Despite the lack of time available to me for playing videogames, I can still get excited about them. This week is the annual Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3). All the big videogame makers get together and put on a show for the media and let them try out new games and all that stuff. Mike and I snuck in one year.

This year is a big deal because both Sony and Nintendo have new consoles on the horizon. Sony has PS3 and Nintendo has Wii (pronounced "we"). If you’re interested you can visit IGN and check out their E3 coverage.

Now for my 2 cents on everything. PS3 is from $500-600 depending on your model, which is an insane price for a videogame system. If there are any redeeming qualities I would have to look to the Blu-Ray drive inside. I’m really excited to see what people think of Wii once they get their hands on the controller. The Nintendo conference looked really cool, but I wasn’t overwhelmed. Because Wii isn’t a huge graphical jump over Gamecube (and it’s not supposed to be), I think simply watching a game isn’t that impressive. I’m hoping that once you hold the controller in your hand and get used to the brand new controls it will be a truly unique experience. Sony added a "tilt" sensor to their controller at the cost of a rumble device. I think it’s an attempt to take some of the wind out of Nintendo’s sail, but it’s too little, too late. It will work for flying games, monkey ball, and marble madness…but that’s it. They’re trying to tell people that a rumble feature is "so last year," but I think they’re wrong.

Nintendo has an amazing marketing team. The positioning that they’ve come up with for their new system is hands-down the best of the three. They’ve been able to distance themselves from the competition in a sector that was drowing in copycats. They aren’t competing with Microsoft or Sony in terms of graphics or ports anymore. Now they’re competing based on the fun factor. Nintendo is also insisting that this will be the system to bring videogaming to the masses. Your Mom, Grandpa, and red-headed stepchild will all be playing this system, flailing about like a bunch of idiots in front of the TV, and oh will it rock. The marketing guy in me is very impressed with Nintendo.