An inside look at Sony's E3 party: Game gossip, rock stars, and an actual striptease
Dean doesn't miss a thing. And this sounds like it was one crazy party ....
Sony's parties at E3 are legendary. They are spectacles, and this year's followed that tradition.
After a day walking the floor and interviewing executives, I was popping my Motrin. But I wasn't about to miss Sony's shindig, even though I'd lost my wristband to get inside. Sony's Janette Barrios kindly fetched me a replacement, and I was back in business. The party was on the Elysian Park hilltop next to Dodger stadium.
As my bus approached the hill, I saw a dozen searchlights shooting into the night along with the green beams of a laser. Stretch limos lined the walkway leading to the party.
After we got off the bus, we had to ride a tram up to the top of the hill. The guards diligently checked our invitations and asked us to hold up the orange wrist bands. From the top, I could see the entire skyline of downtown L.A. I bumped into one of the architects of the PlayStation. He stated the obvious point of the week: Sony seemed to have the best technology, while Microsoft had the cheapest.
Judging from past experience, this place was so big, there was no guarantee I'd see anyone I knew. Among the thousands of guests were lots of people who didn't look like game developers at all. They seemed to be more like actors, actresses, models and other Hollywood power brokers with cell phones glued to their heads.
There were a dozen white canvas circus tents that ringed the hill, each with its own concert stage, food line and bar. The band Jimmy Eat World was belting out some deafening noise as I headed to the bar. I found David Thomas, a game reviewer for the Denver Post and head of the International Game Journalists Association, on the way to the piles of food.
We complained about how it was like Dodger stadium food vending, but we dug in.
A Washington Post Style section reporter, Jose Vargas, interviewed Thomas about his veterans view of E3 parties. In fact, he came to write about the parties, not the games. You could tell a classy E3 party, Thomas said, by the quality of the vodka they had.
Vargas was diligently taking notes as Thomas said he didn't want to be quoted. "Come on, you're a journalist," Vargas said. "You can't take it off the record."
Vargas saw a fellow wearing a Prada shirt so he rushed over to interview him. Then he came back and apologized.
I told him my theory about E3 parties. "They're political statements," I said. "Sony has to show the world that it has the clout to throw the best parties. It can entertain better than anyone, and it has to show developers that it loves them more than Microsoft or Nintendo."
Vargas said he heard the party set Sony back seven figures, but Thomas said, "No way." Vargas rushed off to talk to someone else. That's the way it is at these parties. You talk until the next person grabs your attention, your cell phone rings, or someone steals away your friend. I wandered around and kept running into friends who said that the party was way too big and they couldn't find anyone they knew.
I bumped into David Kirk, chief scientist at Nvidia. Like many in Sony's camp, he was quite happy about how the week was turning out in favor of the PlayStation 3 over the Microsoft Xbox 360. There were more people expressing sympathy for Microsoft's plight. It really thought it was going to win round two of the competion with Sony, but now it was clear that, at best, it was only going to reduce Sony's market share lead.
Then Kaz Hirai, president and chief operating officer of Sony's U.S. games unit, stepped out on stage and welcomed the crowd. "Are you ready to rock?" he screamed. "Are you guys ready for the PlayStation 3?" Then, he yelled, "What time is it? It's party time!" and he introduced a band. I didn't recognize the name and I couldn't hear what they were singing. Even with hundreds of people listening, the bulk of the party ignored them.
As I walked around the hill, the entertainment shifted from stage to stage. At one stage, a dozen women danced on stage. With their bikini tops and skimpy pants, they looked an awful lot like strippers.
That is, that's what I thought until I went to the next stage, where there was a boxing ring, and another woman in a kimono performed a real striptease, tassles and all. That's when I realized why Sony didn't allow any cameras into the party. I guess Sony really knows how to entertain.
Back on the main stage, Liz Phair was belting out "Feel like Makin' Love."
A journalist friend told me that Electronic Arts somehow arranged to put a fake horse's head in the hotel bed of a mutual friend. It told him to go check out EA's "The Godfather" game.
I saw Mark Cerny of Cerny Games and IBM chip architect Jim Kahle talking. I walked up to them, shook hands, and then Cerny said he wanted to ask Kahle something, but not in my presence. I guess the notebook in my hand was like the Scarlett Letter. I suspected there were plenty of conspiratorial conversations going on, where developers were cutting deals with publishers, and publishers asking favors of console makers. That's why I was there, even though my bones ached. I had to catch a glimpse of E3 behind the scenes.
Now, I wasn't there just to collect party gossip. I asked everyone I chatted with about the week's events. Ray Muzyka, co-CEO of Canada's famed BioWare game development firm, said that he felt Sony beat Microsoft on the technology front, while Microsoft did better at marketing to non-gamers with its console announcement. But he said he expected that both consoles would be worth developing games for.
I spotted Ken Kutaragi, father of the PlayStation business, walking around in a blue jacket, white pants and sneakers. He stopped and chatted with a couple of Wall Street Journal reporters, who always traveled in packs. But I was busy chatting with Todd Hollenshead CEO of id Software, who agreed that Sony outwitted Microsoft. But he still said his company was busy making "Quake 4" for the Xbox 360. A friend interrupted us to point out that Ton Loc had now taken center stage.
I called a friend on the phone and managed to locate him only by telling him to find the front entrance of the party. He showed up and promptly said he had to go back to a conversation. I went back to the food line, but the pickings were slim. Hot dogs and hamburgers. I went down the hill and boarded the bus again.
Behind me, a couple was talking. "I'm going to tell everyone I saw Gwen Stefani anyway," the guy said. The woman responded, "This was the biggest letdown ever."
