Okay, it's not quite the end of my post. For those of you who haven't picked this up already, e3 is the annual convention of the computer gaming industry which takes place in Los Angeles, California. It's the place where many companies put their upcoming titles on open display for the first time, allowing press and developers alike to see them and try them out.
Plus, there are big screens, flashing lights, loud music, and a scary number of scantily-clad women. A major sign that our industry is still rather young
I'm actually hoping to put some of my personal reactions to the new crop of upcoming games up on my website, and I'm wondering if any of the gamers out there have specific games in mind that they think I should watch for. On the next post is the list I've assembled already (as you can see, it's pretty long):
[ May 11, 2004, 01:56 AM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
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Dog’s Big Fat e3 List! The most exciting games at e3 this year:
THE NCSOFT BOOTH City of Villains — the expansion to City of Heroes that lets you be the bad guy. Tabula Rasa — Ultima creator Richard Garriot's new mold-breaking MMORPG. Auto Assault — NetDevil's Mad Max-inspired MMO car shooter. Guild Wars — A PvP-based MMO with no monthly fee.
ALL THINGS PANDEMIC Full Spectrum Warrior — Authentic army training game converted for retail. A groundbreaking squad-based tactical simulator. Mercenaries — Grand Theft Tank. An open-ended, free-ranging game, in which you play a mercenary in future Korea hunting down a deck of 52 badguys. Star Wars: Battlefront — Battlefield 1942 in the Star Wars universe. What more can I say? Destroy All Humans! — You are an alien. You abduct, probe, and explode the heads of humans and cows. You also fly a spaceship. Awesome.
ALL THINGS LIONHEAD Fable — Still pretty exciting for its third year on my list. An RPG with a dynamic character and a simulated environment, both of whom change in both subtle and obvious ways, based on your choices. B.C. — An adventure game set inside an anachronistic prehistoric life simulator. Hunt realistically-behaving dinosaurs and build and protect your human village. The Movies — Build your own movie studio and post your unique versions of classic-styled movies on the internet.
UBER-SECRET UBISOFT PROJECTS Splinter Cell 3 — That was the big mystery. Prince of Persia 2 — Prince of Persia with red production design instead of yellow. As long as it has wall-running, I'm cool
ROLEPLAYING Jade Empire — The next BioWare game, built on a redone version of Knights of the Old Republic's engine, which is based on Chinese mythology, and involves a lot of martial arts. The Dragon Age — Another BioWare RPG we know nothing about, beyond the fact that it's a new, original world created by the masters of the PC RPG. The Witcher — Yet another BioWare RPG, this one built on the Neverwainter Nights engine. Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines — Troika's next offering, built on VALVe's Source engine, complete with lipsynching and facial expression. Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords — From BioWare's buddy company Obsidian, the sequel to the best RPG of last year. The Bard's Tale — Nothing like the original game, this is a satirical action RPG that pokes fun at the conventions of the genre. Dungeon Siege 2 — Gas Powered Games takes bland but technically-impressive roleplaying games to the next level.
SHOOTERS S.T.A.L.K.E.R. — Based on the body of post-Chernobyl Russian science fiction, this creepy, atmospheric game threatens to blow open the whole idea of open-ended, unscripted gaming. Advent Rising — I think everyone here knows what this is. But have you seen the gameplay footage? Some of the best character animation in the industry. The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay — The prequel to Pitch Black. A first-person stealth game in which you are Vin Diesel. 100 Bullets — Based on the acclaimed graphic novels. I know nothing else about it. Brothers in Arms — Yet another World War II shooter. Every publisher needs to have one. This year, it's UbiSoft.
STRATEGY Soldiers: Heroes of WWII — A weird hybrid RTS squad tactical game in which you command platoons of soldiers, and then take personal control of tanks to wreak havoc on the fully-destructible environment. The Battle for Middle Earth — One of the most beautiful RTS games ever made, with a fascinating new emotion system that makes units behave a lot like real characters. For instance, Oliphaunts freak out and charge when you set them on fire.
RARE OR CRAZY GENRES The Sims 2 — Now your Sims start young, grow older, have children, and die, passing on their genes to future generations. They also express their personalities far more clearly through distinct emotive animations. The Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth — A creepy game from the publisher of Morrowind, which tries to recreate the madness of H. P. Lovecraft's work. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey — The sequel to an absolutely phenomenal adventure game, this one goes in a new direction, with full-3D environments and some degree of action — a point-and-clicker no more.
