Right now hundreds of gaming journalists are being shuttled by bus from the Nintendo conference to the Sony one, hoping and pleading that they wake up along the way. If it’s anything like last year they’ll have a nice spread of food and an open bar- a little hair of the dog to get people going.
Nintendo didn’t do horribly this year but they were hardly the shining star that Microsoft was- let’s see what Sony has in store for us.
The events kick off at 11:00 PST/2:00 EST. Watch it live on Justin.tv or Gametrailers, those seem to be the best feeds. Keep checking back and hiting reload for more thoughts on the conference.
(1:59) – Folks are congregating in CHUD Chat to discuss this live!
(2:03) – Late start. Wonder how many people had to chug their beers outside because they don’t let them in their fancy theater.
(2:05) – 2 minutes to start, they’re telling everyone to sit down and turn off their cell phones. Also, refrain from applause because you’re at a GODDAMN PRESS CONFERENCE.
(2:10) – And there we go.
(2:11) – Montage of game footage set to a remix of Queen’s One Vision. Best choice of song? One God, one flesh, one true religion?
(2:13) – Jack Tretton takes the stage once again. Making a joke about news leaks. Sorry, PSP Go!
(2:14) – That’s one goddamn big screen behind him.
(2:16) – Talking about a few previously announced games, and the audience is clapping and cheering. (sigh)
(2:17) – They’re still committed to the PS2, even past their much-talked about 10 year plan. Glad to see them still supporting the ol’ boy.
(2:17) – Hundred new games on the way for PS2.
(2:18) – Wish my PS3 had backwards compatibility so I didn’t have to drag out my PS2 every time I wanted to play one!
(2:19) – Cheering and clapping for inFamous. All fanboys should be weeded out before these conferences and shipped off to a concentration camp.
(2:19) – Talking about Uncharted 2. Naughty Dog’s on stage., talking about the multiplayer.
(2:20) – The beta starts tonight at midnight! And now they’re going to show off some of the single player campaign, finally.
(2:21) – He’s climbing around the top of an old ruined hotel. Beautiful scenery, you can see for miles, bird flying around and mountains in the background. Fanboys cheering again.
(2:22) – Helicopter’s chasing them, and they’re on the run, trying to kill enemies on the way. Damn, this looks great, although of course it looks mostly the same. Considering how fantastic the first game is though, this is an obvious must-buy.
(2:24) Helicopter just blew up the floor underneath the building they were in, and it slid and smashed into another. Nate laughs “We… haha.. we were almost in that!” Love that the humor and great dialogue is still intact.
(2:26) – MAG, now. Live gameplay of the 256-player online shooter.
(2:27) Watching a demo with a ton of people. They’re showing off the map system, which gives you a look at all the people on the entire battlefield.
(2:28) Game looks somewhat plain. Finally getting into some combat, trying to take out a bunker with an explosive charge. The leader assigned an objective to the squad, and if they complete it they get bonus points.
(2:30) Helicopters came in commanded by real players, can be used as a mobile spawn point if anyone in your team dies. Now he’s calling in a cluster bomb.
(2:31) Still unsure of this one. Could be fun, could easily be a clusterfuck.
(2:32) PSP time. Could this be an announcement of a new PSP?!? (ahem)
(2:33) “PSP has no equal.” Except that other system with two screens that’s kicking your ass, but…
(2:33) Lilac colored Hannah Montanah PSP gets applause and cheers. Oh, you gamers.
(2:34) President Kaz Hirai on stage after ducking out last year because he was too busy playing Ridge Racer.
(2:34) (Riiiidge Raaacer!)
(2:35) – Just announced the PSP GO and pulled it out- he’s got a purty white one.
(2:36) Smaller screen, same operating system, but works as a nice big watch! (Clock on the screen.)
(2:37) – I really like the idea of the PSP-Go. I’m almost done with physical copies of my games, and it’d be so much easier if you could just have multiple games on your PSP.
(2:28) – New PSP feature called Sense Me, which “enhances your music experience” No details, though.
(2:39) – PSP Toolkit will be reduced by 80%! Wow. That’s a nice chunk of chance. Hopefully more developers will jump on it.
(2:40) – They’re going to try and release them both on the Playstation Store or at retail, for those of you who love having game cases cluttering up your houses.
(2:41) – Release date- November 1st. $249.99. Pricey.
(2:42) – That’s really goddamn pricey, actually, the more I think about it. Who’s going to buy that over a PSP Slim?
