E
for All Hits the Mark with Gamers
By
Aaron Stein & Stephanie Ross
 |
| E
for All kicks-off at the former home of the E3 Expo,
the LA Convention Center. |
The E for All
convention kicked off its inaugural opening at the Los Angeles Convention
Center with games, fans, and more games. To the delight of many,
Konami and Nintendo provided gamers with first looks at next year’s
must have games and their present hot sellers. Amid the hyperactive,
yet surprisingly restrained teens and the roaming superheroes
were some of the gaming analysts and developers who help shape
the world
of video games.
 |
| E
for All day 4; father and son gamers from Alabama
enjoying the event. |
Though E for All’s
main goal appears to be a platform for consumers to interact with
some of the industry’s
heaviest hitters and play the pre-release games that only E3 attendees
used to be privy to, it seems that there is an important business
undercurrent. Beyond the blasting music and fiery digital explosions,
GameDevelopers Conference was on board with their “Game Career
Seminar” which is reminiscent of E3’s past seminars and
conferences that dealt with a wide range of issues concerning the
video game industry.
 |
| Game
Producer Yuji Naka at E for All 2007 |
This move to include
the seminar was brilliant on the part of organizers of the show because
it gave those entering the industry a much-needed compass that was
lacking in this year’s E3 event. Creative professionals have
always been an important staple at large video game shows across
the globe, and E for All appears to have garnered a fraction of this
attention.
Last year,
gaming legend Yuji Naka split from game giant SEGA and the Sonic
Team to form
his own company named PROPE. Naka is
credited with the creation of two of SEGA’s most popular
game properties: Sonic the Hedgehog and Nights. With SEGA’s
upcoming Nights sequel, “Nights: Journey of Dreams” for
the Nintendo Wii, there has been a lingering question, “Where
is Yuji Naka?” Little
news has come out of PROPE beyond a recent recruitment effort seeking
out developers and artists. In a March, 2007 interview with the
on-line magazine CVG, Naka gave only a vague idea as to what PROPE
is currently working on: “We want to make works that have
the power to fill the children of the world with dreams.”
 |
| Game
producer Yuji Naka and crew in private session at E for
All 2007 |
On the first
day of the E for All convention, Yuji Naka was spotted with some
of his crew. It appears business is still going down--even at
a “consumer” geared
convention. Could this
be a main indicator as to why the old E3 Expo format is so
important for the creative development
of new,
original games?
There is
something to be said about the effects of being immersed in
a melting pot of creativity like the E3
Expo of yesterday--it appears to inspire. After a long
first day at
E for All, away from the crowds, Naka was seen in a lively
roundtable discussion with his posse. Hopefully, there will
be some news
coming from PROPE in the upcoming months.
 |
| Game
producer Shingo Mukaitoge showing off Dewy at E for All
2007 |
Taking center-stage
at Konami was Elebits creator Shingo Mukaitoge who signed copies
of and cover artwork from his newest title “Dewy’s
Adventure” starring a heroic dewdrop named Dewy. Wildly
entertaining for kids and adults, game players take control
of the slippery
little guy who can use the power of water’s three states
of matter: gas, liquid, and solid to save his friends from
the bad guys. Beyond the obvious benefits, Dewy has with his
ability
to transform. He also has a cool assortment of power moves
and a few other tricks up his sleeves. Eager fans holding plush
versions
of Dewy snaked around the Konami booth and waited patiently
as Mukaitoge meticulously signed his autograph for the lucky
attendees.
