E3 2007

[Lord Malakite]

Well, its that time of year again. Time for the one event that makes me feel warm inside with complete joy. No, its not Christmas. Its time for the Electronic Entertainment Expo.:thumbsup: Here is all the latest info straight from IGN.

Pre-E3 Announcements


The Playstation 3 (60GB model) price has been lowered to $499. The Playstation 3 (80GB Model) was introduced for a price of $599. In case you are wondering, the Playstation 3 (20GB Model) has been discontinued (since April). Unlike the 20 GB Model (which lacked some options available on the 60GB Model), both the 60GB and 80GB Models are identical (aside from the size of their hard drive space). The 80 GB Model will include the game MotorStorm as a pack-in.
Guitar Hero 3 Guitars for all console versions of Guitar Hero 3 are revealed.


Microsoft Conference


Viva Pinata: Party Animals trailer shown.
Mass Effect trailer shown. Game set for a November release.
New game known as Scene It? is introduced. New controller for the game is also introduced.
According to Peter Moore X360 has 5.6 million user install base in the US.
Naruto: Rise of a Ninja is exclusive to Xbox 360.
Xbox Live membership is now over 7 million.
Sonic the Hedgehog and Golden Axe now available for download.
There will be over 100 Xbox Live titles by the end of 2007.
Disney to bring films from their library to Xbox Live in HD for download.
Xbox 360 Elite is to release on August 24th in Europe.
PGR 4 available for sale in September.
A new Halo story to be told by Peter Jackson working in conjunction with Bungie.
Lost Odyssey trailer is shown.
Viva Pinata and Gears of War to come to PC. Gears will have new content (including a game editor) and will be available for the 2007 holiday.
Games for Windows Live support will allow co-op.
Games for Windows Live support will be built into Unreal Tournament 3.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare trailer shown. Exclusively to Xbox 360 there will be an online multiplayer beta. Details at charlieoscardelta.com.
Moore talks about Splinter Cell Conviction for Xbox 360.
Grand Theft Auto IV trailer is shown. Available October 16 in the US and October 19 in Europe. By Spring 2008 there'll be two expansion episodes with all new content, exclusive to Xbox 360.
Resident Evil 5 trailer partially shown. Full trailer available for viewing on the Xbox 360 Marketplace on July 26.
Assassin's Creed shown off. Available in November.
Halo 3 live-action short shown.
Halo 3 Special Edition Console launches in september worldwide.


Nintendo Conference


US players can expect another 140 titles for the DS and another 100 games for Wii between now and the holidays.
The final version of the Wii Zapper is introduced. The Nunchuk rests on back while the Wii remote is up front in a quasi-shotgun design.
Wii Zapper to work with Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles, Ghost Squad and Medal of Honor. For Medal of Honor "Up to 32 soldiers can combine in multiplayer mode," says Reggie.
Wii Zapper will be packaged this year along with a new Nintendo game made specifically for the device. Retail price for the Wii Zapper: $19.99.
Soulcalibur Legends for Wii, WWE for Wii, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games for Wii and Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword for DS are mentioned.
Dragon Quest Swords available early next year.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl available on December 3 in the US.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantam Hourglass for DS and Metroid Prime 3 Corruption for Wii are shown in demo form.
WiiWare games to begin next year. New channel called Check Mii Out revealed. Channel is all about creating and showing off Miis. There will be contests based on this functionality.
Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker will go online with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Mario Kart for Wii goes online in the first quarter of next year. Guitar Hero 3 also to have online function.
Wii Wheel for Mario Kart revealed.
Brain Age 2 will be here on August 2 and Super Mario Galaxy will be released on November 12.
Wii Fit is introduced. It uses a scale-like device that has to be balanced in different zones depending on the circumstances. People are doing push-ups on the device. Yoga. Dancing. Soccer demo for Wii Fit shown. You have to lean forward and head-butt balls as they fly toward you. Dancing game. A body mass index is shown for the game based on measurements from all sorts of game data. There are more than 40 activities in the game. Wii Balance Board is the official name of the scale-like device. It can measure your weight. It also measures how your balance shifts as you stand on it.


