G-pinions

Nintendo did it again. Two years ago they showed their crazy, dual-screened portable at their conference, made every anxious to see why Nintendo would make a system with a touch screen, and then they banished it behind a four hour wait when the show floor actually opened. Last year, they announced that Zelda would be playable. Once again, you had to wait at least four hours just to catch a glimpse of it in person. Surely, I stupidly thought, Nintendo won't stick their Wii behind closed doors this year, right? They preached "Playing = Believing" at their conference after all. Why would they hide it where only the most patient of gamers will be able to "believe?"

I have to admit that I am quite furious about this ill-treatment of the very people who are sent to inform those who cannot attend. I have been excited for the Wii since they showed off the wacky controller. I was weary, yes, and still am, but I wanted to play it. I needed to play it to understand. Seeing actual humans play around in Zelda and Wii Sports yesterday was unbelievably enjoyable (no hyperbola), but I still don't quite get it. Is it really that easy? Is it really that fun? No clue. Nintendo may make the best games in the universe but they treat people like crap. Granted, any company who made Mario and Pikmin is, in fact, at least a little holier than thou, but must they taunt and tease us every year?

Nick suggested we wait in line to play the Wii since we are pretty much booked for the rest of the week, but I put my foot down. It's ridiculous to give in to Nintendo's horrible attitude. So we picked up our pride and walked twenty feet to Sony's booth. PS3s everywhere! No lines. No appointments. Just games. Isn't that supposed to be Nintendo's thing? So Nick and I raced to Warhawk. What else? It's the only game that takes advantage of the Dual Shock (without the rumble...) 3's fancy "new" control mechanics. I actually got their first so the plane was mine. I had, of course, read some impressions from people who have already played it at Sony's press event. I was told that it was initially hard to control. I was told even the Sony Rep who demonstrated the control at the conference was struggling. That may or may not be true, but there was not even a second of learning curve present.

You turn by tilting the controller left and right, something we've all been doing already for years. You hold back to soar into the clouds or down to skim the ocean. It's quite intuitive. After Nick told me what button did what, I was barrel rolling and dog fighting with no problems. Not only is it easy, it's incredibly fun. We're talking giddy-inducing levels of fun. Nick asked if he could play and I flatly replied "no." I didn't want to give up the controller. I wanted to try a nose dive / barrel roll combination. I wanted to loop around a mountain, hover at it's peak, rain down some missiles, and then race back down to Earth. I just wanted to touch the controller a little while longer.

If you're wondering, the controller itself feels like a lighter version of the Dual Shock 2. There are triggers now but they just feel like larger buttons. Certainly not worse than the R/L2 buttons on the PS2, but not as good as the Xbox Controller S scheme or the incomparable X360 controller. Still, it may not look different, but it still feels quite solid. I'm interested to see how developers utilize the motion sensor. You wont' see anything as sophisticated as Red Steel, but if it's used to compliment standard gameplay like in Warhawk, it could make games even more fun.

Sadly, the thrill of Warhawk does not quite earn the coveted honor of being the best game I played within the first 3 hours of my time at E3. That goes to Gitaroo Man Lives for the PSP. It's only a remake of the PS2 original thus far (new songs are on the way) but it still plays incredible. The analog nub works perfectly. Just another game I'll add to the list of titles I need to buy when I finally get a PSP. Oh, and I tried out Lemmings as well. I had fun, but the twenty little guys I sent to their deaths certainly didn't.

One complain that isn't related to Nintendo: no one knows anything at E3. Nick and I asked three separate Sony reps, including a media representative, if and where David Jaffe's (of War of the Monsters fame) new PSP title. One soft-minded woman was happy that she had heard of the man... but knew nothing about his title. No one else could tell us anything. Shouldn't Sony reps know these things? Every booth has the same type of ignorant people - both to their own games and the industry as a whole - and it's making me crazy. Do you damn job! You can see that I'm doing mine. I'm not afraid to keep insulting you dummy heads until you get it right, either.

BTW - Nick and I have a four hour appointment in Nintendo's booth after the show. We should be able to check out Wii there. This does not excuse the difficulty of a playable system for all members of the media.