The “Big 3”

The Big 3 refers to the three largest players in the gaming industry right now: Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. Each had their own press conference (or two) at E3 this year, much like every year, and they all had some big news to share.

Nintendo

Nintendo was the only major player to have some new hardware to show off this year – the Wii U. Nintendo has officially stated that the Wii U will launch during this year’s holiday season, perhaps as early as October. Apart from an official launch window, we also got a look at the final version of the new GamePad tablet controller.

The GamePad has a large touch screen that can interact with games in a number of different ways as well as all of the standard motion controller capabilities of the original Wii controller. It also features a web cam, IR blaster (TV remote), microphone, speakers, and dual analog sticks.

The Wii U console, while not necessarily in its final form, is looking small and powerful. It’s roughly the same size as the original Wii, but capable of full 1080p video output with graphics performance 1.5 to 2 times better than the PS3 and Xbox 360. Some of the demoed titles, such as the upcoming Zelda Wii U game, look absolutely stunning.

Microsoft

Unlike Nintendo, Microsoft didn’t have any fancy new hardware to show off. Instead, it focused on new and improved services and software coming to the Xbox 360.

Xbox SmartGlass was Microsoft’s biggest announcement. It is a new software layer that integrates your Xbox 360 with all of your Windows 8 devices, such as tablets and smartphones. SmartGlass can sync shows and movies across all of your devices as well as turn them into viewing companions for more immersive video experiences. Your tablet or smartphone can also be used as a remote, ideal for controlling Internet Explorer, now coming to Xbox.

Sony

Sony’s announcements primarily revolved around the PlayStation Vita. It was all about cross-platform play, such as using the Vita to play multiplayer games with players on PS3. Sadly, other than that, Sony had very little else to announce other than new games.

The Games

Everyone knows E3 is all about the games, so what were some of the most anticipated titles we saw at E3 this year?

Halo 4

The Halo series has always been a favorite among Xbox gamers, and everyone is looking forward to the newest installment, Halo 4. Game play is expected to remain largely similar to the original titles; what everyone is after is the compelling new story line it brings. Release date is scheduled for November 6^th of this year (just in time for the winter holidays).

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale

We’re surprised it took Sony so long to come up with a PlayStation variant on the widely successful Smash Bros. series, but it looks like we finally have something with PlayStation All-Stars. Whether or not the title can actually compete with Smash Bros. is yet to be seen, but what’s most interesting about it is the fact that it’s available for both PS3 and PS Vita and capable of cross-platform play.

Gears of War: Judgment

Another Xbox favorite, Gears of War: Judgment offers a prequel to the original title for those curious about the back story of COG and its soldiers. Game play will surely be as action-packed as ever.

1: WipEout 2048 vs. Super Mario 3D Land

It’s tough to crown a number one PlayStation Vita game so early on, but WipEout 2048 is definitely a top pick. The game play isn’t much different from the previous versions, but it has had a massive visual overhaul that make for quite the ride.

Super Mario Land 3D is definitely the best 3D title Nintendo has to offer – some even say it’s the only title actually worth playing in 3D. It’s your classic Mario, but with a 3D twist. What’s not to love?

2: Uncharted: Golden Abyss vs. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

Uncharted: Golden Abyss really is the most visually striking handheld game ever (for now), and not only does it leverage the PS Vita’s power beautifully, it also makes use of all of its other new features. Plus the game play is just what you’d expect from the Uncharted series. It’s definitely a top pick.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D is the 3DS’ number two go-to title. The fact that it’s 3D isn’t why people love this game. It’s the fact that it’s one of the most loved of the Zelda titles ever made. The ability to carry now it in your pocket makes it extremely popular. The slight graphics overhaul is a nice bonus as well.

3: Rayman Origins vs. Mario Kart 7

Rayman has already made its place among the great classics, and Rayman Origins brings most of that greatness to the PS Vita. It keeps with the original 2D platformer experience but also ties in many of the Vita’s new features, like the touch screen.

Mario Kart has always been a staple in Nintendo’s classic lineup, and Mario Kart 7 is no exception. It’s just like previous installments, but with a few new features (such as kart customization) for more complex and immersive game play.

