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After braving the red-eye flight from Denver, scrambling to the hotel, and hitching a ride to the the Galen Center, we stumbled into our seats, drunk with anticipation. Thankfully, Microsoft didn’t disappoint! Rather than making us yawn through sales numbers and flow charts, the folks in charge of the press event kept the good times rolling. We were witness to an amazing array of gameplay videos, most of which are exclusives, that teased us with an awful lot of great gaming on the horizon. Stand out games from the show included Modern Warfare 2 (that game is the real deal), Forza MotorSport 3 (“the definitive racing game of this generation”), and Splinter Cell Conviction (Sam Fisher is back and more badass – and believable – than ever). These three games look absolutely outstanding in every regard; we can’t wait to hit the show floor and booth tours for hands-on time. Of course, what would be an E3 media event with out a few surprises. Perhaps the biggest of them all was the fact that Metal Gear Solid Rising is coming to the Xbox 360. Hideo Kojima snuck on stage at the event behind Don Mattrick and the crowd roared in excitement. So much for skipping out on this year’s event due to Swine Flu threats – Konami you’re so tricky! Netflix is also getting a major boost – expanding from 8 – 18 countries. Apparently, our UK friends – lucky S.O.B.s – are going to get streaming Sky television (cricket, EPL, etc.) too. Back Stateside and beyond, Netflix will now instantly stream without buffering via Instant On, subscribers can tweak their queue without having to use their computers, and movies will come to your tele in full 1080p HD. What’s more, a free music service will be incorporated as well as access to Facebook and Twitter directly through Xbox LIVE. The integration between all these services will be seemless and looks strangely compelling. Finally, Project Natal was announced at the event – this is Microsoft’s answer to motion controls. However, instead of waggling a remote around, players will simply act out their gaming in front of a very special camera. What’s so special? The camera has amazing facial, movement, and even voice detection capabilities that will allow gamers to do away with controllers entirely in a very natural way. That’s it for now. For a much deeper look, check out our Play-by-Play of the Microsoft E3 Media Event by clicking HERE . Also, be sure and check out all the latest trailers in our new video section – we’ve gone ahead and embedded the best E3 2009 clips right in the E3 section. |