From Next-gen.biz : "As Next-Gen exclusively reported Sunday, all major exhibitors have effectively pulled their support from the show, prompting the majority of game publishers to also cancel plans for high-cost booths. The ESA will make an announcement later today that will attempt to add some gloss to this catastrophe, with some form of media-focused boutique event - branded E3 - taking its place.
Some gullible journalists, evidently blinded by a desire to do-down a rival scoop, have taken this as evidence that E3 is alive and well and merely being 'downsized'. But this euphemism doesn't change the facts. The decision by big manufacturers and publishers to walk away has left ESA in damage-control mode. As we reported yesterday, E3, in its present form, is dead.
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) shindig has been a staple of game industry life since the mid-1990s. However, the larger exhibitors have jointly decided that the costs of the event do not justify the returns, generally measured in media exposure.
Publishers believe the multi-million dollar budgets would be better spent on more company-focused events that bring attention to their own product lines rather than the industry as a whole.
Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli drops knowledge along with a new DX10 video. Check in for all the latest.
Crysis is obviously one of the biggest games on the PC radar this year. It's not hard to see why. From what's been shown of the game so far, and the DX10 video, the game looks gorgeous. From lush tropical environments to frozen wastes, soldiers in fatigues to outlandish, monolithic monstrosities, the environments and enemy designs in Crysis are strikingly realistic and instantly appealing.
In addition to its visuals, Crysis seems to be offering gameplay that combines the PC version of Far Cry with the feral powers present in the console-only Far Cry Instincts. In other words, the game looks to combine large outdoor battle arenas with brutal up-close melee abilities. Crysis' nano suit gives players the ability to toss around environmental objects like barrels, grab and fling enemies, as well as run at superhuman speeds, or bolster armor. Combining these abilities with a variety of firearms and vehicles is a tantalizing gaming prospect, something we all want to know more about.
IGN recently caught up with Crytek's CEO Cevat Yerli to get some insight into the game's development and features.
Check out hi-res images of this massively ambitious Sci-fi-RPG-FPS.
Featuring FPS, RPG and space combat elements all weaved together to present an open and free world, where players can become entirely immersed in a genuinely deep and involving play mechanic, The Precursors puts players in the role of a young pilot, who's tasked with uncovering secrets and solving the problems that go with them as he travels the galaxy visiting planets and getting into scrapes.
The game looks massively ambitious and will undoubtedly deliver a seemingly never-ending array of creatures, characters, weapons, vehicles, cultures and worlds. Expect to be in desert planets one minute and snow-covered ice planets the next and expect to bump into all manner of alien beings. In theory The Precursors could present players with a sense of openness and infinity not felt since we all first booted up Elite on our BBCs and Spectrums and allowed ourselves to waste away hours travelling through the seemingly open universe presented therein.
This game sounds a lot like Freelancer on the PC. I loved that game. I really hope this game is like that.
Funcom's PC MMOG Age of Conan is one of the flagship titles for Vista and DirectX 10, and to present us with a view of what the new version of DirectX means for the game, DX10-specific footage has been released.
...what exactly is so great about DX10 again? :/
This looks like 'WOW', with sub-Oblivion character models....not exactly impressive.
I see no "HOLY CRAP" factor in this AT ALL.
Current stuff on the PC looks better than this.
Well you gotta admit, the backgrounds and scenery looked great. Once the character models started appearing I quickly closed the video lol.
I thought the backgrounds and screnery were the worst part.....PS2 textures and low polys.
Whow that's a pitty for the laughs on bad shows like Sony's at last E3 and their CGI of last years E3 where they are forced to show their real lying faces.
But still I think they're right. Costs are very high, it would be better if they spend it on real focused customers actions. And today, the internet and streaming TV interviewing producers, giving scoops and so on is cheaper, faster and everybody can see what's going on
...this year's sony press conference was a disgrace, and now everyone is afraid of sony's future lame conferences, and feel that it just isn't worth paying for e3 shows that are always under high risk of lame conferences (from sony).
Always have to bring sony into this dont you, Anyway real shame E3 is stopping...
I don't trust this source. The writing was pretty snide and self-important, so I'll just wait to see what the ESA says before I listen to the weasel who wrote the article.
I kinda think this is a good thing! E3 was covered so well online this year it seems pointless to actually put on a show! Why bother flying everyone out to LA, spending millions on 50 or more LCD tvs for people to play when you can just put videos on IGN and make demos available via xbox live and the sony/nintendo alternatives. E3 had its time but the purpose it served has been replaced by the net, still kinda sad to see it go though!