PS3 at E3

I love E3 every year, but most especially during the years when new console systems are coming out. I think the announcements from Sony concerning the PS3 are probably the most exciting E3 news I've heard since I blossomed into full nerdhood circa 1998.

You can watch the entire 2-hour press conference at Gamespot, like I did, or if you're a normal person you can just read the condensed version I'm about to post. I know some of this stuff is old news, but in case you haven't been following along, here's all that was said about the new system, in order:

-It will play PS1, PS2, and PS3 games, along with DVD and Blu-ray movies (if you don't know what Blu-ray is, it's most likely the successor to DVDs. There's a competing format called HD-DVD that's already available, and cheaper to produce, but less impressive).
-Every system will come with a hard drive! There will be a 20GB model as well as a 60GB model to choose from.
-Online components will be incorporated into many aspects of the system, including the obvious online play and downloadable content, as well as "community"-type functions such as messaging and friends lists.
-The new controller is not shaped like a batarang, but fully resembles the familiar PS2 controller. Even though it's wireless, it is lighter. And to top it all off, it senses movement in six ways: XYZ movement, as well as rotation along the XYZ axes (pitch, yaw, and roll, for you aeronauts).
-The system will be released in the US on November 17. The 20GB model will cost $500 and the 60GB version will cost $600.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that XBox came from behind and stole my heart toward the end of the current generation. Its system was more powerful, had generally better games, and the S-type controller turned out to be very intuitive. But it seems like the shoe is on the other foot this time around. The XBox 360 is now the system you need to buy add-ons to make complete. Instead of incorporating a next-gen storage medium, they stuck with plain DVD (and are planning to release an HD-DVD addon sometime in the future). They are expected to announce a motion-sensing controller at E3. And of course, the hard drive is not a standard feature either. Keep in mind that just because it is possible to have a new controller, hard drive and HD-DVD support, developers now have to make games assuming that consumers have none of them (because why alienate part of the market by making games their system won't play?).

The PS3, in addition to being a next-gen gaming system, will be among the cheapest Blu-ray players you can get right out of the gate. I bet a lot of home theater enthusiasts who have no interest in video games will want one for that reason alone. On top of that, game developers will know that every PS3 owner has a hard drive, and can make games with that in mind. That will mean shorter loading times, for one thing, but could also mean faster framerates, greater graphics and texture processing, and who knows what else.

As for Nintendo, I still see their controller as an incredibly interesting prospect. The PS3 controller has motion sensing, but without an external sensor it won't be able to detect the controller's position in relation to the screen the way the Revolution (err, Wii) controller can. Seems like a minor difference, but I can see certain situations where it would come in handy, like drawing football plays on the screen, or using the controller as a pointer. These PS3 announcements seem mostly aimed at Microsoft, and I think the Big M should be pretty afraid right now.

Of course, it all comes down to the games in the end, and most of the games they showed were pretty lackluster. A bunch of fighting games, some war simulation games, and some first person shooters. Metal Gear Solid 4 and that untitled Naughty Dog game are the most exciting of the bunch. If Halo 3 is better than Halo 2, then the 360 might be worth picking up for that and Oblivion (after the price drop, that is). But right now it looks like Sony has the edge. Just show me some games I actually want to play!