I spent yesterday in New York working with a huge Hollywood star recording voiceovers for the game. It was completely bizarre being there, explaining the game to him and the context of all of his lines, but he nailed everything and I was really happy with the results.

Surprisingly, most of my mind was on the task at hand, probably because none of it actually registered, although a small part of my brain would occasionally scream “Hey! HEY!!!! That’s so-and-so!!!! We need to faint!”

There was a camera crew there for the making-of roll, and every time I gave an instruction, a bright light and a boom got stuck in my face.

Definitely the most surreal day of my career.

MJ, my cutscene needs sound. Can I borrow your sound designer for three days?

Sure. But you know, sound guys are at a premium right now. I mean, I might have to deliver my game late, but that’s ok. I know you need it. Maybe if I deliver late and get fired, I can sell my condo and move in with my folks, they still have my room. They’ll just have to turn my grandmother out onto the street. I could also just live on the street myself, summer’s coming. Yeah, I’ll go live at the tam-tams all summer. Just if you see me with long leghair asking for a smoke at Mount Royal metro in August, remember your cutscene and throw me a quarter will ya?

I notice how much of a particular culture Montreal has, and how much of a Montrealer I am, whenever I’m away from it. Getting home to my own life, bed and timezone on Friday night was absolute rapture, and I wanted to take it in all weekend.

So Saturday night, Z and I shared a Mont-Royal street triple-play, namely the Barraca, the Boudoir and Plan B. Over mojitos, she regaled me with her recent tales of singles woe. In the crowded ladies room of the Barraca, as we shuffled and turned to let each other squeeze through to the paper towels, one girl hummed the theme to Tetris. It always makes me warm and fuzzy when the mainstream geeks out. Minutes later, when one of the barroom Romeos decided to make his move and approach Z, I hummed the theme to Jaws and she caught the reference. Another small victory.

Sunday, I met A at the doggie café, and over lattés, he regaled me with his recent tales of singles woe. Then, as I’d promised my ex, I worked up the courage to ask the girl at the counter if she was single. I had good news for him on the way out, and he’s now borrowing Comet next weekend to go to the doggie café and chat her up. Are we modern or what.

That night I met K for dinner, and over tapas, he regaled me with his tales of singles woe.

My favorite weekends are the ones when the city feels like a cozy village filled with friends; the days when you just walk down the street confident you’ll see many familiar faces. It’s a complete mystery to me how Montreal manages to be familiar but never feel parochial, but it’s one I’m happy to live with.

It’s good to be home, exhausted from so much fun.

All in all, this E3 can be simply summarized: in one corner, you have two giants fighting each other with great graphics, processing power and PR. Their titles have simple but repetitive gameplay that requires much gaming skill. Both are selling their consoles at a loss, though their prices are still high for the consumer.

In the other corner there’s Nintendo, who put out a console with a controller that’s basically a stick you swing around. Everyone and their grandmother knows how to use a stick. It’s fun as soon as you pick it up. They forsake graphical realism for innovative games that can we developed quickly and cheaply. Their console will be half the price of the two others.

I think you know my opinion of who wiill wiin thiis one.

Today was fairly simple. After being convincingly told it was worth it, I waited almost 3 hours in line to play with the Wii (”we”) this morning. Worth every minute. Took the little motion detecting controller in my hand and played convincing virtual games of tennis, golf and baseball.

This, my dear gamers and non-gamers alike, is what you’re all going to have so much fun with this winter. Wii will have wii parties and wii will love it. You’ll sii.

Then I headed over to Sony and took a look at what the Insomniacs are working on. It’s called Resistance Fall of Man and it’s a first-person shooter. It’s a first-person shooter with great graphics. It’s about as original as… well, a first-person shooter with great graphics. Seems everyone’s got one. Who cares?

“Uh-huh, uh-huh so when are you releasing another Ratchet?” They could only say they were, but no word at all on when. They couldn’t even say they’d have any of it to show at E3 07.

Why is it that the none of the three great platformers (Jak, Ratchet, Sly) showed anything on console this year? A great, profitable and fun ecological niche has been vacated, people. Someone make something to fill it up. Please. I’ll buy your game. I will not buy Insomniac’s (or any other) average shooter.

The only good bit of platforming news is that I downloaded the Ratchet and Clank: Size Matters demo onto my PSP and played the one level, and the good old Ratchet is back. But you know… it’s on PSP. Busy making their shooter, the Insomniacs have given their license over to High Impact, who are making the PSP Ratchet title. Some of the sounds are different and none of the music was in, but the essential core gameplay is there. I enjoyed the demo and will buy the game.

We continued with a turn on Guitar Hero II. This time, you can play in harmony with a friend, choosing lead guitar, rhythm guitar or bass. It was fun to rock out with an audience.

