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Microsoft's E3 Conference Displays Company Confidence

Posted by Zonk on Wed Jul 11, 2007 12:26 AM
from the they-have-the-games-and-they-want-you-to-know-it dept.
XBox (Games) E3 Microsoft
The tone from Microsoft tonight was one of celebration and anticipation, as they ran down their successes since the 360 launched and hyped their lineup between now and the end of the year. Peter Moore framed the discussing by recalling the blockbuster holiday season of 2004, which was driven by the Grand Theft Auto, Madden, and Halo franchises. Moore stated that 'the only place to play all three games' this year is the 360. In addition to showing off other heavyweight titles like Mass Effect (which is due in November), the company had a few new announcements: They'll be releasing a version of the movie trivia game Scene-It with a quartet of special controllers, for a standard game price. They've partnered with Walt Disney and its associated companies to bring their family of movies to the Xbox Live service, with many titles already available tonight. CliffyB officially revealed Gears of War for the PC; it'll have additional content as well as co-op gaming via Live for Windows. Resident Evil 5 will be coming to the system (the only game from their conference not releasing this year). The event was capped by a live-action short piece meant to show what a Halo movie might look like, the announcement of a Halo 3 special edition 360 sku set to launch alongside the game, and a new trailer showing a bunch of Halo 3 in-game footage. For further details on the event, click below for other sites' liveblog coverage.
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  • Really surprised at how great COD4 looked, especially compared to the underwhelming Halo 3 footage. Everyone kind of assumed that Halo 3, being the biggest game for the 360, would end up being a graphical showcase, but it doesn't seem like it's going to be.

    • Re:Call of Duty (Score:4, Interesting)

      by MooseMuffin (799896) on Wednesday July 11 2007, @12:44AM (#19822163)
      Bungie has the halo 3 trailer up in HD on its website. After a closer look on my own screen (as opposed to low rez streaming or the horrible g4 coverage) I thought it looked much much better than the multiplayer beta.

      Overall, I think it was an odd presentation. They only showed stuff coming out this year, and while there are a lot of quality titles coming in the next few months, it might come back to bite them. If Sony's presentation tomorrow contains all kinds of gorgeous footage from games that are still more than a year away, people will come away far more impressed. This is a lesson they should have learned from 2 years ago during the unveiling of the consoles. Sony showed CG footage that they hoped would represent in-game graphics, and even though it was BS, people came away wowed.

        • Re:Call of Duty (Score:4, Informative)

          by badasscat (563442) <basscadet75@NOSpam.yahoo.com> on Wednesday July 11 2007, @11:01AM (#19826207) Homepage
          Remember last years Ridge Racer and Gran Turismo hoopla from Sony or how about Nintendo's demo with Mario 128 and the realistic Zelda several years ago.

          Nintendo never showed a demo of "Mario 128", as in the game. I was at the press conference when they initially unveiled this - I believe it was actually at Space World, not E3. What they showed then was a demo called "128 Marios", *not* "Mario 128". This was only changed to "Mario 128" later. (There is a photo of the original title screen that got changed for later demos floating around the net somewhere, though I can't find it at the moment.) It was always a simple tech demo designed to show that the GameCube was capable of handling 128 N64-quality Marios at the same time without slowdown. There was no game there. It was just a bunch of Marios on a platform in space.

          Later, Miyamoto started saying in interviews that he was thinking of ways to turn "Mario 128" into a game. But no game was ever shown, and I don't believe any actual coding was done. Somehow, at some point the press and bloggers turned things around and got the idea retroactively that the tech demo that was shown was footage from a game that was never released. It wasn't. Any ideas Miyamoto did have were no doubt put into Mario Sunshine and Mario Galaxy.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by DrXym (126579)
      One has to remember that COD2 & 3 looked impressive too but all the noise and hubris disguised a stupid AI, dumb automatons as allies, linear levels, infinite spawn points and lots and lots of scripting. Give me a shooter with a decent AI any day.
  • I watched it live, and I must say it was full of marketing drivel. Not one moment did I feel wonder at what was displayed, only felt like I was being sold something but a really slimy salesman. Which is fair enough right? No not really. I'm not interested in how they are going, or how many millions of dollars they will make, I just want innovation in games. All we got in this display was I bunch of dick waving.