Sony Conference


80GB PS3 Model w/ MotorStorm and the price drop for the 60GB PS3 Model are mentioned.
New PSP Model announced. 19% slimmer, 33% lighter, battery life longer, and expanded video capabilities. Available in September.
Kaz Hirai pulls up video of Spider-Man 2 on his PSP, presses a button, and the video suddenly appears on giant screen behind him. Part of the "display" function. Says that you can do the same thing with games, photos, and whatever else is on your PSP. New PSP will also allow you access PS3 and PC hard drives from anywhere in the world thanks to new connectivity options.
Announcement of a new "Ice Silver" PSP that will be offered in the "PSP Entertainment Pack." It will come with a 1GB Memory Stick, Daxter, and a UMD movie: "The Family Guy Frickin' Sweet Collection". It will be released for $199 US in September.
PSP Star Wars Entertainment Pack announced. System is white with Darth Vader's image on back. It will ship with Star Wars Battlefront Renegade Squadron in October for $199.
PSN: There have been 20 million downloads on the online service since launch.
"Echochrome" (a black and white puzzler with an Escher-like design) for PSN, Blu-Ray, and PSP formats shown.
WipEout HD and Pain shown.
Warhawk and SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation shown. New SOCOM footage, side-by-side with PS2 games, confirms Blu-ray and PSN simul-release.
Announcement that the Home Square will replace the indoor space that people see now as the main hub. Harrison's avatar is walking around the area exploring -- cuts to video of new spaces coming soon. Japanese gardens, cliff overlooks, lakesides, and ski lodge locations are among those shown.
Photos taken via phone will appear in Home automatically, it seems. Home also has a social networking feature that allows you to send pictures to friends for blogging and other things. Players can launch any game from Home (regardless of whether its Blu-ray, PSN, or whatever). Shows this feature off by launching a worldwide game of MotorStorm in a new map called "Eagle's Nest" that will be available next month.
SingStar is shown off.
Sony expects to ship 11 million PS3s by year's end. Jack Tretton also touts Blockbuster's announcement of carrying "Blu-ray only" in its stores.
NCSoft has signed with Sony to create exclusive content for the PS3 (based on original IPs and all-new ones). Ubisoft also announces that Haze will be coming to the PS3 exclusively.Haze trailer plays. Emphasizes the ability to play both the good guys and the bad guys and the option to "Play Dead" when on the Rebel side.
Sony announces a multi-stage deal with Midway and Epic. Unreal Engine 3 is being optimized for PS3 and that Unreal Tournament 3 will be a PS3 exclusive this year. As an added bonus, and will support user-mods created by PC users. New trailer shown. Expected in November.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots shown off. "I safely made it to E3," says Kojima. "The game is celebrating its 20th anniversary this month -- and while I've been on the series for 20 years, this game will be the grand finale for the series. The story of Snake will end and this will be my last take on this series. All the mysteries, plotlines, and other story points will be revealed." Kojima continues, "I'm putting everything I have into MGS4 and today I brought it with me. What we're showing you isn't a trailer, it's the game." Confirmed for early 2008 and it will be released worldwide simultaneously. A live demo to be shown off next week in Tokyo.
Video of Brain Allgeir from Insomniac talking about Ratchet Future.
Folklore trailer, Heavenly Sword trailer, NBA '08 trailer, LittleBigPlanet trailer and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune trailer shown.
Phil announces new Sucker Punch game. The premise is that you can become a super hero or an Anti-hero. Official title is "Infamous." Electricity powers and levitation shown by the main hero and it looks awesome -- coming exclusively to PS3 in 2008.
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue coming to PS3 soon as a precursor to GT5. It will have full online capabilities and looks CG.

[JediTricks]

E3's been ruined I think due to this "no more public!!!" thing and moving it to small venues in Santa Monica. Granted, it was a total debacle, but this wasn't the answer.


I loved Sony's PS3 price drop hitting news yesterday, as soon as I read what was going on I laughed my *** off, they're not lowering a damn penny, they're just chucking the small harddrive stripped down version in exchange for the one they can't get rid of. $500 is still stupidly overpriced. And $100 more for 20 more gig and a game? Ridiculous! Folks are buying 500gig harddrives for $100 now and they're including just 80 gig?


Xbox360's numbers seem pretty low after almost 2 years. And now with that big warranty extension debacle... I doubt there will be an 8th generation console for MS without a miracle.

The Disney HD thing is smart as hell though, I think if they can get that marketed right they can really make something out of that for parents with HD TV. I hear the Disney library available is limited though.

I hate to say it, but I may buy an Xbox 360 after the upcoming price drop for GTA IV.



Got a pic of the Nintendo Wii Zapper? I can't picture that in my head. But having one controller in front and the other in back is ingenious for all-shooting games, using data from both it can pinpoint where the mofo is aiming via triangulation. Of course, for games where it's zapper + controller, I dunno about that noise.


