Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference is set to kick off at 10:30 PST (1:30 EST), and there are a ton of options to check it out for yourself. It’s being broadcast on TV via G4TV, but if you’re stuck behind a computer you can see at G4TV.com or Gamespot as long as it doesn’t dump out. This is the official start to E3, a conference that will hopefully show off some big tricks up their sleeves.
I’ll be bringing you this liveblog for snap reactions and jokes to their announcements, and hope that you’ll all congregate in CHUD Chat to talk it all over! Just keep hitting refresh on this page to see the newest writings. Kicking off things at 10:20 PST!
(1:19 EST) – Justin.tv is also showing off the conference here.
(1:28) Kicking things off with the Beatles: Rock Band game. Dig the animation style.
(1:31) – Harmonies confirmed for the game? Awesome. Three singers.
(1:31) – Someone tell me the Blue Meanies are in the game. Some kind of big Apple peripheral that you can smash people’s heads with.
(1:33) – Actual game looks fairly realistic, which is a bummer. Cartoony style would have been fun for this one.
(1:34) – Never-before-heard studio tracks on the way. 10 of them! Everything remastered. This game’s going to be huge.
(1:36) – Where’s our full set list? Daytripper, Taxman, I Am The Walrus, Back in the USSR shown.
(1:37) – Full Abbey Road album available as DLC after launch. Also All You Need is Love available exclusively on Xbox, all proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders.
(1:38) – DLC is cool and all, but how about just throwing it in the fucking game?
(1:39) – Star Power! Dead musician’s wives!
(1:39) – And Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr! Ok, that’s pretty awesome.
(1:40) – How crazy lucky is Harmonix? They get The Who to perform for them, the Beatles to fly out for a friggin’ press conference. Good job, guys.
(1:41) – They sure didn’t seem to know what they were supposed to be doing there.
(1:43) – Ten World Premieres coming up.
(1:43) – Tony Hawk is there for Tony Hawk Ride, with his silly looking fake skateboad controller.
(1:44) – It’s full of technology!
(1:44) – It’s just like skateboarding, only not!
(1:45) – Trailer playing. Full of skaters talking about what skateboarding is- freedom, catching air, flying- and then trying it out on a plastic board.
(1:47) – thride.com now up, should have videos.
(1:48) – Modern Warfare 2 trailer showing again. God I love that trailer.
(1:50) – Folks from Modern Warfare 2 up on stage.
(1:50) – Live demo! In the snowy mountains.
(1:50) – Are you Roach? Could be. You’re grappeling alongside a mountain, climbing up. Animation looks great, looks like you’re controlling your hands.
(1:52) – Incredibly cinematic as usual. Curious about how much of this you control, however.
(1:52) – Skipping to a combat section.
(1:53) – Your gun has a radar detector straight out of Aliens. Nice for the landscape- the snow makes it hard to see things.
(1:54) – They didn’t pick the most interesting section to show off. Now a third, later place, big gunfight near an airfield. Those planes blow up real nice.
(1:55) – Yeah, it looks like Modern Warfare. No real surprises here, let’s see if they end it off with something big.
(1:56) – Yep, there we go. Snowmobiling section. You can shoot your pistol at enemies while flying down the mountain, evading tress. Holy crap did that look fun.
(1:57) – Two map packs exclusively for Xbox 360. CLAP YOU MONKEYS, CLAP
(1:58) – Final Fantasy people on stage, with translator.
(1:58) – The translator looks like she wants to kill herself. “FINAL FANTASY IS REALLY POPULAR AND PEOPLE LIKE IT”
(1:59) – Final Fantasy 13 running on Xbox 360 for the first time ever. Everyone else sick of the franchise or is it just me?
(2:00) The names of the heroes are Lightning and Subs. And they wonder why people rip on JRPG’s. Battle looks nice enough, I suppose. You have four active time gauges this time.
(2:01) They summoned Odin, who destroyed the boss pretty quickly. No four legged horse? Lame.
(2:02) Spring 2010 release for FFXIII
(2:03) Bunch of exclusives being announced. Uh-oh, here comes Cliffy B (Clifford) and Epic Games.
