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GameSlice Daily Editorial

May 2, 2000

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Duke and TF2 Miss E3
E3 is just over a week away, but news has already trickled down that two big 3D shooters, Duke Nukem Forever and Team Fortress 2 will not be on display at the show. While some will no doubt equate this news to near-blasphemy on the part of developers like 3D Realms and Valve, I predicted this very trend two years ago in an editorial on E3 (read it here). In that editorial, which received a lot of positive feedback from developers, I questioned the real use of an E3 demo, especially when developing such a demo can stall a project 6-8 weeks. Right now as I write there are no doubt dozens of development teams burning the midnight oil trying to hack together an impressive looking E3 demo. Fortunately big developers like 3D Realms and Valve don't have to cave in to publisher pressure to put together such a demo.
That being said, I'm not sure I agree with the idea of making a game completely absent from the show. While 3D Realms makes a good argument that it wants Duke Forever to be a "complete surprise," I think there's a middle ground. It would be easy to generate a buzz about the game if the company were to display new concept art or character models at the show. At the same time, showing still images or artwork does little to unveil the actual game, keeping the secrecy aspect in tact. Better yet, wouldn't it be an amazing statement if 3D Realms just released one new screenshot of Duke Nukem Forever that showed a never-before-seen area? 3D Realms could get it printed on a huge banner and just hang it in the Infogrames booth. I bet that one screenshot would be printed in every magazine known to man and generate much the same effect created by a powerful demo.

In essence, the key to beating the E3 demo is to achieve the same effect of positive press and buzz without having to slave away for months trying to complete a demo that most press will only give a casual glance. (Believe me, some developers pull their hair out because after working on a great AI system for months, all the press wants to see are neat little explosions and graphical effects). While we know Duke Forever and TF2 won't be at the show, it will be interesting to see if any other big-name games don't make it to E3 this year.

Next, find out about the lackluster E3 keynote address>>>