PSP redux sounds pretty sad really. My guess is sales flatlined and they need to kick it in the duffer. Should advertise it better and drop the price rather than tweak it. Longer battery life is good though.

Sony moving 11 mil units by years end seems implausible, stores aren't moving the current consoles now and the numbers are what, a 5th of that?

[Lord Malakite]

I loved Sony's PS3 price drop hitting news yesterday, as soon as I read what was going on I laughed my *** off, they're not lowering a damn penny, they're just chucking the small harddrive stripped down version in exchange for the one they can't get rid of. $500 is still stupidly overpriced. And $100 more for 20 more gig and a game? Ridiculous! Folks are buying 500gig harddrives for $100 now and they're including just 80 gig?

I'm glad I'm not the only who laughed after seeing that.:D

Xbox360's numbers seem pretty low after almost 2 years. And now with that big warranty extension debacle... I doubt there will be an 8th generation console for MS without a miracle.

I think they'll stick around. Even if Gates is no longer the head rich guy in the world (that cell phone guy from Mexico just overtook him) his pockets are still deep enough for another go around. Besides that, I think Microsoft is still in a better position than Sony is at the moment. I'd be slightly more worried about them.

The Disney HD thing is smart as hell though, I think if they can get that marketed right they can really make something out of that for parents with HD TV. I hear the Disney library available is limited though.

There was a list for all the Disney movies currently available for download. It seems IGN removed it though. I'll see if I can track it down elsewhere.

After some looking I couldn't find a complete list. What I can tell you though is that there are 35 movies total (all available right now for download). Aladdin, Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Armageddon are among the selections. The agreement with Disney-ABC Domestic Television will also allow 360 owners to rent films on demand as they become available from Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Miramax Films and Hollywood Pictures.

I hate to say it, but I may buy an Xbox 360 after the upcoming price drop for GTA IV.
Sounds like a good deal if your new 360 doesn't crap out on you after a day.;)

Got a pic of the Nintendo Wii Zapper? I can't picture that in my head. But having one controller in front and the other in back is ingenious for all-shooting games, using data from both it can pinpoint where the mofo is aiming via triangulation. Of course, for games where it's zapper + controller, I dunno about that noise.

One picture of the Wii Zapper coming up.

Sony moving 11 mil units by years end seems implausible, stores aren't moving the current consoles now and the numbers are what, a 5th of that?

You know how it is. All 3 first parties have to show off like they're number one and invincible.:D

[JediTricks]

Sounds like a good deal if your new 360 doesn't crap out on you after a day.;)Well, at least I'm covered for $1 billion. :p I hadn't heard any horror stories of the 360, not like the PS3 in its first month, so I was surprised to hear it was a real problem.

One picture of the Wii Zapper coming up.I'd say "thanks" but then I saw it... wow, could that look any more WTF? Plus, that doesn't look like it'll be comfortable to use 1-handed.

You know how it is. All 3 first parties have to show off like they're number one and invincible.:DYeah, but come on, they had to know claiming 11 mil was just silly.

[Lord Malakite]

Well, at least I'm covered for $1 billion. :p I hadn't heard any horror stories of the 360, not like the PS3 in its first month, so I was surprised to hear it was a real problem.

It is more commonly known as the "red ring of death". Some people have been unfortunate enough to go through as many as 7 to even 11 consoles since the 360 has launched. Some repair centers have even refused to repair that particular 360 problem anymore simply due to the volume of incoming systems ovewhelming them on a daily basis.

I'd say "thanks" but then I saw it... wow, could that look any more WTF? Plus, that doesn't look like it'll be comfortable to use 1-handed.

I'll give you that. I'm still more fond of the prototype from last year myself. Still, it might turn out better than it looks. I can't really tell for certain until I get a chance to give it the hands on treatment.

[Mad Slanted Powers]

I've been watching some of the coverage on G4. I don't have any of the new systems, and I've not been inclined to spend the money on a new system. However, a lot of cool looking games that they are showing. Rockband looked kind of fun. I liked the look of Medal of Honor Airborne, Assassin's Creed, and Fracture. Perhaps I'll consider getting a 360 at some point.

[Lord Malakite]

Alright, here are some pics of the updated PSP to be released later this year, including the Darth Vader themed PSP (credit for the pics go to gamingbits.com).

