E3 - Hands On Impressions - Electronic Arts

Getting straight on with our brief E3 Expo hands-on impressions, targeting the major companies and titles to watch at the show, we've made it to the Electronic Arts booth. Read on for info about selected titles featuring James Bond, Gimli, and those pesky Sims..

- The Sims 2 was only being trailed in video form on the show floor, with The Who's My Generation cut up over a smart CG trailer that showed multiple eras of Sims, with whole dynasties growing up, having kids, breathing fire (apparently a hereditary trait in that family!), and generally goofing off. How the game improves on a winning formula remains to be seen, but the DNA-passed-to-descendents angle is clearly the one being pushed to the fore for the sequel.

- 007:Everything Or Nothing, which we mentioned yesterday for its use of real-life actors in virtual roles, was sporting a playable action sequence where Pierce Brosnan ran through a skyscraper and then jumped off the edge, duelling with enemies while running/bungie cording down the side of the building. The action was third-person, darned attractive, and it may be that the improvement in Bond games that started with Nightfire will continue (no more 007 Racing? Phew!)

- Harry Potter:Quidditch World Cup is definitely strange, being an EA Sports-izing of a fictional sport and all. But it looked like it could be reasonably playable, though the size of the pitch looked very small, probably thanks to artistic license in the movies expanding it, and the AI still needed some work.

- Medal Of Honor: Rising Sun was seen in a great-looking CG trailer which, well, didn't have much to do with gameplay, plus some early PS2 gameplay code which was apparently even a little too early to get much of a good impression. The jury has left the building.

- Freedom:The Battle For Liberty Island was the arguably surprise booth stand-out. The developers, IO Interactive, were responsible for the excellent Hitman 2, and this title features crisp graphics and great environmental effects. Sporting frantic shoot-outs on roofs against helicopter gunships, it feels right, more so than most other action shooters at the show - and believe me, there are a lot of those.

- Lord Of The Rings:Return Of The King is being developed in-house at EA this time, so has a different developer from the fun Two Towers. But actually, it looks a spot better than that title, with similar action-based hack 'n slash gameplay, multiplayer co-op action, a ton of enemies onscreen at once, and cave trolls looking about 30 percent uglier than they have any right to be.

For further impressions, screenshots, and media try IGN.com, Gamespot, Gamers.com, Gamerfeed, or all the other usual suspects. More hands-on impressions soon.

'Tis most excellent

[leviramsey]

To hear of the excellence that will be the new Bond game.

I still doubt anything in the game series will be a better game than GoldenEye for the N64, though.

Re:'Tis most excellent

[Zapateria]

Yes because the last few James Bond games have been great.

Teh Sims

[Baron_911]

After watching the Sims 2 trailer, it looks like they are finally focusing on what gamers want... more sims pr0n. Passing down your genes = Nice Excuse!

/me hops in the hottub. weeee!

ew

[rhuntley12]

Am I the only one who really really hates sims with a passion? And also cannot stand the controls in the last 007 console game? Harry Potter was okay Medal of Honor, oh yes, this should own, Hopefully it'll be as cool as Allied Assault on PC(Omaha Beach, hands down, greatest moment in any game) and not as a letdown as Frontline was to me... Lord of Rings should be cool if they make it like the second game was...

Re:ew

[pommaq]

No, you're not alone in hating The Sims. It was an okay game, I suppose, for wasting a few hours... but it got boring pretty quickly. And talk about milking a franchise! What's it now, seven "expansions"? Ooo, now you can have a pet! Oooo, now you can have a picnic! Oo, now you can have homosexual sims! Etc etc, ad nauseam. But what really gets to me is that PEOPLE ARE BUYING IT! Why?!?

$random_sims_expansion has been on the bestselling list for what, two years now? EA are swimming in sims cash, so now they

I hope...

[Iammadmak]

that the next 007 game as a third person perspective is in use that it won't be a repeat of tommorow never dies...