GGL Wire got a chance to sit down with Major League Gaming chairman and co-founder Michael Sepso this past weekend at E for All. The interview covered a large range of topics, from Sepso’s background as a gamer and day to day activities, to MLG player contracts, to the future of the league.
Bear in mind that the camera autofocus went in and out a couple of times during the course of this interview. Sadly, modern day video editing software has no focus features! Watch the interview below.
Marcus “djWHEAT” Graham invaded the Nintendo booth at E for All this past weekend, ambushing Mega 64’s Rocco and many Nintendo fans. Check the video.
This weekend at E for All, GGL Wire’s Marcus “djWHEAT” Graham caught up with Akira Yamaoka, composer for the Silent Hill series, and Koji Igarashi, creator of Castlevania, for a couple of interviews. See what transpired below.
A large number of hardware and accessory manufacturers were at E for All, including Third Space, who brought along their Impact Vest. Our own djWHEAT got an interview with the device makers and Rance “djRome” Costa got to try it on. Check out the footage below.
Read more »
E for All marked the first time that Metal Gear Solid 4 was playable on North American soil, and to mark the occasion, GGL Wire’s Marcus “djWHEAT” Graham scored an interview with associate producer Ryan Payton about the game. View it below.
This past weekend at E for All, GGL’s Robert Summa spoke to Jason “Loonyboi” Bergman about the upcoming Civilization Revolution, coming out for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and DS.
For Revolution, Sid Meier rebuilt Civilization from the ground up for consoles. As a result, it’s much faster paced, has more action, and is more accessible than previous versions. Watch below.
Granted, nobody genuinely believed that E for All would be able to fill the shoes of the event it was designed to replace, the late lamented Electronic Entertainment Expo.
But surely IDG World Expo, the organizers of E for All, could have done better than this. E3 filled both main halls of the Los Angeles Convention Center plus Kentia Hall downstairs. E for All fills two-thirds of one hall. E3 had hundreds of booths, from every major publisher and console manufacturer, all the big chip makers, and from gaming companies around the world. E for All has dozens of booths from mostly domestic companies. EA, Intel and Nintendo are here, but there’s not much else.
Furthermore, E for All is expensive for the average gamer. Sure, I’m a member of the press, so I get in for free and receive a complimentary lunch of egg salad on a croissant. Joe Gamer has to cough up $50 for a Thur/Fri ticket, $75 for a Sat/Sun ticket, or $90 for a four-day (Jesus, what would you do here for four days?). Compare this with the comparably-sized (but better attended) DigitalLife: $12 to get in (free if you’re Jessica Alba). Read more »
At E for All expo I got another chance to look at Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, EA/Mythic’s upcoming MMORPG based on the Warhammer series of miniatures wargames. I last checked out the title, which has been in closed beta for about a year, at E3 2006.
Playing the demo, I felt the game looks and feels a great deal like World of Warcraft, which at this stage in the evolution of the MMORPG is praise rather than a criticism. But it’s the ways that WOAR differs from WoW, and takes cues from its origins as a tabletop wargame, that interests me.
I sat down with EA’s Josh Drescher to discuss WOAR’s genuinely innovative Realm vs. Realm combat system. Read more »
It occurred to me before I showed up for E for All that the event could blow. The old E3 sucked for various other reasons, and it seems the ESA still hasn’t been able to figure out the magic formula to get good foot traffic and exposure. This event is fairly deserted for a Friday.
As a result, I have resolved to continue entertaining myself with the Pac Man helmet I acquired at the Namco booth.
There is some good news, however. Many pro gamers are in attendance for various reasons, so I’m looking forward to some footage of them. For now, check the blog (hampered by the asstastically slow connection in the E for All media center):
This is what happens when the first day of a video games convention is a total bust: Rance and I buy Pac Man helmets and attempt to entertain ourselves. There was literally nothing going on at E for All on Thursday aside from a handful of hands-on demonstrations, and crowds were sparse. I’m still holding out hope for Friday, as the tournaments pick up then. We’ll have coverage of as much as possible on GGL Wire, but the event looks pretty grim for now.
Check the video of Rance giving me a concussion and the return of White Diamond — attempting to commit suicide — below.
Today’s the first day of E for All, the event designed to replace the downsized E3 as the premier consumer videogaming event of the year. And after spending the day on the convention floor, I can tell you exactly how well it’s going in one word:
FAIL.
We’ll have more coverage tomorrow, and plenty of video coming up over the next few days. To hold you over, here are today’s photos.
