E3 2011: EA's Press Conference

EA did a pretty good job, I was relatively impressed, although not entirely surprised. Overstrike was the only thing that surprised and excited me. 
There was one relatively amusing observation I made.
When John Riccitiello came on to the stage he said these words.
"At EA we do it a littler different. We don't build elaborate stages, and invite random celebrities for guest appearances. We keep it simple, a small stage, a big screen, and 9 developers who will come out and show you their games."
Well... while they did have a small stage... it was mildly elaborate, at one point opening up two large "secret doors" unveiling professional football players (one of which a SuperBowl winner) and during FIFA's intro, while they weren't guests, entertainers and music recorders Lil' Wayne, and Drake appeared in the videos. Riccitiello was of course poking fun at Microsoft, whose stage was enormously elaborate, and who had Ice T join Cliffy B on stage during the GoW3 demo. I just found the whole thing amusing and thought to share. Anyway, lets move on.

Mass Effect 3
Nothing super new here, just a glimpse at more game play (which looks beautiful) and some new features. At one point a large target must be destroyed, and so Shepard calls in the Normandy to fly in and launch an airstrike destroying the target. As Shepard and team attempt to make their escape, they are attacked by a live Reaper. Shepard mounts some turret gun on the Normandy and shoots at the Reaper, while a satellite prepares a very Hammer of Dawn reminiscent attack on the Reaper.
Release Date: March 6, 2012

Need For Speed: The Run
Although, by this point, I was tired of hearing about racing games already, this trailer was actually pretty cool. They have added a new feature to NFS, where there are action sequences you must complete on foot from time to time, adding an interesting aspect to the game. The game was very pretty, and the driving seemed fluid, and not overly authentic. I don't suspect I'll buy it, but it is certainly an awesome addition to the franchise.
Release Date: November 15, 2011

Star Wars: The Old Republic
Lame lame lame lame. Montage of reused trailers and cinematic, that didn't hint at the way the game will play at all. No game play demo, or in game trailers. Just more cinematic trailers. Buh..
Release Date: Target for second half of 2011

SSX
Snowboarding. 
Releasing January 2012


FIFA '12
It's like FIFA '11, but more realistic (again) and newer.
Releasing September 30 2011

Madden
It's like Madden '11 but newer.
Releasing August 30 2011

Sims: Social
I...I really don't know...


Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
Hack n' Slash with magic. Pretty, crisp. lots of huge pretty spells, and big mean monsters being killed by The Hero. Probably worth a rental.
Release: Q1 2012

Overstrike
I'm actually really excited for this one. It has a very Borderlands feel to it, being an obviously team oriented game. Four people, all with different abilities and specialties, fighting things primarily with guns. No ganeplay, just an intro trailer filled with character showcasing and lol's. It looks really really good (graphics) but, so do all cinematic trailers. I'm very pumped to see more.
Release: I have no idea.

Battlefield 3
Well... it's an fps. In the campaign demo, it was mostly boring. We were in a tank for a while, blowing shit up, then we were in a plane for a while, blowing more shit up. It wasn't until the multiplayer was shown that I got excited. Soon gamers will have the choice between the new installment of Modern Warfare, or Battlefields newest multiplayer. Honestly I'm torn. Luckily, Battlefield will have an ope public Beta, I assume, downloadable on XBL and PSN in September. That will be a real deciding factor for this game.
Release: October 25 2011