Airbornegamer: Microsoft's 2011 E3 conference review

After Microsoft's very disappointing 2010 E3 conference, many gamers are hoping for massive improvements this year that doesn't just cater to the casuals. Does Microsoft deliver to their fans? or does this years E3 also result in utter failure once again? Read on to find out.

[meetajhu]

8.5? It one the worst E3's i have seen in my life. Except Gears of War 3 everything else suc*ed to the core.

[Thrillhouse]

Agreed, that was just plain embarrassing for non-Kinect fans.

My reaction to Microsoft's E3 conference: http://i52.tinypic.com/v2wv...

I will laugh my ass off if Nintendo's conference is full of hardcore games on their new console.

[ksense]

i call a 5 rating for sony conference if they think this is 8.5 because only a hardcore xbox fanboy would give this an 8.5. there was nothing groundbreaking and everything that was announced was expected. we knew halo 4 was gonna come but the only surprise they showed a trailer this year.

If you are a kinect fan then this conference was great but if u r an hardcore fan then this was just ok. gears was awesome and to think that was the only highpoint of the show as far as i am concerned.

[LOGICWINS]

Yeah, if your a Kinect fan and uve been waiting for hardcore support...then it was a good conference. But for a person who doesn't own a 360, this conference did nothing to intice me to get a 360.

I was expecting at least 2 new non-Kinect hardcore IP's

[Winter47th]

I'll summerize the conference for you:

XBOX launch XBOX go XBOX play XBOX go back XBOX play XBOX dashboard XBOX rewind XBOX FUCKING DIE XBOX forward XBOXXBOXXBOXXBOXXBOX*headexplo de*

[Anarki]

that was plain embarrassing.

[Peppino7]

I give it a 7.5. The coolest games were multiplat during the beginning of the show. nothing really that great for kinect except voice mass effect and ghost recon weapon customization.

[DatNJDom81]

What a fanboy review....... I'm typing this while LOL.

[come_at_me_bro]

Give it up for Microsoft: sending back the video game industry two decades in 90 minutes. Every time I think video games are getting closer to being respected as an art form, something like this happens. Is it even worth trying to defend this kind of stuff anymore? Microsoft basically just parodied the entire industry.

[alien626]

Worst E3 Conference ever! 8.5? thats just being nice now should be much lower

[firefoxprime]

I say C+

Casual Kinect games killed it though...

Kinetic Sports Season 2:

I'm sorry...but who asked for this game lady???
Yeah. I thought so...

[R0me]

MS wants more money and thats only possible if they can win families for kinect. They want fight with Nintendo. It sucks for all core gamers, bad conference.

[Shang-Long]

when the guy went up and said an exciting new trilogy experience 4 the xbox 360. i was like Ok interesting!. as the trailer went it got my attention, then i saw master chief and went ohhh..

[Anarki]

Hey all you xbox fans, welcome to Playstation 3. Hope to see you all soon.

[I_find_it_funny]

pretty disappointing..

Nintendo and Sony to the rescue!

6/10 and I'm being generous

[saladthieves]

I have to admit...that was a bad conference! You just witnessed Microsoft at it finest.

Halo --- check.
Gears --- check.
Fable ---- check.
Forza ---- check.

^^That's it for the hardcore

Bunch of horrible Kinect games --- check.

They just made it clear: they're now much more interested in the casuals than the hardcore.

[malamdra]

MS's E3 was pathetic, pitiful and shameful, and this "review" is the same

they're pissing on core gamers, and most of the Kinect stuff was fake (even those little kids could see that the scanning was fake)

Fable is now a light gun on rails game? pathetic

[sikbeta]

You can review conferences now? I want info about it, not some opinion about it...

[S_C]

As and xbox owner i was not impressed with that conference if sony offer a price cut e.g £150 ill buy a ps3 AGAIN but i will also keep my xbox, i seriously think that EA are going to blitz that showing that microsoft made , Battlefeild 3, Fifa 12 need i say anymore...... hope theres as many supprises in their conference as there were last year

[I_find_it_funny]

Microsoft,

I am disapoint

[Lifendz]

Wow....so that's what a conference is like when a company only has a handful of exclusives? I'm not interested in Kinect and it feels like MS moved away from me because of that.