4: Super Stardust Delta vs. StarFox 64 3D

Super Stardust Delta is a unique space-based shooter with cutting edge graphics and addictive game play – pretty much what you’d expect from the Stardust series if you’re familiar with it. It’s by no stretch a complex game, but the simplicity is one of its greatest appeals. That, plus its affordable price on the PlayStation Network makes it one of the top rated Vita titles.

Just like Zelda, StarFox 64 3D is a 3DS port of the Nintendo 64 classic. The game play is almost exactly as it used to be, only with revamped graphics, improved audio and voiceovers, and a new multiplayer mode. It’s like carrying a nostalgia fix in your pocket.

5: Lumines: Electronic Symphony vs. Dead or Alive: Dimensions

Puzzles always make for great casual games, and Lumines is no exception. This latest rendition for the Vita not only brings new challenging puzzles, but also wonderful visual and audio effects – in other words, everything that made the game great, just got better.

Dead or Alive: Dimensions stays true to the buxom babe fighter genre the franchise has perfected over the years. The game play is as enthralling as ever, and the 3D aspect certainly has its perks. It’s just a shame the 3DS doesn’t have a larger screen.

The Display(s)

One of the 3DS’ biggest selling points is its glasses-free 3D display – more of a marketing gimmick, really. There are only a small handful of 3D-ready titles available, and of those, Super Mario 3D Land is the only one worth playing in 3D. Many people don’t actually like the 3D affects.

The Vita, however, has a 5-inch, fully touch-enabled OLED display which outshines the 3DS in nearly every aspect. The only downside is that its large screen might make the overall size a bit large to fit comfortably in your pocket. Score one for the Vita.

Controls

Like the previous DS systems, the 3DS has a D-pad, bumpers, a touch screen, and various buttons. Unlike its predecessors, it also has a single joystick and gyroscope/accelerometer.

Not to be outdone, the Vita has all of this, plus an additional joystick, an electronic compass, and a touch pad on the rear of the device. If anything, the Vita might have too many inputs, since they do lead to some complicated game play; nonetheless, we have to side with the Vita in this category as well.

Graphics

As a significantly newer device, it should come as no surprise that the Vita has far superior graphics capabilities than the 3DS. The Vita features an extremely high-performance quad-core CPU and quad-core GPU, capable of outputting 150 million Tri/s. The 3DS can only manage about 30 million. This is another clear win for the Vita.

Game Library

Launched with 25 titles (all of about two were very good), the Vita has a small selection. That number is very quickly growing, and thankfully, the Vita is compatible with all PSP and PS Mini titles on the PlayStation Network. Unfortunately, for anyone hoping to migrate from a PSP, you’ll have to repurchase your games.

The 3DS doesn’t have a lot of worthy 3D titles, but it does have the HUGE Nintendo DS library at its disposal. Plus many of the greatest franchises, like Mario and Zelda. The 3DS takes this category…for now.

Connectivity

Both the 3DS and Vita have WiFi, but only the Vita has Bluetooth and a 3G version available. Both have built-in web browsers and even Netflix streaming, but the Vita’s larger screen makes a big difference. The PlayStation Network also offers a wide selection of movies and TV shows to rent or purchase. Mark another win for the Vita.

Price

The WiFi-only version of the Vita weighs in at $249, a full $80 more expensive than the 3DS. The Vita also uses Sony’s proprietary Memory Stick storage, which is an additional $20 purchase at minimum (that’s just the 4GB card). 3DS games are, on average, about $10 cheaper than Vita titles as well. Considering the extra performance and features the Vita has, it’s still a good value, but the 3DS is easier on your wallet.

Overall

The Vita dominates in just about every category except Game Library and Price (arguably the two most important). The Vita game library will definitely improve over time, but we expect it won’t get much cheaper for a while. If all you’re after is a solid portable gaming experience, go for the 3DS (or DSi XL if you like a bigger screen). For premium graphics and features, the Vita is amazing.

What remains to be seen is whether the Vita can hold its own against the growing smartphone gaming trend.

