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PS3/X360 Preview - 'IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Flight Sim
Publisher: 505 Games
Developer: Gaijin Entertainment
Release: Q3 2009

When I arrived at 505 Games' meeting room today, they were ready with a couch, bottles of water in an ice bucket, and just one game: the Xbox 360 build of its upcoming flight combat simulation, IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey, coming to every major system except the Wii.

World War II is an exceptionally common ground for video games, and with so many fronts, there's bound to be one that hasn't been explored — like the one right above the heads of almost all of the

PS3/X360 Preview - 'Brutal Legend'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Action/Adventure
Publisher: EA
Developer: Double Fine
Release Date: "Rocktober" 13, 2009

Psychonauts is the very definition of a cult hit. It was released for the Xbox to solid reviews and poor sales, but word of mouth turned it into a real hit. All you have to do is mention it to people who've played it, and their faces will light up as they recall one of their favorite moments. The brilliant minds behind Psychonauts may not have released any new games since then, but they most certainly haven't been idle. Instead, they've been working on what

Xbox 360 Preview - 'Samurai Shodown: Edge of Destiny'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

SNK is bringing its 3D fighting game, Samurai Shodown: Edge of Destiny, based on the arcade game, to the X360 later this year.

X360/PC Preview - 'Mass Effect 2'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Action/RPG
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Bioware
Release Date: 2010

Mass Effect 2 opens up after the events of the first Mass Effect, with Commander Shepard in a pretty bad situation. A new enemy has appeared in the galaxy and is presenting a threat to humankind on par with the Reaper that Shepard defeated in the first game. Things have gotten so bad that Shepard was thought to have died in combat. Fortunately, he was rescued and recruited by a shadowy underground group who is looking for his help on a suicide mission. Shepard is the only human capable

PS3/X360 Preview - 'The King of Fighters XII'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Fighting
Publisher: SNK Playmore
Developer: SNK Playmore
Release: July 2009

The King of Fighters is a long, long running series. This fighting game series has been running at the speed of Madden for a major length of time, until it stopped annual releases in 2003 and went to subseries like Neowave and Maximum Impact. Now we're back to the original series, with the Roman numerals translating to 12, with a nice set of HD updates that bring the series into the current generation.

The standards of The King of Fighters are in effect: Take many SNK

PC Preview - 'Star Wars: The Old Republic'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Star Wars: The Old Republic will let you explore an age thousands of years before the rise of Darth Vader when war between the Old Republic and the Sith Empire divides the galaxy. Choose to play as Jedi, Sith, or a variety of other classic Star Wars roles, defining your personal story and determining your path down the light or dark side of the Force.

PS3/X360/PC Preview - 'Singularity'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Raven Software's new sci-fi shooter Singularity is set on a small, unnamed island occupied by the Russians, Cold War tensions rise once again when a U.S. pilot discovers the horrific truth that became of experiments with element E99 in the 1950s.

X360/PC Preview - 'Lost Planet 2'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Third-Person Shooter
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: TBA

Lost Planet: Extreme Conditions was one of the earlier games for the Xbox 360, and it really stood out for its unique gameplay and interesting premise. It had monster insects, a thermal meter, space pirates, a grappling hook and even giant robots, so it seems like it had enough features to be schizophrenic, but it all held together very well. It should come as no surprise that Lost Planet 2 is focusing on improving the formula set forth by the first game. Even those who left Lost

PS3 Preview - 'ModNation Racers'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Racing
Publisher: SCEA
Developer: United Front Games
Release Date: TBA 2010

Play, Create, Share: three words that catapulted Sony back into the systems race, as they challenged the Microsoft and Nintendo lineups with one word: LittleBigPlanet. With the kinds of physics and adjustments that you could make as you built your own levels, and the wrapping of simple, wonderful charm, Sony created a hit to challenge many. At this year's E3, they've shown that they hope to replicate that success with ModNation Racers.

Play. ModNation Racers is a twist on normal kart racing archetypes; player stats are

X360/PC Preview - 'Left 4 Dead 2'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: First-Person Shooter
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Valve Software
Release Date: November 17, 2009

When Left 4 Dead 2 was announced at Microsoft's press conference last week, cheers went up from the crowd to celebrate the arrival of the sequel to the phenomenally successful zombie-smasher on the Xbox 360 as an exclusive title. It turns out that exclusivity had only extended as far as the console space because on the first day of E3, I managed to get a taste of the gory zombie-slayer on the PC.

