by AXIS_of_Reality
©2010 Alex Baldwin:
Another E3 has come and gone, bringing with it one the best selections of gaming gold we’ve ever been witness to. The downside of this is the three of us on the floor were quite frankly exhausted running from one publisher appointment to the next with almost zero downtime.
Now that we’ve got some breathing space before heading back to Australia, it’s about time to lay out our honest thoughts on each of the games we saw from each publisher. This isn’t a stats or features list – you can find that elsewhere. These are our impressions and feelings from each game, something difficult to formulate without being at E3.
It’s overwhelming trying to collect our thoughts the instant we see something on the floor, so now we’ve had a chance to settle and review each game in regards not just individually but in contrast to everything else we saw.
While each stand was overflowing with games to cover, we will only discuss the ones we either had a behind-closed-doors media showing of or actually got hands-on with. Thankfully this covers almost all significant games on the 360, and the occasional Wii, Ps3 and PC game.
We will also award the most promising game of each publisher the Green Light, for the one that left the biggest positive impression from the bunch.
So, to kickstart our publisher recap: EA.
Medal Of Honor
What we got: Hands-on multiplayer demo
Thoughts: A very promising reboot of the franchise that has waned against the competition of Call of Duty. Combat was not quite as fast and furious as Modern Warfare, but measured assaults against opposing teams proved effective and engaging.
While movement had an almost Killzone 2-esque quality to its fluidity, the controls were instantly responsive and I never felt hindered by them.
The only real downside I experienced was the tank handling in the behind-closed-doors objective map, which had a tendency to get stuck on objects and provide little benefit; an issue that can be easily fixed in the beta before release.
Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit Race
What we got: Developer-controlled multiplayer gameplay demo
Thoughts: Finally, the glory days of NFS could be coming back! With Criterion (the Burnout developers) at the helm this time the series looks to have been given a much-needed shake-up.
The most promising new addition is the wealth of social features that hooks into your friends list and provides information on all their stats across each map as well as real-time updates on their latest achievements with a single button press needed to jump in and challenge their score.
Visually it looked back up to date (no feeling of being rushed ala Undercover here) with the aggressive driving of Burnout thrown in. Could be a definite Live favourite, and we’re very optimistic of its success.
Dead Space 2
What we got: Developer-controlled singleplayer gameplay demo
Thoughts: We had mixed feelings about this one. Much of what we were shown gave the impression of being simply more of the same, although the increased variety in environments was welcome.
I personally am most worried about the large increase in combat, removing a lot of the atmosphere that defined the first.
Case in point: the player was almost always able to simply use the targeted slow-motion from the first game on almost every enemy, making it almost routine taking out each necromorph.
Still likely going to be a great game on release, but there was a constant feeling of missed potential throughout the demo.
Crysis 2
What we got: Developer-controlled singleplayer gameplay demo
Thoughts: The CryEngine 3 is a beast to be reckoned with. With the Xbox 360 demo pumping out visuals second only to Rage and a step up from Crysis, the destroyed first level of New York was a site to behold.
The suit powers are back and intact, and evidently easier to trigger on the fly, while the helmet HUD bounced and moved a la Metroid. The environment appeared quite open, although this may be simply an illusion as the developer seemed to follow a single path through it.
The only potentially worrying aspect was the sheer chaos of the scene that made it difficult to focus on what was happening or needed. I got the impression I’d have a much harder time figuring out where I was supposed to go or do to get there.
Bulletstorm
What we got: Hands-on singleplayer demo with Developer
Thoughts: My pick of the new IPs on show, BulletStorm looks set to be another winner from Epic.
The concept revolves around comboing kills and inventive massacres to push up your score through the use of an enemy-throwing whip/leash, kick, insane weapons and environmental hazards.
Case in point: you’ll receive 10 points for killing an enemy. You’ll receive 100 for whipping them into the air, shooting out their groin, shooting a rope-bound grenade to wrap around their neck and decapitate them before kick their body into a large-spiked cactus before it hits the floor. It is brutal, and a potential ban or Australia.
But wow is it fun: co-op and multiplayer (which they aren’t discussing yet, but I wrangled a confirmation out of) should be a blast. The only questionable point at the moment is repetition – whether it may get boring over time. But we can’t answer that until we receive the final game.
Portal 2
What we got: Pre-recorded singleplayer gameplay demo video
OXCGN Green Light Award
Thoughts: Valve could have so easily just dived into the level editor and churned out some new rooms for Portal 2, but being the consistently triple-A developer they are we’ve got something entirely new.
As the developer himself said, Portal was simply a trial of a new gameplay mechanic to see if it caught on. Portal 2 is the first true game, removing the linear room structure in favour or full environments in the destroyed facility of the first as GlaDOS is repairing it as you play (think walls rebuilding as you walk past, floor panels flying into place, etc).
New AIs that are equally scared of GlaDOS help out along the way, each with their own brand of humour that is much more prominent than the first game and new music integration. Think you’re a master of Portal?
Thank again, with the introduction of physical forces to portals such as vacuums and new use of liquids that can pain surfaces to alter the properties such as repelling (bounce off it) or low friction (slide super-fast).
This is the one we have to give our Green Light Award to, simply because even when seeking something to critique or question we couldn’t. This game is a guaranteed winner, and with the new co-op specific levels and modes should provide the longevity the first one couldn’t.
Overall EA Booth Thoughts
EA had an exceptionally strong showing this year, consistently rolling out promising games and proper franchise reboots for Need for Speed and Medal of Honor.
It’s no surprise they also had the most packed exhibit, with people from other developers and booths lining up for media showings, often fruitlessly as media were waved past the queues to fill each session.
©2010 Alex Baldwin:
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Filed under: 3rd Party Games, Console gaming, E3 2010, Editorial, Events, Game Impressions, Game Industry News, Industry News, New Game Information, New Xbox 360 Games, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 3rd Party Games, Xbox 360 Game Previews, Xbox 360 News Tagged: | Bulletstorm, Crysis 2, Cryteck, Dead Space 2, EA (Electronic Arts), EA Sports, Hot Pursuit Race, Medal of Honor, Need For Speed Hot Pursuit, Portal 2, RACE, Valve
