In 
the first 15 minutes of its annual pre-E3 press conference, Ubisoft had a surprise performance by Flo Rida, dancing girls and in-game footage of a topless woman being fondled.
The message was clear: Ubisoft is not fooling around with its latest crop of titles — clearly targeted at men.
Nintendo 
just couldn’t wait for E3 to share some big news about the Wii U.
Scooping itself two days before its scheduled pre-show press conference, the company released a 30-minute YouTube video Sunday unveiling a revamped Wii U controller and divulging new details about its forthcoming game system.
For 
the past several years, Activision’s Call of Duty franchise has been the videogame industry powerhouse — dominating the sales charts not only during the critical holiday sales period, but also carrying that momentum well into the following year.
In 2012, though, the franchise is showing signs of weakness.
LucasArts 
is turning to the Dark Side for its next Star Wars game.
Not the Dark Side of the Force, mind you. It’s done that several times already. Nope, this time the publisher is hoping to explore a darker, more mature side of the sci-fi universe in a new game called Star Wars 1313.
There 
aren’t a lot of sure bets in the video game industry, but for the past few years the “Call of Duty” franchise was a pretty safe place to put your money.
The past three installments of the game have set consecutive entertainment-industry sales records at their launch. And even after the holiday season ended, they’ve led the sales pack for at least the first few months of the following year — but not this year.
E3 is 
usually the video game industry’s big party of the year — a chance to celebrate its strengths and showcase the titles it expects to drive sales forward for the rest of the year.
But as the game makers gather for this year’s event, a cloud hangs over the soiree. Retail sales are down 27 percent compared to this time in 2011. Mobile devices are stealing the spotlight from traditional consoles. And naysayers are openly questioning the long-term viability of the console industry.
The 
industry has changed immensely since E3 debuted in the 90s, but critics who say that E3 has lost all relevance are missing the point, says Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris.
There are a lot of people — and media outlets — complaining about E3 these days.
That’s typical around this time each year. The stress of finalizing a schedule and the dread that comes as you realize you’re about to go the better part of a week running at 100mph with little (to no) rest is daunting. But this year, the complaints seem more pointed, with lots of people opening wondering if the show has outlived its usefulness. With all due respect, that’s ridiculous.
As 
Zynga prepares to make its first appearance at E3 next month, the developer’s head of partner publishing Rob Dyer explains why the social game company decided to exhibit at the traditionally core-focused show.
Something was missing at last year’s E3.
While there were the usual big announcements and spectacle, the absence of Zynga – which was already one of the largest publishers in the industry – was a shadow hard to ignore. This year, though, the social games maker has reversed course – and will join the industry’s annual circus.
With 
the circus-like E3 expo less than three weeks away (listen closely and you can hear the collective gaming industry screaming in excitement/terror), you’d think the focus would be on 2012.
But with game sales on track right now to hit a six-year low, developers and publishers certainly want this year to end on an uptick, right? Well, of course, they do, but more and more, 2013 is looking like the year where things are going to get really interesting.
While there 
are plenty of rumors about the next generation of consoles making an appearance at this year’s E3, don’t expect Sony to join the fun.
Kaz Hirai, who lords over the company’s consumer entertainment division (which includes the PlayStation unit), has definitively shot down the whispers, saying the PlayStation 4 will not be introduced at this year’s premier video game trade show.
Chris Morris: Journalist 