Microsoft seem to have listened to fans this year. For that reason and that reason alone, they’ve managed to start off E3 with a bang. Is it enough to impress our staff, who were rightly skeptical ahead of launch?
Mat Growcott
I went into the Microsoft conference expecting them to try their hardest, but they really surprised me. They were on topic, they brought the energy and the big names needed to impress. There were more than a few surprises, with a few Ubisoft titles now going to be missing from the Sony presser. There aren’t many companies that even approach that Nintendo conference, but Microsoft managed it. They’ve filled up the end of the year nicely and hinted at things to come. This is going to be a tough one to beat.
Allison Hill
Microsoft really hit it out of the park this year. They listened. They focused on games, games, and more games. Almost nothing for TV apps, Kinect, and thankfully, none of the “Xbox: Go Home.” There was a huge focus on exclusive titles and timed exclusive DLC, but that’s expected from Microsoft. They need that edge to compete with the PS4. So lets recap: the new Call of Duty actually got me excited, unlike Ghosts, AC Unitiy’s coop looks fantastic, Sunset Overdrive looks like the best new IP I’ve ever seen, Super Ultra Dead Rising 3 Arcade something something was a huge surprise, I’m actually now going to pay attention to Fable Legends, and the Halo: Master Chief Collection will be a console seller for sure. The Xbox One has never looked so good.
Rob Heek
First off all, I liked they opened with thanking the fans for feedback which really helped them.
The games they showcased all looked beautifully designed and well made.
Project Spark really drawn my attention, being able to make your own games sounds cool.
The Fable Legends gameplay looked promising and fun to play.
Halo the master chief collection seems like a big game, combining all games on one disc would be wonderful.
Halo 5 Guardians didn’t get much attention though, which is a shame.
Rise of the Tomb Raider looks even better than its predecessor, showing the emotional impact of Lara’s adventure even better.
The game that really stood out for me was Scalebound, flying dragons into battle is always epic!
Todd Awbrey
Microsoft needed to come out swinging and they did. Last year they were playing defense and this year they played offense. Nothing but games with exclusivity in some way on most of them. They needed to show people why they need to buy a Xbox One and I believe they did it. I thought going in they felt like the underdog going in since they were being beat in sales to this point with the Xbox One and the PS4 and I feel they heard the complaints. I also liked how they shows nothing but 2014 games for the first part and 2015 games and beyond for the second part. Sony will need to bring its A game tonight to match Microsoft’s efforts.
Adam Roffel
Microsoft did so well at their E3 conference, they convinced me that getting an Xbox One in the near future would be an excellent idea. A few things stood out for me during this conference. First, Microsoft and Indies use to go hand in hand – remember the since cancleed Xbox Live Arcade? – and this is true once again. Microsoft is embracing indies and it means only great things for fans. Second, the way Microsoft appraoched things this year was great. No talk about numbers, no hardware, just games. This is what next generation needed, and now it has it. Finally, this timed DLC stuff really needs to end. Gamers in todays society are generally drawn to a specific console, and do most of their gaming there. I understand it’s a money making oppertunity for the developers, but really wonder if that ever translates to more sales. Timed DLC on Xbox is not going to make me, a non next-gen owner choose an Xbox over a PS4. Gamers lose when this happens, always.
Mat Growcott has been a long-time member of the gaming press. He's written two books and a web series, and doesn't have nearly enough time to play the games he writes about.
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