Still, sadly, most of the gamers and creatives I talked to at this show told me that they roamed the showroom floor looking for an innovative game; the next Katamari, the next Psychonauts. The closest thing (beside the Wii stuff) was Viva Pinata, which is a kind of Animal Crossing meets the Sims, but on drugs.

Finished the day off with Dead Rising, a gory zombie game that is innovative in that you can use anything in the environment - and I mean anything - as a weapon. Oh what simple, basic fun it is to walk around a shopping mall swinging around cash registers, benches, golf clubs and even hacked off limbs, gorily beating the crap out of zombies with them!

Someone needs to make a Wii version of that.

At first glance, E3 feels a little underwhelming this year compared to last. The social aspect is better than ever, and IGDA threw an awesome party last night, but the show itself feels like it lacks last year’s frantic energy.

There are fewer people, fewer booth babes (but I’m not complaining), less swag, and everything I’ve seen today seems to either be a shooter or a fantasy RPG. With two other producers, I lined up for the much-hyped Scarface demo, and found that the game is set in 1980s Miami of course, has a huge driving component, extremely average graphics, and has you building up a crime empire. Remind you of anything?

On the plus side, the EA 360 degree booth kicked butt again, and Dad, I taped you the entire Medal of Honor Airborne trailer.

The thing I’m looking forward to the most is Marvel Ultimate Alliance, which comprises over 140 authentic Marvel characters. The decisions you make affect the outcome of the story. You can skin your characters in the various outfits they’ve worn over the history of their comic, and have it affect their powers according to how powerful they were at that time. You can destroy the environments and the pieces of it as weapons. Kewl.

Also cool: I got to tell Sony what I think of Ratchet Deadlocked. Seems I’m not alone in my opinion, and they’re returning to their roots. Got to try out Ratchet and Clank 5: Size Matters. Pretty good, though it’s not by the Insomniacs and it’s only available on PSP.

Also also cool: I saw Tim Burton and the guy who plays the captain of the Firefly. My colleagues, not to be outdone, saw Robin Williams and Vince Vaughn. But then I got to meet Stan Lee!

Tomorrow I’ll try to see the Wii (3 hour wait) and talk to the Insomniacs.

The final demo build is being uploaded to the client, emergency contact numbers have been given to the team, party invites are printed, got me a copy of Daxter for the long flight. After weeks of insane preparation, it’s now time to head off to L.A. for the world’s biggest trade show, and the most frantic week in the industry.

Last year, I described my week at E3 as better than when I was seven and my parents fulfilled my dream of going to Disney World. I think this year will be better.

If you’re attending the show and want to hang out, drop me a line. You can also probably find me at the IGDA party tomorrow night, and House of Moves on Wednesday.

Here are (finally) the answers to last week’s quiz.

Tell me about your mother
1. The Electra Complex
2. Id, Ego, Superego
3. Carl Jung
4. Self-actualization
5. Prozac
6. Gestalt
7. Phlegm
8. Ivan Pavlov

By Any Other Name
1. Samuel Clemens
2. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine
3. Wonder Woman
4. George Costanza
5. Thailand
6. Le Corbusier
7. Calvin
8. Paul David Hewson

Speed Round
1. 2:04.55
2. The Millenium Falcon
3. C
4. 1947
5. Attention Deficit Disorder (also accept Narcolepsy)
6. 23 feet
7. Blue fin tuna (accept tuna as an answer), at 55 mph
8. China

You Go Girl
1. Marie Curie
2. Abortion
3. Elizabeth Bennet
4. Mia Hamm
5. Amelia Earhart
6. Éowyn
7. Dian Fossey
8. Sally Ride

Mystery round
1. Dana Scully
2. King Menelaus
3. Mary Jane Watson
4. King Arthur
5. Thomas Jefferson
6. Erik the Red
7. Queen Elizabeth I
8. They’re all redheads

Says who?
1. Jaws/Brody
2. Clerks/Randal Graves
3. The Terminator/Kyle Reese
4. Goldfinger/James Bond
5. When Harry Met Sally/Billy Crystal
6. Sudden Impact/Clint Eastwood
7. The Fellowship of the Ring/Gandalf
8. About a Boy/Hugh Grant

Neither Lipton nor Suzuki
1. Ron MacLean
2. Samwise Gamgee
3. Sideshow Mel
4. Dogmatix
5. Silver
6. Luigi
7. Robin
8. Dr. Watson

Party Mix
1. 30
2. 9
3. Benny Goodman
4. Art Nouveau
5. The Loch Ness monster
6. March of the Penguins (accept La Marche de l’Empereur)
7. Sweden
8. Gregor Mendel

How do geek parents show their geek daughter love? They buy a PlayStation so they can play her games.

I’ve always loved the fact that lightspeedmom finished Doom and Diablo, but I can’t wait to rave over God of War with her!