[Commander_TK]

I thought the show was good. And I don't even own the 360. Some great moments such as Gears, Tomb Raider, ME3, Ghost Recon was impressive and the Halo vids were pretty decent. 7-7.5/10. Although the cookiemonster thing and all the casual crap was stupid, especially since it was E3.

[HappyGaming]

I missed it this year but WHAT? The only interesting thing was Gears of War 3?

Wasn't Gears of War 3 the only interesting thing last year?

[FunAndGun]

Reading all these comments! LOL

I love N4G.com

haha!

[Oxymoron028]

I had to facepalm when the stereotypical soccer mom came on to advertise a sports game.

Not even my Xbox Fanboy friends could believe the shit Microsoft were pulling during the conference.

[theonlylolking]

Gametrailers gave it a B for bullcrap.

[Hagaf22]

This was a terrible conference for MS. The first half was all multiplats, then they flooded the last half with kinect bs. They spent very little time on games that made xbox great- gears and halo. A terrible conference. Leaves the door open for sony and nintendo. both of which have alot of potential. Nintendos got the new console and sony has alot of exclusives to show.

[chris m]

Yeah that has to be the worst conference I've seen, MS have just alienated their core audience to try and get easy money from kinect

[grailly]

the worst part is... I missed the first half

[RedDead]

Haha, I normally laugh at Nintendo's conference, this year though...WTF MS ......WHAT THE FU**!

[ElDorado]

I agree man, it was really disappointing except for the Halo announcements and Gears of War 3 ofcourse, but we already knew of this games.. so nothing new. KinE3t was casual. Hope it's gonna be better next year. Still Halo 4 will be great!

[blusoops]

Honestly, I didn't see anything at the MS conference that would convince me ofbuying a 360. I mean "hardcore better with kinect" ME3 = voice commands?! Is that it?? Lol

End War had voice comands and so did socom on Ps2...so how is this mind blowing?

Only interesting thing I saw was IPTV, but of course, no price given.

So MS gets an 8.5 for this?? Wonder what Sony and Nintendo will get?

[Gamingisfornerds]

Well, not "everything else" sucked. but most of it did indeed.

The worst part of it all is that every MS conference for the past years has had almost the exact same line-up: COD, Gears, Forza, Fable and Halo + some 3rd party timed exclusive(s) + the mandatory casual crap.

I mean, seriously...enough is enough!

[TheBlackSmoke]

You have to be a complete MS sheep to even consider this an 8.5

-Mulitplats with kinect shoehorned in.

-Exclusives we already know about.

-90% of content was kinect on rails games inc: ryse and fable.

- and then "hey guys...some more Halo".. BAAAAAAA BAAAAAA

MS just proves that they dont care about gamers and they cant come up with new ips so they just recycle halo because they know it will sell.

[dkp23]

I find it odd every year seems to be the "worst e3 ever"...

[fr0sty]

Kinect does more rails than charlie sheen.

[MinusTheBear]

Haha what an underrated comment.

[jack_burt0n]

agreed it was a non stop cringe.

[fatalred alarm]

how did you type so fast? the stream was still running here when you submitted it..

[fatalred alarm]

New halo looks good though, pretty sure most on the xbox waited for that.

[NYC_Gamer]

that score is way too high

[N4PS3G]

more like a 1.5/10 for gamers

[news4geeks]

I think 3/10 for gamers and 9/10 for casuals. 3/10 for Gears, Forza and Halo.

Aiming at the casuals is a smart move by microsoft, sony won't even come close to topping that sort of casual support and that's where the money is in gaming these days.

[hoof123]

WTF, why are you reviewing a press conference!!

Like I said in another thread. It started off really well, but then the underwhelming Kinect kids games overload started!

[Baka-akaB]

it started quite badly imo ... I mean come on you start on MW3 ... it kinda set the tone (even if the feed was beautiful) .

