Several Orange County companies demoed video games, accessories and other products at the E3 gaming conference in Los Angeles this month.
Irvine-based startup Oculus VR Inc. wowed media and industry insiders with its virtual-reality headset that puts a user inside a digital world.
Users in one setting navigate a snowy, mountainous terrain and the inside of a castle filled with flowing fire pits, tattered interiors and a demon-like figure they fire at.
In another setting, the user is inside a movie theater watching the trailer to Hangover 3.
Lake Forest-based publisher KOG Games, a unit of KOG Corp. in South Korea, held media sessions to tout its online action game Elsword, in which players can pick from six customizable characters as they explore a fantasy world and battle rivals.
Game publisher Little Orbit, based in Rancho Santa Margarita, demoed three titles geared for the younger crowd. “Monster High 13 Wishes,”—which will be distributed on Nintendo’s Wii U, Wii, 3DS and DS systems this holiday season—has gamers select their favorite teenage ghoul in a bid to save their high schools. “Barbie Dreamhouse,” which will be carried on the same systems, lets little gamers explore the fabled dollhouse, wardrobes and a variety of other items.
“Young Justice: Legacy,” licensed by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, is based on the Cartoon Network animated series inspired by DC Comics characters.
The game, which bridges the first and second seasons, will be distributed this fall through many consoles, including PlayStation3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii U and Wii.
Irvine-based video game maker Blizzard Entertainment Inc. exhibited Diablo III on the PS3 and announced that the record-selling game originally made for PCs also will be released on Xbox 360 on Sept. 3.
Tokyo-based Sony Corp. also grabbed some headlines during the three-day event at the L.A. Convention Center when it announced all of its titles for PS3 will be streamed from the cloud to end users, thanks to its $380 million deal for Aliso Viejo startup Gaikai Inc.
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., a unit of the Tokyo-based parent, plans to use Gaikai’s technology to create a cloud-streaming service allowing users to play “a broad array of content” on a variety of Internet-connected devices.
Company Saves on Lease
Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide Inc. will save $2.3 million after striking a deal to cut the length of its lease and monthly payments at its former headquarters in Irvine.
Quantum, now based in Lake Forest, is undergoing a transition to exit from unprofitable renewable-energy sectors and focus primarily on producing natural-gas storage tanks. It now plans to vacate its Irvine property in January.
The original lease was set to expire in November 2015.
The relocation will end Quantum’s presence in Irvine, where it first established its headquarters in 2001.
In other Quantum news, the company announced a deal to sell a wind farm in Canada for about $1.1 million to an unnamed buyer.
The deal follows last month’s sale of another of its Canadian wind farms to Leader Resources for $406,000, plus the assumption of about $1.1 million in debt.
Quantum will take a loss on the sales, which were part of its renewable-energy portfolio. It acquired the land as part of its buy of Toronto-based Schneider Power for $20 million in 2010.
Chris Casacchia can be reached at casacchia@ocbj.com.