Amazing Graphics

A few Nintendo loyalists have been trashing the Vita, claiming it’s simply a poor attempt at coping the Nintendo DS (referring mostly to the new touch-interface). What they forget to mention is the fact that the Vita some killer graphics capabilities.

The Vita actually utilizes components that will be used in smartphones that aren’t even out yet. It features a quad-core CPU as well as a quad-core SGX545MP4+ GPU (essentially a faster 4-core version of Apple’s dual-core A5 processor found in the iPad 2). This thing is truly capable of PS3 and Xbox 360 level graphics, which means you’ll be getting a lot of the same PS3 games rather than watered down portable versions the DS and PSP have. Games like Uncharted: Golden Abyss have already proved this.

The Price

The PS Vita comes in two flavors: a 3G cellular data version for $299 (plus monthly data plan), and a WiFi-only version for $249. Both are a spectacularly good deal.

Sure, the Nintendo 3DS and DSi XL are available for around $160, but the Vita isn’t really competing with the DS; it’s competing with smartphones. The smartphone gaming market is on the verge of rapid expansion, but they have a few huge speed bumps to get over:

1. Pricing. You can buy a new smartphone for about the same price as the PS Vita, except you’ll be locking yourself into a 2-year agreement. If you ever break or lose your phone, or want to buy a new one, it’ll cost you upwards of $500. The PS Vita is subsidized by game licensing, so its price will only go down from here on out.
2. Performance. We’ll be seeing quad-core phones before the end of the year, but the PS Vita has already achieved that performance today.
3. Controls. With the exception of the Xperia Play, smartphones are pretty much only offer touch screeninputs. Serious gaming is basically impossible. Thankfully, the Vita has dual joysticks, a D-pad, left/right bumpers, and of course a handful of buttons.
4. Games. The PS Vita is a gaming device, so there’s no question that it will soon have a massive game library with hundreds of great titles. Smartphone app stores are still hazy on the gaming department while they wait to see if smartphones can make suitable gaming devices.

Everything Else

Overall, the PS Vita has been very well designed. Its 5-inch 960×544 qHD OLED display looks great and still keeps it small enough that it will fit in your pocket, though it’s probably a bit too bulky to carry it everywhere you go. With the exception of transitioning from the joysticks to the touch screen (and visa-versa), the controls are very well thought out.

The gaming experience really is unmatched in the portable realm; however, full-sized games also mean full-sized load times. Starting up a game like Uncharted can take a few minutes. Fortunately, the sleep function makes pausing and resuming gameplay almost instantaneous. The Vita also makes for an excellent media device, with lots of options for storage and most popular media formats. That big beautiful screen does take a heavy toll on battery life, though. Expect about 5 hours of gaming on a single charge – enough for a long car trip, but bring a charger for a long flight.

It’s called Auto-Stereoscopic 3D, more commonly known as Glasses-free 3D, and it works by using microscopic lenses (known as Lenticular Lenses) on top of the screen to split the image into two parts – one meant to be seen by the right eye, and one for the left. By holding the screen the proper distance from your face, each eye sees its own image, giving the illusion of 3D.

Nintendo had both the good and bad fortune of bringing the first mainstream auto-stereoscopic 3D device to market, the Nintendo 3DS. It was good fortune because everyone loved the idea of a glasses-free 3D experience, but bad fortune because people were expecting a lot more than the technology could deliver.

The Problem with Glasses-Free 3D

As novel as the idea is, auto-stereoscopic 3D has one major flaw: it only works if your head is in exactly the right spot. With handheld devices, this is a major snag. These devices are meant to be portable, moved around, and held every-which-way. While sitting completely still in a nice stable environment (forget trying it in a car or plane), it is possible to see the tasty 3D goodness, but in most cases, it’s just not worth it.

Nintendo found out the hard way that unless you can hold the device extremely still (something impossible to do while pounding away energetically at buttons playing Ocarina of Time 3D), the results are pretty undesirable. The image is just never crisp enough, kind of like those holographic stickers that you would rotate slightly to see different images – there was always a hint of the other image no matter how you held it.

The portable nature of the devices presented another issue as well. When viewing a 3D image, you expect the point of reference to change as you tilt the device from one side to the other. With stereoscopic 3D, this isn’t the case; the image remains the same, but your mind expects it to change. This causes headaches, dizziness, and even nausea, reports of which plagued Nintendo’s latest handheld.

