Electronic Entertainment Expo: Big N Steals the Show

The E3 is an annual gaming convention in which the biggest and brightest of the electronic gaming industry come together to strut their stuff and hawk their upcoming consoles and games.

And whether or not they'll admit it, the three main players Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony are in direct competition for the 'winner' of E3. Sony and Nintendo hoped to generate hype for their newest upcoming consoles, while Microsoft made do with showcasing games for its already-released Xbox 360.

Sony, from the start, was underwhelming. Its pre-E3 conference generated a lackluster response from the crowd, with the exception of the 15 minute trailer for Metal Gear Solid 4 and the beautifully rendered Final Fantasy XIII trailer. Two bombshells were dropped on the crowd, however, when Sony first announced their latest controller would have tilt-sensitivity. Coincidental to the point of suspicious is that the new motion sensing controller was announced some six months after Nintendo had revealed its new controller.

Far more potentially damaging, however, is the fact that Sony announced that the PlayStation3 would be shipping for US$600 in November 17. Given conversion rates, we'll be shelling out over S$1000 for the system alone, thanks largely to the new Blu-Ray format. Ouch.

As for Microsoft, it was an uphill battle from the first, considering that the Xbox has already been available for some time. Still, MS made an extremely solid showing, with upcoming titles such as Halo 3, Too Human, Gears of War and Mass Effect. A juicy bit of news for Xbox fans is the fact that the Grand Theft Auto series, formerly a Playstation exclusive, will soon be released for the Xbox360 as well.

The victor's crown, however, goes to Nintendo. Focusing on innovative gameplay over raw power, the Nintendo Wii -- a new console and controller based around motion sensing -- wowed the crowds with a new selection of games and the intuitive controls of the remote-control shaped gamepad. The line to try out the Wii stretched to a 4 hour wait, shattering all E3 records in history.

An added surprise was the inclusion of Solid Snake from the Metal Gear Solid series in the Nintendo brawler-style game, Super Smash Brothers: Brawl. Unsurprisingly, this generated massive hype for the game. Games like Super Mario Galaxy and the Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess received a large and vocal response from the crowd.

Sony's market position as leader in the video game industry looks increasingly shaky thanks to strong showings from both Microsoft and Nintendo.

By: Johnathan Lau