E3 Hardie Awards

The human frap of sweat, noise, and questionable hygiene that is E3 has come and gone, and left a thunderous silence in its wake. It's now, after E3, that the glut of previews, videos, screenshots, and interviews begin to come together and take shape, but what does it all mean for the hardcore gamer?

Be vewy vewy qwiet.

For this year's E3, the answer is plenty. Microsoft played to its hardcore strengths with all manner of announcements and demos. From the omnipresent Gears of War®, to the unveiling of the HD-DVD drive, and the Live Anywhere announcement, there was plenty of top-tier attention paid to those that call gaming their national pastime. What stood out above the rest though? That's what the Hardie awards are all about!

For the hardcore gamer, the joys of
Xbox 360 are just getting started.

Game of Show
Starting off Microsoft's E3 press briefing with a live demo of Gears of War courtesy of CliffyB had already started the hardcore blood pumping, but it was the extended demo at the private theatre in Microsoft's booth that earned this next-gen killer app an E3 Hardie award.

Its gothic but futuristic setting already had mouths watering for more, but seeing gameplay explained and demonstrated cemented this Xbox 360™ entry as "can't miss" along the same lines as Halo® 3. Plus, you saw enemies in half for crying out loud! Check out our gameplay details piece for more info.

Honorable Mention: Publisher behemoth Ubisoft announced a partnership with Free Radical (makers of the TimeSplitters series) to develop the upcoming FPS Haze for Xbox 360.

The demo at E3 showcased jungle environments equal to the oft ballyhooed Crysis trailer, but more importantly, the shocking end of the demo showed your surroundings warp and twist after an ally guns down an innocent. This sudden change from the bright and almost cheerful tropical environment hinted at a disturbing and serious underbelly for Haze that the knowing smile from the Ubisoft rep only further confirmed.

Iron Constitution Hardie
The private viewing of Haze was impressive enough for an honorable mention, but the sweltering sweatbox the poor Ubisoft and Free Radical reps had to work in was inhuman. Mad Hardie props go to the poor souls that perspired pounds of water-weight by the hour to showcase their game.

A hero's entrance is nigh.

Best Announcement
You know the Live Anywhere initiative has far-reaching implications when Bill Gates himself walked us through the presentation at Microsoft's pre-E3 press briefing. The shattering of boundaries between the upcoming Windows Vista, Xbox 360, and mobile phones to create a universal gaming community strikes a chord deep within the hardcore community.

Simple but previously unheard of benefits like the following offer enormous implications for the gaming community at large.

• Achievements for PC games.
• A Global Gamertag.
• Queuing up Xbox 360 downloads remotely.
• Messaging across all three platforms.
• Cross platform gaming between Xbox 360 and PC.

Best of all, Live Anywhere is not a product, but a vision instead, so while we have a glimpse of what's intended, the services provided will only become richer and more expansive with time.

Best Peripheral
The HD-DVD drive may come to mind as the natural choice, and to be sure, seeing the physical model and the promise of true high-definition movies for those that choose to upgrade was enough to make the most jaded gamer smile, it was the Wireless Headset announcement that takes the Hardie award home.

Hardcore gamers are early technology adopters by nature, and even a casual glimpse behind their entertainment center will cause a blood-pressure spike; the tangled mess of wires and cords twisting and wrapping together to create a single malevolent being. Therefore, any peripheral that abolishes even a single cord gets an immediate nod of approval and a Hardie while they're at it.

The next-gen Master Chief revealed.

Best Moment
Again, the Microsoft press briefing comes to the fore as Bill Gates casually introduced the much anticipated Halo 3 trailer (you can watch it here). Taken as a whole it is worthy of the most critical hardcore approval, but it was the image of Master Chief walking through the smoke to reveal his most glorious next-gen character model that sent the biggest thrill through this hardcore gamer.

E3 2006 answered the question of "what's next?" for Microsoft. Xbox 360 had launched, the first wave of titles had come and gone, but it's clear now that with the second wave of games, new peripherals and new services, life for Xbox 360 is just beginning and only getting stronger. For the hardcore gamer, the joys of Xbox 360 are just getting started.

Article by Hardcore