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973 results for nov
30 Most Anticipated Games of E3 in Gaming
30. Rise of the Argonauts (PS3, X360, PS3)
Publisher: Codemasters
Developer: Liquid Entertainment
Est. Release Date: Sep 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Anaction RPG that promises to be way more action than RPG, Rise of theArgonauts has a winning mythological premise and lots of little designtouches that keep the game looking fresh. Take the Argo—the ship oflegend will act as a seafaring headquarters from which your recruitedArgonauts will provide support. There is also a “deed” system that willincrease Jason’s abilities via the acquisition of Xbox LiveAchievement-like trophies. So it’s bursting with interesting ideas, andit’s all running on the reliable Unreal Engine 3—this could be thesleeper hit of the year.


29. High School Musical 3: Senior Year Dance (PC, Wii, PS2, NDS, X360)
Publisher: Disney Interactive
Developer: TBA
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Considerthis your representative sample of licensed games that promise to sellgangbusters regardless of quality or media reaction. And High SchoolMusical 3 is likely to be the biggest game of its breed this year: themovie of the same name is the first time this children’s blockbusterfranchise will see a theatrical release, meaning the marketing for theproperty is likely to be even more inescapable than usual. Beyond theusual niceties of rhythm games—coop and competitive modes, mechanicsspecific to each system’s control scheme—it will have the songs fromHigh School Musical movies past and present. That last one is almostcertainly the only feature the game needs to add another million insales to the franchise’s life-to-date count.

28. Borderlands (PC, X360, PS3)
Publisher: 2K Games
Developer: Gearbox Software
Est. Release Date: 2009
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Capabledeveloper Gearbox has never swung for the fences with quite as muchgusto as with Borderlands. The fact that the game is original IP isn’teven the half of it—it also promises a procedural item creation systemthat will provide this sci-fi first-person shooter over half a millionweapons. If that’s not enough, Borderlands also shares some ambitionswith big-budget role playing games: the world will be expansive,character growth and classes comes standard, and missions and sidequests will populate the landscape. Borderlands has all the earmarks ofa breakout hit, and its scope should easily take the breath away fromboth shooter and science fiction fans.

27. Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (X360, PS3)
Publisher: Midway
Developer: Midway
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Goingon the title alone, Mortal Kombat Vs DC Universe feels a decade late,like it should have been slugging it out with Marvel Vs Capcom for thequarters of 90s teenagers. But it’s actually a better idea,commercially, in 2008—now the game can ride the tide of successfulcomic book film blockbusters. It can pull from the years of soliddesign work and franchise reputation rebuilding that culminated inMortal Kombat: Armageddon. And with an anticipated ESRB rating of T forTeen, there’re no retail hurdles to keep the adolescent maledemographic from eating this up with a spoon.

26. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky (PC)
Publisher: Deep Silver
Developer: GSC Game World
Est. Release Date: Aug 29, 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.:Shadow of Chernobyl was hardly the biggest first-person shooter of 2007in the west. But it posted platinum-level sales in Eastern Europe,where its freeform gameplay and mythos steeped in Russia’s uniquescience fiction struck a strong chord. With little similar competitionin the region, its sequel Clear Sky should do well for itself therealso. Which isn’t to say the rest of the world shouldn’t (or won’t)give it a go as well—Clear Sky will add a tactical, squad-based turfwar to the already eccentric proceedings, and should be just as curiousand interesting a beast as its predecessor.

25. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (PS3, X360, Wii, PS2, PSP, NDS)
Publisher: LucasArts
Developer: LucasArts
Est. Release Date: Sep 2008
Officially Announced for E3: No, but it might as well be

TheForce Unleashed could well be the biggest project to bear the Star Warsfranchise name since Episode III ended the franchise’s non-animatedtheatrical run. Every Star Wars fan has been curious about the periodright before the Original Trilogy when Darth Vader had his run of thegalaxy; Force Unleashed promises to capture this period from theperspective of the Dark Side, using exciting new technologies torealistically render bot the AI and the Force itself. If the persistentrumors are true, this could well be the last project completely builtby LucasArts’ internal studio—but in that case, it will be one heck ofa send-off that a lot of Star Wars fans will experience.


