10. Where are the MMOs?
For all the promises of MMOs on the 360, were scraping at the bottom of a very big library to find one. The 360 is made for MMOs. Or more specifically Xbox Live. It has a gaming base of 12million subscribers who consider playing online as standard practice and whove shown a propensity to purchase and consume online content. Its a potential cash cow and easily accessed market for any developer.
Huxley, All Points Bulletin, Champions Online and Age of Conan are all being developed for consoles, in addition to persistent rumours of a Bioware MMO related to KOTOR, an MMO based on the Aliens film franchise, and console versions of Lord of the Rings Online and Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning..
All we want from E3 is confirmation that none of these are pulling a Marvel Universe disappearing act anytime soon. If we get that far, then some more concrete details, dates and prices would be most welcome. If we get some hands on gameplay well consider ourselves blessed!
9. Dead Rising 2
The original Dead Rising, beyond its obvious Dawn of the Dead references, was a sleeper hit and technical showpiece in the early days of the 360, whilst still standing as one of the most fiercely inventive titles of this generation. It took the idea of a sandbox and replaced it with a shopping mall; filled the place with zombies, psychopaths and a group of innocent bystanders; gave you the keys to every shop for every conceivable way of defending yourself (chainsaw, bowling ball, TVs, furniture, dvds, orange juice, etc); added an RPG levelling and skill tree: covered it all in bucketloads of B-grade gore and humour; and then threw the player, as a wise-cracking photojournalist, into a demented and surprisingly deep tale of government conspiracies and gruesome atrocities. The catch was you only had 72 hours of game time (much less in real time!) to get stuff done before you got the hell out of there.
The result was a highly intense and replayable game with multiple endings, hundreds of side missions and lots of hidden objects and collectibles. It was only held back from true greatness by some odd design issues (restrooms as save points!), some inconsistent AI and an unapologetic hardcore attitude to story progression.
Rumours have swirled for years of a possible sequel, and just this week fresh rumours have surfaced that the sequel is relocating from a small town mall to the big lights of Vegas. All we want at E3 is confirmation along with some juicy, squishy, bloody details of a slightly more forgiving game, a better save system, refined controls and the scope for some online madness including the possibility of co-op.
8. GTAIV DLC
Nobody knows what Microsoft has got for their $50m dollars other than Rockstar and Take Two, but anyone can tell you thats not small pennies (Halo 3 cost approx $30m). What we do know is that at such a price both parties must have believed at the time that at least $150m in sales revenue would result from the DLC (Michael Pachter). So based on a widely assumed DLC price of $15 and revenue of $150million thats 10m downloads across two DLC parts, or 5m individual downloads per DLC.
So how big is the DLC? We think big enough to make that many people pay up and put that disc back in their trays which means its not just clothes or cars, but far more likely a new, albeit smaller, narrative and/or some new destinations.
Personally wed like to see a new narrative, but well just have to wait and see
7. Forza 3
Whilst arcade racers are a dime a dozen and the hybrid racer is having a comeback with the outstanding and gorgeous GRID, the reality is that a lot of us are still playing Turn 10s unparalleled simulation masterwork. Forza 2 was released well over a year ago and yet it is still a mile ahead of any other racing sim on the market. The physics engine, 300 cars, full damage models, a sleek 720P with 60 smooth frames per second, exhaustive tuning and modification toolkits, and a fully integrated online community with a thriving user created content economy were all stars in a well ahead of its time package. Put simply, we love it!
So why do we want a Forza 3? Well the rumours are too good for us to simply ignore and weve been fuelling them since October last year! 400 cars; 100 tracks compared to only 14 with 47 configurations in Forza 2; a variety of new race types beyond the circuits including drift, drag, oval and point to point; even more customisation and user creation; and an enhanced online feature set.
Turn 10 had us sold right there, but then Forzas community manager, Che Chou, decided to drop a tiny bombshell of over excitement this week by stating (we) have figured out ways to push the 360 in ways I didnt think were possible in terms of both visuals and performance
Youll pardon me if I sound a little excited, because, frankly, Im frickin psyched.
Well guess how we feel?!
6. Mistwalkers Lineup
One of the best investments Microsoft has made in a developer in recent times is the financial backing and creative freedom it has extended to Final Fantasy creator Hironbobu Sakaguchi and his Mistwalker studio. Whilst Blue Dragon was moderately successful, it was this years Lost Odyssey with its stunning visuals, subtle JRPG gameplay tweaks and the far more mature themes compared to his more traditional Final Fantasy games that really hailed the studio as one to watch.
Strangely absent from Microsofts Xbox 360 RPG Premiere show in Tokyo last month, were expecting big things from this blossoming studio come E3. The mysterious RPG/action-adventure Cry On has been kept under wraps for well over two years and wed like to know more about the cell shaded art design, the deliberately tear-jerking story and the intriguing use of dual analogue sticks in combat and puzzle solving. Wed also love some footage and details about the rumoured Blue Dragon 2, the possibility for another epic Lost Odyssey title and whether Sakaguchi is still interested in developing an MMO.
5. Splinter Cell: Conviction
Sam Fisher has been hiding in the shadows far too long. Maybe it was the depression that set in after the high of the sublime Chaos Theory to the more moderately enjoyable Double Agent? Or maybe he was just over reaching a bit with a Conviction over his head? But for whatever reason, Ubisoft has continued to keep gamers in the dark about the king of stealth gameplay and his next outing.