(2:03) Their first Xbox Live Arcade title.
(2:03) Poor guy’s mic isn’t working. He just got handed another one that isn’t working either. EPIC FAIL
(2:05) Shadow Complex is the game. 3rd person game side scrolling game, with a huge map almost like a Metroidvania. Looks pretty awesome, actually.
(2:05) Game glitched and character got stuck in midair, but it’s coming this Summer.
(2:06) – Next up, Joy Ride for Xbox Live Arcade. Looks like a Looney Tunes racer. Set in a desert that the Roadrunner should be beepbeeping across.
(2:07) – Huh, free game that seems to use avatars. Of course there will be stuff to buy if you want. Free’s always good, at least.
(2:08) – Mysterious new trailer. Crackdown?
(2:09) – Yep, Crackdown 2 trailer. Not much shown as far as gameplay, but there’s monsters now? Hm.
(2:09) – Next up- another zombie game.
(2:10) – LEFT 4 DEAD MOTHERFUCKING 2!
(2:10) – Outside, in the light! Chainsaws! New weapons! Holy crap… really didn’t expect that so soon.
(2:10) – Now, another Splinter Cell game with a younger Sam Fischer. I liked him better when he was old.
(2:11) – Less cinemas, more gameplay. please. Although any Valve trailers will be greatly appreciated.
(2:12) – Splinter Cell: Conviction being demoed. Starts off with a fight in a bathroom, screaming about finding out who killed his daughter. Looks like you can break him into everything around the room.
(2:15) – Game looks cool enough, but who isn’t sick of stealth games by now. I dig the way that objectives and clips pop up on the scenery, though.
(2:17) – Lots of explosions, action, but I can’t stop thinking about L4D2. There was an axe there, wasn’t there?
(2:18) – Splinter Cell Conviction is an Xbox 360 exclusive.
(2:18) – Racing game time. Forza Motorsport 3. Yawn.
(2:19) – Spoiler- Forza has cars that drive really fast. They have a car on stage to show off that there are cars in the game. I guess.
(2:20) – They’ve got some big balls on them, considering how often they’re saying that it’s the “definitive racing game of this generation”. Graphics are nice and all but really?
(2:21) – “Biggest racing game of this generation” Stop it, already.
(2:22) – HAHAHAHA! Trailer showing car painters and how much you can paint the cars in the game. So exciting!
(2:23) – You can shoot your own little videos of crazy stunts and set it to horrible music.
(2:24) – I want to stab this guy with my elbow. He made another “of this generation” reference.
(2:25) – Halo: Stupid Name (ODST) is showing. You’re in a drop ship falling down to a planet while people yell. You get his with an emp weapon and start falling.
(2:26) – Set right before Halo 3- you’re a rookie who’s seperated from his team.
(2:27) – “An ODST has access to weapons that Spartans don’t.” Does that make sense? You’ve got silenced weapons and a visor.
(2:28) – I hate how game journalists whoop and scream during these things. Act a little fucking professional, will ya?
(2:29) – Really no surprises here. Game looks improved from Halo 3, though. Nice explosions, and there’s a co-op mode called Firefight.
(2:31) – September 22nd is the release date
(2:31) – Top secret Bungie Project being revealed.
(2:32) – Teaser trailer for Halo- Reach. “Falls 2010.” They sure like horrible names.
(2:32) – When you buy ODST you get into the Reach multiplayer beta. No other details.
(2:33) – All in-game footage for Alan Wake! Final-fucking-ly!
(2:34) – He’s a writer whose creations are coming true- supernatural menace in a cabin in the woods. Hmm!
(2:35) – Lighting is pretty awesome although that’s one helluva strong flashlight. You see a friend getting dragged away from you by some creature but can’t save him in time.
(2:36) – Things are moving around by themselves, trees are falling down in the forest. It’s getting darker. Looks like a really creepy game. Now some crazy loggers or something are coming after you. Dodging an axe with bullet time, blowing them away with your shotgun.
(2:37) – The light keeps the creatures back! He started a generator that turned on a lamppost and warded them off.