24. Beyond Good and Evil 2 (PS3, X360)
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montpellier (likely)
Est. Release Date: TBA
Officially Announced for E3: No

Allthat’s known about Beyond Good and Evil 2 is that it’s currently beingworked on by Ubisoft premier designer Michel Ancel. But in this case,that’s more than enough—Ancel’s resume does include perennial hitRayman and (naturally) the first Beyond Good and Evil, after all. Andthe first Beyond Good and Evil is particularly beloved. The smallaudience that played it has been talking about it ever since, praisingits varied gameplay and realistic, strong female protagonist Jade. Sothe sequel is exciting, and though its commercial success is by nomeans assured it’s possible that maybe the adult gaming audience isfinally ready for this franchise.


23. Lock’s Quest (NDS)
Publisher: THQ
Developer: 5th Cell
Est. Release Date: Fall 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

2007’sbiggest surprise sales blockbuster was a little DS game called Drawn toLife, built by a little mobile developer called 5th Cell. That gamegave the independent studio a reputation for creating innovations withstrong market appeal, and it could cement that reputation with Lock’sQuest, a curious RTS/Action/RPG/minigame hybrid with cute graphics,quick thrills and a world that can be completely remodeled by theplayer. In other words, it has a lot of elements that appeal across awide variety of gaming demographics, as well as a lot of ambition. Ifthis one lives up to its potential, it would be great to see it succeed.


22. Puzzle Quest: Galactrix (PC, X360, NDS)
Publisher: D3 Publisher of America
Developer: Infinite Interactive
Est. Release Date: Fall 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Lastyear’s Puzzle Quest combined the most addictive parts of the casual“match three” puzzle game with the most addictive parts of RPGcharacter development, a powerful cocktail that murdered productivityand sold in huge numbers. There’s no reason this follow-up shouldn’tcontinue in that trend—it’s still a match three puzzle game (this timemore Collapse than Bejeweled), it still has those all-important RPGelements, and it’s being built by the same studio. The only differences(besides the science fiction setting) all look like improvements.There’s an element of strategy gaming. Players can enhance not justtheir character, but also their spacecraft. Downloadable content willabound. It all sounds like a game that players will itch to play afterthe first hit.


21. Crysis: Warhead (PC)
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Crysis
Est. Release Date: Fall 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Allegedlythe last PC exclusive from the bastion of PC gaming high technology,Crytek’s side story to 2007’s Crysis looks every bit as graphicallydazzling as its predecessor. It also promises to be a moremarket-friendly title (a tall order considering Crysis’ million-sellingstatus); Warhead provides a less strategic, more bombastic run-and-gunaffair compared to the original Crysis. And with a year of hardwareadvancements in between Crysis and Crysis: Warhead, that more widelyappealing design will find that a lot more people have the rigs toactually run it well. And who knows? If Warhead does manage to findthat perfect balance, perhaps Crytek will stick to their PC-exclusivestomping grounds for a while longer.

20. Tomb Raider Underworld (Wii, PS2, PS3, X360, PC, NDS)
Publisher: Eidos
Developer: Crystal Dynamics
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

It’sbeen a few years since Crystal Dynamics took the Tomb Raider franchiseand reinvigorated it with Legend. But it’s really with Underworld thatthe series’ previous mistakes have been taken to heart. Rather thanrest the game on its laurels again, Underworld is a creation that lookstoward with the new; the game engine is all new, the way the worldinteracts with Lara is more realistic, combat now has melee and willflow fluidly into the puzzle mechanics. And if that wasn’t enough toguarantee sales, Lara has a motorcycle now too.


19. Sonic Unleashed (Wii, PS2, PS3, X360)
Publisher: SEGA
Developer: Sonic Team/Dimps
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: No

Thesedays it feels like SEGA promises the moon with every Sonic title, tothe point where it’s hard to fall for it anymore. Take Sonic Unleashed;it’s promise of a revamped, re-invented Sonic echoes the promises SEGAmade before this generation’s first Sonic the Hedgehog hit the Xbox 360with a sad plop. And yet, franchise sales have never followed the samecurve as the blue blur’s review scores. This is mostly because ofSonic’s strong appeal to the child market, but on some level thegraying Genesis owner wants to believe what we’re told, that this nextSonic really will reclaim the glory days. Anyway, Sonic Unleashed. It’srunning on a new engine and has some 2D environments. It’ll sell, andas for the rest of it? Here’s hoping.


