He graciously thanks the people who helped put on the demo as folks file out.
9:01He gives some closing statements about microtransactions, but noone is listening.
9:00Crowd grumbles, largely ignoring Zellnick.
9:00DEMO ENDS.
9:00Clouds keep lighting up as Niko calls up his buddy to "get some firepower."
8:59Clouds above Liberty City light up, with plans flying through them.
8:59Niko pulls up to the docks under the "Broker Bridge" as the sun rises. The light plays on the water, and then starts illuminating the city behind him.
8:58Frame rate is a bit jumpy, but level of detail in landscape is greater than Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.
8:58Lighting looks fantastic, textures looking solid and rugged.
8:57Niko tolls around in a luxury sedan to some big band music from the 1940s.
8:57Game is not a sequel to San Andreas. "The leap from Grand Theft Auto III is as fundamental as the jump from 2D to 3D."
8:56He struts around for a bit, then steals a car.
8:56Trademark map icon in the corner.
8:56Niko Bellic is in a replica of Times Square.
8:55DEMO BEGINS
8:55"Here we are, making the game we´ve always dreamed of making."
8:55Game menu has different font, very clean arial.
8:55"The demo we´re giving today is purposefully short." You´re killing us, man!
8:54"Unfinished code, work in progress, placeholder music, blah blah blah blah."
8:53Developers finally take the stage to show off the demo.
8:53"I´m the one who survived!"
8:53(Note to self: Go pick up The Boggs album.)
8:52Yes, "We´re all looking for that special someone."
8:52Game protagonist Niko Bellic reminds people "things will be different."
8:51Zellnick builds up the hype by playing the first two trailers for the game. The audience visibly shifts.
8:50BAM! Demo over, cue first public demo of GRAND THEFT AUTO IV!
8:50He´s then attacked by a torch-wielding mob which is given the business end of a Tommy Gun.
8:50Onto gameplay. Player goes into ballroom and takes out opponents in a puddle by throwing an electrical bomb into the water.
8:49"I´m sure there are many analysts in the room today who are well-versed in advanced killing techniques," he jokes.
8:48"Almost anything can be used as a weapon," says the presenter.
8:48"And now, for the cool s***," says the heavily accented presenter.
8:47Once a "utopia" the city was torn apart by a genetic civil war.
8:47Voiceover from mad industrialist Andrew Ryan introduces the undersea city of Rapture.
8:46Player gets into a submersible and is treated to an industrial film which combines the humor of the Fallout games with the creepiness of the Dharma Iniative from Lost.
8:45Player walks into a lighthouse with a dazzling art deco marble interior.
8:44Lost-like introductory sequence shows protagonist emerging from fiery wreckage of a plane crash.
8:43Underwater sequence frays the nerves of audience members with a fear of drowning.
8:43Black screen with the sound of power tools slaughtering people.
8:43A demo for the game begins, showing the game is set in 1960 in the mid-Atlantic.
8:41Wasps stream out of his arm and attack the Big Daddy, who reacts by impaling the protagonist with a drill.
8:40And old trailer runs of a Big Daddy beating a protagonist, who then injects himself with a serum.
8:38Roll trailer showcasing the undersea game.
8:37Zellnick takes the stage again, and introduces the "genetically enhanced first-person shooter" BioShock.
8:37Game will have in-game statistics from "real-world" football games. Thomas leaves the podium, having never once mentioned the acronym "NFL."
8:36Thomas stresses the creative nature of the game, how it will allow people to create their own teams which will make each game unique. He says the fact each player can create their own team will make matches much more interesting, since noone will know which players are on which team.
8:34Game will allow for parabolic mic conversations of players "talking smack" to one another before a play.
8:33"It recreates the fun that games used to have before ´they´ stopped allowing us to do that."
8:33"This is about real football," says Thomas. "This isn´t watered-down, league-approved football."
8:32Each team´s victory will be accompanied by celebrations in dynamic stadiums.
8:32Cure a demo of the game, which pits the "Philadelphia Americans" against the "Brooklyn Cobras."
8:31Animations in the background show the team customization features of All-Pro Football 2K8, including uniform and logo editors.
8:30The game will feature 240 "of the best players of all time," including Joe Montana and Johnny Unitas.
8:29Apparently suffering from some throat problems, 2K Sports´ Jeff Thomas takes the stage to show of the game´s team-building tools.
8:28"I want to see fewer penalties, harder hits, and new clips," he proclaims. "The game is back!" Numerous shots of All-Pro Football 2K8 run in the background.
8:26Next up is a montage of 2K Sports, set to a capella rhyme session from Jurassic 5´s Chali 2na.
8:25Meier stresses that there are non-military paths to victory, and shows a spaceship launching to Alpha Centauri. The Roman units do a "victory dance," which features animations of tanks jumping on their hydraulic suspensions, hooptie-style.
8:23Meier fast-forwards to modern times, showing the Romans launching a Nuclear ICBM into Egyptian territory. The results are satisfyingly thermonuclear.
8:22The Romans then encounter the French, represented by their leader Napoleon. The Gladiator-esque Roman military advisor urges an attack.
8:21Meier directs the battle, which has the Egyptians lose as their empress Cleopatra freaks out in a corner window.
8:20Meier has the Roman units explore, and encounter an Egyptian unit. Of course, they fight.
8:19Game will also support a "game of the week" feature, which will allow for rankings and leaderboards.
8:19Game will feature the Civilepedia, the online database associated with the technology tree.
8:18Meier shows off the animations of advisers, then shows how the Roman units can receive up to nine upgrades after winning.
8:16Stressing the game´s more "vibrant" visual style, Meier shows a roman army dealing with an uppity barbarian encampment.
8:16"Console players don´t want to read manuals, they just want to jump into the game," says Meier.
8:15Footage of the game is shown on screen--it looks like a more simplified version of the game.
8:15Sid unmodestly calls his franchise as a "worldwide phenomenon."
8:14Sid takes the stage...only to have the trailer run again. The AV crew scrambles to cue up a different spot for the game.
8:13As has been previously seen, Civilization Revolution will let you win by military might or scientific advancement.
8:12Cure the previously seen Civilization Revolutions trailer, narrated by none other than Henry Rollins, who is not in attendance.
8:11Zellnick introduces Firaxis co-founder Sid Meier, purveyor of "addictive strategy" to show off Civilization Revolution.
8:10Says the new management team is committed to keeping to financially sound management.
8:09He says the "next-generation of games...lets us be at the cusp and inflection point of entertainment."
8:08New Take-Two chairman Strauss Zellnick kicks off the event by expressing his commitment to making "AAA" titles.
8:07conference begins with a video montage.
