So its that time again. Time for raised expectations, hype beyond all sane level, and crushed dreams for fanboys everywhere. Yes, that’s right, E3 is here. So here’s a Pulse Cannon Special Edition (special because I actually wrote one). Anyway, here’s some of the big news:
You hear that sucking sound? That’s both the sound of Microsoft running to the bank laughing and the sound of the gaping headwound Sony must have experienced sometime after the launch of the Playstation 2. Two versions of the PS3, one costing $499 which will come with a 20 gig hard drive and won’t have Memory Stick, SD, or Compact Flash inputs, Wi-Fi or any HDMI. The second will cost a whopping $599 and be the full unit, with everything Sony ever promised, including a 60 gig hard drive. Sony also unveiled the replacement for the Boomerang, and it looks stunningly like a Dual Shock. They’ve removed the rumble feature (most likely because they lost a lawsuit on the patent and just didn’t want to be bothered with it anymore) and added a motion sensor similar but not the same as the Wii wand. Think steering yes, light gun no. Can’t wait for those $600 systems that break down after a year.
Nintendo showed off some more Wii titles, like Mario Galaxies, two versions of the latest Zelda (one for Wii, one for Cube), another look at Metroid whatever, and a new title called Excite Truck. Nintendo didn’t unveil the price of the Wii, but it’s expected that the price will be unveiled before the end of the show. A copy of next month’s EGM has been spotted online stating the price will be $249, but this being the web, it could be fake. Nintendo must have spies in Sony, because by unveiling that stupid name last week they’ve given Sony the rope to hang themselves alone this week at E3. If Nintendo could just get off this 3 franchise fixation they’d be a real force again.
Microsoft came into this E3 with nothing much other than “Expect Halo 3”. Lot’s of opinions were cast about suggesting that the 360 might see a price drop once Sony unveiled its price. However now that Sony has gone and made Microsoft seem generous for selling a console at $400, I doubt they’ll be doing that for now. You never know though, they may think the Wii is a threat at $250 now that Sony has gone all 3D0 on everyone, and lower the price on the Core system to match, while keeping the Premium at the same price. Microsoft also unveiled in their news conference that Halo 3 IS official now, there’s a trailer online and Shadowrun is making a return. In more Xbox 360 news, Grand Theft Auto 4 is going to hit the 360 at the same time it crashes onto the PS3, on October 16, 2007. Talk about taking the arrows out of the Sony quiver.
So there you have it, a quick and dirty summary of the Big Three press conferences. Look for more coverage of the most wonderful time of the year for videogames here on Inside Pulse as the week progresses.