Persistence Paves the Way

Manufacturers aren’t giving up on auto-stereoscopic 3D yet, though. Smartphones are the next stepping stone for the technology, and it is getting better. Both HTC and LG have released their 3D smartphones, the EVO 3D and Optimus 3D, respectively. Sporting much higher screen resolutions than the Nintendo 3DS as well as improvements in the lenticular lenses, the 3D result is much better, though still not ideal. Fortunately, the improvements have also made it so that when viewing things in 2D-mode, there is nearly no distortion made by the 3D hardware. Plus much of the appeal is in the fact that these new devices can capture 3D images and video as well.

Conclusion

I always used to say “3D displays just won’t be worth it until they can do it without the need of 3D-glasses.” I guess I’ll have to amend my statement, “3D displays just won’t be worth it until they can do it without 3D-glasses, regardless of the position and orientation of your head.” That should cover all of the bases, I think.

1: Pokémon Black & White

Pokémon is one of those games that makes up part of Nintendo’s heart(gold) and soul(silver). Many people bought the DS solely so that they could play Pokémon, and Black & White lives up to the reputation. It’s the same Pokémon experience we should all be used to, but with an exciting graphics overhaul, and of course, all new Pokémon!

2: ­­­Okamiden

As a sequel to the much loved Okami, the DS exclusive Okamiden pairs the colorful brush-based game play with the DS’ touch screen interface. The two truly make a great match, but if you loved Okami, don’t be surprised if a bit of the story is repeated in Okamiden.

3: Radiant Historia

Radiant Historia is a time traveling, tactics-style, RPG offering game play experience reminiscent of Super Mario RPG and Legend of Mana, along with elements from the Chrono Series. It’s hands-down the best RPG on the DS this year.

4: Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation

The Dragon Quest (also known as Dragon Warrior) series has been around for a couple decades now. This version is actually a DS remake of the 1995 original (for Super Nintendo). If you’re looking for an epic RPG that will give you, literally, days worth of game play, Dragon Quest is where it’s at.

5: de Blob 2

As much fun as de Blob 2 is for the Wii, it really finds its calling on the DS. As a light game with fairly uninvolved game play, it really is best suited for handhelds, and paired with the DS, it doesn’t disappoint.

If you would like to see reviews for all DS games, from this year and the past, head on over to our Nintendo DS Games Section. Be sure to sort by alaScore to see which rank the best.

1: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

While it isn’t actually out yet, it would be a great disservice to the Wii NOT to mention it. Nintendo has always been about franchise games (many people buy the Wii just to play the new Mario, Metroid, or Zelda games). Skyward Sword should be available later this year, and is expected to live up to all of the hype.

2: Conduit 2

As one of the most recent games released on the Wii, Conduit 2 is one of the most popular right now, though it has not received the most flattering reviews. Production values feel a bit cheap, with more than a few glitches and shortcomings, but overall game play is still enjoyable. Plus it brings a somewhat Halo-like multiplayer to the Wii.

3: Mario Sports Mix

While nowhere near as in-depth as Madden NFL 11, or any other serious sports game for that matter, Mario Sports Mix still provides some fun and energetic game play for all ages. The best and worst thing about it is that it really requires no skill to play.

4: Lost in Shadow

Lost in Shadow is a puzzle platformer that was popular in Japan and recently released in the US. The concept of the game is fun and new, but sadly offers very little else, often becoming difficult and frustrating as it drags on.

5: de Blob 2

De Blob 2 is an enjoyable puzzle platformer at an even more enjoyable price. It’s a cute game, definitely intended for a younger crowd, but still has a fun little storyline.

Really none of the Wii’s currently released 2011 titles stand up well against last year’s games, like Donkey Kong Country Retruns, Kirby’s Epic Yarn, and Metroid: Other M. It’s likely that developers have started to switch their focus to the upcoming Wii U. All of the Wii’s most popular games can be viewed in our Wii Games Section.

