By James Fudge



The 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo came in like a lion and went out like a lamb. The hoopla actually began the Friday before E3 week and every publisher that had a next generation Xbox 360 game began flapping their gums and pushing out their PR machines. So the hype was planted that night and when Monday and Tuesday rolled in and rolled by we had learned mostly everything there was to know about the next generation consoles.



Opening day came, and sure, there were a lot of announcements, but no real shocks - we already knew what was coming from whom and at that point until now it's been nothing but refried beans. Sure, there were some exciting announcements and developments during the show but people mostly followed the trends that seem to be running wild this year in the industry. That's really what I want to talk about anyway - how companies are focusing on specific ideas and goals this year.

Digital Distribution



The most noticeable trend this year was downloadable, electronically distributed content. We saw a lot of announcements from companies that do that sort of thing every day like Boonty, Digital River and Xstream - but this year the three largest console makers in the world were touting it as a feature. Nintendo offered an interesting idea - making its 20+ year library of software available for download. In an interview with Reuters Nintendo's Iwata explained that they "may" sell the content by charging a per-title fee, offering some content as rewards to Revolution owners and by selling game cards in stores that users could then use to buy from the Nintendo Archive.

Microsoft, who really has lead the way in the online pay-to-play console space, will be offering downloadable content as well - everything from freebies like demos, additional levels and updates to purchases that like virtual characters, costumes etc. Microsoft has also decided to create a free version of Live so that players who aren't interested in playing online can still do commerce. The commerce will also be something that players can get involved in and make some money off of. Obviously Microsoft has been watching the trend as it relates to MMOG's and it like the idea very much.



Sony' strategy is pretty similar but details are sketchy. Sony will obviously enhance the way games play online with the PS3 and will offer additional non-gaming content for download, but what that will be is a mystery at this point.



But consoles aren't the only heavyweights jumping into the digital distribution space - heavyweights like Turner Broadcasting Systems' GameTap is a major endeavor to combine television with digital game downloads. It'll be interesting to see how GameTap will shape up, but it's another idea that needs some more time in the oven. Turner has already pruchased the rights to distribute thousands of classic titles so it's headed in the right direction.

The Melting Pot



The second trend this year was synergy between industries and IP's, and for companies like Square Enix - changing the way they think about being platform specific. For instance companies like EA, Majesco, Ubisoft and Activision want to blur the lines between motion pictures, other media (comic books, books) and console gaming. They tout more collaborative efforts, big name stars, and star development teams with massive budgets. Truth be told, many of these teams will not be successful because they don't know how to properly market their products with the films and franchises they represent. This is not a new concept but these companies hope to produce games based on IP's that are actually sucessful.



Other companies, like Square Enix seem to have had a spiritula awakening. The company talked about leveraging their franchises for more than just games and offered a more open view when selecting platforms. This, in my opinion is long overdo and an important next step in this company's evolution as a software and multimedia powerhouse. Anyone that knows Square Enix knows that they have been hesitant to jump on the Xbox bandwagon. That hesitation is gone now, so expect to see a lot more games on the Xbox 360.



Of course Sega, and Capcom have been doing this kind of thing for years in some small measure with IP's like Megaman and Sonic. But Square Enix has the right idea - create IP's and do less licensing. We should note that Enlight's American McGee has been following that path with Oz, and in some small measure id Software has made some in-roads into mainstream media with DOOM.

Cable Free



Wireless. Wireless controllers, networks for wireless handhelds, wireless access to online broadband. Wireless is the buzz word for console makers this year. And why not? Wireless technology is growing by leaps and bounds - soon we'll have Wi-Fi technology that can connect to another WiFi device or a network that is two miles away. We have to give credit to GameCube for pushing the envelope with Wi-Fi support on the DS and its Wavebird wireless controllers for the GameCube. Here's to hoping that all next-gen systems use the technology right in the first generaton of release.

Mobile Gaming



Although most of the media covering E3 didn't pay attention to it, there was a lot of news about mobile phone gaming. Now I have no idea who's playing these games but they are everywhere and every company is investing in the sector - THQ, EA, Namco, Square Enix, etc.



Leaders in the field like Jamdat, Sorrent, Sprint, are also snapping up every license they can get their grubby little hands on. Everybody says that the mobile gaming industry is huge, so if the amount of products announced at E3 are any indication if the sector's popularity then someone's going to make a hell of a lot of money this year..

And that's that. The show's over and now we wait to see if all these concepts and plans were all flash and no sizzle or a true blue revolution (no pun intended) in our industry. We'll be there to tell you no matter what.