Overview
West HallE3 2005 was all about the next generation. Microsoft had jumped the gun on everyone by announcing that the Xbox 360 would be released later that year, just four years after the original Xbox's debut. Only a few titles were actually shown in playable form on the show floor, but a slew of games were previewed during the press conference. The presentations included the likes of Gears of War, Perfect Dark Zero, Project Gotham Racing 3, and a pair of RPG's from Mistwalker, the new company created by Hironobu Sakaguchi. While third party developers seemed to still be focused on the original Xbox, it was becoming quickly apparent that Microsoft was moving on.
Sony revealed the PlayStation 3 to much fanfare. Most notably was the presentation of Killzone 2 at the press conference. This would become the most debated subject of the show. Was it real or was it pre-rendered? No one knew for sure, but it definitely got people buzzing about the PlayStation 3. Sony also wowed the crowd with presentations of Motorstorm, Heavenly Sword, Gran Turismo, Metal Gear Solid, and a quick Final Fantasy VII demo that had all the fanboys salivating for a true remake.
South HallNintendo, not to be completely outdone, revealed a mocked up model of what they called the Revolution. They showed no controllers and spoke of not many details other than that it would be possible to download games directly to the system. Nintendo also debuted the irrelevant third iteration of the Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Micro.
On the show floor, Konami yet again had a Metal Gear Solid presentation, this time for the PS3 title touted as being the final chapter in the franchise. Of the games actually playable on the show floor, the most talked about titles included Starcraft Ghost, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Soulcalibur III, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Kingdom Hearts II, Call of Duty 2, Battlefield 2, Nintendogs, Super Mario Strikers, Company of Heroes, Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, Civilization IV, and Shadow of the Colossus. Then, hidden in the depths of Kentia Hall, was a little game called Guitar Hero.
Games of the Show
The games listed below not only include those playable on the show floor, but any game referenced at the show. This would include video presentations, announcements, advertisements, or any other official reference to the game from its developer, publisher, or platform. They are listed mainly according to the publisher of the game, with a few exceptions where the publisher did not attend the show. An example of this would be a hardware company such as Nintendo or nVidia showing a game not developed or published by them. In several situtations, games either changed their title or even their publisher before they were released. For historical accuracy in chronicling E3, such games will be listed with their original names and publishers, and linked to the corresponding page of the final game.
2K Games BoothActivision BoothBlizzard - Starcraft GhostBuena Vista - Kingdom Hearts IICapcom - OkamiEA BoothKonami BoothMajesco - Advent RisingMicrosoftMidway BoothNamcoNCsoft BoothNintendoSegaSony - PS3Square EnixUbisoft - Prince of Persia 3WebzenGame Critics Awards
The Best of E3The Game Critics Awards are decided by an independent group of North American media outlets. They have selected the most promising games of each Electronic Entertainment Expo since 1998, and have thus become recognized as the most respected "Best of" awards that come out of the annual show. Games qualify for nomination by having hands-on playable versions of the game at the show.
BEST OF SHOW
Spore (PC) - Electronic Arts
BEST ORIGINAL GAME
Spore (PC) - Electronic Arts
BEST HARDWARE/PERIPHERAL
PlayStation 3 - Sony Computer Entertainment / nVidia / IBM / Toshiba
BEST CONSOLE GAME
Best Console GameThe Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (GCN) - Nintendo
BEST PC GAME
Spore (PC) - Maxis / Electronic Arts
BEST HANDHELD GAME
Best Handheld GameNintendogs (NDS) - Nintendo
BEST ACTION GAME
F.E.A.R. (PC) - Monolith / Vivendi Universal
BEST ACTION/ADVENTURE GAME
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (GCN) - Nintendo
BEST FIGHTING GAME
Soul Calibur III (PS2) - Namco
BEST ROLE PLAYING GAME
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (X360/ PC) - Bethesda Softworks
BEST RACING GAME
Burnout Revenge (PS2/Xbox) - Criterion Games / Electronic Arts
BEST SIMULATION GAME
Spore (PC) - Maxis / Electronic Arts
BEST SPORTS GAME
Madden NFL 06 (All) - EA Tiburon / Electronic Arts
BEST STRATEGY GAME
Company of Heroes (PC) - Relic / THQ
BEST PUZZLE/TRIVIA/PARLOR GAME
Best Puzzle/Trivia/ParlorWe Love Katamari (PS2) - Namco
BEST ONLINE MULTIPLAYER
Battlefield 2 (PC) - Digital Illusions CE / Electronic Arts
SPECIAL COMMENDATION FOR GRAPHICS
Killzone (PS3) - Guerilla Games / Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
Exhibitors
- G.A.M.E. Bundesverband
- G4 - video game television
- Game Developer Magazine
- Game Factory Interactive
- The Game Factory, Inc.
- Game Infinity
- Game Informer Magazine
- Game Instinct
- Game Net, LLC
- Game Source, Inc.
- GameDaily
- Gamefederation
- Gameloft
- GamePort
- Gamer Graffix
- Games for Windows
- GameSpot
- Gamester
- GameTronics
- GameZone
- Gamigo Online Entertainment
- Gamingmouse.com
- GC Games Convention
- GeoLogistics Americas Inc.
- Germany, Federal Republic of
- Getupmove.com
- Gizmondo
- Global Fun
- Global Gaming League
- Global Software Publishing/DK Publishing
- Global Video Games
- GoGamer.com
- GOPRO International Ltd.
- Gravity Corp.
- Griffin International Co.'s
- Groove Games
- GSP Ltd.
- Guangzhou Jetion Computech Co. Ltd.
- Guru Gaming Inc.
- I-MMERSION
- I-play
- I.C.E.
- iBeta Quality Assurance
- IC CAVE
- IDIGICON
- iFone Ltd.
- IGN Entertainment
- IMAGETECH CO., LTD
- IN-FUSIO, Inc.
- Inoveris
- Intel
- Intellect
- Intelligent Earth
- Interactive Selection
- Internap Network Services
- InterServ International Inc.
- InterServ International Inc. (Taiwan)
- Invender
- inXile entertainment
- Iqbal & Sons Games
- IR Gurus Interactive Pty Ltd.
- Isle of Man - Center for Interactive Entertainment
- IT GlobalSecure, Inc.
- ITE APS
- ITI Techmedia
- ITT Technical Institute
- QA International
- QMotions, Inc.
- Qualcomm
- Quazal Technologies Inc.
- Yahoo! Games
- Yobo Gameware Co.
- Zbest Audio & Video
- Ziff Davis Media Game Group
- Zoo Ditial Publishing.
Log in to comment