Press Conferences

Before E3 even started this year, both Microsoft and Sony held press conferences on June 6^th. Microsoft went first, and unlike Sony and Nintendo, Microsoft didn’t have any new hardware to show off and chose to focus only on games. Starting with one of its most anticipated titles, Microsoft demoed Modern Warfare 3, following it with Gears of War 3, Mass Effect 3, and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. Above all else, Microsoft showed how well these titles integrate with Xbox Kinect’s motion and voice based commands.

Sony’s press conference revolved around its NGP (Next Gaming Portable), finally giving it an official name: The PlayStation Vita. With demos showcasing its 5-inch OLED touch screen, rear touchpad, front and rear facing cameras, and Sixaxis motion sensing, the PlayStation Vita gained a lot of attention. It also features an industry first quad-core processor, capable of producing over 133 million Polygons per second, roughly half the performance of the PS3. Sony hopes to release it in time for the 2011 holiday season, and given its exciting start, the PlayStation Vita is expected to be one of the hottest selling devices this year.

Nintendo held its press conference on the first official day of E3 2011. It was all about the new Wii U, which quickly became the star of the entire E3 show this year. The Wii U brings a much needed hardware upgrade to the Wii, allowing it to display 1080p content over HDMI. Its graphics core has also been overhauled, which judging by the tech demo, now outperforms both the Xbox 360 and PS3 by a wide margin. But all of that wasn’t even the interesting bit. What really stirred things up was the new controller, featuring a 6.2-inch full color touch screen, accelerometer/gyro, front facing camera, and of course the traditional buttons. The built in screen allows for additional views when playing certain games, and even the capability to stream gameplay directly from the console itself, negating the need for a TV screen. The only downside to the Wii U is that it won’t be launching until at least April of 2012.

The Games

Games are always a big part of E3, and this year was no exception. Among the most popular titles was Duke Nukem Forever, which was finally released just the other day. Despite demanding the majority of the attention during E3, Duke Nukem Forever is receiving rather poor reviews now that it has launched.

Bioshock Infinite was by far the most loved and best received title at the event. It stays true to the feel of the original Bioshock, while introducing a stunning new environment (a city in the clouds), some slightly refreshed graphics, and optional extras (such as compatibility with PlayStation Move).

Other titles included Uncharted 3, one of the best looking games at the expo; Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, sure to become one of the best selling RPGs of the year; Batman: Arkham City, a potential candidate for Best Action/Adventure Game of the Year; Rayman Origins, a great blast from the past and worthy platformer; and Star Wars: The Old Republic, an up-and-coming MMO RPG.

All of the current generation gaming consoles have been out since about 2005 (or 2006 in the case of the PS3). Both the Xbox 360 and PS3 focused heavily on performance, each outpacing their predecessors (the original Xbox and PS2) significantly, achieving roughly 300 million polygons per second in performance. Nintendo, on the other hand, chose to focus on revolutionizing the console interface, making the Wii only slightly faster than the GameCube, obtaining about 100 million polygons per second. The Wii wasn’t anywhere near the league of performance found in the Xbox 360 and PS3, but Nintendo still had an advantage. Neither Sony nor Microsoft intends to replace their current consoles until well into 2015. Nintendo has something prepared for 2012: “Project Café.”

Performance

Back in 2005, achieving the kind of performance found in the PS3 and Xbox 360 was very expensive, but gaming console hardware isn’t much different from PC hardware; and, as we all know, PC hardware evolves fast.

Rumor has it that Nintendo plans to use a Radeon R700 based core in its upcoming platform. The R700 is something PC gamers are very familiar with as the core used in the ATI HD 4870, the first video card to break the 1 TFLOPs barrier. What does all this mean? It means that Project Café holds the potential to provide well over twice the performance of any current generation console. Odds are that Nintendo will be using a somewhat watered down version of the R700 in order to optimize power consumption, but it should still maintain over 500 million polygons per second in performance.

Features

For starters, Project Café is expected to bring HDMI connectivity (finally) and full HD gaming up to 1080p resolutions, a huge step up from the Wii’s 480p limitation. It is unknown whether or not Project Café will feature 3D video settings for those with some of the new 3D HDTVs. It definitely possible Nintendo may include this functionality (as seen in the Nintendo 3DS), but it’s looking unlikely.

