The E3 2012 Thread

[Grimnebulin]

Back on topic, is anyone else looking at the next batch of 360/ps3 releases, and asking themselves whether Microsoft/Sony's next console might still be a while in coming? General consensus seems to expect something before the end of next year, but given what I've seen with Watch Dogs, The Last of Us and a few others, there's clearly still room for improvement and innovation in both consoles. And I doubt that they'll be pressurized into pushing their release schedule ahead by Nintendo. They're both in it for the long haul, and whether or not the Wii-U performs well at launch, the Wii's long term track record leaves much to be desired.

Time will tell!

[McDangerous]

I'll contend that notion Grim. The consoles need to be updated, that's just a plain fact. While recent titles like Gears of War 3 and Uncharted 3 have shown that the devs are skilled at optimizing graphics and physics for the aging hardware inside the current-gen consoles, there will be a limit to what's achievable. To be honest, we deserve some form of real progress. True, they can carry on making X360 and PS3 games for years and years to come, there's no denying that, but as all facets of technology evolve surely our consoles should as well?

I don't even really care about having 7970/GTX680 equaling performance from a console. Hell, if they could upgrade the hardware to run Gears 3, Arkham City or Battlefield 3 with just high settings at 1080p while maintaining 60fps I'd be happy. The fact remains that neither of the consoles can play any of its games at 1080p, or with any form of AF above 2x. That's a milestone that has been reached by the PC years ago already, and can be run with even the cheapest of rigs these days.

I get that having updated graphics won't make the games better, but if developers can squeeze God of War 3 from a 7600GT, imagine the mechanics and experiences they could accomplish with a modern day hardware configuration.

[nukehead]

However, the 'rift' between console and PC capabilities is nowhere near as to when the last generation was phased out. Its hell of an expense changing over from one generation to the next so I think that there will be at least another two, or even three years before we will see the switch.

I also love the end of a generations games. Where developers have to get creative with their use of limited resources. I don't think we need to rush.

[Grimnebulin]

I'll contend that notion Grim. The consoles need to be updated, that's just a plain fact. While recent titles like Gears of War 3 and Uncharted 3 have shown that the devs are skilled at optimizing graphics and physics for the aging hardware inside the current-gen consoles, there will be a limit to what's achievable. To be honest, we deserve some form of real progress. True, they can carry on making X360 and PS3 games for years and years to come, there's no denying that, but as all facets of technology evolve surely our consoles should as well?

I don't even really care about having 7970/GTX680 equaling performance from a console. Hell, if they could upgrade the hardware to run Gears 3, Arkham City or Battlefield 3 with just high settings at 1080p while maintaining 60fps I'd be happy. The fact remains that neither of the consoles can play any of its games at 1080p, or with any form of AF above 2x. That's a milestone that has been reached by the PC years ago already, and can be run with even the cheapest of rigs these days.

I get that having updated graphics won't make the games better, but if developers can squeeze God of War 3 from a 7600GT, imagine the mechanics and experiences they could accomplish with a modern day hardware configuration.

I'm not saying that we don't NEED them to launch the next gen, I'm just wondering whether what we've seen at E3 is indicative of the fact that they may stretch it out longer than anticipated. Granted, the gap between PS2 and PS3 was six years, and that's where we are now. Let's also not forget that the current gen has had a far larger focus on peripherals than any previous iterations, and we've yet to see Kinect or Move anywhere near the potential both devices offer. Sure, there's nothing to say that those peripherals won't slot in with the nex gen consoles comfortably, and honestly, I'm actually pretty sure both Microsoft and Sony will at least have announced their next machines before the end of next year, I just think it's an interesting discussion. Given how these devices are becoming less about the pure gaming experience, and more and more about social networking and holistic media, it would be fascinating to see exactly how their business models have changed.

