So, Who Won Gamescom?

Steve Anderson : End Game
Steve Anderson
The Video Store Guy
| The video game industry has gone from a mole hill to a mountain in no time flat, Chris DiMarco is your Sherpa as you endeavor to scale Mount “Everquest”

So, Who Won Gamescom?

It's the question that launched a thousand discussions, and given how E3 went, and how the console wars in general have been faring so far, it was a question that largely had to be asked. Who “won” Gamescom? Who came out of the German event with the best public perception? Who's most likely to see positive benefit from this event? The answer, sadly, is a familiar one, but not one that will go unwelcome.

Both sides brought out some big guns. Microsoft seemed heavier on the action titles, as well as on the familiar franchise names like “Tomb Raider” and “Halo.” There were also plenty of indie titles, and a good mix all the way around. That's a great move in its favor. But what Sony had was something a little different. Sony seemed to have a terrific mix of just about everything; while there didn't seem to be much in the way of major releases—the next “Metal Gear Solid” was quite the step, and “Silent Hills” as well, as was a new look at Project Morpheus—there was such a blend of software, hardware, triple-A and indie titles that there was quite literally something for everyone. Granted, it was more like a little something for everyone, but that's still hard to turn down.

So essentially, the story so far is that Microsoft had a great, game-heavy presentation, and Sony had a great presentation that was a little bit of just about everything a gamer could want. So who really WON Gamescom this year? Like I said, the answer is a familiar one, but not unwelcome: the gamers won Gamescom this year.

It's downright gratifying, watching these two battle it out the way they are. They're bringing out the big guns, they're turning to the indies—Sony's pulling out virtual reality for crying out loud—and the results are staggering. These two are actually competing for the first time in a long time, and that's an end product that's quite worth watching. Sure, there's different appeal here for everyone, but the key thing is that just about anyone who's being honest about the whole thing is going to find something to like in both presentations. I like Sony's introduction of DayZ and the arrival of Project Morpheus. I like Microsoft's big array of games. I liked both presentations, albeit for different reasons, and when I can like both sides of the aisle, well, there's nothing left to say but the gamers won.

And you know what? I expect both sides to continue winning for some time to come. I expect more big names to come out, I expect more indies to roll out, I expect more surprises to hit. I expect a lot from this generation of gaming because it looks like I can actually get it this time around. It might be a very big deal to come here, and I'm going to be eagerly watching to see just how far it goes. The gamers won Gamescom this year, much as they'd won E3. This is great news all around.



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