    I'm sick of all this "our console is better than the other's" crap, I want to see the best games on the right console at the right time. For all three competitors. Their products should speak for themselves.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by QMalcolm (1094433)
      Marketing drivel? It is a press conference, they are trying to sell their product. And Microsoft has never been about the big reveal at E3, they tend to emphasize big games coming, and basically reiterating their focus for the year. If you want big surprises, you'll probably going to be more interested in the Nintendo and Sony conferences tomorrow.
    • I think they were certainly trying to sell to consumers, but also to shareholders and especially distributors/vendors.

      Who else would care that the biggest 'holiday' (and here I thought the war on Xmas was dead) ever was generated by the three franchises for which Xbox360 has exclusive rights.

      The message? If you're going to carry/hype/stock any console and games, make sure it's this one.
    • I'm sick of all this "our console is better than the other's" crap, I want to see the best games on the right console at the right time. For all three competitors. Their products should speak for themselves.

      They're learning from Sony. I'm surprised they didn't say XBOX360 can make baby dolls cry blood yet. PS3 can.
    • Frankly, I think that the 360 is a pretty damn solid platform, but you're absolutely right. There was a lot of awkward clapping by the presenters on the stage, and not a lot of enthusiasm in the crowd.

      That said, what did you expect from a press conference? "Our competitors are also good"? Microsoft wanted to point out their advantages (Halo and other exclusive titles, Live Arcade, movie downloads).

      Moreover, E3 is as much about publishers as it is about end users. Microsoft is trying to steal PS3 exclusives,

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by VertigoAce (257771)
        Wasn't this E3 about a much more limited audience? In other words, if the crowds are primarily press, are you really surprised that they didn't cheer like crazy? If I was there covering it for my website/magazine/whatever, I would be taking notes as fast as I could, not clapping to everything that was said. That said, I got the distinct impression the audience was more lively than you could here on the streaming video feed.

        On another note; I found it interesting that Microsoft seems to be going after Ninten

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Das Modell (969371)

      I just want innovation in games.

      What the fuck is this "I want innovation in games" whining that's been going on for years and years now? It's getting very annoying. Why does everyone want innovation for innovation's sake? Do you even know what you want, or are you just repeating the popular catchphrase of the moment? Even if developers do release innovative or different games, people still keep repeating "moar inovation plz" like some kind of fucking parrots. A game doesn't need to be innovative in order to

      • Off course not, but all three might come out on PC some time in the future, just like GTA SA, Halo 2 and all of the Madden games, which was probably the direction of the "this year" comment.

      • He just wanted to remind people that the PS3 wasn't getting an exclusive period on Madden or GTA. Both of which (I think) it had before.

        • Madden 06 and 07 are on the 360 and all other consoles, afair, Sony never had Madden exclusives. Besides, GTA VC and SA were for PC as well, just not at the same time as it was released on PS 2.
          • Madden has also always been on Nintendo consoles, EA is pretty agnostic about its sports games. The wii version even created a new control mechanism (not perfect, but some of them work well).
  • They are excited because by the end of the year they finally hope to be making profit (which they never did with the original xbox). Also, they seem to think they have beaten the PS3. Amazing what you can do with $4billion to burn. The most amazing thing is that Sony still probably would have beaten them if they didn't get caught up in their own hubris and focus on things like blu-ray.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by suv4x4 (956391)
      Amazing what you can do with $4billion to burn. The most amazing thing is that Sony still probably would have beaten them if they didn't get caught up in their own hubris and focus on things like blu-ray.

      You know: if, if, if...

      If Sony didn't focus on things like blu-ray, hd-dvd would've taken edge, and they'd lose a far more lucrative revenue source than gaming.

      If Microsoft didn't burn so much money on sales at loss, maybe they'd still gain edge since XBOX260 was the first 3G console on the market, and with
      • "Last but not least, if Nintendo didn't screw Son with the CD players, PlayStation wouldn't exist in the first place."

        Niether would Nintendo. That whole thing broke down because Sony wanted their name plastered all over it instead of Nintendo's.

        • Niether would Nintendo. That whole thing broke down because Sony wanted their name plastered all over it instead of Nintendo's.

          I didn't know that side of the story, got links?
    • by the end of the year they finally hope to be making profit

      Yeah, right :)

      Do you think they're going to make OVER SIX BILLION DOLLARS by the end of the year? Because that's what it would take.
      • I assume they meant yearly revenue. Previous losses come out of MS's coffers. And those are quite deep.
        • So far Microsoft has invested $24B+ in Xbox in order to make a cumulative $5B+ LOSS -- and that's not counting the $1-1.5B that analysts estimate the warranty extension will cost.