[hoof123]

I missed the COD & Tomb Raider bits, I'm gonna go back and watch the Tomb Raider part though. I meant the hardcore games that are being integrated into Kinect.

Edit:

I mean like Mass Effect looks like voice commands will be useful during combat.

And it's always good to see Ghost Recon.

[Fishy Fingers]

Meant to be 8.5/100 or what?

[Dark_Overlord]

Way too much emphasis on Kinect, I didn't think it was that bad though (I've seen a lot worse), except the disney game (made me cringe) and the star wars game (major input lag)

[jidery]

I would like to remind everyone that Reviews are based on Opinion, and that not everyones Opinion will be the same. I thought it offered much more than last year and was a massive improvement for Microsoft. Sure it wasn't the best, but thats why its not a 10/10. I attempted to review being as unbiased as possible. Sorry if you do not agree with me.

[ipe]

much more??
it was almost the same thing, same games, instead reach there was halo 4- fitness game.

8.5 lmao too much of fanboy

[dktxx2]

"It looks like Microsoft is simply advertising for games rather than showing off what only Xbox has to offer."

Your words, and if the above doesn't drag down Microsoft's conference for you, then you do't know the purpose of the conference, to showcase what makes the Xbox worth having. Quite frankly, right now its not, unless you just need Halo.

[Pedobear Rocks]

The fact that you have 1 star might be because you show an inability to be unbiased ALL THE TIME. Why would your review be different?

[Lionalliance]

Then your opinion kinda sucks : /

[Lionalliance]

Are you serious?!!!
It was horrible!!

[SKUD]

Fail all round bro. Sorry.

[00]

at least it wasn't as bad as last years, looking forward to see Sony's conference.

[Denethor_II]

When did the reviews on E3 start? This is as bad as the pricks who say Sony win or MS win.

[andron]

No big surprises, kinect all the way apparently.........

[Mr-Dude]

I had good hopes for MS conference...
I actually waited for the announce of GTA exclusive to XBox.
But hey, i liked the 3D drawing....My girl would love it!

Now Sony, blow us away!

[Nes_Daze]

I love how easy MS gets a free pass from some "journalists", an 8.5??? Seriously??

[astar123456789]

They need to suck up to them I guess!?!?

[omi25p]

Er i enjoyed the conference, It showed all the games i wanted to see, all the core games looked great they showed a couple of kinect games i was actually interested in. I think 8.5 is a good review.

[Adva]

LOL MS replaced Nintendo this year. Nothing more than a 6/10 for Ghost recon gun customization and halo 4/ 1 HD.

[JonnyBigBoss]

8.5 is way too high. Just looks at the general consensues. That was one of the worst conferences in years.

[Thecraft1989]

It was the worst E3 I've ever watched in my entire life.

[ThrazN7]

i liked it? kinect is growing,so is xbox live not many core games but the one's shown looks great, it's not amazing but so much better than last year. and HALO 4 i was celebrating like a child again. sony is going to be even more awesome. the winners of E3 ARE.... THE GAMERS

[jdfoster00]

Is this a joke!!!!!!!!! I was so hyped for this and got let down so much. They have nothing for the HRDCORE FANS AT ALL!!!!!!!! MULTIPLATFORMS? WOW! HALO 4 ... HMM BUT I WANT NEW IP. FABLE GO walkies.... Omg 8.5? This didn't even deserve a 5... was awful!!!!!!

[steve30x]

My favourite part was the Xbox 720 reveal LOL (I kidding)(Ill get flagged for trolling watch LOL) Seriously the only two games I saw that were good was Forza 4 and Star wars Kinect. The rest was rubbish.

[Optical_Matrix]

The conference was aids. Best announcement to come out of MS this whole show wasn't even from their conference (Witcher 2 coming to consoles). No new core franchises, just Kinect, Kinect and more of those 4 franchises (Forza, Fable, Gears and Halo), that are rinsed every single E3. Bring on Nintendo and Sony's conferences. That was a joke imo.

[Jac5al]

I would give them a solid C. The only thing exciting was Halo 4, YouTube(app), Gears 3, Minecraft, and that's about it. They spent too much time on Kinect stuff, not enough games for the hardcore. There wasn't even one new IP showed..WDF Microsoft...

