Move

E3 2010--deja vu all over again

LOS ANGELES--Can someone please tell me why we've spent the last two days rehashing the highlights of E3 2009?

If you were here for last year's video game mega-convention, you will recall that the big news from Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo was the true dawn of the motion control wars. Microsoft unveiled Project Natal, Sony showed off its prototype system, and Nintendo pulled back the wraps on some new improvements to the Wii Motion Plus.

All told, these innovations were going to take us to the next level of video game play, where it's all about gesture-based control and traditional button-based controllers became a thing of the past.

Flash forward to this week, though, and the highlights of the press conferences, at least Sony's and Microsoft's, seem someone familiar. Let's recap. At Microsoft's event on Monday, the biggest news was the formal unveiling of Kinect. This, of course, used to be known as Project Natal.

Microsoft announced that the device would be available November 4 and was able for the first time to name some actual games that will be Kinect-enabled. There will be 15 launch titles, including Ubisoft's Michael Jackson game, as well as six that were featured during the press event, Dance Central, a dancing game from Rock Band developer Harmonix; Kinect Sports, a game that offers soccer, bowling, track, and more; Kinect Joy Ride, a racing game; Kinect Adventures, a game for navigating down rivers and railroad tracks while trying to hit targets; Your Shape, an exercise game; and Kinectimals. However, the demo was very much like the one from a year earlier. … Read more

Sony's E3 event focuses on 3D gaming

LOS ANGELES--And then it was Sony's turn.

After Microsoft grabbed the spotlight with its Monday morning press conference, and Nintendo was the star earlier today, Sony got everyone's attention Tuesday afternoon with its own set of announcements.

Topping the bill for Sony and its PlayStation group was its plans to enable 3D gaming right away. Kaz Hirai, the president of Sony's Networked Products and Services group, touted the company's "end-to-end" 3D offerings, from its Bravia 3D TVs to its new roster of 3D-enabled games for the PlayStation 3.

Immediately, Hirai said, games like Super Stardust, Pain and Wipeout will be available in 3D from the PlayStation Store, and more than 20 additional titles will be added to the roster by the end of 2010. And even more titles will be coming in 3D next year, including Killzone 3, which was given a big, loud demo at the press conference. As well, PS3 users--all of whom will be able to play in 3D--can look forward to titles like Mortal Kombat, Tron: Evolution, NBA 2K11, Motorzone Apocalypse and Gran Turismo 5.

After 3D gaming, the second major piece of the puzzle for Sony Tuesday was PlayStation Move, its motion-controller system, which it first unveiled at E3 a year ago and talked about in more detail in March at the Game Developers Conference. But on Tuesday, Sony was able to talk in much more detail about specific games that will be Move-enabled. … Read more

PlayStation Move: The games

Sony invested a generous chunk of time in laying out the fine details for the PlayStation 3's motion control system, PlayStation Move, today. We were also treated to list of compatible Move titles, as well as the debut of some new games built specifically for the platform. PlayStation Move exclusive titles will be priced at $40 and Sony expects to have 15 to 20 games ready for launch.

Here are some of the PlayStation Move exclusive and compatible titles shown today:

Sorcery: Hands-down the most impressive PlayStation Move title on display, Sorcery puts the player in the role of an apprentice wizard who has a laundry list of spells at his disposal. A live demo of the game was shown, displaying the various hand gestures and combat using the PlayStation Move controller. Sorcery is set for launch in spring 2011.… Read more

PlayStation Move hits September 19 in U.S.; Sony focuses on Move's buttons, 3D

To counter Microsoft's unveiling of the Kinect on Monday, Sony's E3 press conference focused on the things the Kinect seemingly has a hard time with: buttons and affordability.

An applause-inducing price reveal of $49.99 for the PlayStation Move controller (and a less-than-thrilled reaction to the separate $29.99 for the optional second part of the controller) was accompanied with release dates: September 19 in the U.S., a few days earlier in Europe, and October 21 in Japan. A bundle with the PlayStation Eye, a necessary part of the Move's functions, costs $99 and includes Sony'… Read more

Ubisoft to make Michael Jackson video game

LOS ANGELES--Video game maker Ubisoft announced Monday that it expects to publish a game in time for holiday 2010 based on the life and performances of Michael Jackson.

According to a release from Ubisoft, which was timed to the E3 video game convention, the game, which doesn't yet have a name, will be available for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, Nintendo DS, and Sony PlayStation Portable. It will also be compatible with Kinect for Xbox and PlayStation Move.

