Opinion

E3 2011: Biggest misses of the show

The big booths, high-profile games, and general spectacle of E3 all ranked very highly with attendees, according to the informal polling conducted during and after the show. Everyone has his collection of the best and worst games, and it's a dangerous minefield to step into that subjective field, so I'd rather avoid that (still, some of my favorites are easy to pick out).

There were, however, a handful of annoyances and missed opportunities. Some are long-term issues, others may have a quick fix. If you're interested in what E3 missed the boat on this year, check out our list below, and offer your own suggestions in the comments section at the end.

The console company press conferences failed to highlight some of the best games. Sony, Microsoft, and, to a lesser extent, Nintendo all use their respective preshow press conferences to highlight notable upcoming games, both first-party (those actually published by Sony, Microsoft, etc.) and from other publishers such as EA.

We saw the latest Call of Duty, Uncharted, and Zelda games, but several of the most notable contenders were missing. Perhaps it was because they weren't calculated to be key sales drivers, in the way that Call of Duty is, or because key partnerships required press conference stage time at the expense of other games.

I'm inclined to agree with a games industry executive who told me immediately after the show that the hottest E3 buzz-builders were BioShock Infinite, Skyrim, and Batman: Arkham City. Of those, BioShock got a brief plug at the Sony press conference while the other two went unmentioned.… Read more

Networking talk: From cloud to iCloud and why you should care

I recently got an e-mail from a reader that asked, "Since when has the Internet become the cloud?" and it struck me how far from the truth the term "cloud" is (and I am talking about computing, of course). After all, there's nothing up in the air about this. Quite the contrary.

When facing something cool and hard to explain, we tend to give it a sexy name that might not have much to do with what it is. This is because we like it that way and because sexy sells. And Steve Jobs' recent … Read more

E3 2011: Why isn't Apple at E3?

LOS ANGELES--This is largely a rhetorical question, as Apple is not fond of making appearances at trade shows, including CES and Computex. In fact, Apple dropped out of the one trade show it regularly participated in, the Macworld Expo, a couple of years ago. Additionally, this year has an additional wrinkle, as Apple is hosting its own WWDC conference the very same week as E3.

Yet, the question is not as ridiculous as it seems. One area of interactive entertainment that has experienced tremendous year-over-year growth recently is the mobile games segment currently dominated by iOS and the triple-play of … Read more

E3 2011: Our predictions

With the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo happening simultaneously with the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference this year, those in the habit of making technology-announcement predictions have a big week ahead of them. We've put our collective heads together to make some forecasts, and you're welcome to play along at home and score us on how we do.

To be fair, many of these have been so reliably leaked or telegraphed that they're virtually sure bets. Others seem likely based on corroborating clues we've seen or historical precedent. We've also thrown in a final list of E3 … Read more

Crave in Comments: From popcorn to Patriot Act

Our new feature "Crave in Comments" highlights just a few of the many intelligent, provocative, and funny comments readers share about Crave stories daily. Every Friday, we'll showcase a handful of comments that caught our eye during the week. We encourage you to join the discussion and share your own opinions, quips, and creative suggestions. The more voices, the merrier the Crave chorus!

Regarding Patriot Act signed by President Autopen:

"If after 10 days he does not sign a bill or veto it, it automatically becomes law. The only time the lack of his signature causes a bill to not become law is at the end of a Congress (once every two years) where if he doesn't sign it and the 113th Congress is gone until the start of the 114th Congress, then it is called a 'pocket veto' and the bill dies because any business of the current Congress doesn't roll over into the next Congress. So, if his autopen signature was not entirely allowable, the bill will still automatically become law after 10 days. Either way, the Patriot act is renewed." --by MalachyNG

Our Nintendo 3DS wish list for 2011

At last year's E3, the Nintendo 3DS was arguably the headlining tech of the whole show, if for nothing more than its successful use of glasses-free 3D in a handheld game system.

Nevertheless, since the launch of the 3DS this March--just a few short months ago--the system's been luffing in a dying breeze. While the 3DS' capabilities show promise, the actual games, price, and battery life (or lack thereof) have soured the equation. Add to that the fact that the 3DS still doesn't have its Web browser, online e-shop, or last year's promised Netflix streaming … Read more

E3 retrospective: Where are they now?

The big three video game console manufacturers love to use E3 as a forum to brag, tease, and whet the appetites of gamers worldwide.

An entire year later, where do all of the promises, announcements, and hype from 2010's show stand? We've hand-picked each conference's spotlight moments and detailed the progress in a slideshow.

E3 and the video game bubble

Even though it's supposedly an industry-only trade show, the Electronic Entertainment Expo is an event of epic proportions for video game aficionados, as evidenced by the legions of fans who follow the show's daily announcements online, through blogs, news outlets, and (a more recent development) video feeds.

But despite its decade-plus place in the public consciousness (I've been attending since 1999), the E3 show has been to the brink of extinction more than once, and while it has pulled off a remarkable recovery over the past couple of years, there's still a chance history may repeat itself.

In brief, what happened was the trade show equivalent of a boom and bust cycle. Throughout the 2000s, game companies competed to outdo each other, with excessive budgets and outlandish displays, creating literal mini cities inside the Los Angeles Convention Center that easily trumped anything seen at the larger Consumer Electronics Show, which takes place in Las Vegas every January.

The trend peaked in 2006, after which the participants collectively realized that entirely too much money was being spent on the show, which had long since stopped being a place for retail buyers to make deals with publishers, and had become essentially a weeklong press conference. Simply put, the week's worth of media hits was judged to be simply not worth the investment.

At the time, the Entertainment Software Association, a trade organization that runs the event, agreed to retrench, scaling down the 2007 version into what then-Entertainment Software Association President Douglas Lowenstein called a "more personal, efficient, and focused" show. E3 went from 60,000 attendees the previous year to about 4,000, and from 400 exhibiting companies to fewer than 40. E3 2008 was a similarly small affair, returning to the Los Angeles Convention Center, but keeping the small, low-cost format.… Read more

preGame 53: Call of Duty Elite; E3 2011 preview

On today's episode of preGame we'll be previewing the biggest gaming event of the year, E3! Join us along with special guest Scott Stein as we dive deep into E3 2011 predictions, anticipated games, and more previews than you can handle; from the Wii 2 to the NGP, and everything in between.

We'll also have an in-depth conversation about today's announcement from Activision regarding Call of Duty Elite. This brand-new premium service will enhance the online multiplayer experience by leaps and bounds. But is it worth a premium price?

All this and much more on this … Read more

Crave in Comments: From B&N to bedbugs

Regarding New Sony Vaio F, S series laptops go upscale:

"I think the VAIO S series is the best laptop I have seen. It is thin, really portable at around 3 pounds, and so fast. I probably will buy one next year once 22nm CPU comes out. It already has 7-8 hours of battery life so that less power hungry CPU should increase it. Plus, for all of those of you that don't know, you can add a sheet (flat) battery to it and it will get 15 hours." --by phamhlam

Regarding B&N fires back at Amazon over Kindle battery life:

"How about both companies making the battery replaceable, instead of insisting on "mine is bigger." --by rreally_bored