18. MadWorld (Wii)
Publisher: SEGA
Developer: Platinum Games
Est. Release Date: 2009
Officially Announced for E3: No

PlatinumGames, formerly Seeds, formerly Clover Studios, isn’t known for makingcommercial hits. No, that team is known more for making instant,beloved classics. Okami certainly, but Viewtiful Joe is in there aswell, and the only people who remember God Hand these days love it toabsolute death. MadWorld, a blood-soaked black and white Wii exclusive,feels like a return to the playful, experimentation that made this teamfamous. Will it sell? Well, it’s nice to think that just maybe, thistime, the market has caught up to what Platinum is doing.


17. Animal Crossing Wii (Wii)
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Nintendo
Est. Release Date: TBA
Officially Announced for E3: No

Asof this writing, Animal Crossing Wii still exists as a hopeful glimmerin the eye of the gaming public. Nintendo hasn’t said anything at allabout it yet, though almost all speculation says that it exists andwill be announced soon—and if that’s the case, E3 is as good a place toshowcase it as any. It’s a completely believable theory. Nintendo’sChristmas lineup is currently a complete mystery, and Animal Crossing,already a surprise hit on GameCube and DS, is such a good fit for thecasual Wii-loving audience it’s startling it’s not on the systemalready.


16. Left 4 Dead (PC, X360)
Publisher: Valve Software
Developer: Turtle Rock Studios
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Valvedoesn’t release duds, and it doesn’t buy teams that can’t deliver. Sothe fact that it purchased Turtle Rock Studios and have put a greatdeal of PR muscle behind Left 4 Dead speaks volumes as to how good thisgame could be. The game has a completely innovative, yet highly marketfriendly hook in its “four survivors must cooperate to survive thezombie horde” premise, though players of a less polite persuasion canalso take up the role of a super-powered zombie. This could very wellbe the next major online phenomenon, like Team Fortress 2 before it.


15. Resistance 2 (PS3)
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: Insomniac Games
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Thefirst Resistance was the big win for the PlayStation 3 at launch, butResistance 2 looks set to spin that good first impression into anempire. Resistance 2 pushes the game out of London to the morerelatable (in the US, anyway) environs of the United States. A goodmove, but not as good as the massive 60-man multiplayer that the gamepromises. That’s fantastic scale for an online console game; add onsome more focused, objective-oriented teamplay and Resistance 2 is agood contender for gamer’s next networked obsession.


14. Killzone 2 (PS3)
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: Guerilla Games
Est. Release Date: 2009
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Threeyears on and Killzone 2 is still trying to shake off its disastrous“showing” at E3 2005. Admittedly the team at Guerilla has done a finejob of actually approaching the target in that first badly marketed“target render,” with more recent previews showing the game asappropriately attractive and bombastic for its high position in Sony’sportfolio. But it still needs a big floor to show off, and it needs aman to say “in-game graphics” about one thousand times in front of somehuge HD Killzone if it wants to really nail the market. E3 historicallyhas had some very big floors.


13. Fable 2 (X360)
Publisher: Microsoft
Developer: Lionhead Studios
Est. Release Date: Oct 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Alot on Fable 2 is already known, and most of it is interesting on avariety of levels. There’s the in-game dog, a character ofunconditional love that will act as the player’s anchor to the game’sworld. There’s the Pub Games, a series of Xbox Live Arcade titles thatwill act as both encapsulated products and previews for the bigrelease. Then there’s the gay marriage, pregnant adventuring, and allmanner of family matters to deal with in the game as well. It’s a gamethat promises to push boundaries and break some of the medium’s moreridiculous unnecessary taboos. Considering the success of the originalGable, it’s likely many people will choose to experience this moveforward—surely a good thing.


12. Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 (PC, X360)
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: EA Los Angeles
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

RedAlert’s Cold War gone hot is one of the most beloved scenarios is allof strategy gaming, and the franchise’s long seven year absence makesthis game even more exciting and desirable. And by adding thepseudo-Japanese Empire of the Rising Sun faction the festivities geteven more campy and strange, complete with towering mecha, psychicschoolgirls and parachuting bears. So it’s got a lot of hooks for boththe longtime fan and sugar-crazed newcomer alike.


