Breaking down E3, from a female nerd

At the Electronic Entertainment Expo, gamers and industry types are treated to a feast of what will be the games and technologies that will consume their lives for the next calendar year. As with any event in which multiple companies bring their products to the table, there are certain offerings that set themselves apart from the rest.

E3 is a unique event, in that it isn’t open to the vast majority of gamers that play the titles shown. Being able to get a first hand glimpse, and a true breakdown of everything that was showcased, is more than an exciting option.

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The gaming industry has long been stereotyped as being driven by males who spend countless amounts of hours logged behind their favorite gaming console. Bucking that trend, are the female gamers that also push forward the industry and drive genres to success as well.

Recently, I had the privilege to catch up with a self-proclaimed nerd, Britt Brombacher, of BlondeNerd.com. Britt is one of those leading the way, pushing the envelope, not only for female gamers, but for gamers as a whole. Being a participant at E3 this year, she shares here thoughts surrounding the event with us in this exclusive interview!

FanSided Tech: With this being the first year of the software on the next generation consoles taking center stage, what were your expectations and how were they met?

Britt Brombacher: I was expecting guns ‘a blazing and, like, Oprah to jump on every stage and be like, “HERE’S A NEW IP!” “HERE’S ANOTHER NEW IP!” “AND ANOTHER NEW IP!” Buuuut I quickly learned I had to tailor my excitement. I can’t say many of the new IPs that were announced got me goin’, but Scalebound and BloodBorne definitely have my interest piqued.

“I was expecting guns ‘a blazing and, like, Oprah to jump on every stage and be like, ‘HERE’S A NEW IP!’ ‘HERE’S ANOTHER NEW IP!’ ‘AND ANOTHER NEW IP!’ Buuuut I quickly learned I had to tailor my excitement.”-Britt Brombacher

More than just new IPs, though, I was hoping for some sequel-esque announcements. Rise of the Tomb Raider, the new Zelda game, and The Master Chief Collection made me pretty happy.

FST: Having gone to E3 last year, how did this year’s conference compare to last year’s?

BB: This is a bit personal, but this year I did E3 SO much different from last year. Last year I only made a handful of appointments and spent the rest of my time trying my luck at certain booths; this year I booked the crap out of appointments and had a packed schedule. Soooo, I saw a lot more than I did last year, which of course made it WAY better.

With that said, this year’s conference was just more exciting. Seeing footage for games that were built ground-up for Xbox One and PS4 was really cool. Going hands-on with games I’ve been anticipating for a while is always cool.

FST: What game did you experience the biggest change of opinion about in comparing it before and after E3?

BB: I’ll go into this a bit more below, but Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor rocked my socks off. I feel like that game’s awesomeness came out of nowhere and completely blindsided me.

FST: Which company were you most impressed with and why?

BB: Monolith really impressed me with Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor. That game wasn’t even on my radar (I blame Dragon Age: Inquisition’s same day launch), but I ended up seeing that demo twice. Of course I hadn’t scheduled appointments to see Shadow of Mordor, so I had to stand in line both times; and I hate lines, SO THAT’S SAYING SOMETHING.

That game just looks rad. I’m not a Lord of the Rings fangirl (or even much of a fan), but, wow. I was extremely impressed by their Nemesis System and how, for example, your playthrough will truly never be the same as your friend’s, their friend’s, or, if you give the game a second playthrough it will be different from your first. It looks gorgeous, Troy Baker is in it, it’s medieval – all things right up my alley.

FST: As a female in the gaming community, do you feel like E3 as an event caters towards the stereotypical gaming male?

BB: Ehhh. I mean, of course you see booth babes handing out flyers and parading around their respective booths, but to be honest it doesn’t bother me. I will say the amount of booth babes has dwindled, and the amount of clothing has gone up, so that’s a sign things might be startin’ to swing around.

Other than that, I can’t think of anything else that would blatantly lead someone to think E3 is catering to men. I was approached by staff just as often as men were, people were friendly, I wasn’t assumed to be “working” the floor (only once by a male booth babe, actually! HA!) and wasn’t faced with any discrimination.

FST: With so many of the big games that were presented at E3 being 2015 titles, did you feel like the conference was somewhat of a let down?

BB: I wasn’t let down at all. I think people forget 2015 is only six, I repeat, SIX months away. And I don’t know about you guys, but I still have a ton of last-gen games I need to catch up on. So instead of being let down, I’m excited for 2015. So. Freaking. Excited. I’m not gonna know what to do with myself when these things are coming out the gate. And plus, Dragon Age: Inquisition and Shadow of Mordor come out this October, so…it’s probably for the best.

Granted, hearing something on Final Fantasy XV and The Last Guardian would have been swell but, c’mon. WHAT DID WE EXPECT.

“So instead of being let down, I’m excited for 2015. So. Freaking. Excited.”-Britt Brombacher

FST: Do you think either Microsoft or Nintendo did enough at E3 to warrant the conference moving more of their systems?

BB: If I hadn’t bought an Xbox One day one, and I was banking on Microsoft to sway me during their E3 conference, I don’t think I would have been sold. Now this is just a personal point of view, of course, but the only exclusives I’m looking forward to this holiday is Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Sunset Overdrive. Project Spark, Forza, Fable Legends, Dance Central…those just aren’t my thing. (I LOVE Fable but I’m not a fan of the 4 v. 1 concept.) But, Microsoft did have a solid conference, and I think they announced a bit of everything to sell some extra units. Of course, announcing Phantom Dust and another Crackdown will surely help!

I think Nintendo did a great job. Teasing the new Zelda, showing off Yoshi’s Woolly World, Xenoblade Chronicles and announcing Splatoon surely got some excited. I also feel like the more they show of Hyrule Warriors (playable Zelda, Impa and Midna? Yes plz) more and more people are declaring they’ll buy a Wii U. And we can’t forget about Smash Bros. In short, systems will be sold, but how many remains to be seen.

FST: Looking at the event as a whole, what was your biggest takeaway?

BB: JUST ONE?! Ha! Fine, I’ll pick oooonly one…

“I feel like the industry finally gets that motion controls and body scanners aren’t what the majority gamers want incorporated into their gaming experiences.”-Britt Brombacher

I feel like the industry finally gets that motion controls and body scanners aren’t what the majority gamers want incorporated into their gaming experiences. I didn’t see ONE kiosk where people were flailing around a Move wand or a Wiimote. (Sure, Kinect had a few exercise demos, but that’s to be expected.) I’m not saying they weren’t somewhere on the show floor, but point is, last year, and years prior, everywhere you looked, people were waving their limbs around. So, it’s really nice to see that. Er, NOT to see that.

E3 is undoubtedly an experience that is best taken in first hand, but if that’s not possible for one reason or another, the next best thing is to find out about it from someone who has. BlondeNerd’s, Britt Brombacher has made a career out of being to the point, with some sass, and bringing gaming news to her fans in an exciting way.

As you can see throughout her time at E3, not only did she have a lot of fun, but the gaming community has a lot to be excited about in the coming calendar year.

Whether Nintendo, Sony, or Microsoft fans, this years Electronic Entertainment Expo made sure to bring something for everyone. As the games that were showcased start to roll out, gamers must prepare to open their wallets and enjoy the excitement that each title is sure to bring.

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