E3 2010: EA Press Conference Summary

Here's a link to the Microsoft E3 press conference summary, if you missed it

Thankfully, Electronic Arts were more in favor of games than motion control peripherals or 3D.

 

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit

EA’s press conference led off with Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit. The presenter talked about “going back to the series’ roots,” and certainly did a great job showing off the latest iteration in the Need for Speed franchise. In Hot Pursuit, you can choose to play as a regular racer or a cop. Players will also get to take on their friends through a multitude of challenges to add more replay value to the package.

 

Dead Space 2

Second on the EA lineup was Dead Space 2. Last time, we saw Isaac Clarke roaming the empty halls of the USG Ishimura. Now Isaac is running the show, and he’ll be taking on the Necromorphs for round two within a fully functioning city. The demo showed off new enemy types, new weapons, and left it with a cliffhanger. Dead Space 2 will be available on the Sony show floor, as they have stated.

 

Medal of Honor

EA’s conference was very shooter-centric, and with the new Medal of Honor ditching the World War II setting, seems like the age-old franchise is amped up for one heck of a reboot. As EA LA will be working on the game’s single player campaign, DICE is busy with the multiplayer aspect. As they were wrapping up the demo, they rewarded gamers with an invite to sign up for the Medal of Honor multiplayer beta that will begin on June 21st.

 

Gun Club, Bad Company 2 DLC

The Gun Club was also introduced. Gun Club is an EA feature that gives rewards to players for their achievements/play time with EA shooters such as Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Dead Space. Also, those who sign up for the Gun Club early will also gain an early access to the MOH beta on June 17th. A teaser for a Bad Company 2 add-on called Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam will be available this winter.

 

EA Sports

Next, Peter Moore came out and promoted EA Sports MMA; the box art of the game will feature both MMA fighters Randy Coutoure and Fedor Emelianenko. There were also demos for EA Sports Active 2 (all running on the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, & Wii) and the new features in Madden NFL 2011, courtesy of 4-time NFL Super Bowl Champion, Joe Montana.

 

Sims 3

Sims 3 was next to take the stage, in which they talked about the new features included, and how they tried to expand more on the old ones as well. But the presentation was all about expanding beyond the PC system. And with that, Sims 3 was announced for consoles and handhelds.

 

Crysis 2

Crytek is back with Crysis 2, and did they impress. They showed a demo of the game running on the Xbox 360. That’s right; not only Crysis 2 will be available for the PC alone, but for the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 as well. The demo they showed looked very impressive, especially with the game running exceptionally well on a console, no doubt.

 

Bulletstorm

Cliff Bleszinski came back to promote developer People Can Fly’s new first person shooter, Bulletstorm. This game encourages you to “kill with skill.” You can toy with your enemies and kill them with the most creative ways possible. Depending on how you deal with them determines how many points you receive each kill. They showed a demo of the game, as well as the release date for Bulletstorm, which hits store shelves on February 22, 2011 for the PS3 and 360.

 

Star Wars: The Old Republic

Lastly, LucasArts took the floor to update gamers with how Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO is shaping up to be. At the end of the conference, they showed yet another cinematic; last year’s E3 showed the ‘Despair’ trailer, the fearsome power of the Sith, while ‘Hope’ signified the unwavering fighting spirit of the Republic.

 

Personal thoughts

Unlike at last year’s E3, Electronic Arts came out with their best, and certainly impressed this year. I’m definitely excited for Dead Space 2, but I want to see more footage of this horror sequel’s new setting. The Old Republic’s cinematic trailer was excellent, but my taste for MMO’s is a little dry this time around.

 

Medal of Honor was indeed interesting, and I’m curious to try out the beta sometime. I don’t know if I’ll actually be in it, though. Crysis 2 was definitely EA’s best, and the fact that it was running on a console was pretty mind-blowing. Now us console owners will finally get the chance to play one of the most technically impressive games out on the market right now.

 

Tune in later for the Ubisoft Press Conference summary blog.