[Harelgur]

More like 0/10.

[GoldPS3]

You 100% right

[FlashXIII]

Wow with that rating I was expecting it to be from sarcasticgamer.. this guy is actually seriously think it was an 8.5? What's he smoking and where can I get some?

[Justin_bristoe]

they have to be kidding..that show was terrible for everyone because im 100 percent sure casuals arent watching e3 and second they only gave us 3 games that u can use controls for and one of them is 10 years old? smh at ms.they dont even show the shame

[a_bro]

more like a 7.

[astar123456789]

Remember Sony is going to do alot ps vita thing

[majiebeast]

This was a waste of 88minutes halo remake and halo 4 being the exception. Worst conference of e3 ever!

[baldulf]

This Kinect shit is killing the videogames.

[Der_Kommandant]

yeah for 8.5 years old

[tweet75]

the conference made me want to sell my xbox for good.

[silvacrest]

this conference made me glad i no longer have a 360, i'll just use my bro's 360 for gears and maybe halo 4 but thats it

[silkrevolver]

Microsoft’s E3 Press conference: 3rd Party Stuff, Awkward Starwars Kinect, Halo 1, Awkward Kids on Kinect, Halo 4, Cool Mass Effect 3 with Kinect, Creepy Avatars on Kinect, Awkward football on Kinect. Kinect. Kinect. Kinect.

I’d give it a C-... maybe a C+ at its best.

[Fel08]

8.5?? Still too high. I wouldn't give it more than a 5. Sony and Nintendo will have to be really dumb to have a weaker conference.

[Grodd]

An 8.5 is just plain silly. What exclusives did they really offer?
GoW yes that looks good. But we know that.
Halo,... that series is really showing its age.
A couple of OK Kinect games.
A DVR.

That's not a good show.

[Lawliet]

Actually Microsoft line-ups were pretty good, theoretically. They brought out all their big guns, but unfortunately when the teaser come to an end, you'll see "FOR KINECT" that's when it all went down the drain! When are they going to realize we don't give a shit about that garbage! KINECT SUCKS!

[gumgum99]

8.5?? *spitake* Sure, it had Halo, and some core games, but still...It was a disaster!

[silvacrest]

8.5?? are you F-ing serious? more like 6.5 and that's being generous

[gk07]

that was pathetic!!!!!!!

[maniacmayhem]

Basically 360 is relying on its third party support for all of its games.

[forevercloud3000]

There conference was pretty embarrassing, especially knowing whats to come from it's competitors. I read there conf as a 6.5 at BEST!

[Omar1st]

Being honest, the best announcement for X360 which wasnt even announced at E3, was the MGS HD collection coming to X360 announced at Konami's Pre-E3 conference. MGS coming to X360 turned alot of heads, especially MGS3 and Peace Walker. I mean those only with a X360 can finally become a part of the MGS universe, doesnt get better than that. My 2 cents.

[TheSnakemanCometh]

While true, it still isn't nearly enough for Microsoft to be effective.
I'm the biggest MGS fan I know, and it's really a "Oh? They get a slice of the MGS pie? Crap." Notice how I'm not raging.
They needed more, but yes, MGS is their biggest announcement besides Halo 4.

[Phantasm]

The show was cruzing along for about an hour, then crashed when Kinect only talk took over. Yes, we can rip on M$ for all the Kinect stuff, but they know they see $$$ insight for this holiday season from both the hardcore and casual. E3 is for the core gamer. Advertising Kinect on TV around the holidays is for the casual gamer.

M$ had the boringest show last year, but had the last laugh with huge sales from 360 redesign and Kinect.

[steve30x]

The Kinect rubbish started after a half hour.

[Lawliet]

And it goes for the rest of the show...

@Phantasm
You seriously think any hardcore gamer would buy into this crap? Showing Kinect on E3 for that purpose is a poor excuse to what they have nothing to show! With over 500million dollar alone put into advertising, you would expect even a toothpick selling.