[ May 11, 2004, 01:52 AM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
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quote:Dreamfall: The Longest Journey — The sequel to an absolutely phenomenal adventure game, this one goes in a new direction, with full-3D environments and some degree of action — a point-and-clicker no more
but I like point-and-click.
[ May 07, 2004, 06:07 PM: Message edited by: Kama ]
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Telperion, does that mean I should check out Relic and Blizzard for sequels? Relic is working on a Warhammer game right now, and Homeworld 2 didn't meet expectations, so I wouldn't get your hopes up there. Blizzard doing another RTS, though ... I have heard theories ...
[ May 07, 2004, 06:10 PM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
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I have a serious question and don't want to be laughed at.
Will Blizzard ever make Diablo III? I don't want to hijack your thread Geoff, but I figured this would be a good place to ask.
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Perfect place to ask Unfortunately, I personally suspect that for the mass audience, it's difficult for a 2D-style game to make much of an impression anymore. Still, if there are any hints about it at e3, I'll let you know!
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Thanks. I like the point and click style of game play. Are there any decent point and click RPG's out there? Anything similar to Diablo?
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Geoff, is e3 in L.A. this year? The reason I ask is that rivka might be hinting that you should visit her while you're at e3. Either that or she's coughing up a lung. (((rivka)))
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Wow, some of those games (the names alone) sound really violent. I've found some that sound a little bit more warm and fuzzy. Watch for these little known new releases at the convention:
Playing with Bunnies II - pet the bunnies, feed the bunnies, and if you make it to the top level, you get to eat the bunnies raw.
Tea Party III - a favorite with the elementary-aged set, now revamped to draw a broader player base. Visit a victorian-style tea party, dress up in a beautiful dress with lots of bows and ribbons, and then discover that the tea is actually raw sewage. The puke fest that follows is a delight for all ages.
I Like Ponies - a brand-new title. You can choose a pink or yellow pony and a riding outfit covered with either feathers or glitter. After working at the dude ranch to train your pony, take it out into the meadow for a well-deserved ride. Be careful though - ponies love to eat human flesh.
posted
Geoff, I have another question for you. Did you go to school for game design? The reason I ask is that I'm interested in animation as a career and want to know how to get into it. I know that many schools that offer game design programs also offer animation programs.
Any information you can provide would be appreciated.
Sorry to derail the thread.
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If there's "A Shinda Named Rat" happening, I expect to be informed. *insistent throat-clearing*
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Derrell, I actually went to school for film, which was as good a major as any, I guess, since Game Design is still a very rare program to find at a university.
Around here, I know that Digipen offers a lot of gaming-related degrees ... and I think a lot of the animators I know went to the Art Institute in Seattle. Beyond that, hard to say.
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;_; I hate you Geoff!!! I hate you and I want to BE you!! It's been my crazy never-do dream to go to E3 since like, forever.
If you could, could you check up on Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy: Advent Children? I will forever be in your debt. FOREVER.
Also... Lessee... Ummm... DDR? Dang, there was something else I really wanted to see, but now I can't remember... What about the GBA: DS? Also PSP!!! PEEE ESSS PEEEEE!!!!
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Geoff, thanks for the info. I've checked out digipen's web site. Under normal circumstances, I'd seriously consider going there. With my mom's health problems though, I'd like to stay close to home.
I wonder if there are any schools that offer online degrees in animation?
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quote: The Sims 2 — Now your Sims start young, grow older, have children, and die, passing on their genes to future generations. They also express their personalities far more clearly through distinct emotive animations
*gasp*
that...
is...
so...
AWESOME!!!!!
I'm a Sims addict, but I've been clean for over three years. It's time to jump off the wagon
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Fable sounds pretty cool. I'd like to hear more about that, Dog. Specifically, how hard is it to play? My big criteria for games is they can't be complicated to run. I have little enough free time as is. The last thing I want is a game that I spend more time trying to figure out which button to push when than actually playing.
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I've been interested in The Movies since I heard about it last year, but I've been out of the gaming habit for so long I don't know if I'd stick with it long enough.
Also I'm still distraught at the abrupt cancellation of Sam and Max. I'm not gonna cry, I'm not gonna cry...
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I really, really hope that UbiSoft's big secret is Beyond Good & Evil 2. That game is crying for a sequel.
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There are only two games I'm intrested at this point, those are Pikmin2 and Zelda: Four Swords. I would be interested in others but I leave on my mission soon, and those are the two that I like and know are coming out before I leave.
