"We are not announcing a sequel to Gears of War at E3 this year. Did you see the update we just did for Gears of War last week? We're still working on the first one," said Epic's Mark Rein:

woohoo another perfect dark series! hope they don't make the same mistake on PDZ..

Xbox 360 owners will be able to download high-definition content direct from the show including the following:

    * Microsoft's E3 2007 press conference - beginning at 8:30 p.m. PDT on Tuesday, July 10 - will be available on Xbox LIVE Marketplace in high definition later in the week
    * Video updates direct from the show
    * A selection of game trailers, themes, gamer pictures and demos will be available from the hottest E3 titles such as these:
    * "Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation" (NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc.)
    * "Assassin's Creed" (Ubisoft)
    * "BioShock" (2K)
    * "Blue Dragon" (Microsoft Game Studios)
    * "Burnout Paradise" (Electronic Arts Inc.)
    * "CALL OF DUTY(R) 4: MODERN WARFARE(tm)" (Activision)
    * "FIFA Soccer 08" (Electronic Arts)
    * "Guitar Hero III" (Activision/RedOctane)
    * "Lost Odyssey(tm)" (Microsoft Game Studios)
    * "Madden NFL 08" (Electronic Arts)
    * "NCAA Football 08" (Electronic Arts)
    * "Need for Speed: ProStreet" (Electronic Arts)
    * "Project Gotham Racing(R) 4" (Microsoft Game Studios)
    * "The Simpsons Game" (Electronic Arts)
    * "Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08" (Electronic Arts)
    * "WWE(R) SmackDown(R) vs. Raw(R) 2008" (THQ)

In addition to all this content, there will be many surprises, so fans should stay tuned to the Xbox LIVE calendar (http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live/marketplace/ticker.htm) for updates about what E3: Bringing It Home content will be available during the show.

We've been working towards a mini-milestone of sorts, called the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). The good news for Halo Wars fans who have been hanging in there waiting for more information and or images from the game is that we will be showing a small demo of the game for select members of the press at E3. The team here at Ensemble Studios has been at work on preparing the demo for the last couple of weeks and it has come together nicely. It just shows a small slice of our game off to give the press an idea of what we're all about.

Thanks to E3, we will likely see some first impression articles about the game appearing on the web or in magazines in the days and weeks to follow. This is also about the time that we'll be going live with a new version of our Halo Wars website, which will largely just be a visual change, but reflect some of the new stuff revealed at E3.

I have a dedicated high speed line, a nice clean audio feed of the board and a complete workspace to watch all of the action. They are just finishing up rehearsals now, but I wanted to make sure to remind you how you can watch (or listen to) the briefing:

    * If you have G4 TV on your Cable or Satellite provider you can watch the entire briefing (and the pre-show) tonight starting at 9p ET/6p PT (check here to see if G4 is available in your area.)
    * Watch the live Webcast on Xbox.com. The webcast links will go live shortly before the briefing starts at 11:30p ET/8:30p PT.
    * If you miss anything, we'll have a highlight video posted tomorrow morning as part of Xbox.com's complete E3 coverage.
    * Later on in the week, you'll be able to download a Hi Def version from the Xbox LIVE Marketplace.
    * Finally, as soon as I can get the complete briefing audio encoded and uploaded to my server, I'll add into my iTunes, MP3 and WMA feeds.

Since I am parked backstage (right behind the huge HD rear projection screen) recording the briefing, I'll be live blogging what is happening directly to my Twitter stream. It's much easier to rapidly update Twitter instead of making new posts on the blog every couple of minutes.

P.S. Look for me on G4 TV tonight around 10:30p ET/7:30p PT. They want me to drop by and chat with them about the 'new' e3.

Some highlights:
* Briefing starts with lots of marketing stuff like marketshare, high attach rate, online purchases, live members (over 7 millions now) etc ... I'll pass.
* Only the xbox360 will have all 3 of biggest titles this holiday season (GTA IV, Madden 08 and Halo 3).
* New controller sold with game called 'Scene it' (based on the boardgame). Buzz-style button on the top, and the face buttons positioned in a line below.
* Sonic the Hedgehog and Golden Axe now available on XBLA.
* Microsoft will distribute Disney movies on marketplace in HD, starting tonight.
* By end of the year, video marketplace available in Canada and Europe too.
* Xbox 360 Elite coming to Europe on August 24th 2007.
* PGR4 demo shown, now also bikes. Coming in September. Also new demo of Lost Odyssey, also coming this year ... actually all games they show tonight will be coming out this year.
* Blue Dragon demo out on Xbox Live tonight.
* Viva pinata and Gears of War (with editor, new levels, etc) coming to Games for Windows.
* Demo and presentation of Call of Duty 4. Real-time playable demo shown, takes place near Chernobyl. Beta demo coming exclusive to Xbox360.
* Next Splintercell (called 'Conviction') coming exclusive to xbox 360.
* New GTA IV trailer shown. First 2 trailers were captured from a 360, not PS3.
* Capcom's Resident Evil 5 coming to Xbox360 too, not this year though.
* New demo of Assassins Creed by Ubisoft. Coming November 2007.
* Video of the 'Halo 3 universe' shown.
* Gray Xbox360 is real! It's actually more 'army green'. Will be a Halo 3 themed Special Edition console coming in September! DVD-bezel and HDD sides will be gold colored instead of silver.

why let down lah?