[JediTricks]

It is more commonly known as the "red ring of death". Some people have been unfortunate enough to go through as many as 7 to even 11 consoles since the 360 has launched. Some repair centers have even refused to repair that particular 360 problem anymore simply due to the volume of incoming systems ovewhelming them on a daily basis.That's crazy! I saw a pic of it on Wikipedia, that's pretty lame. Any clues to what's causing it?

I'll give you that. I'm still more fond of the prototype from last year myself. Still, it might turn out better than it looks. I can't really tell for certain until I get a chance to give it the hands on treatment.No way, you're agreeing with me tentatively about a Wii issue? :p

Alright, here are some pics of the updated PSP to be released later this year, including the Darth Vader themed PSP (credit for the pics go to gamingbits.com).Thanks for posting. The smaller PSP looks a little more asymmetrical but it's all screen which is rad. I expected Vader to be on the back a little more though.


Any news on the 360 price drop?

[Lord Malakite]

That's crazy! I saw a pic of it on Wikipedia, that's pretty lame. Any clues to what's causing it?

The most common cause for the "red ring of death" seems to be the use of an insufficient sized thermal pad and a half-arsed thermal paste job on the aluminum GPU heatsink and copper CPU heatsink dies which in turn leads to a catastrophic thermal interface material (TIM) failure and causes the GPU to overheat.

No way, you're agreeing with me tentatively about a Wii issue? :p

Is that really such a suprise? :D Just because I tend to agree with Nintendo's ideas most of the time doesn't mean I'm some sort mindless puppet that just goes with the flow. If my opinion just happens to go with the flow thats great and if it doesn't, so be it. I make my opinions on how I see things, not because its what Nintendo wants. :p And right now my opinion is to take a "wait and see" attitude with the new Wii Zapper design until I try it out.

Going with the flow though, I do see great potential with the new Wii Balance Board.:D

Any news on the 360 price drop?

No news on a 360 price drop as of yet and for the time being anyway it seems that there won't be one. Microsoft did take enough time with IGN to scoff at PS3's so called price drop though.

[Lord Malakite]

Here is a nice bit of news from IGN about Sony. :whip: It seems the PS3 price drop is only temporary as Sony has now anoounced that they are going to discontinue the 60GB Model.

Today GamesIndustry.biz received confirmation from David Reeves, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, that the 60GB model will not be continued in Europe. But what about North America?

Senior Public Relations Manager for Sony Computer Entertainment America, Patrick Seybold, has substantiated this news to IGN: the 60GB will not be continued in North America, either. In effect, this means the $100 price drop is only temporary.

"The 60GB PS3 will be available in North America for $499 until supplies of that unit are depleted," Seybold said. "We have ample inventory to meet the immediate needs of consumers in this territory for several months to come. We won't be making any further announcements regarding our PS3 model hardware strategy in North America until the 60GB model is exhausted and market conditions are evaluated."

Sony has also stated that they will discontinue the original PSP Model (rather than reducing the price) when the redesigned PSP Model hits store shelves in September.

[Mad Slanted Powers]

I enjoyed the Halo theme performed by Corporeal at the Microsoft press conference. For those that missed it, I found it on Youtube here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBbmgVmZ6SI). I also checked out their music on their Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/corporealmusic) page (actually they appear to have at least three MySpace sites), and liked the one song that I have listened to so far. The sites seem a bit sluggish though when trying to scroll down the page.

[JediTricks]

The most common cause for the "red ring of death" seems to be the use of an insufficient sized thermal pad and a half-arsed thermal paste job on the aluminum GPU heatsink and copper CPU heatsink dies which in turn leads to a catastrophic thermal interface material (TIM) failure and causes the GPU to overheat.Oh, it's still overheat? I thought they "fixed" that when all the demo models were failing before the original launch. I remember the initial demo models and the launch units had problems, but those stories quickly died off.


Is that really such a suprise? :D Just because I tend to agree with Nintendo's ideas most of the time doesn't mean I'm some sort mindless puppet that just goes with the flow. If my opinion just happens to go with the flow thats great and if it doesn't, so be it. I make my opinions on how I see things, not because its what Nintendo wants. :p And right now my opinion is to take a "wait and see" attitude with the new Wii Zapper design until I try it out.

Going with the flow though, I do see great potential with the new Wii Balance Board.:D"Obey me, Wario!"


No news on a 360 price drop as of yet and for the time being anyway it seems that there won't be one. Microsoft did take enough time with IGN to scoff at PS3's so called price drop though.Dang, I had heard industry rumors there'd be a price drop, I would buy one if it were $50 cheaper. Everybody should scoff at the phoney PS3 price drop.


