Tuesday, July 10, 2007

The best way to end an E3 keynote... Not with a whisper but with a bang

Hey Kids, its the time of the year again...

Yes I am talking about E3 '07 no thanks to the title of this post.

And tonight/today I will be typing really really fast..

So tonight Microsoft kicked off E3 '07 with their own keynote basically highlighting the things to come and the things Microsoft would do to change the gaming scene. Okay well things start to boil around 8.30 PDT and the whole keynote thing is/was held at Santa Monica High School. Nerds go to school don't we?... Haha...

And haha haha I'm still wiping away the tears from my cheeks... that I will explain later on. Like on the last paragraph of this post.

Oh before the event actually came to life there are a lot of crappy stuff and buzz over the web pertaining a grey XBox 360 console. My lips are sealed for now...

Okay so when the thing started there's like an image of a sorta Halo-like space cloud thing on the large screen and right next to the screen is a band I'm very very familiar with - Corporeal. They were featured on Bungie.net me thinks and their video was circulated all over YouTube. They were playing their rendition of the Halo theme.

This is not from E3 '07 but its them...



While they were playing the tunes, the large screen was busy with screenshots and stuff from Halo 3. It was cute.

So next Peter Moore steps out of this doorway/hallway beside the screen - in a green glow(are those legible words?)- while thanking Corporeal of course. What's a better way to promote a game based on rock stars than to unveil it right after a band played live? Why play the game live of course. The game in question is Rock Band and we get to see Peter Moore and some other old-ish people playing around with instruments I could only imagine a 14 year old could use. It was really scarey but the game itself was fun and kudos featured bands of course. Next up was Viva Pinata: Party Animals - a game best suited for my 12 year old niece.

Then there was Mass Effect and gosh I think it looked so much more better then it did a few months ago - when we last seen anything from the game itself. Oh yeah Mass Effect will be released this November. Then the inevitable happened : Mr moore started bragging over XBox 360's blah blah blahs and all then "ooh we're outselling PS3s and stuff".

Then there's videos and videos mostly in-game demos so I decided to take a toilet break. I came back and nearly fell asleep with all the boring talk of XBox Live blah blah blah, video store blah blah blah and Disney movie titles coming to XBox Live. Hang on, Disney?!! What happened to Steve Jobs, I thought he was Disney's the largest shareholder and sworn mortal enemy to Bill Gates? Hmm.. I smell fishes.

Next are some news about the 360 Elite and Europe as well as a brief show off of the Project Gotham Racing 4. The team gave us a little insight on the new addition to franchise : Bikes, i.e. motorbikes/motorcycles. Oh and there was finally some signs that Halo Wars is still alive as well as Alan Wake.. I was a bit worried.

Moving on is Games for Windows. Hell, I was a bit excited but not surprised when Gears of War showed up on the screen. Ooh but this time round there's the Brumak and the fact that you're gonna have to do battle with it. Next there's Call of Duty 4 and I must say I think I'm starting to fall in love with this game.. The dudes from Infinity Ward gave us a little treat with a little demo of how the game would be played. It looked bril and the player's comrade had sort of a Scottish accent which I find rather cute.

Oh and they have a Beta for it exclusive to XBox Live. Check it out at CharlieOscarDelta.com. Next Peter Moore said somthing about getting Sean Connery as voice talent. Now thats whoa - for a game. Next there's Grand Theft Auto 4, trailer from 360, in game - boasts Mr Moore. So next was Resident Evil 5, noted to be the only game demoed there to not be released this year but still in game, 360. The trailer looks promising and is available for download on Marketplace. Next up is Assassin's Creed with the hottest chick in gaming - not Lara Croft but someone more real but just as mythical - Jade Raymond. Oh and she got the hot star treatment, all the whistling and hooting and oogling eyes. Not surprisingly, the demo for the game itself is, well, more hotter than her and the graphics and gameplay elements are so seductive. I just cannot wait for this game, November just can't come any sooner.

So then Peter Moore was back on stage thanking the team and said something that ended up catching me off guard.

"Now each generation brings with it a few select stories that are groundbreaking and define storytelling. For many, that story was Star Wars. Thirty years later, a new generation is claiming a new story, and a new title ..."

"I'm very pleased to present to you a unique partnership between Bungie Studios, Weta, down in New Zealand, and director Neil Blomkamp. This live-action trailer gives you a chance to see what they've been working on, and a new chance to believe."

On the large screen - something I would have died for - a live action trailer for Halo 3. I thought I died and naturally made a lot of noises - I whimpered, I sighed, I moaned and I gasped for whatever sanity I had left to come back. I don't want to describe the trailer, you'll have to see it yourself to believe.

Mr Moore next showed us a console specially made for Halo 3. It is the Xbox 360 Spartan version. Well okay I don't think they call it that but it does look like a Spartan's Mjolnir armor. Oh and the crown, I meant audience was still 5 minutes ago on the trailer and well in a state of eternal shock. Mr Moore noticed this I think and well made a few comments.

So ends the E3 Microsoft Keynote.



Not really, not if Master Chief is not involved in it.

What happened next was truly whoa.




[Moore:"... not till we let you Finish the Fight."

Kat(me) whimpered.

Kat braced herself.

The large screen lit up.

Kat thought she would die.

Scenes from Halo 3.

A Brute-like voice in the background saying things like why do you fight.. your world will burn until its nothing but glass.

Destruction.

Destruction.

Miranda Keyes with a gun.

Cortana on her knees.

Brute Chopper.

Destruction.

Master Chief and the Arbiter side by side.

Destruction.

Master Chief in a very 'intimate' argument with the Arbiter.

Noises.

More Master Chief.

A pelican moving away from the Ark.

More Master Chief.

End.

Corporeal plays again.

Kat reduced to tears and making a lot of baby noises.]

Update: I've just found the trailers and demos from E3 '07

Here'3 the Halo 3 campaign trailer:




The Halo 3 live action trailer:

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