Poor E3. For a long time it was the one time of the year when game geeks (journalists) could gather in Los Angeles and paw at underdressed spokesmodels with their clammy, sweaty hands. First they got rid of the booth babes, then they all but cancelled E3 all together. The E3 Expo as we know it is gone for good replaced by the E3 Media and Business Summit. Ooohh fancy. That doesn't sound like a place where hordes of game journalists recovering from hangovers would be welcome, but they will be in about a week. There will still be a lot of E3 coverage over the course of the show, but it still feels like the party is over. We'll have to see what it's like this year under this new, more serious disguise.
If you've always wanted to go to E3...well, it's too late. However, if you're an Xbox 360 owner you can enjoy much of the media that will be released that week over Xbox Live. Here's the press release from Microsoft.
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"From Tuesday 10th July until Friday 13th July, Microsoft Corp. is bringing E3 home to owners of the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system through its second annual E3: Bringing It Home, which offers downloads on Xbox LIVE® Marketplace of the hottest content from the show."
"Connect to the Xbox LIVE online entertainment network and bring everyone together in the living room to enjoy the E3 experience with E3: Bringing It Home. Xbox 360™ owners will be able to download high-definition content direct from the show including the following:"
· Microsoft’s E3 2007 press conference will be available on Xbox LIVE Marketplace in high definition later next week
· Video updates direct from the show
· A selection of game trailers, themes, gamer pictures and demos will be available from the hottest E3 titles such as these:
“Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation” (NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc.)
“Assassin’s Creed” (Ubisoft)
“BioShock” (2K)
“Blue Dragon” (Microsoft Game Studios)
“Burnout Paradise” (Electronic Arts Inc.)
“CALL OF DUTY® 4: MODERN WARFARE™” (Activision)
“FIFA Soccer 08” (Electronic Arts)
“Guitar Hero III” (Activision/RedOctane)
“Lost Odyssey™” (Microsoft Game Studios)
“Madden NFL 08” (Electronic Arts)
“NCAA Football 08” (Electronic Arts)
“Need for Speed: ProStreet” (Electronic Arts)
“Project Gotham Racing® 4” (Microsoft Game Studios)
“The Simpsons Game” (Electronic Arts)
“Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08” (Electronic Arts)
“WWE® SmackDown® vs. Raw® 2008” (THQ)
"In addition to all this content, there will be many surprises, so fans should stay tuned to the Xbox LIVE calendar (http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live/marketplace/ticker.htm) for updates about what E3: Bringing It Home content will be available during the show."
Sounds like a lot of stuff to watch, and it will probably be much less painful than G4's coverage.