Around the other
side of the Konami booth, Metal Gear Solid fans waited in line
for the hottest ticket at the show. Peering through the holes of
a chain link fence that cordoned off the area where gamers got
their first opportunity to try out the first playable demo of “Metal
Gear Solid 4”, fans could hardly contain themselves. Audible “oohs” and “ahhs” could
be heard from the spectators. The
Disneyland-like line was worth the wait as they would find
out. Not only did
gamers get a full
fifteen minutes with the game which is slated for release
next year, but they also got a surprise treat in that Konami
had
procured Sony’s newest Dual Shock 3 game pads which are
highly anticipated and will not be available until next year
also.
 |
| E
for All day 4: Nintendo fans try out "Super Mario
Galaxy" |
Nintendo was
not to be outdone at E for All, shining with endless crowds of
cheerful gamers who were divided into a few core sections. Nintendo
set up bleachers where gamers could watch mini championship rounds
of Nintendo’s newest installment in its Smash Brothers series “Super
Smash Bros. Brawl” before getting their hands on the title
a few minutes later. The game is a kid-friendly fighting game devoid
of gore and stars nearly every popular video game character out
there. Also getting a lot of attention was the upcoming “Super
Mario Galaxy” which is Mario’s first major console
title in four years.
 |
PC gaming had
a larger presence than expected with Intel and HP taking up a huge
chunk of show floor real estate. Formula one racing cars drew racing
lovers into Intel’s booth where gamers got a chance to check
out what’s under the hood of top end PC’s and play
a few Intel optimized games. HP in turn showed off their version
of the ultimate gaming machine. Jet-black and designed for style,
HP’s Blackbird 002 will rock any gamer’s world… if
you have the cash. The four figure machine--although very trendy--may
’s budget.
 |
Rounding
out the game mania was “Into the Pixel”, a favorite
hideout for Spiderman and Storm. Into the Pixel was first introduced
a few years back at the E3 Expo and has taken on a new life
at E for All. The art exhibit featured a brilliant collection
drawn from the minds of the game creators themselves. Available
for viewing were pieces of conceptual artwork and production
artwork from today’s and tomorrow’s most talked
about video games. From Metal Gear Solid 3 to Assassin’s
Creed, it was a must see for any game enthusiast or art aficionado.
You can check out the whole collection at IntothePixel.com.
 |
E for All
picks up where E3 2006 left off. Albeit smaller in scale, the
booth designs, lighting, and sound systems were
on par with past E3 shows, recreating the general vibe of a videogame
wonderland. Fewer companies were showcased and many were missed;
however, those in attendance appeared to put in more effort
and
more thought this time. There was more hands-on time with games
and staff was friendlier. It was obvious that the companies
in attendance truly cared about their constituents no matter
what
their age. Gamers were treated to a wide assortment of schwag
in addition to personal attention and game coaching from patient
booth attendants. Some of this attention included very polite “no’s” from
booth staff turning away unattended members of the under 18 crowd
when approaching “M” rated games.
 |
Overall,
the new E for All got nothing but praise from attendees.
Every gamer we queried responded enthusiastically about
the convention
with the general reaction being, “It’s great here!” The
best feature by far was the ability to actually buy souvenirs
at the convention. Nearly every attendee carried a shopping
bag filled with purchases from various booths.
At E3,
attendees were limited to purchasing E3 imprinted gear
while cool licensed
merchandise was only on display at various game company
booths. At E for All, to the delight of fans, Konami and
Namco changed
the trend and set up small shops that made available tons
of limited edition gear including collectible t-shirts
and signed
comic books. A lot has changed in the industry in only
a year.
At the beginning
of the year, Doug Lowenstein, the genius behind the ESA which
owns E3, stepped down from his position as president of the
ESA.
He
was the first president of the organization and helped
propel
video games from a novelty to a multi-billion dollar
a year industry. When Doug departed, so did the winning
formula for the E3 Expo. The new down-sized and meeting-centric
format
for E3 premiered this past summer and seemed ad-hoc in
comparison. It
is obvious on the first day of the E for All convention
that the organizers
had
taken a step back in the right direction and
had added its own flair. Hopefully, E3 will take a cue from E for
All and return to its former prominence while growing to include
something for everyone. Three days was never enough time for E3,
why not add a day and open the wonderland up to a public that’s
now experienced a slice of the grandeur at E for All?
|
