My two cents:
Microsoft had a much clearer message and really consistent pacing throughout their entire presentation. Phil wasn't lying in the months and weeks leading up to E3. Their show was going to be nothing but games, game more games and nothing but games. They made a strong case for those to buy a Xbox One this holiday. Sunset Overdrive, Halo: The Master Chief Collection and CoD's timed exclusive DLC will be sure fire incentives for consumers this fall. And lets not forget that the Xbox One is also $399 now. They did give a glimpse into the future with teasers for Halo 5: Guardians, Crackdown 3, Phantom Dust and Scalebound. Like other companies, I think this is their only set back. Although we did get a taste for what is ahead in 2015 and beyond, it wasn't really enough to get me excited. They really didn't sell me the future as strongly as they should. Everything was about the present, the right now and the immediate. Teasers, prototypes and tech demos aren't enough to keep me engaged for what is to come. I need to see more to keep it fresh in my mind.
Anyway,MS did a good job at showing that ID@Xbox isn't just a gesture of good will but a real thing. Sony has been really aggressive when it comes to courting indies and small devs. MS is catching up and I think it was a smart move to actually show they they are serious about it. And that is what I really liked overall with Microsoft's presentation: They showed games. They let them speak for themselves. They had short snippets of devs talking about their favorite childhood games and such, and they had people talk on stage, but that was merely to give context for what they were about to show. There was no talk about sales, statistics or long winded explanation about non-gaming features and stuff we already know or don't care about.
On the other hand, this is where I felt both Sony and Nintendo were much stronger. They painted much clearer pictures as to what is in store for 2015. I already own all three consoles, but if I didn't, I would definitely consider getting a PS4 or a Wii U next year, particularly because Sony and Nintendo gave me insight and showed more of what they are offering down the road. Like Microsoft, Nintendo, for the most part, was no nonsense and got right to the point. Their presentation was all about the games and explained by those who make them as opposed to some random guy in a suit.
Overall, Sony was strong but they fell apart when Shawn Layden came on stage. I understand he was excited, nervous and needs to gain experience and learn how to find himself during these kind of events. However, he was far too long winded and bogged down in unnecessary details that most people don't care about. Even worse is when they went into excruciating detail about their partnerships with Disney and Marvel on the Powers TV show, or whatever it was. It deviated too much from what people were expecting and quite honestly, it was information overload. I'm not a comic book aficionado, so dropping all sorts of names of folks in that industry does nothing for me, and realistically, just goes over the heads of most people watching. It was this segment where it seemed like Sony had forgotten the notion of showing, instead of telling. Don't tell me about Powers, don't tell me about a new Ratchet & Clank game. Show me. Other than that, Sony did pretty well, but they could have done better.
After taking nearly everything in, it's pretty clear that all three companies aren't really prepared for the remainder of 2014. 2015 is going to be the real deal. Most of the games that everyone really cares about, that most people are excited for aren't coming until next year, if not later. I think the releases for this Fall are serviceable, some being pretty strong, but nothing that is a true knock out and nothing that would make me want to buy any one of their system's this very second at my local GameStop. Out of the three, Microsoft has the most promising lineup and had the most when it comes to what will be available in the near future. Halo: The Master Chief Collection was one of the biggest, if not the single most important, announcement of E3. That game along will drive a lot of Xbox One sales due to the fact that it's an insane value and jam packed with a lot of content and features. Even still, when you look at everything, that really isn't saying much.
No one had a bad showing and nothing that was shown was awful, but at least for this year, nothing really blew me away. But when speaking about 2015, that is a completely different ball game. MS, Sony and Nintendo all have compelling titles lined up and they all have something really special to offer.