          Xbox is a total and utter TRAINWRECK BLACK-HOLE DISASTER by any sane reckoning. Like, "shareholder lawsuit, SEC investigation" disaster.

  • Live? (Score:5, Funny)

    by ludomancer (921940) on Wednesday July 11 2007, @01:05AM (#19822253)
    "...it'll have additional content as well as co-op gaming via Live for Windows."

    Oh goodie, as opposed to co-op gaming via the mother-fucking-internet.
  • I think Microsoft did an excellent job of showcasing what the new e3 is about. They presented themselves like they would to shareholders in a company. They talked about the current market and how they are standing up to the competition. (And when they showed the numbers they showed Nintendo right behind them and didnt hide it) They showed off their exclusive titles, new services to xbox live, and of course they showed us game play of new titles.

    This is the new E3, no more crowded booths, no more distract
  • So you get one story about MS partners bailing over delayed releases in the SW division.

    Then the next story is about the confidence in the gaming division.

    That's /. for ya. A Windows hatefest followed by a Microsoft Gaming lovefest.
    • Right, so, since I don't like Windows and use Linux and Mac I shouldn't play GTA IV on a 360? What kind of logic is that?
      • The exact same logic as people who won't buy a PS3 because of what BMG did with CDs - extremely poor.

        • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

          by MoonFog (586818)
          I kind of see your point, but the OP seemed to imply that hating Windows and liking the Microsoft gaming divison was sort of mutually exclusive which I don't agree with at all. If you dislike Microsoft due to illegal monopoly practices, that's one thing, but what is it with about hating Windows itself that makes it hypocritical to enjoy a 360? I think MS Office is a very good office suit that is certainly ahead of its competition, but using the same logic as before I should dislike that simply because I dis
    • Well, a lot of Linux and Mac folks say that the only thing Windows is good for is playing games.

      So it's theoretically a good thing that MS is crystallizing their gaming experience into a standalone console. With all these PC/Xbox cross-platform games (plus whatever console-only releases), it makes owning a Windows gaming PC less necessary.

      In theory.

  • They showed confidence, so? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Daetrin (576516) on Wednesday July 11 2007, @01:09AM (#19822277)
    The tone from Microsoft tonight was one of celebration and anticipation

    Well of course it was! How many companies go to a big conference and put on a presentation and say "Hey! We suck!"?

    Remember Sony's conference last year? Remember "Riiidge Racer!"? _They_ were certainly confident, but that didn't mean much in the long run. It's not whether they show confidence in themselves that matters, it's whether the media and the consumers also feel confident about them by the time the presentation is done.

  • Did somebody say 'movie'? (Score:3, Funny)

    by wall0159 (881759) on Wednesday July 11 2007, @01:09AM (#19822281)
    After the cinematic masterpiece that was DooM, I just can't wait for the Halo movie.

    I hope they release it in blu-ray or HD-DVD, so I can watch it in all its HighDef glory.

    • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

      by Osty (16825)

      After the cinematic masterpiece that was DooM, I just can't wait for the Halo movie.

      Haven't you heard? The Halo movie was put on indefinite hold a while back. That said, it looks like they still have Neill Blomkamp [imdb.com] in their corner, judging by the short they showed tonight. If you haven't already, you should check out some of his stuff [youtube.com], especially Alive in Joburg [youtube.com]. He's a very talented director and cinematographer, and many people were excited to hear that he was going to helm the Halo movie. On top of

    • Just watch, the Halo movie will come out exclusively on Blu-Ray...

  • Celebrating their monopoly... (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I think the final sentence of the following portion of the summary is sad:

    "The tone from Microsoft tonight was one of celebration and anticipation, as they ran down their successes since the 360 launched and hyped their lineup between now and the end of the year. Peter Moore framed the discussing by recalling the blockbuster holiday season of 2004, which was driven by the Grand Theft Auto, Madden, and Halo franchises. Moore stated that 'the only place to play all three games' this year is the 360."

    The cel

    • Re:Celebrating their monopoly... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by scapermoya (769847) on Wednesday July 11 2007, @03:29AM (#19822871) Homepage
      The console has fewer capabilities than a comparably-priced personal computer these days, and it has only been the exclusive publication deals that have drawn people to buy the 360 at all.

      really? i agree that it was a forced event, but microsoft has never been known for their people skills. bash the presentation all you want, but their console is pretty good. i'd like to see the $3-400 multi-core 3.2 ghz computer you have been gaming on.

      also, saying that "it has only been the exclusive publication deals that have drawn people to buy the 360 at all" is like saying disneyland is only popular because its the only place where you can find all of those rides.