11. Far Cry 2 (PC, X360, PS3)
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: No

FarCry 2 has found a unique gaming setting in the jungles, savannahs andtowns of Africa, and it plans on giving the player a lot of thatsetting – 50 square kilometers, to be precise. Plenty of new gameplayelements will make themselves known as the player crosses that expanse:some wounds have to be treated with field medicine (ie. fishing abullet out with a knife) and brush fires can be started, only to bewhipped up realistically by wind. Far Cry 2 is an underutilized brandmoving to an underutilized setting while adding multiple newinnovations, making it an extremely strong contender in the hardcoreshooter market.
10. Prince of Persia (X360, PS3)
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Est. Release Date: Holiday 2008
Officially Announced for E3: No

Princeof Persia: The Sands of Time was one of the last generation’s definingmoments, so it would have been easy for Ubisoft to just build astandard sequel on the successes of its previous trilogy. The fact thatthis is not the case, that the series is instead being rebooted with anincredible hand-painted aesthetic and open world, show a strongdedication to making the Prince one of the most lasting and importantfranchises in gaming (though the big budget movie helps on that scoreas well). While previous PoP titles did sell well, after theblockbuster success of Assassin’s Creed, the timing is perfect for thePrince to really make it big.


9. Final Fantasy XIII (PS3)
Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Square Enix
Est. Release Date: TBD
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Sinceclosing the door on the last console genre, Square Enix has relied onhandheld games and Wii side stories alone. If the publisher’s lastfiscal statement said anything, it was that’s no way for a company tolive—so while Square Enix has some other interesting console games inthe pipe, it needs to bring its megaton franchise back into the publiceye. It’s not surprising that Final Fantasy XIII will show up in someform at E3—and regardless of what form it takes or what the game lookslike now, it could certainly steal the show if it tried.


8. Street Fighter IV (PC, X360, PS3)
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom/Dimps
Est. Release Date: 2009
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Atworst, this is a surprise come back of one of gaming’s most iconicfranchises. At best, this could be the surprise come back of agenre—certainly if anything could revive a flagging fighting gamefield, a new numbered entry in its greatest series would be the thingto do it. Perhaps the best sign that this game knows what it will taketo succeed is its reverence to Street Fighter II—all of the charactersfrom that game will return, and the gameplay mirrors the measured paceof that early entry. Considering versions of SFII still sell in strongnumbers, it’s easy to see how this strategy could succeed on the market.


7. Rock Band 2 (X360, PS3, PS2, Wii)
Publisher: MTV Games
Developer: Harmonix
Est. Release Date: Sep 2008 (X360 timed exclusive, with other versions to follow)
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Nomatter what other companies say, the fast-paced game of catch-up thathas gripped the music genre says one thing louder: the four-piece RockBand is the standard for the field. And while little is known about itat this point, what is known proves that Harmonix hasn’t lost the plotwith Rock Band 2. Sticking to its “platform” guns, the game will befully backwards compatible—with old DLC, with old instruments, theworks. And while user-created content is not a go this time, there arecertainly things about the game yet to be announced—you don’t want tomiss this one at the show.


6. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: Media Molecule
Est. Release Date: Oct 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Despiteseemingly constant delays, LittleBigPlanet remains one of the mostunique products in Sony’s first-party arsenal. The idea of a game thatlives and dies by the content created by its users has been triedbefore in first-person shooters, but LittleBigPlanet, with its lovelytextured graphics and universal, non-violent charm wants to be muchmore—the YouTube of games perhaps, or the Legos of the 21st century. Ofall the games that could bring PlayStation 3 to the mass market, thisremains the best hope.


5. Halo Wars (X360)
Publisher: Microsoft
Developer: Ensemble Studios/Bungie
Est. Release Date: Oct 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

HaloWars is more than just the next title from Microsoft to have the Haloname. It’s also more than the first Halo project not spearheaded byBungie. Halo Wars wants to be a revolution in real-time strategy, aconsole exclusive built from the ground up for a console controller—inother words, Halo Wars wants to do for real-time strategy what Halo didfor first-person shooters. If it succeeds, it could crack wide open thenascent console RTS market as gamers try it based on the franchisealone. It’s been reported that the game will be playable by the mediaat E3, so the show should give a much better idea as to how itssucceeding.


4. Spore (PC, Mac)
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Maxis
Est. Release Date: Sep 7, 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

It’scertainly something that even after the seemingly endless amount ofwords typed about Spore, even though it’s appeared in publications asnon-game centric as The New Yorker, even though the wait for the gamehas been years long and interminable, almost everyone who knows aboutit is still excited at its promise. And after the success of therecently released Creature Creator, that excitement is still mounting.Will Wright’s SimEverything could very well the next big thing, tossingaside silly ideas like “demographics” and just appealing to everyoneeverywhere. In other words, the next Sims.