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Thats cool. Hey Dog, tell me if you see Roller Coaster Tycoon 3. And tell me what you think of it. I can't wait until that game comes out. Should be awesome. =)
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Twinky, given that BG&E went budget two weeks after release, that's highly doubtful Sad, I know ...
MEC, I'll try to check out those games, but honestly, Japanese games typically do very little for me, and it'll be hard for me to tell a good one from a bad one
Ooh, RC Tycoon. Good one to check.
LucasArts's decision to permanently kill the adventure game is sad ... but it looks like they're throwing their weight behind Pandemic, which is a good move, in my estimation.
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Since this is the all things gaming thread, I guess I'll post my question.
I'm looking for a RPG PC game that's good for a beginner and won't cost too much. I know that's rather broad, but I don't know enough about computer games to be more specific. Does anyone have any suggestions?
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I dunno... It depends on what kind of game you want. There's always Warcraft and Warcraft II, which are pretty cheap, although there's more of a roleplay element in the third installment.
Other than that, there's always the Final Fantasy games... Posts: 4816 | Registered: Apr 2003
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Final fantasy? Zelda? Nah. Starcraft brood war remains the greatest video game ever created. Mind you I mean Starcraft, not that ridiculous FPS comming out or warcraft (game based more on luck than brains or diablo (life losing game)
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Ryuko, Warcraft and Warcraft 2 are definitely NOT RPGs
blacwolve, if you are looking for good-but-cheap, check out the Fallout and Baldur's Gate series from Black Isle, in that order. They've both been out for a few years, and they were both considered top-of-the-line in their day.
Fallout is set in a fifties-styled post-apocalyptic future, in which you are the first person to emerge from a massive underground vault years after a nuclear war, to explore the surface world and obtain vital equipment to keep your people alive. As this game is considered by many to be the best CRPG ever made, its makers went on to found Troika and Obsidian, two of today's cutting-edge CRPG developers.
Baldur's Gate is the series that earned BioWare their current unmatched notoriety in the genre. It is set in the Forgotten Realms, and uses the AD&D 2nd Edition ruleset. You play a young character who is forced to flee his hometown when the wizard who adopted him is brutally slain. He grows to discover that his destiny is intertwined with that of an ancient dark god.
[ May 08, 2004, 09:40 PM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
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is your sister going to be back by the time you come down for e3? we could all do lunch. i've got to start packing for heaven's sakes!
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*cough* I didn't see your post till now, mack, and I'm on -- and you're not. Try tomorrow night, 'k? *cough*
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Dog: I suppose they're not, but they're lumped together with them in my head. Fallout is a good suggestion, though! I can't believe I wasn't thinking about that.
Also... Did you read my earlier post? (innocent look)
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They've had a lot of HP Lovecraft games before, but since this is being made by Bethesda, I'm pretty hopeful.
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Depends how much plot you like in your games. I'm of the opinion that the best RPG ever created is Planescape: Torment, which you can probably pick up in a bargain bin for 10$ (which is what I paid for my copy). There's a WHOLE lot of reading when you play it, it's almost more of an interactive novel. But the story is awesome.
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Speaking of Morrowind, you might want to try that. It's got to be the most expansive and involving game ever. Millions of options, characters, locations, skills, items, and thousands of millions of quests, from the divine to the mundane.
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I think that Advent Children is probably the only thing that will really grab my attention under Square Enix's logo, so do expect me to have something to say about it.
The DS and PSP ... hmm ... I honestly have no idea what Nintendo and Sony are planning to do with those this year. I've heard rumors that both may show up on the floor, but nothing reliable. I'll keep my eyes open.
Kingdom Hearts is a taller order. I mean ... an eastern RPG with Disney Characters? It's like my two worst nightmares come together to haunt me Posts: 1907 | Registered: Feb 2000
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I guess anything newsworthy from Squeenix about FFXII might be moderately interesting to me. Oh, and check out EA for UX:O. They say they're not showing it, but I'm holding out hope that there might be at least a little new information. I've got another friend who's gonna be there from a small game company called Max Gaming Online. Maybe between the two of you you'll find something out. Posts: 609 | Registered: Apr 2003
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Awww... Well, don't go out of your way or anything. Any hot-hot info from E3 will be snapped up graciously by me! Posts: 4816 | Registered: Apr 2003
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I think it's funny that they originally promised UXO for like February of this year, and they're still not ready to show it And we've still got the same top 3 games from last year — Halo 2, Half-life 2, and Doom 3. Note that none of them made my list. I'm just tired of them.
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