    • The creation of Microsoft's video formats, or the Flash video format, or Sony's Blue-Ray, or SMS, or Verizon's "Get It Now", or Sony's memory stick, etc, has nothing to do with creating value for the consumer or making an advance in technology. It's all about luring people in to habits that are difficult to break.

      I don't know. the flash video format seems to me about creating a format anyone can watch, assuming they had a flash player. It's simply an integration of the player into the video data itself, yes, but also in a format that's not platform specific and fairly slim.

      • Halo is a Microsoft product. I assumed everyone on the planet knew that game was made by microsoft given that it has only ever lived on XBOX consoles.


        Halo and Halo have also "lived" on PCs. Though they had to be running Windows, they most definately were not consoles.

  • A little mixed (Score:5, Insightful)

    by alvinrod (889928) on Wednesday July 11 2007, @03:05AM (#19822797)
    After watching their press conference I'm a little mixed about it. I liked the fact that they didn't bother talking too much about what's coming out far off in 2008, but talked about what we could be expecting to see in time for the holidays. It's interesting to see what's in the pipes, but I liked that they highlighted the games showing up in the near future. I also think they did a good job pointing out some of the exclusives that they were going to have as well or what kind of exclusive features (GTA IV downloadable content) that would only be showing up on the Xbox 360.

    I think that their efforts in terms of family games was a little on the week side. I can understand they want to get into the same marketspace as the Wii, but it seems as though it's an afterthought for them. I think that their initial core market is mature gamers who enjoy FPS games and such. The Scene It game just seemed kind of awkward for a console. I think the majority of Xbox 360 owners don't really care too much about these games. I would have rather seen more focus on their core.

    I really could care less about their Live for Windows information as well, but I've never been much of a computer gamer. I've always liked E3 for the focus on the consoles.

    One thing that really stuck out, and this always seems to happen at pretty much every conference, is that some celebrity or designer comes out to highlight a game and they come off sounding stiff and awkward. The lady talking during the Assassins Creed preview made me cringe. The Madden demo also felt forced. Please reherse or find some more genuine presenters. It makes everything look more professional. Last year Sony was horrible for this reason.

    Overall, not a bad showing, but it didn't feel as though they were trying to generate a lot of buzz. Maybe that's just an effect of the new format of E3 though. Looking forward to both of the press conferences tomorrow and what Sony and Nintendo have in the works.
  • If it's going to be Vista-only I'll be waiting for the inevitable "unofficial" XP patch before I buy it. Whether they'll have the balls to scupper sales for a potentially big PC hit is another matter - any bets? I might consider it but I've heard that lots of my existing games *won't* work on Vista - as a gamer, why would I want to spend money on that?
    • I still wonder how many of those 10-million-plus 360s are from "repeat" buyers.
    • new warranty anybody?

      also, 40 games? 40 * ~$60 = $2,400

      nobody feels sorry for you man, you have too much cash to spend. there aren't even that many decent games for the platform.

        • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

          by Altus (1034)

          What boggles my mind is that his 360 had only 200 hours of game play on it. 40 games, 5 hours a piece? yipes!
    • You do realize that your xbox is still under warranty for at least another year? Microsoft extended the warranty of all 360s for three years.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Osty (16825)

      One of the biggest things that was expected was for Microsoft to announce was that they were cutting the price of the 360.

      Why should they cut their price? The Elite version is still cheaper than a PS3. They're kicking ass in terms of media downloads (Disney is a huge win) and XBLA. They're getting exclusive games for the 360 and getting other companies to break their exclusivity (Resident Evil, Devil May Cry). Live subscriptions are way up, even if total console sales didn't quite hit the mark. They'v

      • Nobody's expecting Nintendo to cut the price of the Wii to $200. Why should Microsoft cut the price of the 360 just because Sony did so with the PS3?

        Wait... Sony dropped the price of the PS3? At launch you could get one for $499 or $599, now on Amazon I see them listed for $499 and $599... Did they introduce a new SKU for $449 or $399 and I'm not seeing it?

    • As a PC Gamer I am happy that MS is pushing for games on the PC. Hopefully, we won't have to pay membership fees for Gears of War online


      Not a chance..I assure you they will try to extract a monthly "Live" fee from you if you wish to play Gears of war online.

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