Games Toaster

E3 2006: Overview

- Nintendo steals show with innovation
- Microsoft pushes ‘AAA’ titles
- Sony offers open access on the floor
- Confusing “dress up” rules flouted
- Publisher fined for noise
- Robots and Hilton among antics

At the computer games industry’s largest event, E3, last week Wii won on innovation, Gears of War (360) for game-play, and Warhawk (PS3) has possibly the best ever air-fighter  controller.

The organisers of the Electronic Entertainment Expo focused on keeping it professional. Attendance at the Los Angeles Conference Centre was down 10,000 from last year’s overcrowded expo. It was planned, aimed at keeping non-industry types out, but Northern Ireland born industry veteran, David Perry, wrote on his blog “Even some really key (award winning) industry friends were rejected as not having valid industry credentials”.

E3 2006: Day two from the lens

The Xbox 360 wireless steering wheel, and merchandise. In the Gears of War hands on room. Peter Molyneux talks about Fable 2.

A side shot of Paris Hilton (we’ll never make paparazzi), and then her crowed by ‘minders’ walking away – her appearance at E3 was something a mobile phone game.

What we think is Zelda (pictured left). A Brother in Arms solder talks to the press on Hell’s Highway. Scarface – they’d be all dead if this was the film.

Views of the private pressrooms on the floor show - 1Up.com, and Gamespot, as well as Gamespot’s TV studio. And lots more inside our E3 photo album…

Gears of War preview

Developer: Epic | Publisher: Microsoft | Format: Xbox 360

Previewer: Cian Ginty at E3 in LA The blood still rushes, after a few developer sessions and video trailers, you’re left wondering will all this ‘duck and cover’ work, answers come with a controller in hand.

E3 2006: Day one from the lens

The first day of E3 2006 is over, here’s our photos from the day...

The usually outdoor photos the secondary entrance, and the main doors with the US army, as always, promoting their recruitment game. Later in the day, the main entrance hall.

Our first look at the PlayStation 3 games at Sony stand. People playing PSPs sitting in a railcar mock-up. A crowd around the PlayStation stand.

Inside the Mass Effect developer session with KOTOR developer Bioware – it’s in space but not KOTOR, not Star Wars (a little more on this later). Microsoft's cute and clever poster – “Defending the universe from the kid across the street”.

Drooling over Battlefield 2142 (no that was behind the camera). Pray on PC, and also on 360. Finally, the booth babes that were according to some 'banned', and a crowd take photos of other 'booth babes'. More here.

PHOTOS: Xbox/Microsoft pre-E3 conference

The Grand Theft Auto announcement on-screen at the Microsoft E306 Press Briefing, with an insert of Microsoft boss Peter Moore showing what is apparently his latest tattoo, his last was to announce Halo 2. The latest GTA tattoo is said to be fake.

Games Toaster photographs from the Microsoft pre-E3 conference are now online here.

Some highlights, as such: Peter Moore before he proceeds to take his jacket off; Bill ‘I’m a gamer’ Gates; the crowd; Xbox Live Friends List showing Window Vista, and Windows Mobile Live users; gamer card interface on Vista; at the press event afters, pictured is the pool are of the Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard – there were demos areas in the hotel rooms around the pool; inside the main building of the hotel; too many screens. Also here is a press shot of the Xbox 360 with the HD DVD player.

MobPost: GTA for Xbox 360

At their pre-E3 press event Microsoft have said that Grand Theft Auto 4 will be on Xbox 360 from 'Day one', which is Oct 19 2007 in Europe. It was also said that the horror game Alan Wake is to be released only on Xbox 360 and Windows Vista. Halo 2 is to be released in 2007.

PlayStation 3 – price, launch dates

- Hard drive detachable but included
- Controller; sensors in, Dualshock out
- Nov 17 Europe and the US 

Early today Sony’s computer games division went through the paces at the Sony film studio in Culver City, LA county, ultimately they reviled the pricing, confirmed that the PlayStation 3 would come with a hard drive (20 or 60GBs), and that the controller for the unit would not be radical, but close to the PS2 device.

According to Sony, in Europe the black console will be priced at 499 euro for the 20GB hard drive, and 599 euro for a larger 60GB model. In Northern Ireland, at today’s rates, that’s about 350 and 410 UKP. If, like other releases, the Republic of Ireland will have a higher price is not currently unknown. Prices in other areas as follows: United States $499/$599; Canada $549/$659; Japan 59,800 Yen/set by retailers.

Sony has dropped the prototype ‘stretched’ “banana” controller shape and replaced it with a design “created by refining and improving the world’s most popular PlayStation controller”, at first look it is the PS2 controller. Like Nintendo’s next console, the PS3 controller will also have built in sensors; this opens up the possibility of games reacting to controller movement. But this means the vibrating Dualshock will be removed because it interferes with the sensors. The controllers will have slightly larger L2/R2 buttons, and the ‘tilting angle’ of the analog joystick is tweaked. The controllers are wireless using Bluetooth, but can go wired at any time using USB, the slot is located at the wire input of the old controller.

Tech specs follow...