E3 2010: How Microsoft Failed To Cater To Casual Gamers

The last thing I saw was the Kinect taking over the remainder of the Microsoft Press Conference which was just sad. Demos of games in which you pet tigers, ride rafts through a river, and exercise all shared a unified element; they excited the core gamer in absolutely no way, shape or form. I cringed when they showed Kinectimals . I scratched my head when I saw the running in place game and I literally had to leave the room when they showed the fitness title. The racing game in which you steer with your hands was easily the most hardcore-oriented title shown for Kinect. The dancing game really irked me though because everyone they brought out to play already knew the routines. I don’t see how one without knowledge of the dance steps prior would be able to play (dance) at that level of enjoyment and not make a few more mistakes along the


Given the new 22 Cans venture, it's unclear how involved Molyneux will actually be as a "creative consultant" and it's hard not to speculate that title is more of a PR move than an actual indication that the designer will be very involved in the completion of the project. The "creative consultant" position is becoming a go-to move for developers lately, as major figure-heads leave fan-favoite studios in the midst of oft-delayed projects, since the situation is especially reminiscent of the recent Fumito Ueda/Team Ico change-


Fable: The Journey is expected to be released this year, so it's certainly possible that Molyneux's work on the game is mostly complete - as the title, presumably, is in the hands of department designers and no longer requires larger visioning or shaping. That said, it's much more likely that development on the inevitable (yet unannounced) Fable 4 will take the biggest hit (not to mention the recently announced Fable: Heroes ) - given how involved Molyneux has been with the previous full-scale Fable adventu


Developed by Lionhead Studios —then known as Big Blue Box — the Peter Molyneux-headed title hyped itself as only a Peter Molyneux title could, with vast, speculative suggestions, promises and ideas. Players were told of how a single acorn, planted during the game's early youth sections would sprout into a mighty oak by title's end. That particular feature, and many more like it never made the cut, but their loss didn't stop Fable from delivering an otherwise engaging and enjoyable experie


Like most PC games, graphics settings are customizable, as are the control schemes. Unlike the 360 version, the PC version allows players to increase the difficulty level - which some may find too easy on the default setting. You'd expect a feature like this to have been available in the original version of the title - better late than never, I supp


Over the years, especially after the success of the studio's first console title, Fable walkthrough|https://fablechronicle.Com/ , back in 2004, Molyneux has become a fan-favorite figurehead for the gaming industry - similar to the "celebrity" of similar designers like Cliff Bleszinski, Hideo Kojima, or Gabe Newell. As a result, there's little doubt that fans of the Lionhead brand will see the departure as a potential death-blow to the studio - despite Molyneux's co-founder, Mark Webley, sticking around to run the stu


Oftentimes, the other concern, when discussing ported games, is the controls. Lionhead claimed that this was their number one priority in building the PC version of the game. They completely reconfigured the control system for the PC - taking advantage of key things like the mouse wheel (which is used to switch between magic, guns, and swords, similar to how it is used in shooters to switch weapons). The game controls well, and even for a native Xbox player I found it easy to pick up and play. Of course, the game also supports gamepads, and using the 360 controller offered a equivalent experience to playing on the X


Overall, the PC version does deliver some aesthetically pleasing differences from the Xbox 360 - most notably the graphics improvements, but it's still the same game. Even though it looks prettier, the same flaws remain. If you have a great PC, and you haven't already purchased Fable 3 , pick it up. The RPG elements may be minimal, and simplistic, but the game still manages to be an engrossing experience - because of all the things you can do in (and to) the wo


The nominations were decided by all 11 of the Game Rant staff in attendance for E3 and are based upon our previews, demos and hands-on experiences with all of the available titles at the event this y


Fable 3 has almost all the elements of great storytelling and wonderful fantasy roleplay. Magic, legendary weapons, evil monsters, a kingdom to save and even to rule: all of these things guarantee that Lionhead Studios will draw you into the world of Albion once ag


The industry's current infatuation with motion control gaming is openly seen as a clever (or not so clever) ploy to divert the attention of the "casual" gamer from Nintendo’s very successful Wii console. It has been common knowledge for some time now that both Sony and MS are developing their own approach to motion control gaming, the Move and Kinect respectively. But to take the world's largest annual industry platform, at which many of gaming's biggest showcases have occurred, and focus on this single, controversial piece of hardware as the centerpiece has left many fans, myself included, shaking their fist in the air and wondering what the heck happe