Microsoft @ E3

Having seen the Microsoft E3 press conference earlier today, I can say that it was very Halo-deficient and very awesome.

The conference started out with demos of some of the biggest Xbox games coming out this year. Fallout 3 was shown, for the first time, in real time and it was announced that exclusive downloadable content was coming to the Xbox 360. Fable 2 was shown off, as well, and the seamless multiplayer integration was the star of the demo. The game is officially content complete and will ship in October. A beautiful Gears 2 demo was on display along with a five player co-op mode. The game was announced for November 7. Finally, Resident Evil 5 gameplay was shown for the first time, and the new co-op mode was unveiled. The game will release worldwide on March 13, 2009.

The next part of conference was the shocker: the brand new Xbox interface. Say goodbye to the blades you have come to know and love, because this fall a beautiful new and intricate interface will take it's place. You'll be able to interact with friends and other players like never before with avatars, universal parties, and new gameshow-like games where players compete for real prizes. The new interface resembled cover flow. Microsoft showed that they not only cater to the hardcore, like Sony, but also the casual player, like Nintendo. Microsoft has almost achieved that perfect balance. They showed off a numerous amount of casual games for the XBL Arcade that will appear to a larger audience. A partnership with Netflix was announced that will make available to Netflix and XBL members the entire library of Netflix titles for free. New XBL arcade games were announced as well. Among the big titles were Geometry Wars Retro Evolved 2, the original Banjo-Kazooie, and Portal: Still Alive, all exclusive to the Xbox.

Both Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero 4 were shown off and it was announced that Rock Band will be exclusive to Xbox this September. The game will ship with 84 songs and will be compatible with all the original's tracks as well. Rock Band has an exclusive partnership with Guns and Roses as well as David Bowie and Van Halen. Guitar Hero 4 will have the new Metallica album, in full, as an exclusive download as well as new music from REM.

Finally, the president of Square Enix takes the stage. He talks about their upcoming Xbox titles : The Last Remnant (Nov. 20 worldwide), Infinite Undiscovery (Sep.t 2 in US), and Star Ocean (March 09). Footage is shown, release dates are announced, and he leaves the stage. Looks like everything is going to wrap up. Then, Mr. Wada comes back. He says he has one more announcement. The footage begins to roll...

HOLY FREAKING CRAP IT'S FINAL FANTASY XIII. FINAL FANTASY XIII!!!! NO LONGER PS3 EXCLUSIVE! OUCH.

No word on any Halo anything, though. No Halo Cronicles, no Halo Wars, no mysterious Bungie project. All we get is this. Counting down to 7:07 on Wednesday morning. Guess we have a little more to wait.

Keep your eyes pealed to IGN.com for the latest scoop.