Thoughts on Microsoft/Sony E3 2013 press events.

     

     The big press events of E3 2013 are over. People are still coming down from the high of all the games and announcements made by Microsoft and Sony. After watching both conferences, I've written a summary of what was shown and what I think about it all. Here we go! 

     First off let's talk about the Microsoft press conference. They stared out the conference showing footage of Metal Gear Solid 5: Phantom Pain and that is a great looking game! Next they talked about the continued support of the Xbox 360 and showed upcoming Xbox 360 games. They even announced a new re-design of the Xbox 360 and that it's available now. It was also announced that existing Xbox Live gold memberships will carry over to the Xbox One, and gold memberships will include two free games each month beginning in July (like Playstation Plus). Used games, DRM, and online features aside, Microsoft did what they said they would. They devoted their conference to the games. Besides the new Metal Gear Solid, they showed a brand new Killer Instinct, the innovative/creative Project Spark, the awesome looking Titanfall, and the visual feast that is Quantum Break.

     A big, yet short, announcement was with the trailer for the new Halo game. No release date was given but I'm sure it'll be released holiday 2014. Another surprise was the game footage of Dead Rising 3. Even though the zombie game genre is overdone, Dead Rising 3 still looked great and promising. I was surprised when they announced that it is a Xbox One exclusive. A little bit was shown on the new game tracking, game sharing (via Twitch), and other capabilities with their Smart Glass technology. Finally, Microsoft announced that the Xbox One would release this November for $499. I was pleased to see Microsoft focus on games and leave the tv stuff to the side. That's what they needed to do. One thing that still bothers me is that they were still quiet and unclear on the whole used games, sharing games, DRM, etc. This is still a big step back for them and still has gamers unsure or just plain angry with them. 

     Monday night finished off with the Sony press conference. The conference started like Microsoft's with Sony showing their continued support and games coming out on the PS Vita and the PS3. It was great to see Sony finally unveil what the PS4 looks like. It kind of reminds me of a cable box, yet smaller and has a slant design. I think the overall design of the PS4 is really cool looking. Sony also focused a segment on their love and support of indie developers. They did this by talking about their ability to self publish their games for the PS4, as well as highlighting eight different upcoming indie games. The big games that were shown at their conference were Killzone: Shadow Fall, Infamous: Second Son, and a huge announcement that Edler Scrolls Online would be coming to the PS4 in spring 2014. The last game they showed was a live demo of Bungie's upcoming game Destiny. This game looks amazing and the footage of multiplayer co-op was just awesome!

     Sony then talked about how current Playstation Plus subscribers will carry over to the PS4, that it would be less than $5.00 a month ($50 a year), and that a Playstation Plus version of Drive Club would be free when then PS4 launches for subscribers. They briefly talked about the ability to play PS3 games on the PS4 through the Gaikai service. Towards the end of their conference, Sony pulled out all the stops and took this time to clearly state that the PS4 would play used games, you can share/trade games, and that you do not have to connect to the internet if you don't want to. Sony also announced that the PS4 would release this holiday season for $399, a full $100 cheaper than the Xbox One! This of course was a huge jab at Microsoft and Sony totally ripped them a new one! Everyone loved this and the auditorium was filled with applause and cheers, and it's easy to see why.

     To me it's clear that Sony was the winner. They had the games to back it all up, huge announcements regarding used games, DRM, online requirements, etc. and a very nice price of $399. Sony completely hit it out of the park. However, I do have to commend Microsoft on delivery a much better conference than their dismal May 21st reveal show. They showed some great games but still need to be absolutely clear on used games and really need to rethink their stand on always online and requiring people to check in every 24 hours. That is going to hurt them. As Monday wore down to a close I was very pleased with what I saw from both companies. The only hard part now is waiting for the consoles to release and of course being able to play all of these amazing games.

Final Verdict: Microsoft Conference: B-      Sony Conference: A+

Written by: Alter Ego 83