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A Trip Down E3 Lane

Part II

Earlier I introduced some of the crowd-grabbing titles featured at E3. This week will include three more like those, as well as the games that could well live on as disappointments.

HIGHLIGHTS:

HALF-LIFE 2

Not mentioning this title would be an injustice to everyone. Valve and Sierra made the announcement of a sequel to the hit-FPS Half-Life just days before E3. That left onlookers awaiting an impressive display of the sequel; being confirmed five years after complete silence.

When watching the 20-minute demo of the features and things to come, I saw the single most striking display of graphics, gameplay, and physics ever seen in a game. The first change noted was the transformation of technology from the time of the first HL, to the second. The “G-Man” presented from 1998’s version of HL, to the new character design struck no comparison. The graphics of shadowing, eye glaring, muscle movement, is at the highest point in technology today.

The most prominent feature of the game will be its access to objects and physics of those objects. Everything in the game will have its ability to be moved, distorted, or even destroyed; making Half-Life 2 the defining point of a new generation of games to come.

E3 RATING: 9.5/10

PRINCE OF PERSIA

The game that set the standard of platformers/sidescrollers, P.O.P showcased yet another addition to the series started in the 1980’s. The first two games of the series debuted on the SNES and left lasting imprints on the way sidescrollers should be made. Unfortunately, that reputation crumbled when the P.O.P series made a return in 2000. The game debuted on the PC as a 3^rd person action game and quickly willowed away, destroying the once brilliant idea of the game.

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Now, Ubi Soft is trying to bring the name back to the list of all-time greats, with one of the best teams around in game developing. Since being made by Ubi, the game will feature stealth like attributes seen in Splinter Cell along with some of the same lighting and shading effects. The demo presented showed the new innovative layout of gameplay, though still had the sidescroller feel of the first additions. The game played remarkably well with some new twists in gameplay, such as the ability to stop time and the ability to see what you will do in the future.

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E3 RATING: 8/10

WORLD OF WARCRAFT

After ostracizing the PC gaming community for quite some time, Blizzard returned to the PC spectrum with their upcoming MMORPG title, World Of Warcraft. Although not being able to actually get the feel of this game, I did however catch glimpses of people playing the game. World Of Warcraft will be another attempt by Blizzard to set precedents, this time in online RPGS. The showing of the game went very well showing the graphics to expect from a massive online game, as well as some of the RPG tactics implemented from their popular Diablo series.

To my surprise the gameplay of the game look awkward and uneasy at the time, making the characters feel like cards from Magic: The Gathering, instead of animated-organic beings. This should be disregarded, for the game is still in its first state with plenty of time to be fixed.

Entirely the game looked addictive and interesting, as all Blizzard games are. Keep this title in your future buys, Blizzard has never disappointed with any title.

E3 RATING: 8/10

Now instead of going on more rants about the best games of E3, I think the worst should be noted also. What is about to be said does not discount what the actual value of the game is, rather shows what the games problems are, and what needs to be fixed.

WORST GAMES OF E3

ADVANCE WARS 2

In my opinion the worst of all showings, Nintendo made no attempt to further improve this game. The product on display looked like a washed up version of the first, with new bars and font designs. The new features were nowhere to be found, implementing the same gameplay as the first, with even the same unit animations from the first.

The first Advance Wars received high acclaim for its innovation and addictive gameplay. However the second seems to be headed down the complete opposite path, disregarding any room for improvements. It seems that Nintendo is relying on the consumers who buy games because of its name and history, instead of those who want more out of a sequel. Unfortunately the game cartridge was hidden from sight, leaving no room for me to pick it up and burn it.

E3 RATING: 3.5/10

PLANETSIDE

Yes yes, I actually wrote down this title for a couple of reasons. First of all, the game was hidden from public site. To access the game you need an “invitation”. Sony is trying to make Planetside for the public, and the fact that the game was hidden from public view drove my thoughts about the game down the drain. The other major factor that made me skeptical this game will last, is its monthly bill. To play this game at all, you need to pay a monthly fee or use a game card (which you have to purchase) that has a number of hours on it. The fact that games are starting to turn to new ways of profit is causing the gamer to pay an insane amount of money. Not only does the gamer have to pay Internet costs, but the cost of a game to play it online. This is one precedent we can do without, but will now attract more companies to approach online gaming with the same angle.

Hopefully the game can have amazing value to put of skepticisms aside, and open up a new portal for gamers. Or, the game can be completely worthless and disintegrate into the wind as so many others. Lets hope for the second one.

E3 RATING: 5/10

That’ll wrap it up for this E3 segment. Hopefully you have seen a brief outlook at the games presented and what to expect from those games. For more information, visit the company websites. Remember to keep these titles in mind, they will definitely have an impact on the future of gaming.

Eric “element” Lahiji

(May 22, 2003)


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