Take a stroll around the Microsoft booth and you can easily spend your entire day taking in all the games there are to see. You have a large section dedicated solely to Turn 10's Forza Motorsport 3, for instance, including a lifelike setup where you can sit behind the wheel of a force feedback-empowered sim cockpit, complete with rocking chair and encouraging onlookers. This is a popular draw, the accessibility of racing games combined with the allure of playing in a complex toy.
Forza Motorsport 3 went all out with the realistic driving experience.
Right around the bend you can find a pitch man of Billy Mays' caliber explaining how Sam Fisher became a badass of Jack Bauer-esque proportions, able to mark, execute, and otherwise ruin anyone's day.
You can play games like Valve's Left 4 Dead 2 here, but good luck prying the controller out of someone's hands to take your turn. Its inclusion in the Microsoft festivities took multiplayer shooter fans (as well as those living in daily fear of the zombie apocalypse) completely by surprise.
Halo 3: ODST is hard to miss, and hard to put down.
One of the more popular destinations in Microsoft territory is the Halo 3: ODST hands-on demo area. Sequestered behind walls depicting the soldiers for which the game is named, you'll find gamers sitting down to try out the new "Firefight" multiplayer mode. It's a cooperative gameplay mode where teams of players fight successively more challenging waves of enemies, much like in Gears of War 2's Horde mode (or its true predecessor, Unreal Tournament's Invasion mode). ODST sticks to the polished Halo 3 formula, but the silenced weaponry and lack of a recharging shield really changes how you have to approach combat. Run-and-gun and you won't last long. I'm really interested in checking out the campaign mode, since it comes across as focused on telling a good story. You'll start off as the rookie, on a day when everything that can go wrong does. As you get through one killer day on the job, ODST employs flashback sequences to introduce you to other troopers, their tales coming together to slowly unveil the story's mystery.
Interestingly enough, you won't find a bevy of booth babes flashing fake smiles or words of encouragement as you fail miserably during a hands-on game demo. Microsoft, as far as I could tell, stacked the booth's game stations and presentations with knowledgeable folk that had an actual hand in working on the product, or at least knew more than what could be gleaned from an index card. While you can find booth babes all around the show floor, Microsoft kept things very tasteful.
In the booth's inner sanctum, you can go behind closed doors to meet the game creators.
While the Microsoft booth's exterior offers plenty to see, it's in the booth's inner sanctum where the magic happens. It's here that you can hobnob with the likes of Lionhead founder Peter Molyneux as he explains why Project Natal is all it's cracked up to be. It's here that members of the Bungie team pour their hearts into a demonstration of Halo 3: ODST that can easily convince even a naysayer that they have new stories to tell, starting with this action-packed yet surprising take on a classic noir mystery. It's in a face-to-face with Turn 10's Dan Greenwald that you can understand why his team's love for the automobile has driven it to focus on accessibility and community, above and beyond the graphical enhancements and expansion of content that you'd expect from a sequel.
One of the greatest benefits of being part of the enthusiast press is the access I'm granted to the minds behind the games. E3 is where some of the most exciting news breaks, and when these brilliant people converge to show us exactly why their creative juices haven't been put to waste in their dedication to our entertainment. Microsoft had plenty to show off at its booth this year, but I was as impressed by the people as I was by the games.
The Verdict
Gerald says: Microsoft's booth plays host to lots of the biggest games of E3 2009. Disappointingly, only a select few are able to check out Project Natal, the flashy home motion-capture interface that everyone is talking about. It's a very strong showing regardless, especially if you're a fan of shooters, thanks to playable versions of Halo 3: ODST and Left 4 Dead 2. Some of the most interesting conversation fodder is strictly under wraps, but Microsoft definitely brought plenty of ammunition to E3.
