More Buddy, More Bioshock

Today we filmed Buddy's interview and performance for SMtv. I've already mentioned how amazing and soul-stirring his music is, but the wonderful news is he and his manager are both extremely kind and genuine people. I love when that happens. Please check out his music right now. You can thank me later.

Also, an update on the Bioshock and Toys R' Us situation: TRU is being fined $5,000 per copy sold, and they sold many many copies. This is very bad news for them.

Nothing but good news for 2K games right now, as the reviews are coming in all over, and it hasn't received under a 9.4 out of 10 from anyone yet, which is pretty much unprecedented. These are not good reviews, they're absolutely glowing. Check these out:

"This game is a beacon. It's one of those monumental experiences you'll never forget, and the benchmark against which games for years to come will, and indeed must, be measured. There is art here." - IGN

"Bioshock doesn't just meet your expectations, but completely redefines them forever in ways you never even expected. A story that exists and unfolds inside the most convincing, elaborate and artistic game world ever conceived." - Eurogamer

"By the time it ends, you'll likely feel quite different about how you interact with games, and more importantly, how they interact with you. An experience that's richly and utterly complete, and one that engages the player in a constant dialogue." - 1up

"Overwhelmingly original and so mind-blowingly brilliant. Every single aspect of [this] game has been creatively conceived, meticulously crafted and lovingly produced. A one-of-a-kind masterpiece." - GamesRadar

"An unparalleled achievement. No other game comes even remotely close to it in terms of raw emotional connection." - Gamespy

"Bioshock Bioshock Bioshock!!!!" - me

E3 Sony Spectacular!

I got back to LA early, and I was fortunate enough to be invited to Sony's E3 Press Event. I've wanted to go to E3 since I was 8 years old, so it's an understatement to say I was excited.

In past years, E3 was a huge event held at the LA Convention Center, featuring all the consoles and most of the developers. However, this cost the developers millions of dollars per year that they didn't really need to spend. So this year E3 was quite different. It was a series of smaller events, held individually by each publisher.

I showed up at Culver City Studios and as I walked out of the parking garage, the first people I saw were Chris Roper, David Clayman and the IGN Playstation Team. I'm a big fan of IGN. I listen to their podcasts frequently and (ready for my big geeky reveal) I know all the names and faces of the staff. So I totally geeked out again, but in that silent way that I do.

We all walked simultaneously to the Studio gates for check in, and I didn't say a word. What a loser! But I thought, "what would I say anyway? 'I love your work!' Maybe I would say, 'You people are very humorous, I find.' Or perhaps, 'I'm not stalking you!'

So I just kept the trap shut.

I checked in and got my glamrock armband (see below). It was a press wristband, meaning nobody could tell the difference between me (a lowly Playstation Underground member) and the esteemed folks at Kotaku. Very awesome. So I could pretend to be important.

I made my way into the soundstage.

And sat up near the Great Wall of Camera People.

[video for the following paragraph below] - Mr. Jack Tretton then came out and introduced all the brand new changes to Playstation Home, which looks pretty wide open to user content. He briefly discussed the PS2, saying that it was still super-successful, and then quickly swept it out the door and moved on to the absolutely dead horse that is the PSP. He presented the newly redesigned SLIM PSP, which is the same useless machine, only thinner. Woo. Now it will be a few grams lighter as you play your totally crappy games with only one analog stick and no camera control. If you want to functionally redesign it, how about adding a second analog stick to bring it into the late 90's?! He then added insult to injury and had his buddy Chewbacca bring out the brand new pointless Star Wars: Battlefront PSP. And it's THIN too!


Other show highlights include Hideo Kojima (a true legend) coming out with a translator to introduce Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, and announcing that it would be the very last Metal Gear game ever, and proceeding to show a mindblowing eight-minute trailer [video below]

They showed off new trailers of Resident Evil 5 (which looks amazing), Uncharted, Heavenly Sword, and more. You can see more video on my YouTube page, because I've used up enough blog space already.

After the press conference, we all meandered into the arcade and immediately became children again.

It was like a disco. An awesome disco with videogames everywhere. And cookies on a stick.


The vidogame blog, Kotaku, used the above photo for their lead story on E3 this year. How exciting!

Many more E3 pics on my Flickr stream.