Inside of the gigantic exhibition centre (home to many Australian expos including the Motor Show) it was easy enough to find the games section by simply following the stream of people wearing Halo 2 necklaces. These were being given away at the Microsoft stall. The area was divided up into several different companies, with the likes of Sony, Microsoft and EA all making an appearance.
The most obvious attraction that stood out upon arrival at the 'gaming area' was a gigantic screen. Through the duration of the expo these screens displayed trailers of upcoming games such asMetal Gear Solid and Halo 2. Upon arriving the first thing I heard over the loud speakers was that within five minutes a Halo 2 preview was going to be shown. Suddenly the crowd’s direction seemed to drift towards the huge games screen. After we sat down, one of Microsoft's representatives started a speech on explaining how Halo 2 was easily the most anticipated game of the modern era. After the quick talk they loaded up the Xbox, and to my amusement I noticed many people almost jumping with glee. They showcased one level and demonstrated some of some cool features new to Halo 2 (e.g. 'jacking' vehicles and obtaining locks when using the rocket launcher).
After the quick tease of Halo they moved onto Fable, the new RPG for the Xbox which takes you on the journey of a young boy who makes the choice to become either good or evil. Everyone was clearly amused when they showed us how you can kick chickens in the game. After this I moved on to see what was else was around.
Sony were there, showing off Metal Gear Solid inside two stalls where you could play the game and watch several trailers. However the game which pulled the biggest crowds to Sony’s stall was the new Eye Toy addition, Sega Superstars which contains Sonic and a few other classic titles. I was lucky enough to win a copy of the game which was pretty awesome.
Next stop was the main screen where they were showing off a few new games for the Playstation. The first game demonstrated was from Lucasarts and Lego Studios, named Lego Starwars. I wasn’t expecting much, but it ended up being the most amusing attraction of the day! The Playstation they were using for the demonstration seemed to be suffering a mild bout of stage fright and it broke down a grand total of 4 times! Initially it wouldn’t load past the launcher. After this embarrassing display the game crashed twice more. Then about 10 minutes later they tried a new Playstation on which it finally worked. While all this was going on I managed to score another freebee when a lady from Eidos gave my friends and I a show bag containing a shirt, notepad and pen.
We now moved over to EA who had a closed off area where they were giving everyone a chance to play Burnout 3 and Need For Speed Underground 2. Sadly the only freebies EA were giving away were stickers. They also had a LAN set up where they were urging people to play Medal Of Honour Pacific Assault. Prizes were being handed out every hour to people who registered to be part of this.
Finally Microsoft were present with a Halo 2 Ute (which I noticed was full of goodies, so watch out Sydney). On the Ute were some plasma screens where they were allowing people play such games as Midtown Madness and Grabbed By the Ghoulies. A thinly veiled attempt by Microsoft to sell some of their more crappy releases? Despite the many freebees I would have liked to see more of titles such as Sudeki or Conker’s Bad Fur Day.
In summary, there’s not very much in the way of gaming expos in Australia and when it comes down to it, I feel like the My Home Entertainment Expo gave me a chance to experience what it might be like if E3 was held in Australia. For 15 bucks it was well worth it.
PALGN would like to thank Karl for providing us with his impressions of the event. If you would like to cover any other event similar to this, contact one of the PALGN administrators.
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