3. Gears of War 2 (X360)
Publisher: Microsoft
Developer: Epic Games
Est. Release Date: Nov 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Gearsof War 2 is a lot of things. To the gamer, it is epic, the sequel tothe game that dominated man hours spent on Xbox Live for most of 2007.To developers, it’s the new baseline, as every new Epic game has cometo represent the state of the art for the now industry standard UnrealEngine 3. In both regards Gears of War 2 looks great. A fewimprovements to the constantly evolving engine have already been shown,and most gamers agree that new mechanics like martyrdom and the “meatshield” look like fantastic fun. Gears of War is already one of thisgeneration’s emblematic franchises, so it will be great to see how thesequel goes about cementing that status.


2. Resident Evil 5 (X360, PS3)
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Est. Release Date: 2009
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

RE5is not even close to a retail release, and yet it’s already one of themost interesting topics in the industry. It brings with it the highlyrespected pedigree of Resident Evil 4, hands-down one of the best gamesof the last generation, and will probably sell strongly to the audiencethat loved, or even heard about, that game. Yet it’s also mired incontroversy over some concerns regarding racism. So it’s a projectthat’s walking many tightropes of expectation, and there’s potentialfor huge success or massive failure here. As a result this E3 could bethe most important public showing for RE5 until its release—it shouldbe fascinating.


1. Fallout 3 (PC, X360, PS3)
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Developer: Bethesda Softworks
Est. Release Date: Oct 2008
Officially Announced for E3: Yes

Fallout3 shows great evolutionary leaps every time it’s displayed for publicviewing, with recent revelations—the childhood simulating charactercreator, the 500 endings—being particularly fascinating. Now that it’scoming precariously close to its announced release date, this E3 shouldrepresent the game’s biggest showing yet. If there are any surprisesleft in the title to announce, expect them to get announced at somepoint during the week. But even if there aren’t, Fallout 3 has alreadyproven itself to be a sprawling, ambitious project that anyone in thegaming audience would wait to spend more time with.
Posted by Editorial Team Tue Jul 08, 2008 6:55 am
Top 10 most anticipated Xbox 360 games of 2008 still to come in Gaming
10) Mercenaries 2: World in Flames

After watching the trailer below, I'm convinced that Michael Bay is involved with this game's production, and while that might be bad if this were a movie, it can only mean a lot of fun awaits in the Mercenaries sequel. In between blowing up entire cities and hitchhiking helicopters, there looks to be enough varied gameplay to excuse the cheesy characters and dialogue. This game, along with many others on both our lists, seems to show a popular trend that games taking place in exotic settings far from America are in high demand this year.

9) Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures

World of Warcraft might have millions of more online players to boast, but Age of Conan has millions of more polygons to brag about, and when you want to play a MMORPG that you'll stare at everyday for the rest of your soul-less life, then it's hard to tell which game is the right player poison to pick. I'd even put Age of Conan a few notches higher up on my list if it weren't for that annoying monthly MMO price tag that you have to worry about.

Banjo Kazooie 3

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Here's to hoping Rare doesn't kill off another part of my childhood: "Rareware is turning into that grandma plagued with Alzheimer’s — she used to give us some sweet birthday presents and now all she does is call the house 20 times a day with nothing new to say. Rare, please take your pills. We realize the trauma you went through when Nintendo divorced you, but Microsoft isn't that bad, there's no reason you had to take it out on Perfect Dark Zero. And breast feeding Kameo for seven years probably wasn't the best idea either. You might want to copyright Viva Funeral just in case things go downhill soon. I don't think you're ready for another baby, you might want to put Banjo Kazooie 3 up for adoption. Have you considered abortion? I'll mail you Duke Nukem's number." Rare, the Banjo Kazooie games are the only platformer series other than Mario that I still care about. It had better be music notes to my ears, or I'm giving up on you guys forever.

7) Resident Evil 5

A #7 spot might seem low, but a #7 from me means a lot for this game -- because I HATE zombie stories. Especially this series. I hated this series for years, constantly asking friends why they wouldn't just try making a similar game with less annoying cameras and controls. "You just don't get it" is what I was told for years. Then Resident Evil 4 came out in such a fashion, grabbed countless Game of the Year awards with ease, and I refused to play it out of spite. However, after seeing the recent trailer for the fifth game, I don't think I'll be able to put off jumping into this series any longer. I still despise zombies in general, but a survival-horror game that takes place in a jungle should be extremely refreshing from the typical city or woods clichés of the past. I Am Legend was the first zombie movie (other than Shaun of the Dead) that I didn't completely hate, and Resident Evil 5 is looking like it will be the first zombie game that I'll be able to enjoy.

