Every year around June, gamers put down the controller and turn on the TV for the Electronic Entertainment Expo, otherwise known as E3.

E3, which took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center from June 15-17, is one of the largest videogame trade shows of the year. The event featured everything from flashy press conferences to booths filled with hundreds of developers and press who wanted to get the first scoop on the new games and products of the year.

However, the largest events that take place during E3 are the press conferences held by the “Big Three” console manufacturers: Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft. Although E3 is a press-only event, many gamers from the University tuned in to watch coverage of all of the press conferences and give their insight into the event.

Sony:

One contribution to Sony’s success at their press conference was their strong presentation. Sony conveyed their message of acceptance of all gamers to the audience through humor and familiar faces such as PlayStation mascot, Kevin Butler.

Stephen Swain, a second-year law student at the University, said he believes Sony’s strong presentation was also based off of “a good working relationship between consumers and companies.” Through supporting developers and competition, Swain said he thinks Sony is building relationships that will benefit gaming as a whole.

Sony also succeeded in their line up of videogames, hardware and content. Sequels to games that did well on the PlayStation 3 were demonstrated extensively, such as “LittleBigPlanet 2” and “Dead Space 2.”

The PlayStation Move, Sony’s answer to the Nintendo Wii’s motion controller, was also very impressive. The company did an excellent job of selling the Move to their audience by promising and providing proof that the new motion controller will be supported with games, such as “Killzone 3.”

One disappointment that Swain noted was how the PlayStation Portable was portrayed.

“As the owner of a PSP, Sony’s new ad campaign does not give me the confidence that they will be supporting the system in the future,” Swain said.

Nintendo:

Nintendo also experienced a large amount of success at their E3 press conference, but not without some issues.

Nintendo’s press coference began with some technical difficulties. It opened with a rather long demonstration of “The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword” for the Nintendo Wii. However, during this time, Zelda producer Shigeru Miyamoto was having severe difficulty controlling the game, which his assistant blamed on “wireless interference” with the Wii Remote.

Other games that received a lot of attention at Nintendo’s conference were classic revivals such as games based on “Kirby,” “Donkey Kong Country,” “Goldeneye,” and many others. Fans in the audience cheered particularly loud for announcements of “Kirby’s Epic Yarn,” a side scrolling platfomer for the Wii featuring Kirby made of yarn, as well as a pure remake of the classic first person shooter “Goldeneye 007.”

Although brand new franchises or series were not announced at Nintendo’s press conference, “hardcore” gamers came to appreciate the gesture of revisiting the past.

“Overall, Nintendo had the best press conference,” said Adrian Morris, a senior majoring in journalism. “They focused a lot more on the hardcore gamer through classic titles, instead of the casual gamer, and showcased new titles such as Kirby and Zelda.”

Nintendo also showcased their new portable 3D device, the Nintendo 3DS. President of Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils-Aime, bragged on the many new capabilities of the 3DS, such as the enhanced graphical capabilities and the ability to view the games without having to wear 3D glasses.

“Nintendo has done a great job of promoting the 3DS with new titles and remakes. I think that the upscaled graphical capability is a plus,” said Kelli Abernathy, a senior majoring in finance.

With this new appreciation from fans, Nintendo has received praise from this showcase, and many are looking forward to next year.

Microsoft:

Microsoft’s press conference had one primary focus: to only showcase games, products and services that were to be Xbox 360 exclusive for the next year. Although the idea of only presenting exclusives was good, the Microsoft presentation felt disjointed and lacking compared to the other conferences.

Despite this setback, Microsoft still had a pretty good show that featured games for Kinect, formerly known as “Project Natal.” Kinect is a motion sensing device for the Xbox 360 that does not require the use of a physical controller. The Kinect’s innate ability to detect full-body motion and sound is fascinating to many gamers, and the amount of support, games and services that is being offered with the peripheral is exciting.

Phil Grant, a senior majoring in history and political science, stated that he was disappointed in Microsoft’s variety of games showcased this year, such as “Call of Duty: Black Ops” by Treyarch Studios.

“[Microsoft should] be more aware of my preferences as a consumer and less on their bottom line,” Grant said. “The branding that occurs in franchises such as ‘Call of Duty’ does not foster the creativity needed to create games that are interesting to me.”

A surprise Xbox 360 redesign was announced at the press conference as well, which created much excitement when every audience member in the room received one for free from Microsoft. The new system has built-in-WiFi, a 250GB hard drive, and is smaller and quieter than the original Xbox 360. The system retails for $300 is already on store shelves.

Closing:

There were not many surprises, but this year’s E3 was a large success. Game companies are developing their technology through motion sensing technology and 3D instead of new console releases every two years.

Games are becoming a broader based medium that allows anyone from a young child to an adult to enjoy gaming.

Tiara Dees is a senior majoring in music and visual journalism at the University of Alabama.