Game of the Expo

Carrier Command: Gaea Mission by Bohemia Interactive

Carrier Command Gaea Mission wins games of the Expo because of its ability to have both RTS and FPS work both seamlessly together. With the single player missions having you either play from an RTS or an FPS approach it brings some really fun approaches into the game. Also the physics in the game make sense, hitting a tree or a rock in a tank is like hitting a tree or a rock in real life. On a hands on I  managed to beach the tank on a rock which took some effort to get off and hit a tree but unlike in most other FPS titles it didn’t just fall it stood strong and the tree nearly killed me because of an ambush (I think the tree was on the enemies side). From viewing and playing the game it was one of the games that really stuck in my mind and put a smile on my face (which is kind of crazy because very few games have made me do this). Well done to Bohemia Interactive a solid game (I think we will leave out the part about the game crashing 2 or 3 times, but that’s what in development means).

So the games Carrier Command: Gaea Mission beat for this crown where Star Wars: The Old Republic, Saints Row: The Third, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Battle Mii.

It won as I said before for being able to cross between RTS and FPS and have both aspects work well together.

Surprise of the Expo

Disney Universe by Disney

Well this game really took me and Mark by surprise. Going into it we expected your standard Disney game which from the ones I have played were sub par, but Disney Universe changed that for me. The game is about a tester who is asked to test a Disney themed virtual world but a hacker breaks in and causes chaos in the game. In the game you can put on suits of major Disney and Pixar characters which range from Tron to The Lion King, each suit give you a unique tool like Stitch gets a foam guitar which can be upgraded etc. The game will have local cooperative play  which is nice and since it is a platformer you all appear on the one main screen so no split screen. The controller where a bit difficult to get used to but that is to be expected with a game you have never played before. This game has a lot of potential and can have nearly limitless dlc with every new Disney or Pixar movie that comes out could have characters etc. from it added to the game.

Disney Universe’s main competition for this award was Sonic Generations and Take on Helicopters.

This game won really because it is something that can entertain both children and parents a like.

Most Helpful Company

Bethesda Softworks

This was incredibly difficult to pick, but in the end I picked Bethesda because the International PR rep they had was crazily helpful to myself. After I had to go back and forward between Activision and Bethesda for a certain issue of cross booking. So what really started it was on Tuesday the rep managed to get me space to see the demo of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. I don’t think I saw any rep that was as polite as the Bethesda rep who answered clearly and helpfully and I managed to share a few jokes with him.

So Bethesda managed to beat off Bohemia Interactive, Bioware, Activision and THQ.

Let down of the Expo

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 published by Activision

I bet this winner will get some rage thrown at me. So MW3 gets the biggest let down award because I felt this game brought nothing to the Call of Duty series apart from Spec Ops. At the E3 demo we did see 2 levels and they both felt similar to MW1 and MW2. Now I have talked to people about MW3 and they all say the game thing “why do you expect something new?” The reason why I do is because I want something to make combat feel enjoyable because from the demo MW3 combat still feels like a chore as you fight wave after wave of constantly spawning bad guys. The friendly AI still seems to just follow what you do. The Modern Warfare series started of with so much potential with MW1 which surprised so many players and with the Nuclear explosion segment  it stuck in your mind, but with MW2 they went over it and now MW3 seems want to go one further and have WW3. The game seems to suffer from Michael Bay syndrome which is more explosions than a story.

So yeah let down all round. I am a person who likes to see games bring something more to a series.

So Modern Warfare 3 beat Dynasty Warriors Gundam 3 and UFO Online

Best Hardware

Wii U by Nintendo

Well it was really a no contest here, Nintendo brought their new console to E3 the Wii U and it was an utter hit. Nintendo are putting together motion control and traditional controller and making it work effectively. Some people are saying the lack of trigger and the fact the controller is pretty big will really hurt the console but honestly I played a shooter on it and the lack of trigger bumbers didn’t stop my enjoyment of the game. I say what will make fans of Nintendo happy is that they will have some more shooters on the console and not all on rail shooters. I would have really loved to see how this console was going to shape up against Sony’s knew handheld the Playstation Vita, but alas I wasn’t able to get my hands on it.

So for this Nintendo beat of competition from Razer and N-Control.

Best Shooter

ARMA 3 by Bohemia Interactive

Well picking the best shooter is always a difficult choice especially with the fact their was so many shooters at the event, but ARMA 3 was my favourite. A nice big island to explore and the ability to play as you like for example lone wolf or support your army. The island you battle on is stunningly beautiful and there are locals you can interact with who can either be a hindrance or helpful. But with a huge island you need ways to travel and so we have helicopters, boats and vehicles. At the event we saw a battle and well from viewing it, it felt like well a battle you could nearly feel the tank shells being fired etc. ARMA 3 really does once again cement its self as a great military simulator and to make it better Bohemia Interactive staff got their hands on some guns at a shooting range to help rank up the feel of the game.

Well ARMA 3 beat of some great games for this and they were Battlefield 3, Battle Mii (Wii U), Metro Last Light, Warhammer 40K space marine.

I know some people may question why a game like BF3 didn’t win and that is simple I like to see something that brings something catching into a game series and while I never played an ARMA game before I like the idea of a big open environment in which how you play can determine how things go on in the game.

Best MMO

Star Wars The Old Republic by Bioware

Well this is one of your no brainier winners. I had not being a big fan of SWTOR since it got announced but getting my hands on it really changed me and I have well got excited about it honestly. While I am not 100% sold on the story I kind of did get put at ease a bit after my interview with Daniel. The game was easy to pick up and I say non mmo and mmo players a like will have no issue getting used to the game. It would come as no surprise that the game feels a lot like WOW because well WOW is the big juggernaut of the mmo world right now but really this is not a bad thing, Rift felt like WOW but it has sold well and seems to be holding steady. SWTOR should do well and with the name Star Wars it is bound to bring in a lot of Star Wars fans hoping for an epic game of their beloved franchise.

SWTOR fends of RaiderZ and Jagged Alliance Online (yes I did like that game).

Best RPG

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

So I didn’t get a look at a lot of RPG’s this year but Skyrim is by far the miles out in the lead winner. Skyrim really really expands from Oblivion in a lot of ways. The combat looks much improved from archery to casting runes it all looks great. You have huge expanding lands and lovely villages just what you would would expect from a fantasy RPG. What makes it good is how big the battles with Dragons are (as they should be) dragons are huge terrifying creatures from myth and legend and you can see why in Skyrim but of course there is nothing better or even more fun than seeing a Dragon crash land as you take one out of the sky. Skyrim continues a great Elder Scrolls series of games.

Skyrim beat games like Dues EX: Human Revolution, Final Fantasy XIII-2 etc.

That is it for SGGamingInfo’s E3 awards. All the winner and contenders were from games I either had a hands on player or attended demos at E3 2011.