PixlBit

I just moved my hoard, so I feel you there. I can't say I had any hard decisions to make other than choosing to dump all of my old Nintendo Powers. I would've loved to keep them, but they're worth very little. I cut out all of the posters I wanted and threw them in the recycling bin. It was a PITA to pack it all though and I'm still unpacking and setting up all of the systems.

You've got a few more systems than I do, so consider me jealous!

I don't think that Nintendo doing a presentation is going to change that perception. The media and publishers continue to perpetuate it, so I think the damage is already done. By the standards of the media, better graphics, more horsepower = next gen, not new features.

I think the sad truth (depending on your perspective), is that Nintendo is on their own and will have to justify the existence of their home consoles from now on.

It's been my long held belief that Nintendo is striving towards merging their home and portable console markets, which will change their place in the industry forever. Wii U is the first step in that direction and I wouldn't be surprised if the next iteration of Wii U and 3DS come together into one console that can be docked at home or played on the go.

Don't feel too bad about The Grinder. I played it at E3 2009 (I think, could've been 10) and it was just awful. It was essentially a poor man's Left 4 Dead with some very serious problems.

While High Voltage seemed like a real boon for Wii gamers, most of their stuff was just subpar. The Grinder would've reviewed similarly to The Conduit 1 and 2 and Tournament of Legends.

I have no tears for Sadness either. It was painfully obvious from day 1 that it was vaporware, but it continued to get press. Now Project HAMMER on the other hand is a game I still totally want to play...

I can't really speak for Nintendo, but I do think that they're done competing with Microsoft and Sony in this war of attrition. Reality is, they aren't competing on the same terms, so why try?

Every year Nintendo has to bat down the bad PR spin that results from their conference, so I think it makes sense to just remove that x factor. Compare that to the Nintendo Directs and the stark contrast is really apparent. Regardless of whether or not they have their dog and pony show, they are going to get press from their floor showing, especially if they are showing off some big content.

Also, I wouldn't think it out of the realm of possibility that there will be a Nintendo Direct for everyone at home to show off what's going to be on the show floor, along with stuff going into the eShop for consumption.

I think it's a little too early to make a judgment on Nintendo's strategy, but I think it's at least smart to shake things up and do something different. Whether or not it pays off, we'll see soon. I expect that they'll return to form next year if this is a bust. If it's successful, 2012 may have very well been the last briefing they'll ever do at E3.

I think it's worth mentioning that Nintendo's strongest points are always on the show floor. Forget the big conference, the stuff they have out always makes the most waves and has the best press. It seems that they are controlling the media flow by putting them in front of the most important piece of the puzzle: the games.

I agree with San Andreas. E3 is quickly losing relevance and the past two years have really been awful. This whole charade we call E3 was once an entertaining spectacle, but these days it's the source of much undue stress to meet pointless deadlines and a huge money pit for already hurting publishers. I'd say it'll be better for the industry to just kill the event or make it a real trade show where media doesn't have such a presence.

Anyway, that's just my 2 cents..

Let's see - we're playing System Shock 2 right now for Backloggers, so it'll have to be after that. I can probably start in a couple weeks, once I knock that one off and any remaining review tasks I've got on my plate.

Maybe I'll put a call out to the community at large and we'll all go through it together. That seems like it'd be a ton of a fun. Might have some unique co-op opportunities that way as well.

I feel you on the Demon's Souls frustration. That was the first review I did when I started PixlBit and man, I ripped it a new one. I had the hardest time with the game and really harbored a grudge against it for the longest time.

Towards the end of last year, Dark Souls came up for sale on Amazon for something like $12 shipped, so I picked up a copy and started on it. For some reason, it clicked. I think it ramps into the challenge a little bit more cleanly, and I think that the whole bonfire system makes it that much more approachable. Before long, I was completely hooked. I went on to beat the game and I really understood what people were raving over. It was a great game and suffice to say, probably one of the best of the generation.

Shortly before finishing up Dark Souls, I decided it was high time I revisit Demon's Souls, so I headed over to Gamestop and picked it up used (I sold my review copy after I hated it thoroughly). I started a fresh character from the beginning of the game and went to town. In around an hour, I made it past the bridge with the dragon, opened the gate, beat Phalanx and upgraded my character. I did all of this without dying (well, that's not totally true, I accidentally walked off the edge at one point...).

It became immediately obvious to me that the problem I had in my last playthrough was that I just didn't know what the hell I was doing. I was playing it completely wrong. Only through playing Dark Souls was I able to incrementally learn solid tactics that allowed me to be successful in Demon's Souls.

I hate to say it, but you might be better going through Dark Souls first and coming back to Demon's Souls. I think Dark Souls really eases you into the experience and gets you hooked on its particular brand of game cycle. I intend to play through Demon's Souls this summer, so maybe it's something we can all work through in a game club-esque fashion.

If you want to play Rez on the 360 - you have options! Presenting: Qubed.

This collects Every Extend Extra Extreme, Luminues Live, and Rez HD all on one disc. I'm not really sure what it costs these days, but I think I nabbed my copy at Toys R Us for a fiver when it hit the clearance bin.

What Travis said! You've got today and tomorrow to get something together. Considering this is a $15 game with a high praise, I'd say it's worth your time to give it a shot and try to win a code.

I truly hope Mother 3 is a possibility - what a great game. I, of course, have my doubts, but it would be something that would be amazing on the 3DS Virtual Console.