LOS ANGELES — The Electronic Entertainment Expo, or known simply as E3. The name of the convention alone is enough to bring a wistful tear to the eyes of the hardcore gamer — it is, after all, where gaming companies such as Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo — and in the distant past, Sega — have taken to the stage to unveil the latest in gaming innovations, from the Sega Dreamcast in its early days, to Microsoft’s motion controller the Kinect, and Nintendo’s Wii-U, which was showcased last year.

The Wii-U, Nintendo’s stab at a next-generation console, heralded the start of a new battle between what is the current big-three in console gaming. This year the stakes get raised as Microsoft and Sony get ready to outdo each other as they reveal more details of their next-generation console: Microsoft with its Xbox One in the green corner and Sony with its PlayStation 4 (PS4) in the blue corner.

But pre-E3 announcements for the Xbox One and the PS4, instead of leaving many excited for the future of gaming, have left them puzzled, or worse, outright angry. Leading the complaints is the limitations for next-generation consoles to share, resell or rent games, at both camps.

Microsoft bears the brunt of the ill-will since they were actually vocal about their plans — a problem since their stance on second-hand and sharing games was confusing (Microsoft has since updated their stance, implying that it is up to game publishers to make restrictions for second-hand games). What is known is that the Xbox One will continue to require an Internet connection at least once a day — so much for bringing your console to a chalet. It’s important to note that Sony’s response on this front continues to be muted — it is possible that they have the same plans, but it’s clear they might be better off not to say anything at all before plans are firm.

Another issue that’s plagued Microsoft is their highlight of the content aspect of the Xbox One — for example the ability to enhance the television viewing of sports from the United States. That might be a big deal if you’re, say, living in the US, but questions abound on whether such an option will fly in overseas territories such as Singapore. Cable companies can be extremely protective of their content, and it is unclear if Starhub or SingTel will support the Xbox One’s capabilities, and if Microsoft can also constantly provide the rich content such a feature requires. This might not matter for those who, like me, aren’t on Xbox Live Gold and only use the console for gaming purposes — but when Microsoft is hedging its bets on richer content, it is worrisome that large parts of the world continues to be left out. The PS4 will also have access to US-based video services, but as of right now Sony is choosing to focus on the gaming side of the console.

Of course gamers say E3 isn’t entirely about the new consoles: Gaming companies are also queueing up to showcase their latest games, from sequels like Dark Souls II, The Witcher 3, Fifa 14 and Call Of Duty Ghosts, on top of new games like Harmonix’s Fantasia: Music Evolved and The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.

And the three big consoles are not the only ones in the console space; crowdfunded Ouya and MadCatz’s Project MOJO are among those hoping to make a splash.

That said, all eyes will still be on Microsoft and Sony: Microsoft, as they try to placate gamers who believe that Microsoft should focus on a gaming platform first and foremost, and Sony, who needs to come up with something special that can once again wrest the title of top-selling gaming console from the Xbox.

Sony’s “big” announcement of popular Blizzard title Diablo III coming to PS3 and PS4 may be an indication of the limited arsenal in Sony’s armory (Diablo III has also since been revealed to also be coming for the Xbox 360). Based on what we know so far, the race is a tight one, Microsoft being brave enough to reveal the look of the Xbox One but getting brickbats for focusing too much on non-gaming content, and Sony hoping that Microsoft will trip up while keeping its cards close to its chest. Whatever happens, the battle will be still be a long one — and one can only hope that it’s the gamers who will benefite.