E3 2012: Afterthoughts

Well another E3 has come and gone. I had originally planned to do a plethora of blog posts about E3 2012, but there was just so much to keep up with and that much consecutive posting in a single day just isn't my style. So I decided to wait until it was all over and sum up my thoughts in this editorial you're reading here.

Rayman Legends. Do SO want!

More 2D Mario is certainly not a bad thing.

Nintendo has given me a nice selection to look forward to. Anytime Mario and Luigi are running around hitting ? Blocks and wearing crazy suits, Nintendo has my attention. So it goes without saying that I'm stoked for New Super Mario Bros. 2 and New Super Mario Bros. U. Pikmin 3 looks positively delightful. Rayman Legends sold me on the possibilities that exist for the Wii U's GamePad. Heck, Rayman Legends just looks insanely fun and is one of my most anticipated games this fall. I loved the original Luigi's Mansion on the GameCube so Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon will be getting my money.

The Last of Us looks and sounds pretty sweet.

On the Sony front, well I still haven't played a single game in the God of War series so I have some catching up to do. I'll get to God of War: Ascension in time. PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royal looks like Super Smash Bros. with Sony character. I'm can get into that. LittleBigPlanet Karting? There's been such a huge fuss over the LittleBigPlanet games that I'll have to check this one out, too. A new Sly Cooper game. Nice. I still haven't played my copies of the Sly trilogy on the PS2. Everyone and their mother is going bonkers over The Last of Us. Was certainly one of the more interesting games of the show. The Vita received next to no attention and in the words of Sonic the Hedgehog, that's no good.

Microsoft. CRIPES. It's like they came on the show floor, fell on their faces and couldn't get up. Usher? Joe Montana? Why were these guys even there? Stupid apps that anyone outside of the USA can't even use. Outside of Gears of War: Judgement and Halo 4, everything Microsoft had to show will be available on the PS3. Out of the big three, Microsoft easily had the worst showing.

Booooo! Get off the stage!

I know I just finished talking about a number of games I'm excited about or ones that hold promise, but in the grand scheme of things, this year's E3 was pretty underwhelming. When I think E3, I expect to have my skull blown off. That didn't even come close to happening. The Wii U is getting a lot of games but how many of those are games that are out on other consoles right now? I mean, it's great that the Wii U is HD but it kinda seems like some third parties are just testing the waters with these ports. I think Philip said it far better than I could when he discussed Nintendo and third parties on the Wii U so in the effort to save space here, I highly recommend reading his editorial. It's like Microsoft was perfectly happy with their place in the industry and since the company is loaded, you get the impression that they really didn't give a crap. Sony, do you even care about the Vita? The thing is struggling across the globe and they had very little to show for it at E3. The company may not believe it's in competition with the 3DS but right now, the 3DS is easily the more attractive of the two handhelds and by a wide margin.

There's been talk that the last few years of E3 have been disappointing. Maybe E3 really isn't what it used to be. Some companies didn't even bother showing up, which says a lot right there. Me, personally, I'll be alright since I have a huge backlog of games to fallback on, but it's still be nice if all three of these console manufactures had a far more impressive showing. Overall, E3 2012 was very meh.

E3 2012: Retro City Rampage Trailer

A game I've been looking forward to for quite some time, Retro City Rampage looks like Grand Theft Auto if it were developed on the NES. That's enough to get my attention by the game's music is being handled by Jake "virt" Kaufman. According to wiki, the game is due to release in Summer 2012. A concrete release date would be nice.

E3 2012: Pikmin 3 Gameplay Demo

I was a huge fan of the original Pikmin and I'll finally be able to play Pikmin 2 on the Wii with improved controls thanks to the Nintendo Select line. Now, like the rest of you, I'll be waiting in anticipation for Pikmin 3 on the Wii U. Based off the demo that Shigeru Miyamoto helped demonstrate, it looks like it will be another enjoyable RTS title with everyone's favorite vegetable-like soldiers. New Pikmin types, new controls, new strategies. Bought!

E3 2012: Wii U Lineup Trailer

Nintendo Showed off the lineup of Wii U games that we'll have to look forward to. Some interesting games. Looks like there will be something for everyone. Have a look for yourself.

E3 2012: Rayman Legends Gameplay

E3 is well underway. Rather than post press conference videos (I really can't stand to watch those) I figured I'd just blog about the games that strike my fancy with screens, trailers, demos, etc.

The trailer for Rayman Legends was leaked in late April and fans have since been salivating over the leaked footage and 20 something screen-shots that hit the web. A portion of Ubisoft's press conference demonstrated Rayman Legends in action. The game can be played by five players at once! The fifth player uses the Wii U Game Pad while the other four play using Wii Remotes or Wii U Pro Controllers. Wii U Game Pad functionality is incorporated into the gameplay quite nicely. You really have to see it with your own eyes.

I'm currently playing through Rayman Origins and it's a superb platformer and one of my favorite games from this generation of gaming. After seeing this gameplay demo, Rayman Legends is a game I'll purchase the same day I pick up the Wii U.