One time when we were revisiting the OnLive interface it was noted by an attendee that there was a ‘friends’ options. A member of OnLiveFans.com immediately had their interest piqued at the thought of OnLive having a real community aspect to it. Just as flawlessly as using any of OnLive’s other fantastic features we were whisked away to view Steve’s list of friends. From here we were able to see recent brag clips that his friends had made, and what game they were currently playing. After a few clicks we were spectating one of Steve’s OnLive friends who was involved in a stunning gun battle right off the shore of some beach. I couldn’t help but noticed how the water splashed up as the bullets hit the water, as well as how gorgeous the water was as small waves of water slid up the sandy shores. I was quickly brought back from my daydreaming when I noticed that Steve’s unfortunate friend had been killed by “Yomamma”. There was a burst of laughter in the room directly following the demise of this poor OnLive gamer. I could see many gamers in the future enjoying these same moments, either cheering their friends on or taking joy in the comedic value they might bring to the gaming world.

Now navigating the extremely smooth interface with a controller, we moved around to see what else OnLive had to offer. Of course we just had to check out what all of the buzz was about surrounding the ‘Arena’. Two taps of a button later we were all watching as another OnLive player stealthily hid using invisibility while awaiting their unsuspecting victim. There was no delay or loading time to bring up this live streaming video where we watched through another player’s eyes, giving a few of us (including the VP of Games and Mdeia John Spinale) the chance to accusingly cough “Camper,” under our breath. There was much discussion about how far this arena feature could go, and how perhaps in the future you one might hear thousands of gamers cheering through their Bluetooth headsets while watching a virtual game of football. There was a certain energy in the room, and I believe it was the hope that we were all witnessing something that could have a significant positive change for the future of gaming.

I’ll write more on this very soon. In my next blog(s) I’ll discuss what else happened during this demonstration and delve further into what it was like spending time with the OnLive employees, as well as future plans for OnLiveFans.com. Thank you for reading, and if you haven’t already please register for OnLiveFans.com!

For more Information and Discussion about Onlive, please check out our Onlive Forum

You hear me right. Apparently OnLive has their reasons. A simple reason that makes no sense to me. This is taken from their official blog which can be seen here at http://blog.onlive.com

“…the main reason why OnLive won’t have a booth at E3 this year. More than anything, E3 is a retail-oriented conference, both for retail platforms and retail publishers, and OnLive is neither.”

They seem to be a bit mixed up here. E3 is a show that promotes future products that are coming out within the year or close to. It is pretty simple. OnLive is honestly a service that needs all the promotion you can get. Not to say that in a bad way, but they are a new innovative service that a great deal of people are skeptical about. Honestly, I feel as if they have committed suicide for a 2009 release.

The past has shown with games and other gaming products that you need to be at E3, you need to promote, or you might miss your chance for a decent jumping off point when you release. Besides, if you are offering a gaming service that requires you to buy controllers, set top boxes, and so on to people you call consumers, then you are entering the world of retail.

Also, concerning their quote, they went to GDC. It is almost the same kind of show. You go there, you try to get your product either on store shelves or some other way in the hands of consumers. 80% of GDC attending companies attend E3 as well. Those are the ones that succeed. Those are the ones that get people talking about your product. Also, with so little REAL news out about OnLive, wouldn’t they think E3 is a good place to say, “Hey, this is where we are now.”

It’s also a good way to tone down some of the nay sayers out there. If you can win them over then it will be better press for your product. If you don’t, they will run around spouting their cynicism to more and more people. Which might end up hurting OnLive in the long run.

I’m not saying all this in a negative way. In the end I just want to know what they are thinking or planning? This move is a big blow to their progress. So, here’s to OnLive… I really hope you know what you are doing.

Also see the following discussion topics on our forum:
- Onlive won’t be at E3