Conviction is one of the most ambitious titles Ubisoft have ever announced. To totally strip a franchise to the bone and then dump the key gameplay mechanic from which the franchise found its incredible success involved a whole lot of cojones and maybe several screws loose. But it was, and still is, an incredibly exciting prospect full of potential. By shifting gameplay from the largely linear mechanic of light vs darkness to a far more dynamic and reactive form of gameplay based on the player vs his surroundings, remains an inspired idea that was ever so briefly touched on by Ubisofts Assassins Creed.
What wed love to see at E3 is the return of Sam in a near complete version of Ubisofts bold vision. There is a sore lack of stealth titles on the 360 and a story driven cinematic-thriller, dripping with references to films such as The Bourne Conspiracy, The Fugitive and Enemy of the State sounds like a hell of a good time. Add in the dynamic and reactive gameplay for stealth and combat and Sam may yet make a successful return to the single and multiplayer arenas, and perhaps even better than ever before
4. Biowares Lineup
Bioware has been an integral part of Microsofts console gaming history with genre defining console RPGs Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR), Jade Empire and more recently last years phenomenal Mass Effect. And despite its acquisition by EA we believe this relationship will continue to provide 360 gamers with superlative RPGs that are at the forefront of Western developers.
What titles specifically? Well wed first and foremost loved to see Mass Effect 2 revealed. Hint at the story arc, show us the gameplay and technical refinements, and perhaps most importantly tells us how our own uniquely created Commander Shepard from Mass Effect will seamlessly continue their journey into the world of Mass Effect 2.
Second on the wish list, is the franchise that just wont go away in KOTOR. We know somethings up with the secretive co-development with LucasArts, but wed love to find out exactly what that is. Whether its a turn based RPG, a real time RPG, or an MMO we dont much care so long as the franchise continues on and continues to drop jaws in its wake.
Third, wed love to see Jade Empire continue. It was an inspiringly original and surprising setting for a Western RPG and was only ever surpassed on the original Xbox by the original KOTOR in terms of critical praise. And whilst Dragon Age looks great, we just dont know enough about it (yet!) to want in more than the entirely unique kung fu and martial arts fantasy of Jade Empire.
3. Bungies Superintendent
Ever since Bungie and Microsoft amicably parted ways soon after the release of the ridiculously successful Halo 3 in September 2007, theres been one question on the very substantial and loyal Bungie community
Whats next?
Well were sorry to say that this is tightest kept secret this E3 and we have absolutely no idea! But that doesnt stop us speculating. And as great as a Halo 4 would no doubt be, we really dont need it for a couple of years because were still playing the multiplayer and creating bucket loads of content each and every day through the unparalleled online feature set. In fact Forge is so good Im personally convinced I would have bought it as a standalone product if given the chance!
What we really want to see at E3 is a new IP, and even if that mysterious platformer-like Superintendent logo of a green plumber has half the features of Halo 3, wed still probably buy it. But then thats not the Bungie way and whatever they unveil come Monday we have no doubt well be blown away like every other time theyve stepped on stage. How many more sleeps did you say?!
. Alan Wake
Is Alan Wake awake? Is he at his own wake? Or are we finally going to see him again after all these years? We know its supposed to be a thriller, but the suspense is killing us!
Remedy first showed Alan Wake way back at E3 2005 and after a grand showing at X06 in September 2006, its gone back into a silent slumber ever since. At the time it was a surprise hit at both gaming conventions, with a dark, cinematic tale set in an open world about a writer who loses his grasp with the distinction between reality and his traumatised subconscious. It was a technical and artistic showpiece, a fiercely promising premise, and an atmospheric, noir nightmare.
But that was 2006 and a lot has changed since then. Remedy hasnt released a game since the equally mind bending Max Payne 2, Bioshock has redefined cinematic storytelling, GTA:IV has set an impossibly high benchmark for open worlds and numerous titles have far exceeded the technical showcase of 2006. And yet its testament to the early promise and the strength of the original ideas that gamer interest just wont die. Shane Kim has hinted about the reawakening of Mr Wake, and whilst we may be optimistic we cant help but think E3 would be the perfect time to confirm a release date and fill out the adventure/thriller slot for an even more diverse Christmas 08 lineup.
1. Halo: Chronicles
Well you know were excited about something when we post a fact grabbing, leak tapping article like this one, because we cant wait another week!
But in the simplest of terms when you put Peter Jacksons vision, Bungies track record, Frank OConnors scripting magic, Microsofts financial/marketing muscle and then announce that you intend to do nothing short of revolutionising interactive entertainment, you pretty much have our full and undivided attention. When you have a habit of delivering on such ridiculous promises, your confidence simply makes us impatient!
The Halo universe is rich in lore and even richer in opportunities (Halo Wars) that can expand the franchise beyond the bread and butter of the FPS. Giving gamers a perspective of the Halo world outside of Master Chiefs eyes may seem a risky one, but could pay huge dividends in the long run by allowing gamers to more clearly identify and understand the world outside of an almost invincible seven foot tall suit of armour.
Out of all the rumoured titles at E3 this is the one we want to see most. We want Halo to feel fresh again; we want consequences to our actions; and most importantly a feeling of vulnerability without Master Chiefs presence that will only make us appreciate him more when the time inevitably comes for his return in Halo 4. So last but not least
we want it this year!
Oder auch nicht
... je nachdem aus welcher Sicht man das sieht