[Phantasm]

@Lawliet

I don't expect any hardcore gamer would buy into Kinect. This is why it shouldn't show it's face at E3. Let the morning and evening news programs, along with general TV advertisng talk about it.

I mean, you don't see a trailer for a Disney film before the start of a film like Hostel. E3 is meant for 1 demographic.

[TheSnakemanCometh]

I consider myself a hardcore gamer. A few good Wii titles thrown in there but mostly love the feeling of a controller in my hand.
When I originally saw the Kinect, I was floored. I thought it was going to turn the world upside down. Now with crappy software, meh. I still haven't played the damn thing and I'm not clamoring to get my paws on it either.
Kinect is junk. Either make games with substance or get rid of the tech.

[no_more_heroes]

Given the fact that I'm not exactly burdened with frankly foolish amounts of disposable income, what was there was more than enough.

But as was said before, nothing brand-spanking new. No new franchises that we didn't know about. That's my only real disappointment.

[kingme71]

This has been the problem since day one with motion controls. 90% of game companies don't know how to improve the game by using them. Bioware is allowing you to speak the dialog wheel instead of selecting it in ME3. How does this improve the game? Is the game better for it or is it just a shiny new bullet item they can talk about? I would turn off that feature and go back to the controller.

The Star Wars game is now a lesser game due to Kinect because they want you to be able to swing your light saber instead of using a controller, so now it is on rails and you basically swing your arms 5 times to kill your 5 enemies then glide on to the next set of enemies. I would much rather have a controller and be able to free roam and have a much more diverse gameplay experience.

So I can pretend to hold a gun in Ghost Recon. Has that improved the game? Now my arms will get tired and my aim will probably decrease.

I also need to jump around and bash people while holding my shield in that new Crytek game. I will reserve judgement until I have tried it, but I don't think I would last 30 minutes before being too tired to play.

Overall, Kinect is watering down the hardcore game experience. It's a novelty to wave your arms to cast a spell instead of a controller. How is it improving the game at all?

Companies need to use more creativity to enhance the experience instead of trying to look cute by replacing what a controller does when it doesn't need to be replaced. Take LA Noir for instance. Let me rifle through a desk by moving papers, opening drawers as I search for clues, pull back curtains, flip over objects. That isn't easy to do with a controller without button prompts. Use Kinect wisely in a way that the controller is inferior instead of replacing what a controller is good at.

[andron]

thanks for finally killing off Star Wars kinect?!... :-[

[diehardgamer1000]

lol wow 8.5???? tht shit???

[MasterCornholio]

Microsofts E3 was kind of disappointing for non kinect users. However people with Kinect are going to have blast with the 360 and thats all 10 million of them. At least they announced 2 Halos which is something that the core love to play. But the problem is that Bungie isnt making the games so i hope that 343 do a good job with the series. Cant wait to see what they come up with.

[Clayman]

Worst E3 conference ever! Best part was the Youtube announcement. Fable FPS??! disappointing...

[Hyperbomb69]

I dont see how this was any different from last year, they just re-announced the games they already made and talked more about their kinect crap. 6/10

[TheSnakemanCometh]

I'm a Sony fanboy I'll admit (and possibly a Big N one after what I see from Cafe), but I can remain objective.
Microsoft's conference was pretty "meh" to me. I'm not a Halo fan in the least bit, but it's freakin' Halo. Is it just me or was that the only legitimate announcement they had?
The Kinect stuff looked cool but nothing blew my mind.
It was just underwhelming. Where are the games?!?
Ryse looked like it has potential. Other than some Gears, Ryse, and Halo 4.....name me something that caught your eye.
Microsoft is probably gearing up for next year. I think it's safe to assume that E3 2012 will be the year of Xbox 3......SPECULATION HAS ALREADY BEGUN FOR NEXT YEAR!!!! GASP!

[JMyers]

After watching all the Kinect bull, I'd ask Kinect labs to scan a PS3.

Actually, also I'd give it my gf's dildo to scan. How's that for a toy Microsoft? Now you can go f**k yourself!

6/10. Give us more core games please. Thanks for Halo and Gears. Beyond that there is nothing else.