In the usual Nintendo fashion, Project Café should be completely backwards compatible with both Wii and GameCube titles (though it’s unknown if it will feature legacy controller and memory slots). N64 and Super Nintendo cartridges certainly won’t fit anywhere in it, but Project Café will likely have an online store similar to the Wii Shopping Channel where you’ll be able to purchase downloadable games and content.

The Controller

Just like the Wii’s motion based controller, Project Café is expected to bring something new as well. In this case, it’s a controller with an integrated touch screen. Rumor is that it will resemble a modernized SNES or GameCube controller but will also feature a 6-inch touch screen; though fitting a 6-inch screen on a controller seems difficult. Supposedly, the console will be able to stream a game directly to the controller’s screen wirelessly, meaning you can play without even needing a TV.

The controller is also expected to have many motion sensing capabilities, even outperforming those of the acclaimed Six-Axis controller by Sony as well as the PlayStation Move motion controller.

It’s about Time

Our current consoles are all over 5 years old now (that’s like 135 in technology years). All of the stale hardware was starting to make game developers like THQ uneasy, but Project Café will offer a fresh pot of performance for developers to dive into.

Nintendo ruled the Nineties, bringing first a more compact device with the Game Boy Pocket, then a color screen with the Game Boy Color, followed by processing enhancements with the Game Boy Advanced, and finally a backlit screen with the Game Boy Advanced SP. No one dared challenge Nintendo’s clear reign over the console market, that is, until Sony came along.

Sony’s PlayStation Portable forced Nintendo to step up its game, creating the Nintendo DS, the now all-time best selling handheld. This year, the two handheld giants are at it again with the Nintendo 3DS against the Sony “NGP” (aka “Next Generation Portable”), and another contender has joined in the mix: Smartphones.

The Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo has never been particularly big on pushing the performance envelope, keeping its focus on originality, and it has worked out so far. Nintendo’s innovative games helped the original Game Boy best Sega’s superior system, and the creative dual-screen design of the Nintendo DS trounced Sony’s far more powerful PSP. The 3DS has seen some improved specs compared to its predecessors, but compared to the NGP and upcoming Smartphones, it’s significantly less powerful. Nintendo is relying on the innovation of a glasses-free stereoscopic 3D display, something the NGP won’t have and certainly could never emulate. The 3DS also has the advantage of Nintendo’s extremely popular DS game titles, like Mario, Zelda and Pokémon. It’s also a huge advantage that the 3DS will be available as early as the 26^th of February (in Japan), versus the 2011 holiday season release expected for the NGP.

The Sony “NGP”

Sony has yet to officially name its Next Generation Portable and is simply referring to it as the NGP, but you’ll find no complaints here; the NGP has next generation written all over it! Sony has taken its usual approach when it comes to gaming systems, stuffing as many features and as much performance into it as possible. The 5-inch touch screen (with another touchpad on the back) and dual joystick controls are just the tip of the iceberg. The interesting tidbits are on the inside, like its Quad-Core processor, supposedly capable of outperforming the Xbox 360 and PS3, though current game play footage suggests somewhere closer to 80% of their performance, still impressive considering a PS3 won’t fit in your pocket. The NGP’s biggest threat will actually be Smartphones, which will be matching the NGP’s performance right about the same time as its launch. Its saving grace will be Sony’s (hopefully) more appealing game titles, and the fact that (most) Smartphones lack dedicated gaming controls.

Smartphones

Believe it or not, Smartphones are already considerably more powerful than any of the current handheld consoles. Their downside is their interface, generally touch screen only, though phones like the Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY alleviate that issue. Smartphones also lack an impressive game library like you’d find with Sony or Nintendo, but with the extreme adoption rate of Smartphones and their quickly improving hardware, those App Stores might be filled with full-fledged games before long.

The biggest threat Smartphones hold against the other handhelds is the absolute raw power they can achieve. By the end of the year, there will likely be Smartphones more powerful than the PS3 and Xbox 360; NVIDIA’s Kal-El (yes, that’s a Superman reference) is proof of that. People might just stop and think, “Why get a gaming handheld if my phone can already do that?”.