(2:43) – Dude from Polyphony Digital on stage- I’ll be damned if I can type his name correctly. Translator is writing down what he’s saying! Why the fuck? Isn’t this scripted? Just remember your lines.
(2:43) – He’s introducing Gran Turismo for PSP. 60 frames a second, so you can tune your shocks with shocking realism.
(2:44) – Can barely hear the translator but he’s talking about a lot of cars and tracks and whatnot. Sorry, I could care less about Gran Turismo.
(2:45) -They’re calling it a full-sized Gran Turismo experience. 800 cars, 45 tracks.
(2:46) – They’re showing it off this week, and now, a trailer. They’re all over the PSP-Go on this trailer. It is a pretty sexy looking system.
(2:48) – Game looks pretty amazing graphically, if that was in-game footage.
(2:50) – Hideo Kojima on stage. Kaz should have slapped him and screamed “Traitor!”
(2:52) – New PSP game- Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker. Stupid name. A “true sequel”
(2:53) – Trailer playing. Already talking about nuclear war. Four hour long cutscenes for your PSP!
(2:54) – You’re young Snake again (with an S carved on his chest?) in Columbia, killing folks and being all sneaky-like.
(2:54) – “The legendary missing link in the Metal Gear Saga!” claims the trailer. It definitely looks solid. (Sorry.)
(2:56) – Oh, it’s Peace Walker. Two words. And they just showed two Solid Snakes climbing into a cardboard box together and running off. Co-op?
(2:58) – And that’s it for Kaz. Tretton back on stage… talking about Resident Evil. A new one for the PSP?
(2:58) – Yep, brand new Resident Evil designed for PSP coming next year.
(2:59) – Now a video showing off PSP games coming this year. LittleBigPlanet (which looks just like the PS3 version), another Jak game, SOCOM, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, etc. No surprises here. Solid lineup, though.
(3:01) – PixelJunk Monsters! Such a perfect fit for the system. And was that Fat Princess?
(3:02) – And the games keep coming with Madden, the new Star Wars, and a bunch of girly games (Hannah Montana!)
(3:03) – Now talking about the Playstation Network. Get to the PS3 already!
(3:04) – Final Fantasy 7 is hitting the PSN today. But what about their PS3/PSP remakes? 50 more PS1 games coming this year.
(3:05) – Home is NOT the defacto standard for the gaming community. Most people who go into it walk around for 5 minutes, say “This is it?” and leave, never to return.
(3:05) – Still, they’re determined to keep making those goofy game rooms. Now a video showing off some of the things you can waste your life with in Home. Does anyone really enjoy this glorified chat room?
(3:06) – Also, if any of you bought a house or clothes or something in Home and paid real money for digital goods in a chatroom- I hope you fall on a knife.
(3:08) – Phew, done with that. Now they’re showing a video of upcoming videos for the PS3.
(3:09) – No surprises here either, and they showed off some of the same footage from Uncharted and MAG that was just demoed. But any footage of Brutal Legend is worth it.
(3:11) – Yeah, still nothing new. But they showed off footage from an apparent G-Force game! MUST BUY.
(3:13) – Ends with God of War 3, predictably.
(3:13) – New property from Rockstar North! Called AGENT, exclusive to PS3. That’s big.
(3:14) – No real details, though. That’s a bitch. On to Assassin’s Creed 2. Or “Assassin’s Creed’s 2” as Tretton just put it.
(3:16) – Demo. Now we’re exploring Desmond’s new ancestor, now in the Italian Renaisance. Crowds in the game seem much larger. He just took someone out with his usual hidden blade.
(3:16) – And by hidden blade I don’t mean cock.
(3:17) – Haha. He’s friends with Leonardo Davinci. Calls him Leo. No but really, you are, and he gives you his inventions like a flying machine. Showed off Desmond flying through the world on it while fireworks blast in the sky all around. This target can only be gotten to by flying in.
(3:19) – You can take out two people with two hidden blades at once. Pretty sweet.
(3:19) – Oh and now when you jump into a wagon full of hay from 10,000 feet in the air people notice and search for you.
(3:19) – Combat seems improved as well. When you kill the target the whole word falls apart, then comes back. Nifty effect.
(3:20) – Now he’s trying to escape using a smoke bomb, runnning off and jumping into the water. Pretty cool demo, but let’s hope there are a few new things to do in this damn repetitive series.
(3:21) – Assassin’s Creed 2 hits this Holiday season, as well as the PSP version.
