Friday Downtime - E3 Special Feature

One thing we're not going to be talking in this E3 Special Edition of Friday Downtime is motion sensing control devices. Not only have we delved into the annals of history to bring you an in-depth feature piece - Joypad RIP: 1980-2010 - on the matter, but the mainstream press has also covered Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo's various E3 one-upmanships to such an extent that we figure you've probably already got the gist of it anyway.

So, what else is there to gleam from the week's news out of E3? Konami certainly came out of the event well, not only announcing two triple A titles in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow and Metal Gear Solid: Rising (which has now been officially announced for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC), but a second MGS outing on the PSP as well that'll carry on where MGS3 left off. It certainly bolsters the PSP's line-up of games for the future, which now officially includes a Gran Turismo title as well as the previously revealed LittleBigPlanet and MotorStorm spin-offs announced by Sony.

Whether the PSP Go will be the console to play them on is quite another question. The reveal of the new handheld at E3 was about as botched as the console's concept itself. Not only does it look suspiciously like the electronics giant's foray into palmtop internet browsing, it's also completely dumped the UMD format for digitally distributed content instead. We're not denying that the UMD has clearly gone the way of the MiniDisc and something had to be done, but Sony has got to consider its core market here (i.e. gamers who already own an earlier model of the PSP).

Many of these PSP owners will surely want to trade-in the ailing handheld when the PSP Go comes to market later this year, although that'll leave them with an archive of redundant UMD games. Sony Computer Entertainment's Brian Keltner explained that, "It's something we are still hammering out the details. As soon as we have solid plans in place we will make an announcement," regarding the redundant UMDs. According to Kotaku, Sony hopes to have a plan in place before the PSP Go launches. That's reassuring then - good luck with day one sales, Sony.

As we reported yesterday, Peter Molyneux's promotion to Creative Director of Microsoft Game Studios in Europe essentially means that he'll be heading up Rare and Lionhead's creative operations now, suggesting that the studio Microsoft forgot (Rare) might actually be able to sink its teeth into something meaty (i.e. Project Natal) for the first time in a while. Shane Kim, Microsoft's Corporate Vice-President for Xbox 360 Strategy and Business Development (take a breath), has since publicly confirmed this, which basically means that Microsoft's whole European operation (and possibly more) is focused on the project. That's quite a statement of intent.

If nothing else, Nintendo's E3 was a lot better than last year's. Announcements of Super Mario Galaxy 2, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and Metroid: Other M should satisfy the appetites of loyal fans for the time being, while the Vitality Sensor is guaranteed to sell in its droves based on the business model: if it seems a bit bizarre and it's by Nintendo, then assume that it'll fly off the shelves. Nintendo taught us this lesson firstly with the Wii itself back at E3 2005, and then with the Wii Fit balance board in 2007. At first we were dubious and then the products proceeded to break sales records left, right, and centre, which is why we now have the office rule: assume the opposite is true of your initial reaction to a Nintendo announcement.

Perhaps the most interesting announcement Sony made at E3 was of its PlayStation 3 exclusive collaboration with Rockstar on the game Agent. The sheer existence of the title, which is in development at Rockstar North, suggests that the studio is taking a break from the GTA franchise. After all, we know that the developer has been working hard on the Xbox 360 exclusive DLC for GTA IV for a while now, which would make the development of a new GTA game tricky. Now, with Agent in the pipeline, it's looking likely that GTA V will come out of a different Rockstar studio.

Other than the games we've already mentioned, the most exciting game announcement for us has got to be either Bungie's Halo: Reach or Telltale Games' Tales of Monkey Island and, to be honest, Monkey Island might just clinch it (sorry Xbox 360 fanboys, please don't lynch us). It's purely because fans of the original games have been waiting so long for another title and Telltale's expertise in episodic games should be the perfect fit for the point and click games of yore.

Returning Friday Downtime readers might be familiar with our 'TVG Comment of the Week' award but, in this E3 Special, we're going to make an 'E3 Publicity Stunt of the Week' award instead. Without a doubt, the demonstration outside E3 of alleged religious fanatics against EA's Dante's Inferno takes the biscuit, with EA getting its hand stuck in the cookie jar on the way out - classic.