I'm not surprised that the PSP v1 is being discontinued in favor of the v2, it'd just be competition for itself. Getting rid of the $500 model PS3 is a disaster though.

[Lord Malakite]

Oh, it's still overheat? I thought they "fixed" that when all the demo models were failing before the original launch. I remember the initial demo models and the launch units had problems, but those stories quickly died off.

Nope, it isn't only the launch systems (http://www.gwn.com/news/story.php/id/13140/Xbox_360_Failures_Explained.html). Some people come up with their own simple (http://www.xbox-scene.com/xbox1data/sep/EEuEAykVuZXMIPEaSP.php) and quick fixes (http://arstechnica.com/journals/thumbs.ars/2006/6/16/4353) for the problem, provided you are good at working with electronics.

Getting rid of the $500 model PS3 is a disaster though.
At least its somewhat amusing. Who would have thought Sony was really this ignorant/arrogant?

[JediTricks]

First off, who would have thought cooling pipes work? I hate those things, they're just a bad idea because they have limited ability to absorb heat, and nowhere to put it efficiently. Then to see how badly they laid out the main systems, that's just embarassing! I wonder if a $30 laptop cooling pad under the unit could reduce the risk of failure. Also, I suspect people aren't placing it optimally for cooling - most folks probably stuff it over a DVD player or TIVO in some closed-off cabinet, maybe even shove it in sideways (heat rises so sideways units will trap heat in the machine longer) - but home electronics shouldn't reasonably require that much care anyway.


Sony's been heading downhill like this for a while, but this has got to be the stupidest move yet, at $600 a pop they're not going to move 11 million units in 5 YEARS let alone 5 MONTHS.

[Lord Malakite]

First off, who would have thought cooling pipes work?
Microsoft apparently.

I wonder if a $30 laptop cooling pad under the unit could reduce the risk of failure.
It couldn't hurt.

Also, I suspect people aren't placing it optimally for cooling - most folks probably stuff it over a DVD player or TIVO in some closed-off cabinet, maybe even shove it in sideways (heat rises so sideways units will trap heat in the machine longer) - but home electronics shouldn't reasonably require that much care anyway.
Its possible I suppose. It seems a bit questionable though with as many self proclaimed "electronics gurus" also experiencing the problem. With their extra knowledge on the matter you'd think they would have taken extra measures to prevent such accidental overheating scenarios that you've listed JT.

Sony's been heading downhill like this for a while, but this has got to be the stupidest move yet, at $600 a pop they're not going to move 11 million units in 5 YEARS let alone 5 MONTHS.
Yeah, I think they are about to experience that lesson first hand.

[JediTricks]

Xbox 360 price drop was announced a few days ago - always listen to JT folks. :p The core system drops a whopping $20, the premium system a nice $50, and the elite a laughable $30.

The $20 core drop vs $50 premium drop is making the premium tempting - which is NOT good for a cheapskate like me. :greedy:

[Mad Slanted Powers]

Also I heard yesterday that the Premium system now has an HDMI output port. I don't know much about what it's used for, but the new ones are going to have it. There is supposed to be an HDMI logo on the box of the ones that have it. Here is a link (http://www.gamespot.com/news/6176397.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=newstop&tag=newstop;title;1).

I didn't notice it in the article, but when I heard about it on Attack of the Show, I think they said it wouldn't have an HDMI cable.

[General_Grievous]

The $20 core drop vs $50 premium drop is making the premium tempting - which is NOT good for a cheapskate like me. :greedy:

Go for it. It's the best game console I've ever owned. :thumbsup:

[Lord Malakite]

always listen to JT folks.
But the last time I did that I was deported to Mexico.:(

[JediTricks]

But the last time I did that I was deported to Mexico.:(
That was my second cousin, JuanTarde. ;)


$350 is no chump change though, as good as the console may be, it's hard to know how to justify that much coin, especially when A) I'm no fan of Microsoft; and B) I don't really have the TV or sound system to make it worth its while; and C) I've been cutting my gaming time down considerably. But yeah, I am thinking about it now - especially since Sony priced themselves right out of my wallet.

[Mad Slanted Powers]

Before the price cut, I saw that Costco had a bundle that included an extra controller and I think Forza 2 for $499. If they marked the price down there as well, that would probably be the route I would take. I too am not eager to spend that sort of money on a system considering how much less my X-Box and N64 were.

[JediTricks]

Yeah, that's the thing for me, I've not paid over $200 for a console since the Neo Geo, and as awesome as that thing was, it wasn't worth my $500+.