[McDangerous]

I was really hoping that they'd announce the new consoles at E3, but now I'm hoping for next E3. Even just an announcement would be great, but I doubt that they'd announce the consoles more than a year before their actual release, as it would slow their current sales considerably, unless they market the current gen consoles in the same manner as Sony marketed the PS2, which is remarkably STILL selling consoles and titles.

I for one don't care for the inclusion of Twitter into my Xbox 360 or having to wave my hands around or shout at my console to get it to do something. Obviously both of the big players have seen how profitable the casual market has become, and I understand the business principle behind it, but at the end of the day the guys that keep them afloat aren't the gimmick buyers, it's us, the ones who regularly buy AAA titles and stick to tried-and-tested mechanics like the controller. From personal experience every single person I know who has bought an Xbox with Kinect, a PS move system or a Wii has gotten bored of it within two months, guaranteed.

[Grimnebulin]

I'd actually be interested in seeing the breakdown of sales. Considering that, afaik, the Wii still beats out the 360 and PS3 in terms of worldwide sales, which demographic do you reckon account for most of those sales? The gimmick buyers account for a larger percentage of sales more than you or I have any idea. Three years after the Wii was released, it experienced it's highest selling month. That happened to coincide with the release of the new Super Mario Bros, but nevertheless.

[Soulmantle]

Bill Gates many years ago discussed how a motion control system would revolutionize how we used our devices in our homes. He discussed how this would be incorporated into all our entertainment systems and would be user friendly and fun. They launched Kinect for the PC and now with Windows 8 practically any device is now a media hub. They have already mentioned cross platform compatibility with Windows having access to many of Xbox's features. Microsoft have beaten everyone to an untapped market and with a possible future for cloud based gaming systems one foot already in the door.

[Wesley]

E3 2012: Nvidia announces five new Tegra 3-Optimised games

While a lot of game publishers and dev teams have been hard at work on the E3 floor to showcase their products, a few people may or may not have missed the Nvidia announcement happening somewhere at the event (I wouldn't know where because I'm not there). Judging by what the company is doing to help Tegra 3 developers, its an astonishing achievement to even see how these titles handle on the tablet platforms.

Linky

Samsung had better get back on the that Tegra 3 horse immediately before they get left behind.

[Arrancar4]

The new NFS:Most Wanted don't look exciting at all. Oh lets be the best amongst your friends wtf? Most Wanted was all a bought dropping giant donuts on the popo and bringing those haters who look down on you down.

Ok multi-player amongst gamers online is cool and wot not, but damn it. I want to feel like a illegal racer bad ass, armed with giant donuts and ****. I wonder if your be able to customize your car. A cool feature would be that every time a player loses to you. You get to logo spray tag his car with your logo and the only way to get it off would be; for him to beat someone on the same ranking as you or higher.

No Mirror's Edge 2. This makes me a sad panda.

[Cyberninja]

Tomb Raider stuff:

People seem to be playing white knight in regards to attacking the idea that Tomb Raider is using a rape QTE to "build character" in Lara Croft. Why is this bad for a story? It's a profoundly negative experience, and its intention is to create a character who has gained immense emotional scars as well as positive experience - rather than have the whole thing as an "oh just another adventure".

I have several female friends who suffered horrid sexual abuse prior to their teens - and seeing a female character come out of this swinging is endearing to me, not insulting.

As Miktar pointed out, it may be an issue that the many members of the playerbase are strongly opposed to being forced to see "females with realistic problems", or some who are uncomfortable with having their perception of females being challenged.

I agree with you and Miktar.

It's strange. We talk about wanting the industry to "grow up", but as soon as we are confronted by a real world theme, people panic. "Oh! But it's so controversial!" Yes, it is. It's supposed to be. Given the context and scenario, it makes sense. It's a problem that someone in Lara's position could very well face. Which, in turn, makes the scene and game much more "real" and believable. I can certainly understand how some people might be offended by it. But one has to consider why it was done. Having a character face hardships, physical or emotional, not only helps build that character, but it also creates a bond, an emotional investment; a link between the player (audience) and that character. It makes you want to root for that character. Makes you want to see him/her succeed, and overcome those hardships, those obstacles. The result? Often, that character becomes much more interesting, more memorable because of it. What Crystal Dynamics are trying to do, in my opinion, is make Lara Croft more than just eye-candy. They are trying to solidify her place as a strong, independent, female character. A character who endures the hardships to become the heroine we all know and admire. Which I, personally, think is a good thing. Whether Crystal Dynamics can pull it off, is another story. But looking at the trailers, the game certainly looks fantastic.

