Superman Returns Community Day Recap
Added 10/24/2006 by Dakota Grabowski
For our in-depth preview of Superman Returns, please click here.
My trip to Disney World, oh how childhood dreams come true. Wait, I didn’t visit Disney World, but it sure felt like it. My Orland trip was in fact to Electronic Arts Tiburon for their presentation of the upcoming video game, Superman Returns: The Video Game. How would it all fair out? Was the trip comparable to a trip to Disney World and its glorious iconic theme park attractions?
EA is a company that keeps on giving. I have previously visited EA Canada twice and EA Black Box once, but this trip to Tiburon was much more cherished I’d have to say. Tiburon has obtained the cherished license of Superman and the baggage that comes with it. One can only fantasize of the creation of a good video game based on this lucrative franchise.
I arrived in Orlando early in the afternoon and met up with Jon Long, the senior community manager for EA, and several other attendees that were invited. Jon escorted us to the limousine and we were off to the studio with the anticipation level rising. The trip was an exquisite one with seeing the sites of Orlando as we traveled to the studio. Conversing with one another, all of us journalists had high hopes for EA’s attempt at creating a Superman video game.
When the limousine pulled up, we laid our eyes upon EA Tiburon and its headquarters that is isolated from civilization. I was ready to be ushered in and finally lay my eyes upon the video game, well at least in promo video form. Disappointingly, we discovered we wouldn’t get our hands on it until the following day. The only thing we could see in person was the art work that inspired the development of the title. After viewing the art work, it was off to dinner…a big steak dinner that is.
The next morning, we ate breakfast at the hotel restaurant. After the large breakfast that consisted of cereal, bacon, eggs, pancakes, bagels, and toast, I had my share of food and was ready for everything that EA was going to throw at me. Entering a large SUV, we were directed to the studio once again, but this time to finally get hands-on the game.
We arrived at the studio and found out that there would be a tour of the studio prior to the showcasing of the game. The group was divided into two groups; one to enter the EA Store to shop and another to tour the studio itself. The tour consisted of many cubicles, the servers found at EA Tiburon, sound studio, art designers offices and so much more that it was an overload of the game development process. After the tour, I dwelled in the EA Store hunting for cups and shirts that were branded with the EA logo.
With the conclusion of the tour and trip to the EA Store, it was finally time to see the game in action. Wait, we had to sit through a few hours of presentations by the developers before finally playing Superman. The presentations covered topics of audio, graphics, art design, gameplay, story, and overview of all the villains. The assigned presenters were led by programmers, an Academy Award winner, the art designer and a few of the key marketing managers that made sure not all the beans were spilled on the game.
So, after all that, it was finally time to play the game. Everyone’s feelings about Superman were similarly the same. We all enjoyed it and were impressed by what was delivered in terms of gameplay. Too many times in previous instances, Superman has been tortured with horrible video game adaptations. If you haven’t read the preview yet, you must, because Superman was so impressive that it deserves the read. By the end of the gameplay session, all of the other journalists loved battling Metallo in both forms.
We ended the day with another dinner out at NBA City in Orlando. While at NBA City, we competed in the arcade they had there for giggles. Who wouldn’t want to have a free-throw shootout with other writers from the net? I refused to be defeated in this marathon of challenges that were thrown at me. A few of the scores were lopsided; my score usually ended up over 20 while the opponent had barely 10. Overall, this trip was well worth it. I’d take it over a trip to the beloved Disney World. Maybe it’s because I have grown up and Disney World isn’t that attractive anymore. But hey, I still play video games to death and that’s not a ‘kiddy’ thing at all!
My trip to Disney World, oh how childhood dreams come true. Wait, I didn’t visit Disney World, but it sure felt like it. My Orland trip was in fact to Electronic Arts Tiburon for their presentation of the upcoming video game, Superman Returns: The Video Game. How would it all fair out? Was the trip comparable to a trip to Disney World and its glorious iconic theme park attractions?
EA is a company that keeps on giving. I have previously visited EA Canada twice and EA Black Box once, but this trip to Tiburon was much more cherished I’d have to say. Tiburon has obtained the cherished license of Superman and the baggage that comes with it. One can only fantasize of the creation of a good video game based on this lucrative franchise.
I arrived in Orlando early in the afternoon and met up with Jon Long, the senior community manager for EA, and several other attendees that were invited. Jon escorted us to the limousine and we were off to the studio with the anticipation level rising. The trip was an exquisite one with seeing the sites of Orlando as we traveled to the studio. Conversing with one another, all of us journalists had high hopes for EA’s attempt at creating a Superman video game.
When the limousine pulled up, we laid our eyes upon EA Tiburon and its headquarters that is isolated from civilization. I was ready to be ushered in and finally lay my eyes upon the video game, well at least in promo video form. Disappointingly, we discovered we wouldn’t get our hands on it until the following day. The only thing we could see in person was the art work that inspired the development of the title. After viewing the art work, it was off to dinner…a big steak dinner that is.
The next morning, we ate breakfast at the hotel restaurant. After the large breakfast that consisted of cereal, bacon, eggs, pancakes, bagels, and toast, I had my share of food and was ready for everything that EA was going to throw at me. Entering a large SUV, we were directed to the studio once again, but this time to finally get hands-on the game.
We arrived at the studio and found out that there would be a tour of the studio prior to the showcasing of the game. The group was divided into two groups; one to enter the EA Store to shop and another to tour the studio itself. The tour consisted of many cubicles, the servers found at EA Tiburon, sound studio, art designers offices and so much more that it was an overload of the game development process. After the tour, I dwelled in the EA Store hunting for cups and shirts that were branded with the EA logo.
With the conclusion of the tour and trip to the EA Store, it was finally time to see the game in action. Wait, we had to sit through a few hours of presentations by the developers before finally playing Superman. The presentations covered topics of audio, graphics, art design, gameplay, story, and overview of all the villains. The assigned presenters were led by programmers, an Academy Award winner, the art designer and a few of the key marketing managers that made sure not all the beans were spilled on the game.
So, after all that, it was finally time to play the game. Everyone’s feelings about Superman were similarly the same. We all enjoyed it and were impressed by what was delivered in terms of gameplay. Too many times in previous instances, Superman has been tortured with horrible video game adaptations. If you haven’t read the preview yet, you must, because Superman was so impressive that it deserves the read. By the end of the gameplay session, all of the other journalists loved battling Metallo in both forms.
We ended the day with another dinner out at NBA City in Orlando. While at NBA City, we competed in the arcade they had there for giggles. Who wouldn’t want to have a free-throw shootout with other writers from the net? I refused to be defeated in this marathon of challenges that were thrown at me. A few of the scores were lopsided; my score usually ended up over 20 while the opponent had barely 10. Overall, this trip was well worth it. I’d take it over a trip to the beloved Disney World. Maybe it’s because I have grown up and Disney World isn’t that attractive anymore. But hey, I still play video games to death and that’s not a ‘kiddy’ thing at all!
