Flow of the Presentation and On-stage Style
Over the past two years, with PSX and E3 2016, Sony has shown that they know how to put on a great show. At E3 2016, we were treated to a conference that was entirely scored by a live orchestra, adding an extra dimension to the stunning game reveals we were being treated to. This year, the show began with more live music and a light/water show that weaved patterns on the stage, building the atmosphere for the Uncharted: The Lost Legacy clip that began the show. During the Days Gone demo, zombie corpses dangled above the stage as the game’s protagonist pushed through some in the gameplay clip. These small design choices made the conference feel more like a real show in the dramatic sense, than a series of short videos. A significant amount of thought had clearly gone into every moment of the show. Microsoft did also show some on-stage flair, with moments such as the reveal of the new Porsche that will debut in Forza Motorsport 7, but the way they were presented as their own sections of the show took away from the flow of the game announcements.
However, Sony’s additions never took away from the flow. Trailers and gameplay clips came one after another with very few breaks. Only twice did Shawn Layden interrupt proceedings to introduce a game and it never felt forced or unwelcome. Fans want to see the games in action and, thankfully, Sony seem to understand that.
