E3 2006 Wrap up

I know I didn't actually go to E3, but I've been following the podcasts and web sites and here are a few of my end of E3 observations (from the sidelines, anyway):

• Sony was probably the biggest loser of the show. The PS3 is too expensive to create enough of a market base to support big game development. The controller is a dissapointment due to the lack of rumble and the tacked on motion control. Most of their games aren't going to make launch and Blue-Ray isn't enough of a reason for people to get this system. And why the hell did they have two different versions if everyone thought that Microsoft shouldn't have done it? True they had some pretty good looking exclusive games, but none of them were worth $700+ to play.
  
• Nintendo is still waiting for the ship to stop rocking. While the controller wasn't a disaster, it wasn't universally accepted as a good thing. Add to that the so-so graphics and unless it makes it on price point alone, Ninny might still just as well stay in the handheld market. I have a feeling that once the Wiivolution gets into peoples homes, lots of problems are going to crop up with that sensor strip and the controller.
  
• Microsoft is, I'm surprized to say, the show's big winner IMHO. They gained the advantage of having their system price look cheaper (compared to the PS3) and they have more high quality games in the pipeline since the hardware has been out there for awhile already. Before E3 I had no intention of getting a 360. Now, I have to say that I will get one either this Xmas or beginning of next year depending on price cuts and system changes (the cooler CPU). Certainly the 360 controller has always been a desireable feature and the Xbox Live is getting better (ie, offline downloads of demos). With the inevitable death of in-magazine CD/DVD's, this will be the way to get them.
• Prediction: E3 '07 will be a veritable ORGY of games! Noone will be talking hardware as it will already be released and it will be way too soon to be looking at a new platform. That just leaves lots and lots of next gen games to make our eyeballs bleed with pleasure! (Oh, and I also expect that MGS4 will still not be released.)