A mission from the main campaign was available, and this

Silent Hill 3 (PS2) Out In August

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - E3 2003 May 14th

GAMERS REVISIT SPINE-TINGLING TOWN IN KONAMI'S SILENT HILL® 3
The Nightmare Begins in August 2003

Konami of America, Inc., a subsidiary of Konami Corporation (NYSE: KNM), today announced that the critically acclaimed game Silent Hill® 3 will be available on the PlayStation® 2 computer entertainment system in August 2003. Featuring an all-new groundbreaking graphics engine, a brand new playable character, stunning new environments and a haunting soundtrack, Silent Hill 3 promises to set the standard for quality in the horror genre. Further enhancing the Silent Hill experience, the game will ship – in North America only – with the Official Silent

PS3/X360/PC Preview - 'Brink'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Brink is an immersive shooter that blends single-player, co-op, and multiplayer gameplay into one seamless experience, allowing you to develop your character across all modes of play. You decide the role you want to assume in the world of Brink as you fight to save yourself and mankind's last refuge for humanity.

Gradius V (PS2)

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - E3 2003 May 14th

KONAMI SHOWCASES GRADIUSTM V AT ELECTRONIC ENTERTAINMENT EXPO 2003
GradiusTM V Blasts onto PlayStation® 2 in Winter 2003 – Continues in Konami's Longest Running Shooting Franchise

Konami Corporation today offered gamers an opportunity to play – for the first time ever – GradiusTM V for Sony PlayStation® 2 computer entertainment system. Continuing Konami's longest running shooting franchise, the latest installment in the series features the classic GradiusTM action gameplay with all new features, including new Option Controls, original level designs, new weapons, captivating missions and dazzling nextgeneration graphics.

Featuring the return of the Vic Viper and the series' classic side-scrolling blasting action,

PSP Preview - 'Steambot Chronicles Battle Tournament'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Fighting
Publisher: Atlus
Developer: iRem
Release Date: June 30, 2009

Steambot Chronicles has become a significant series for Atlus. It's not a massive property that defines the company, like Shin Megami Tensei, but it's certainly a nice series that has a significant fandom. If what I saw was any indication, the PSP release of Steambot Chronicles: Battle Tournament should turn out to be fairly satisfying for fans.

Steambot Chronicles: Battle Tournament is slightly smaller in scale than other games in the series; it only encompasses one very large town and the areas around it. In a

X360/PC Preview - 'Alan Wake'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Set in the deceptively idyllic town of Bright Falls, Washington, Alan Wake places gamers in the role of the best-selling suspense author, Alan Wake. He escapes to this small town to recover from the mysterious disappearance of his fiancée. In Bright Falls Wake comes face to face with his darkest nightmares.

PSN/XBLA/PC Preview - 'Droplitz'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Puzzle
Publisher: Atlus
Developer: Blitz Game Studios
Release Date: June 2009

Atlus Software is starting to break into the casual space with several of their recent releases, such as manic puzzler Puchi Puchi Virus. However, one of their latest works breaks into the grand tradition of slow-paced, ultra-casual games meant to relax and inspire just the right amount of thinking. I spent some time at E3 demoing the PlayStation 3 and iPhone versions of Droplitz, but it's also coming to the Xbox 360 and PC.

Droplitz is a fairly basic puzzle game, somewhat reminiscent of PopCap's

X360/PC Preview - 'Section 8'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Section 8 is a futuristic first person shooter that brings strategy and tactics to the genre in a game where players can modify the battlefield on the fly. In Section 8 you are part of an elite infantry squad with a penchant for taking on suicide missions that no one else will tackle.

X360/PC Preview - 'Darkest of Days'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: First-Person Shooter
Publisher: Phantom EFX
Developer: 8Monkey Labs
Release Date: TBA

Time travel and its paradoxical twists have always been popular tools for fiction to use as convenient foils in wrapping up loose threads or in creating new ways in which to create the same. The adventure game Timequest, from now-defunct developer Legend Entertainment, casts you as a time agent sent back to pivotal moments in history in order to correct subtle changes that another renegade agent had left behind. The Journeyman Project series had also explored the same approach, and in both, you could screw

Wii Preview - 'Shiren the Wanderer'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Role-Playing
Publisher: Atlus
Developer: Chunsoft
Release Date: Q1 2010

Mystery Dungeon: Shiren The Wanderer was a roguelike for the Nintendo DS, with most of the trappings thereof (when a character dies, all items are lost, etc.) The game has had several console releases in Japan, and now the third is coming to the U.S. for the Wii. At E3, they were showing attendees a demo of the Japanese game and explaining everything to those who were interested.

The basics of Shiren the Wanderer are your standard roguelike. The game even features two difficulty levels, with a hardcore mode

PS3/X360/PC Preview - 'Alpha Protocol'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Role-Playing
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment
Release Date: October 2009

Stealth and adrenaline-soaked action are part of the spy genre's hallmarks, whether it is in trying to stop nuclear annihilation in Metal Gear or in slipping past enemy security by climbing along the outside of a cruise ship in Splinter Cell. Obsidian Entertainment is now set to shake up these conventions with a spy-based RPG that includes the combat, stealth, and plenty of options to allow a player to mix James Bond and Jason Bourne into the ultimate black ops agent.

While most spy games only have