(3:21) Square Enix time, and they’re showing off a new FF13 video.
(3:23) – Perfect time to check my email. Oooh, new Bethesda assets!
(3:24) – Alright, it looks pretty enough. But as much as a Final Fantasy maniac as I used to be, I think I’ve moved on. Way too much story shown in this trailer without any explanation.
(3:25) – Final Fantasy 14 footage now. Coming 2010. Come on, Square, really? PS3 exclusive too.
(3:26) – Spoiler alert- you play as a kid with silly hair and a big sword and fight monsters between watching ridiculous cutscenes.
(3:26) – Also, Chocobos.
(3:27) – Ahhh, it’s FFXIV Online to keep the FFXI fans happy.
(3:28) – Some new technology from the guy who made the Eyetoy being shown.
(3:29) – He looks like he’s holding a vibrator in his hand. With a glowing sphere on the end! hahaha it changes colors!
(3:30) – 1:1 controls. They’re showing off a demo now. Use the Playstation eye and you can put objects in your hand virtually. Looks like he’s holding a tennis racket, bat, stop sign.
(3:32) – It looks like he’s been hanging out with Roger Rabbit.
(3:33) – The controller changes colors depending on what you’re holding. Now they’re in FPS mode, and he’s running around shooting at a digital room.
(3:34) – Yep, another new controller aimed at the casual market. It seems really precise, though.
(3:35) – They went through a ton of demos- spraypainting, an RTS, now swordfighting. This looks like what the Wii Motion Plus is trying, but they’re doing a much better job of showing how precise it is.
(3:38) – Haha and they have an archery game that looks better than Nintendo’s as well. You use two controllers, one to aim the bow, the other to draw back the arrow.
(3:39) – Nifty presentation, but is it just another gimmicky controller? Let’s see when some games are in the works.
(3:40) – Now, LittleBigPlanet.
(3:40) – Disney costumes coming, so you can dress Sackboy as Jack Sparrow or as a pretty princess.
(3:41) – New game announced- Mod Nation Racers. All about Sony’s Play Create Share label that LBP started. In other words, play the miniscule number of levels that we give you, create tons of your own, and spend the rest of your time playing those.
(3:42) – So yeah it’s a cutesy racing game that allows you to design your own characters and cars.
(3:44) – Kart Racing game, really. Looks pretty stunning, actually. Graphics are definitely not simple like LBP. They have weapons too.
(3:45) – They’re creating a track. They are basically driving a car around and it’s making it automatically. And he can just enter a test mode and drive it.
(3:46) – Creating mountains, lakes, dirt roads, using a brush tool.
(3:49) – They’re getting rushed off stage, but they’re trying to finish their track. Including the sun position, water, and sheep.
(3:50) – It definitely looks fun, but I hope they include enough content for people who couldn’t care about making their own games.
(3:51) – The Last Guardian! Third of the Ico, Shadow of the Colossus trilogy. Showing off a trailer now.
(3:54) – Kid running from giant bird/wolf monster who’s taking out people left and right. Turns out that they’re friends. Aww. He climbs on top and looks off at the sunset.
(3:54) – Yeah, graphics are stunning but what would expect?
(3:53) – Wow, this looks like it has some serious potential. Lots of sections of the kid running around, climbing, solving puzzles by himself, but also sections when he’s clinging to the beast’s back and being carried around. End with them dozing off to sleep together.
(3:56) – Gran Turismo 5 trailer. Which means bathroom break for me!
(3:58) – God of War 3 time. They’re going to show off the first few minutes of the game in a live demo.
(3:59) – It’s the end of the story! Kratos will finally get a chance to take out Zeus as he’s sworn for a few games now.
(4:00) – Kratos slicing bad guys, grabbing, using a fire bow. Man oh man is this one good-looking game. Now he’s going after a Harpy.
(4:01) He grabbed onto her and rode her to a higher level, while slashing away. Harpy’s got boobs! And now some giant lava demon is rising from the city. Time for a boss fight, it seems.
(4:02) – Nevermind, it’s Helios, God of the Sun. He’s shooting fire at Kratos while Kratos rips apart enemies around him (literally)
(4:06) – They cut the demo short just as Chud took a crap. 20 minute demo being shown at E3. Lucky stiffs.
And that’s it for the liveblogs! Hope you’ve enjoyed them as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them- we’ve got a ton more coming on E3 this week, so keep an eye here.