Earlier this year, the ESA announced they would be cancelling E3 yet again and they wouldn’t have it anymore.  So I wanted to say my final goodbyes and reminisce on my favorite E3 memories here.  The reasons why I didn’t do this earlier when they first announced it I was pretty busy at the time, and I figured I’d do it when E3 usually occurred around now.

Games of the Decade: Expansion Pass #6/Blog a Day #25

Launch into a new adventure!

One of the stand out games for me at the Microsoft E3 press conference was a unique little indie game called The Artful Escape. The papercraft graphics and emphasis on jamming on an electric guitar made me think of some heady melding of Gitaroo Man from the PlayStation 2 and last generation’s indie darling Journey. I knew it was one to watch, and I was happy to be able to try it out on the show floor.

Nintendo Saves E3!

Madden 18. It seems there is going to be some story in this one.

Mario and Rabbids: Kingdom Battle. Turn-based tactical gameplay. It reminds me of Worms 3D. That appeals to me, but it might not to the Mario fanbase. Shigeru Miyamoto being on stage was fun to watch.

I watched this video today of the E3 Bethesda Press Conference, and I’m left saying to myself, “this is the best video game company out there.”. Skyrim and Fallout 4 mods, Evil Within 2, Doom VFR, Wolfenstein II, Quake, and Dishonored: Death of the Outsider. All this stuff was just incredible! I’m super excited. 

I just watched Microsoft's E3 Press Conference. There are a lot of interesting games coming out soon. One I really liked was Metro Exodus, such cool graphics and such amazing detail in the world and in the actions of your character. His gun jams, he pulls the crossbow bolt he just shot out of the monster his killed and reloads it in his crossbow. The creature animations are frighteningly realistic. I’m excited to check that one out.

Let’s face it: while Microsoft has plenty of lost ground to make up for, Sony has been sitting pretty since the beginning of the 8^th console generation. Even with the waves being made by the Nintendo Switch, there probably isn’t much that Sony needs to do to keep their position in the market secure. So their E3 presentation this year was a deliberate, measured, and comprehensive volley of games, even if there was little to surprise viewers.

Welcome to the first Nerds Without Pants E3 special of the year! It's just Julian and Patrick tonight, and we've got a lot to say about the EA, Microsoft, and Bethesda press conferences!

There is no doubt that Microsoft has had a rough, uphill battle since they first showed the Xbox One at E3 2013. Between a misguided push towards an all-digital future and a higher launch price point than the PlayStation 4, the market penetration that MS had with the Xbox 360 seemed to vanish in just a couple short years. With Sony continuing to win with their console and so much positive feedback on the Nintendo Switch, all eyes were on Microsoft for their E3 2017 press conference. Would their widely hyped Project Scorpio hardware be enough to put them back into competition? Only history will tell, but for now, it may be a case of too little, too late.

I guess I’ll just do a short life update for this edition of BaD, since I have a few small things to talk about since the last blog.

I enjoy watching E3 every year and trying to see the “theme” of each show. From second screen experiences to asynchronous multiplayer, there is always something that ties everything together. For E3 2016 that theme seemed to be that of change. While there may not have been a lot of surprises at this show thanks to a lot of companies pulling out and a record number of leaks, we did see a lot of high profile projects that looked, well, different. So let’s take a look at some of those well-worn properties looking to impress us by shaking things up.

I missed Sony's E3 press conference livestream due to work, but was able to catch the highlights.  Looks like they have a pretty great lineup:

Hey folks! Patrick and Julian are coming at you hot, with a special E3 edition right on the heels of the Microsoft and Sony press conferences! This one is lean and mean, so let's get right to it!

I think it’s safe to say that the unveiling of the Xbox One a few years ago was one of the most tone-deaf, poorly received debuts of a video game console since, well, Sony commented that people would get a second job to afford their $599 PlayStation 3 all those years ago. Since then, Microsoft has been doing everything in its power to right those wrongs and bring their console up to the user base that the PS4 currently enjoys. This E3 continues that trend and, while there were very few surprises, the Microsoft press conference put the emphasis squarely on exclusive games and community.

I had to work around my neice's dance recital today, but I got some gaming in. 

Pixlbit Nation Happy Friday and its almost time for July 4^th! For you folks outside of the United States you can celebrate too, shoot off fireworks, burn some hot dogs, wear a lot of red, white, and blue, and take in a baseball game. You should be golden after that. So anything fun/interesting happen over the week? You know some things did. I’m debating if I should visit the local mom and pop store today to see if they have anything new. We shall see if I make up my mind after this blog, but let’s get this week’s Quick Hits started!

The Nerds Without Pants are back for more E3 discussion, and we brought some friends! We are joined by JD and Pixlbit site director-turned-game-programmer Nick to talk about all sorts of fun things!

Hey guys an gals! No time for talking in this post, because this E3 special of Nerds Without Pants is coming in hot. The Pantsless Ones talk about the major press conferences and are amazed at how excited they are for this year's show (and next year's games!). There was no time for Julian to work his usual editing magic so we hope you all enjoy anyway. E3!!!