6) Dead Space

The trailer for this game reminds me of when I first saw the early BioShock trailers -- that tingly feeling that this game might be amazing. Sure, I thought the same thing about Assassin's Creed, but something tells me Prototype will end up being closer to this year's Ass Creed, and this game will be closer to BioShock. I can't remember the last time a game trailer made me jump in my seat and didn't come with a flashlight mod. Not to mention it looks a hell of a lot like Aliens, one of my favorite movies of all time. And most appealing of all: it's a survival-horror game with NO ZOMBIES!

5) Alan Wake

Made by the people who brought us both Max Paynes, this game's older than the Xbox 360 -- is it ever coming out? By pushing PCs to their limits, Alan Wake looked as good as today's Xbox 360 games back in 2005, but its window of opportunity is closing quickly. This psychological action thriller takes place in a beautiful rural environment teeming with mystery, spectacular lighting and vicious weather-induced physics effects. Add to that an action adventure story that looks like what I envision Stephen King's autobiography to be, and you've got yourself a must-buy game for this console . . . if they ever release it.

4) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

We've seen a trilogy that explores the good side of the "force" and loved it. We've seen a trilogy that explored the bad side of the "force" and . . . well I hated a lot of it. In this game you play as Darth Vader's secret apprentice who's basically Luke if he had succumbed to Vader, and most importantly, George Lucas isn't directly involved. Above and beyond that, all you need to hear is the game's specs: ILM motion capture animations, plus the Havok physics engine, plus the Euphoria behavioral animations A.I., plus Digital Molecular Matter interactive game environments. Sold. This game is the equivalent of a fully revved Mustang or tricked out Lamborghini, and I can't wait to replace the sour taste George Lucas left in my mouth with something refreshing.

3) Castle Crashers

When a game is basically Gauntlet Legends meets Zelda Four Swords, how can you go wrong? At #3, this artistically appealing action game sits in the exact same spot it did on my list last year. What's changed since then? Several delays and promises that the game will now be even longer and more action packed, with dozens of new unlockable characters and way more content. This is the sort of stuff gamers get promised all the time by delaying developers, but when The Behemoth, the men who brought us possibly the most famous indie game of all time, promises us something, we trust them and wait patiently without asking questions. Instead we bother the Media Molecule developers over why we must wait so long for the equally artsy and cute game LittleBigPlanet. How LittleBig can it be?

2) Fable 2

Characters who age realistically into an infinite amount of outcomes, coupled with environments that consist of trees and blades of grass that grow in real-time. That was supposed to be the first Fable game, so surely the sequel can't be far off from completely filling its shoes. Right? Right! Okay, well Peter Molyneux has been moderately tame this time around, and while he isn't promising us the game to end all games, everything he's shown so far has looked great. His promises of a dynamic world don't sound too far-fetched this time, and the atmosphere of everything revealed to date looks gorgeous and demands exploring. The dog sidekick mechanic looks like it might be the next Agro or Epona-worthy companion to win over the hearts of gamers, and the family and multiplayer aspects both seem to be a leap in the right direction that hopefully other developers emulate in the future. The downside? Don't be surprised if this game, among others on both our lists, slips into a vague 2009 release window.

1) Grand Theft Auto IV

As a recent Game Art & Design degree college graduate, this game plucks all the right notes in my heart. Everything that could have been said about this game has already been said, and I agree with most of it, so I'll just mention what I hope to see from this series in the future as I pray that Rockstar leads the industry into a Golden Age of Gaming.

I look forward to a day when games can swear freely just like the box office does excessively in its artistic pursuit of storytelling. A day when games can include tasteful or even tasteless and explicit nude scenes just as the box office does far more frequently without media protest. A day when games willingly explore violence and sexuality and homosexuality and racism and all other subjects that have seemingly been untouchable up to now by the game industry, despite the movie industry tackling today's biggest social dilemmas and getting Academy Awards for it as opposed to ignorant assholes on TV trying to prevent freedom of speech and artistic expression. A day when the world realizes that gaming is the number one entertainment industry because the average gamer is nowhere near his or her teen years, and can not only handle mature topics, but longingly begs the industry for them.

And if I had to pick a single series that I think represents the millions of gamers trying desperately to shove the pendulum back at the idiots of all ages in the media, it would be the Grand Theft Auto series, and I highly doubt GTA 4 will disappoint. Now excuse me while I pick up my copy and find out for myself. Here's Grim with his own Top 10 list of the most anticipated Xbox 360 games of the year.



