Xboxist

Three Things Microsoft Needs to Do to Impress at E3

There is a certain je-ne-sais-quoi about a successful E3 performance: one part bravado, one part gleeful excitement, and a healthy dose of substantive announcements seem to do the trick. Last year, Microsoft put in a very strong showing at E3, anchored by its fancy new Xbox Live dashboard, hardware price cuts, and a host of great games. This year, the competition is going to be a bit more fierce: we can't expect Nintendo to sit on its hands after their disappointing showing at the last few tradeshows. Sony definitely has a great E3 schedule lined up as well, with the recent PSP Go leak just the tip of the iceberg. So, what are some things Microsoft could do to blow us away as their press conference kicks off on June 1st?

1) Show us how the Zune HD integrates with the Xbox 360
Announced in the week before E3, Microsoft's new Zune HD has a lot of potential as a portable media player. Its specifications include support for downloaded music and movies on Xbox Live, a touch screen, and HDMI output. That's great for people who are into portable media players but here at Xboxist we're all about the games. If Microsoft wants to impress us at E3 this year, they'll have to show us that the Zune is capable if interacting with Xbox Live in a meaningful way. The best thing they could do is announce that the Zune HD will play Xbox Live Arcade titles: talk about a megaton!

2) Bring us some good exclusives
Alan Wake is going to be a hugely important title for Microsoft, since it is one of the few major exclusive titles currently headed to the system. It definitely has to be playable on the show floor and it has to play well enough to justify its obscene development time. Alan Wake alone won't be nearly enough to earn Microsoft a win at E3, however: we want to hear about Deus Ex 3, Bioshock 2, Mass Effect 2, Grand Theft Auto DLC, Fallout, and others. The problem is that many of those games are only timed exclusives, so as great as they are, we still want more. Microsoft, bring us titles the likes of which we've never seen!

Alan Wake might be the first game we get bored of before it is even released!

3) Lead the way forward
Rather than play catch-up to Nintendo with motion controls or Apple with a touch screen media player, most of all we want Microsoft to point the way forward. When Bill Gates still maintained an active role at the helm of the company, he had a clear vision of where technology and consumer devices were headed. His bold strategy is part of the reason for the dominance of the Xbox 360 as a home media device. Now, we want the company to give us some visionary ideas about where gaming is headed, before we sink into the doldrums of mid-cycle console boredom. What will invigorate current Xbox 360 owners and entice future customers to jump in? Is it a move toward digital distribution and smaller, casual titles? It is wireless inter-operability? Is it, as everyone fears, waggle?

With all of the hype surrounding Sony and Nintendo on the eve of this year's E3, Microsoft actually occupies an enviable position. It is a lot easier to come from behind and impress people without the weight of unreasonable expectations hanging over your head. Mark your calendars for June 1st, when we find out whether Microsoft rises to the occasion or fails to impress.