I didn't mind the party. My legs were tired. But at least I figured out who was going to win the console wars.
-- Dean
Sony's parties at E3 are legendary. They are spectacles, and this year's followed that tradition.
After a day walking the floor and interviewing executives, I was popping my Motrin. But I wasn't about to miss Sony's shindig, even though I'd lost my wristband to get inside. Sony's Janette Barrios kindly fetched me a replacement, and I was back in business. The party was on the Elysian Park hilltop next to Dodger stadium.
As my bus approached the hill, I saw a dozen searchlights shooting into the night along with the green beams of a laser. Stretch limos lined the walkway leading to the party.
After we got off the bus, we had to ride a tram up to the top of the hill. The guards diligently checked our invitations and asked us to hold up the orange wrist bands. From the top, I could see the entire skyline of downtown L.A. I bumped into one of the architects of the PlayStation. He stated the obvious point of the week: Sony seemed to have the best technology, while Microsoft had the cheapest.
Judging from past experience, this place was so big, there was no guarantee I'd see anyone I knew. Among the thousands of guests were lots of people who didn't look like game developers at all. They seemed to be more like actors, actresses, models and other Hollywood power brokers with cell phones glued to their heads.
There were a dozen white canvas circus tents that ringed the hill, each with its own concert stage, food line and bar. The band Jimmy Eat World was belting out some deafening noise as I headed to the bar. I found David Thomas, a game reviewer for the Denver Post and head of the International Game Journalists Association, on the way to the piles of food.
We complained about how it was like Dodger stadium food vending, but we dug in.
A Washington Post Style section reporter, Jose Vargas, interviewed Thomas about his veterans view of E3 parties. In fact, he came to write about the parties, not the games. You could tell a classy E3 party, Thomas said, by the quality of the vodka they had.
Vargas was diligently taking notes as Thomas said he didn't want to be quoted. "Come on, you're a journalist," Vargas said. "You can't take it off the record."
Vargas saw a fellow wearing a Prada shirt so he rushed over to interview him. Then he came back and apologized.
I told him my theory about E3 parties. "They're political statements," I said. "Sony has to show the world that it has the clout to throw the best parties. It can entertain better than anyone, and it has to show developers that it loves them more than Microsoft or Nintendo."
Vargas said he heard the party set Sony back seven figures, but Thomas said, "No way." Vargas rushed off to talk to someone else. That's the way it is at these parties. You talk until the next person grabs your attention, your cell phone rings, or someone steals away your friend. I wandered around and kept running into friends who said that the party was way too big and they couldn't find anyone they knew.
I bumped into David Kirk, chief scientist at Nvidia. Like many in Sony's camp, he was quite happy about how the week was turning out in favor of the PlayStation 3 over the Microsoft Xbox 360. There were more people expressing sympathy for Microsoft's plight. It really thought it was going to win round two of the competion with Sony, but now it was clear that, at best, it was only going to reduce Sony's market share lead.
Then Kaz Hirai, president and chief operating officer of Sony's U.S. games unit, stepped out on stage and welcomed the crowd. "Are you ready to rock?" he screamed. "Are you guys ready for the PlayStation 3?" Then, he yelled, "What time is it? It's party time!" and he introduced a band. I didn't recognize the name and I couldn't hear what they were singing. Even with hundreds of people listening, the bulk of the party ignored them.
As I walked around the hill, the entertainment shifted from stage to stage. At one stage, a dozen women danced on stage. With their bikini tops and skimpy pants, they looked an awful lot like strippers.
That is, that's what I thought until I went to the next stage, where there was a boxing ring, and another woman in a kimono performed a real striptease, tassles and all. That's when I realized why Sony didn't allow any cameras into the party. I guess Sony really knows how to entertain.
Back on the main stage, Liz Phair was belting out "Feel like Makin' Love."
A journalist friend told me that Electronic Arts somehow arranged to put a fake horse's head in the hotel bed of a mutual friend. It told him to go check out EA's "The Godfather" game.
I saw Mark Cerny of Cerny Games and IBM chip architect Jim Kahle talking. I walked up to them, shook hands, and then Cerny said he wanted to ask Kahle something, but not in my presence. I guess the notebook in my hand was like the Scarlett Letter. I suspected there were plenty of conspiratorial conversations going on, where developers were cutting deals with publishers, and publishers asking favors of console makers. That's why I was there, even though my bones ached. I had to catch a glimpse of E3 behind the scenes.
Now, I wasn't there just to collect party gossip. I asked everyone I chatted with about the week's events. Ray Muzyka, co-CEO of Canada's famed BioWare game development firm, said that he felt Sony beat Microsoft on the technology front, while Microsoft did better at marketing to non-gamers with its console announcement. But he said he expected that both consoles would be worth developing games for.
I spotted Ken Kutaragi, father of the PlayStation business, walking around in a blue jacket, white pants and sneakers. He stopped and chatted with a couple of Wall Street Journal reporters, who always traveled in packs. But I was busy chatting with Todd Hollenshead CEO of id Software, who agreed that Sony outwitted Microsoft. But he still said his company was busy making "Quake 4" for the Xbox 360. A friend interrupted us to point out that Ton Loc had now taken center stage.
I called a friend on the phone and managed to locate him only by telling him to find the front entrance of the party. He showed up and promptly said he had to go back to a conversation. I went back to the food line, but the pickings were slim. Hot dogs and hamburgers. I went down the hill and boarded the bus again.
Behind me, a couple was talking. "I'm going to tell everyone I saw Gwen Stefani anyway," the guy said. The woman responded, "This was the biggest letdown ever."
I didn't mind the party. My legs were tired. But at least I figured out who was going to win the console wars.
-- Dean
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