(2:38) – Pulled a flare out in slow motion which hurt them and ept them away! Still looking for his buddy Rusty in a house, but then a bulldozer comes and smashes it…. looks like it’s about to knock it off a cliff.
(2:39) – Alan Wake hits Spring 2010! Awesome.
(2:40) – Partnership with last.fm, which will be available on Xbox Live.
(2:40) – It’s going to be free, available later this year.
(2:41) – Netflix will let you find movies on Xbox Live, instead of having to go on PC. And Skytv bringing Instant Watch to UK.
(2:43) – Xbox Live is relaunching their Video Marketplace. 1080p HD TV that streams. No discs, no downloads, no delays.
(2:44) – They’re showing off Live Party, which allows you to watch movies and shows with friends (and friend’s avatars) online, almost MST3K style.
(2:45) Felicia Day from the Guild is up, showing off Facebook for Xbox 360. Eh.
(2:47) – She’s so nervous and cute. Showing off the photo compatibility, and now Facebook Connect, which lets you share screenshots to your profile from your games.
(2:48) – Twitter’s coming to Xbox Live as well! Damn Microsoft! It uses avatars and you can post from the Xbox, for whatever reason.
(2:50) – That sure is a lot of social networking for the Xbox.
(2:51) – Metal Gear Solid for Xbox. That was the big announcement? What a letdown.
(2:51) – The next game, Metal Gear Solid Rising is “currentry” on the way to Xbox 360. But what’s this? No Solid Snake?
(2:52) – Is that Raiden with a metal jaw? Ugh. “Raiden is back.” Sounds like a threat. LIGHTNING BOLT ACTION
(2:54) – Motion controller being announced? Not exactly…
(2:55) – “You are the controller!” You fight invisible opponents in your room, you drive cars by placing by holding your hands up and doing air driving. Somehow looks stupider than using a plastic instrument.
(2:56) Facial recognition, voice commands. You can scan in objects and use them in games.
(2:57) Women can shop for clothes with it!
(2:58) Play movies with voice recognition, play trivia games with it. Definitely looks cool, but how will it work?
(2:58) Project Natal is their codename. Sensor that recognizes 3d movement. Will work with every Xbox 360 ever made, except the ones that broke.
(3:00) Spielberg’s here, talking about making games as approachable as every other media.
(3:01) Technology recognizes “your entire being.” I’m scared- hold me, Steven.
(3:02) Spielberg’s off. Just excited about the possibilites, but didn’t have anything to show off.
(3:02) Creative director of Project Natal is up to show off how the technology works.
(3:03) The dashboard recognized who he was and logged him in automatically. Wow. Full motion body control- his avatar is mimicking him. Sorta.
(3:04) – You don’t need a controller to sift through the options, move your hand left and right or up and down to go through menu.
(3:04) – Tech demo, a 3d breakout, where you have to hit the balls with your shadowy avatar. You can move any way you want- the technology is insane. It’s not just limbs, you can run forward to smash things harder, move around your whole living room.
(3:06) – Technology allows them to track multiple people as well, for multiplayer games.
(3:07) – Next demo is Paint Party. You can paint with friends. He asked for light blue paint, and was given it. Throws it on with his hands. “White!” He gets white paint. Painting some happy little clouds.
(3:10) – Alright, this got boring real fast.
(3:12) – Peter Molyneux is up to hype something up to unrealistic expectations. Looks like Lionhead’s been working on it for three months now.
(3:13) – Holy crap this is creepy. Talking to character called Milo who recognizes the player, can identify emotions and understand questions.
(3:15) – The boy threw her goggles to look into the water, and there’s a reflection of her in the water. She’s splashing the water, trying to grab fish. It really looks like she’s interacting with a video game character. This is absolutely amazing.
(3:16) – The player handed a piece of paper to the boy in the game! Drew a picture, handed it over, and it was in the game. Stunning. The tech demo is being shown off at E3 this week behind closed doors. Russ! Get on that!
(3:18) – Looks like this is it- just a recap of the announcements so far.
(3:19) – Yep, that’s it. Good luck, Nintendo and Sony, you’re going to need it.
Keep an eye here as I upload as many trailers as I possibly can! Thanks for reading.