TLDR: There is nothing wrong with giving a kick-ass heroine substance.

[Jodez]

Some details on Watch Dog's multplayer:

A second character cropped up alongside protagonist Aiden Pearce at the end of the Watch Dogs trailer... Turns out, that character was being controlled by producer Dominic Guay, who has offered more details about exactly what he was doing there.

“Online is the DNA of Watch Dogs. It’s super important to us. Our motto is everything is connected, and connection is power, ” said Guay in an interview with VG247. “So we couldn’t announce our game and not at least tease online, but it was a tease, I’ll be honest.

“So, basically, Jonathan [Watch Dog's director] was playing Aiden Pearce at the conference, and I was playing another character who hacked into him and had his own objectives, and we crossed paths – basically two players crossing paths with their own objectives. So, hopefully that gives you an idea of where we’re going with this. We definitely want to blend in mulitplayer, online, and singleplayer in a way that hasn’t been done before.”

http://beefjack.com/news/online-is-t...etails-teased/

[Kharrak]

Did someone mention Neverwinter?

http://kotaku.com/5916124/neverwinte...-and-zap-at-dd

[Cyberninja]

Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two:



Trine 2: Directors Cut:



Trine is such a pretty game. I'd love to see a Golden Axe remake, created in the same style. Glad to see Epic Mickey go multi-platform, as well. Now, if only Square Enix would port those Kingdom Heart games to the PSN and XBLA..

[Wesley]

/ignore post

[Mikit0707]

Isn't Angry Birds already on PS3? I'm pretty sure it's the most downloaded game on the PSN.

[Wesley]

Article taken down, moving right along!

[Zoop]

I get that having updated graphics won't make the games better, but if developers can squeeze God of War 3 from a 7600GT, imagine the mechanics and experiences they could accomplish with a modern day hardware configuration.

More or less this. People always seem to want to **** their pants the moment someone complains about graphics on consoles, and I think that's a bit elitist, tbh.

Technology is moving faster than ever. It's time the consoles started catching up. Graphics might not make the game, but anyone who denies that they add to the experience is fooling him/herself.

[pArkEr]

Technology is moving faster than ever. It's time the consoles started catching up. Graphics might not make the game, but anyone who denies that they add to the experience is fooling him/herself.

And if everyone just watched the bit of gameplay from Star Wars 1313, I think we'd all be in agreement here. My god, that game looks good. I had a similar reaction when I saw Uncharted 2 for the first time; my brain just froze, trying to comprehend what my eyes were seeing.

In fact, there's rumours going around that it's for the next-gen of consoles. I'm sure the consoles can pull it off, but I have a feeling the PC version's going to be something really groundbreaking, similar to the first Crysis.

[echo]

And if you've seen the Final Fantasy tech demo thing, take a look at the new Engine from Unreal:

[McDangerous]

Hoooohleeeeecraaaap! That's friggin' awesome! It's a pity they didn't give more details about the rig that was actually running that demo, but purely from a capability standpoint it looks fantastic!

Finally some decent in-game depth of field usage and tesselation that actually adds to the geometric value of the scene. I can't wait for the SDK to be released and this engine to be utilized in upcoming titles! I'd take a guess that required at least two GTX 580s to maintain the 30fps throughout the scene, specifically the part where the demon dude walks out of the building. Between the crazy tesselation on him and the building itself and the PhysX that was simulating the rocks falling and breaking around him it would have decimated a simpler graphics setup.