Although it is planned for a holiday 2010 release, it's not clear if it will be one of the 15 … Read more

Microsoft's Xbox motion control system is Kinect

LOS ANGELES--After more than a year of speculation, we finally know what Microsoft's new motion-control system is called. For those that have referred to it for a year as Project Natal, meet Kinect for Xbox 360.

On Sunday night, at the University of Southern California's Galen Center here, and during a special performance by Cirque du Soleil, Microsoft finally and formally pulled back the wraps on its much-anticipated system, now known as Kinect, but originally the work of the Israeli company 3DV.

After sitting through (actually standing, as the press was placed on the floor of the arena for a couple of hours with no seats) the performance, in which the Cirque's performers acted out and demonstrated a number of ways that Kinect can be used, my first impression is that Microsoft has hit on something with some serious potential. But at least as demonstrated Sunday, that potential hasn't been fully realized.

It was tempting to think that Microsoft was taking Kinect a little too seriously during the performance, given the scale and scope of the event (more on that in a bit), but it's clear that the company has a system on its hands that it plans to incorporate widely across its video gaming and digital living room environments.

And while it's too soon to tell exactly how Kinect will be used, and what software is being developed for it--Microsoft will say a lot more Monday morning at its formal E3 press conference--one thing became clear Sunday night: with Kinect, and a sports game, and an exercise game for it, Microsoft is, among other things, putting Nintendo and its Wii, its Balance Board, its Wii Fit and Wii Sports squarely in its sights.

3D PS3 games available Thursday

We're sure Sony will shed some more light on the company's stereoscopic 3D offerings at next week's E3 gaming expo, but PS3 owners with a 3D HDTV can get in on the action early.

According to CNET sister site Gamespot, Sony will release three full titles on the PlayStation Network with 3D support on Thursday. Wipeout HD and Super Stardust HD will offer a full 3D experience, while PAIN will only support 3D in two of the game's levels. Those who already own Wipeout HD and Super Stardust HD can update for free, while the PAIN … Read more

E3 2010: Our predictions

Reading the tea leaves of the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo is a bit like handicapping a Steve Jobs keynote. There are some things so reliably leaked or telegraphed they're virtually sure bets, whereas other announcements are so out of left field you'd never see them coming (to say nothing of the occasional highly expected software or hardware news that goes MIA).

Here, in handy bullet point form, are our collective predictions for the most and least likely news to come out of this year's E3 conference. Feel free to print this page, tack it to a wall, … Read more

Western Digital ships Netflix-ready media player

Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ owners got a taste of streaming Netflix movies awhile ago when the company released a free firmware update. Unfortunately, WD TV Live HD media player owners don't have it quite so easy.

Instead of a firmware update, Western Digital announced on Wednesday a new version of the player called WD TV Live Plus HD. It has exactly the same shape and size as the previous version, and it offers the same support for digital content. However, it adds support for Netflix movie streaming.

We had some hands-on time with the new player, and here's how it works:

If you are not an existing Netflix subscriber, the first time you use the media player to access Netflix it will give you a code to create a trial account. You can enter this code at Netflix.com/wdtv. Once you sign up, the player will automatically be associated with the account you just created. Now, via a computer, you add or remove movies from the Instant Queue. The next time you access Netflix with the WD TV Live Plus, it will display this queue and let you stream movies, rate them, or remove them from the queue.

When existing Netflix subscribers access Netflix the first time from the player, it will also provide a code that you can enter at Netflix's activation Web page. After that, it works just like it does for new subscribers.

This is a convenient way to associate the player with a Netflix account, as its remote control is too tiny to use to enter the username and password with. However, this also means you can use the player with only one Netflix account; but that shouldn't be a problem in most cases.

Quality-wise, the player is capable of streaming at 720p and the images generally looked good in my trials. However, even when used with a really high-speed connection, it still took up to 20 seconds or so to buffer a movie and each time I wanted to fast-forward or rewind, it would take about another 10 seconds to re-buffer.

Other than Netflix streaming, the new WD TV Live Plus HD media player doesn't have much to offer that's different than the WD TV Live HD. Other noticeable features include:… Read more

Sony to coders: For Move, don't rehash Wii failures

Note to developers planning to make games for Sony's PlayStation Move controller: don't even try to rehash your past titles for the Wii.

Speaking in an interview with Gamasutra, Sony's senior vice president of publisher relations, Rob Dyer, told the publication that when it comes to motion gaming, some titles work, and some just don't. And his company is currently working with developers to help them find the right genres and types of games that would work with the PlayStation Move--and nix those that would not.

"Our challenge here is to make sure [developers are] … Read more