Capcom Impressions

Before I get into impressions from the Capcom event I just want to make a couple of comments. I wanted to let everyone know that during E3 you may expect to find multiple posts each day on the blog, so don’t just read the top post and assume that’s it. There’s an avalanche of content pertaining to E3 to cover and one blog post per day just wouldn’t cut it. I also want to add that I’ve watched every single press conference in it’s entirety, except for Konami which hasn’t ocurred yet, and I plan on viewing that one in full tonight also. I owe you impressions for Sony, EA, Activision, and Konami and I promise to get to those this week. I’ll wrap up E3 coverage with general reaction and my “winners and losers” of E3.

But on to the Capcom impressions. The Capcom event lasted 32 minutes long, and the ENTIRE event consisted of an extremely long winded announcement about a Lost Planet Hollywood movie in development. Sure enough, this is interesting news. Although it’s not the first game I’d think of when considering what would make the best movie, it does have a lot of the elements that would make a good movie. Capcom says they had it in mind that they’d like to make a game that would make a good movie when they created Lost Planet, and they plan on projects in the future that would be embraced by Hollywood. I am definitely looking forward to the movie. They showed no clips or other footage of the movie or its production, only screenshots, video, and artwork from the game. I have to say that I was expecting a lot more from Capcom. I really feel they spent far too much time announcing the film, worthy news that it is. I wanted to hear more about Resident Evil 5, and maybe even some surprise games in development, but not one word was spoken about games. Am I missing something, or is E3 supposed to be about the GAMES? I have to say the Capcom presentation was the most boring and uninspiring I’ve seen yet. The information they spent 32 minutes conveying they could have conveyed in less than 10, and still had time to cover the information that everyone was starving for: games. Oh well… that’s 32 minutes of my life I’ll never get back!

E3 Press Conference: Ubisoft Impressions

Ubisoft really packed a punch at E3, which probably does not come as much of a shock. The biggest surprise from Ubi was the announcement of Jade Raymond’s (from Assassin’s Creed) current project, “I Am Alive”, due out in 2009. In this game you play as Adam, someone who survives a tragedy that wipes out everything (nuclear bomb?) and must continue to survive in this post-apocalyptic city. And although this isn’t a completely original situation for a game to take place in, it seems like a unique experience, as you’re playing a regular guy that the average gamer could probably relate to encountering enemies that are bullies instead of soldiers. I’m speculating based on a short trailer here, so we need to stay updated to find out what’s really going on, but the trailer was freakin’ incredible and I can’t wait to play. Jade Raymond’s involvement is a huge plus as Assassin’s Creed was one of my favorite games of all time.

Another highlight of the show was the presentation of Tom Clancy’s EndWar. In this groundbreaking game you will use your voice rather than buttons on a controller to command your troops. Imagine speaking into your headset to tell your choppers to “Take out those tanks!” instead of pushing buttons. This game is going to bring an unprescedented level of realism into the game and my excitement to play is off the hook! The game is due out this holiday for 360 and PS3.

Prince of Persia, also due out this holiday for 360 and PS3, looks like another must-have. The art design, with cell shaded characters and beautiful, artistic environments look fantastic, and the moves the Prince can pull off reminded me of all the fun I had with Altair’s agility on Assassin’s Creed and then some. Best of all, your character companion is there to help you. If you fall, she will save your life, so that instead of getting punished with a “You died. Continue” screen you can continue. No more re-doing areas because of a continue, something I’ve always found boring about games. They said that knowing you died is enough, the game doesn’t need to rub it in. Finally, it’s a massive open-ended world with many possible paths.

Far Cry 2 was also featured, and I have to say I’ve gone from On The Fence to Sold after the presentation. I didn’t like Far Cry Instincts: Predator but I think this game will be a completely different animal. The environments look spectacular, and it will be nice to play in Africa, an area we don’t get to experience very often in games. There’s also a really cool map feature where you can mark things like where a sniper is, where a health pack is, etc. on your map. You can “scope out” an area from a distance with your sniper rifle and get the full picture before you take action. Another great thing about this game is that it will be a completely open world to roam and explore rather than linear. Bonus! I believe it’s due out this fall for 360 and PS3.

Rayman Raving Rabbids is back with Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party for the Wii. This edition will use the balance board for some minigames. It looks as hilarious as ever. I’ve had tremendous, hilarious fun with both of the Raving Rabbids games released thus far and thanks to this brand I have a reason to dust off my Wii. These games are underrated, and if I played nothing else on my Wii this series would be worth owning it for. I’ve never laughed so hard playing a game before. The Raving Rabbids are in my opinion the single greatest video game character out there. The game is due out this fall.

Shaun White Snowboarding, due out this holiday for 360, PS3, and Wii completely turns the extreme sports genre on it’s head with a huge, open ended world online where you can play with your friends anywhere and anytime. You gain reputation by beating the AI or your friends. The environments are massive and include mountains in Europe, Japan, and the U.S. I can’t get enough of open world games… Ubisoft really “gets” what I want! If you get the Wii version you’ll be able to use the balance board, but I think I’ll go for the 360 version for superior graphics and more ease playing with friends online.

The middle of the press conference was devoted to what they called “tween girls games” like the Imagine games and Petz series for DS. Needless to say nothing appealed to me other than a possible Christmas gift for my daughter. Other than that, Ubisoft proved they are as big a powerhouse in the gaming industry as ever.