Grim's Top 10:



10) Castle Crashers

Castle Crashers makes the cut primarily because I can never pass up a good 2D beat 'em up, especially one that's being developed by The Behemoth. Factor in Dan Paladin's drop dead gorgeous art and the notion that you'll be able to play the game online with 3 of your closest buddies, I think Castle Crashers could easily become the king of Xbox Live Arcade. Either that, or Frogger 2 will outsell it and Jeff Minter will laugh maniacally while trying not to spill the llama's blood from his chalice.

9) Mercenaries 2: World In Flames

My love for simulated bloodshed is topped only by my adoration for large-scale destruction, and it pretty much goes without saying that Mercenaries 2 will not disappoint in that respect. If it wasn't for a lengthy delay, we'd all be tearing up a virtual Venezuela by now. Assuming that the extra time is put to good use (and there's no reason it won't be), we'll end up with a more polished and enjoyable experience than was originally set in stone, and a sequel that will hopefully live up to its predecessor.

Brütal Legend

A Tim Schafer game starring an axe-wielding metal band roadie (voiced by none other than Jack Black) who's fallen into an alternate history chock-full of demons and other bizarre-looking creatures? If there's a cooler videogame premise already in existence, I haven't heard about it. While only a few screenshots and a CGI video have been released thus far, the guys at Double Fine have already proven themselves with the sublime Psychonauts, so we needn't be too worried.

7) Prototype

What happens when you combine The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, Grand Theft Auto, and Riki-Oh? You get Prototype, an open-ended sandbox game that has you fighting an elite government organization in a viral-infected New York City. As one of the infected, you'll not only have super-human abilities, but you can also shape-shift and, should you find it absolutely necessary, punch straight through your victim's torso. If that fact alone doesn't put a sinister grin on your face, Prototype isn't going to be your cup of tea.

6) Ninja Gaiden II

Not even the painful memories of Ninja Gaiden's harsh difficulty will prevent me from anticipating Mutilationfest VI: The Bloodening Ninja Gaiden II. Ryu Hayabusa is back, and he's developed the insatiable desire to chop his enemies into tiny, bite-sized pieces, and then slice those pieces into even smaller pieces until there's nothing left but the smell of dried blood and über man-sweat. I can't speak for the rest of you, but as a gore-loving action junkie who's mentally prepared himself for another virtual roundhouse kick to the face, that sounds like a mighty good time.

5) Soul Calibur IV

I was already overly-excited to control revamped versions of Voldo (don't hate!) and Yoshimitsu in Soul Calibur IV, but when Yoda was announced as a playable character for the Xbox 360 version of the game (and Darth Vader for the PS3 version), my anticipation rose to startling new heights. While such a fighting scenario may seem a bit unusual to some, I'd like to take this opportunity to remind you about Soul Calibur's female's nonsensical breasts that are so epic in proportion, you'd be risking your very life to enter the 10' radius that surrounds them. In short, this is one of those games that doesn't need to make a lick of sense to be fun.

4) Resident Evil 5

It isn't known for sure whether or not Resident Evil 5 will be out in 2008 (I've heard rumors of a possible Nov. - Dec. release), but that doesn't mean I can't anticipate it anyway. While little footage and info surrounding the game is available, we do know that RE5 centers around Chris Redfield a whopping 10 years after the events of the original Resident Evil. Additionally, Resident Evil 4's aiming scheme will be used, heat will affect gameplay in some way or another, and while the enemies do possess more intelligence than ordinary zombies, they aren't Ganados. If there was ever a way to build upon the sheer badassness of RE4, I think Capcom can pull it off.

3) Grand Theft Auto IV

A high-definition Grand Theft Auto with more realistic gameplay opportunities than previously thought possible? Count me in! Even after the unwanted controversy surrounding the series and GTA IV's delay, my anticipation for the game has yet to waver. Every so often we see a supposed groundbreaking new game that inevitably falls short of the unrealistic hype it receives from its legion of fans. Grand Theft Auto IV is not going to be one of those titles.

2) Fallout 3

Fallout 3 makes my list because while I could never get into the previous Fallout games, I still found their source material highly intriguing and want to see how Bethesda adapts it. Actually, I really just want to try out the Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System for myself. If you're unfamiliar with V.A.T.S., it's basically a turn-based alternative to standard gunplay that lets you pinpoint your foe's specific body parts and watch them explode in great detail upon using your weapon of choice. The "Burnout with body parts" quote used to describe the system has been etched into my brain ever since I first heard it, and it'll remain there until I can get my hands on Fallout 3 and experience V.A.T.S for myself.

1) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

The Force Unleashed combines Havok, Euphoria, and Digital Molecular Matter to bring us some of the most advanced gameplay mechanics we've ever seen from this generation of consoles. But what exactly does all of that jargon mean? It means the ability to create some truly hilarious situations involving Stormtroopers and those generic metal boxes that future civilizations will apparently carry in large quantities. Above all, Force Unleashed has wood that actually splinters like real wood. Tell me, is your mind blown too?

What about you guys and gamer girls? What Xbox 360 games are you looking forward to the most this year?
Posted by Editorial Team Thu May 01, 2008 4:12 pm
Shadowgrounds Survivor Update Released in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Shadowgrounds Survivor Update Released
Author: valve           valve
Category: Valve news update           Valve news update
Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 02:04:27 -0800
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Special Offer - 50% Off Activision's GUN in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Special Offer - 50% Off Activision's GUN
Author: valve           valve
Category: Valve news update           Valve news update
Publish Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2007 12:50:31 -0800
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SEGA Broadens Distribution and Game Offerings on Steam in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
SEGA Broadens Distribution and Game Offerings on Steam
Author: valve           valve
Category: Valve news update           Valve news update
Publish Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2007 10:06:10 -0800
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Maxthon 2.0.6.8942 Beta in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
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Maxthon Internet Browser software is a powerful tabbed browser with a highly customizable interface. It is based on the Internet Explorer browser engine (your most likely current web browser) which means that what works in the IE browser will work th...

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 13:36:26 GMT
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Yahoo! Widget Engine 4.5 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
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Yahoo! Widget Engine (formally known as Konfabulator) is a JavaScript runtime engine for Windows and Mac OS X that lets you run little files called Widgets that can do pretty much whatever you want them to. Widgets can be alarm clocks, calculators, c...

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 08:49:37 GMT
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Paint.NET 3.20 Beta 2 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Paint.NET 3.20 Beta 2
Paint.NET is image and photo manipulation software designed to be used on computers that run XP, Server 2003 or Vista.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 08:45:28 GMT
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Feed Demon 2.6.0.12 RC in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Feed Demon 2.6.0.12 RC
Looking for a great way to view and manage your RSS feeds from your desktop? Look no further than FeedDemon, the most popular Windows RSS reader.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 08:36:33 GMT
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Posted by Jay Taylor Sat Dec 01, 2007 4:43 pm
SeaMonkey 1.1.7 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
SeaMonkey 1.1.7
SeaMonkey is a web-browser, advanced e-mail and newsgroup client, IRC chat client, and HTML editing made simple -- all your Internet needs in one application.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 08:30:19 GMT
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Core FTP LE 2.0 (Build 1531) in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Core FTP LE 2.0 (Build 1531)
Core FTP LE - free Windows software that includes the client FTP features you need.  Features like SFTP (SSH), SSL, TLS, IDN, browser integration, site to site transfers, FTP transfer resume, drag and drop support, file viewing & editing, firewall su...

Publish Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2007 08:50:14 GMT
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Add Item to Dock 0.0.6 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Add Item to Dock 0.0.6
Add items to the dock from command line.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 PST

  About Add Item to Dock
Add Item to Dock is a flexible, open-source tool, released for the benefit of system administrators, and developers.

Add Item to Dock provides an interface to the defaults program, allowing you to add items to the dock via the command line.
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Posted by Apple Computer Sat Dec 01, 2007 4:43 pm
Second Life 1.18.5.3 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Second Life 1.18.5.3
A world of possibilities — a place where you have the ability to do almost anything you can imagine.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 PST

  About Second Life
In a little over a year, Second Life’s residents have crafted a richly-textured world filled with hundreds of thousands of objects of their own creation. Complex and compelling characters dwell in every conceivable building from whimsical Hobbit-houses to soaring urban towers to a medieval castle where visitors battle giant insects to win treasure. The local zoo features killer whale rides, speed boats ply the waterways, and a resident-abducting alien spaceship has been known to visit — all of it imagined and created by Second Life’s residents. Join for free!

View QuickTime Trailer

Feature: Second Life: Build Anything, Be Anyone, Set Your Own Agenda

Genre: Role-Playing (RPG)
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Mozilla Firefox 2.0.0.11 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
Mozilla Firefox 2.0.0.11
Next generation browsing technology from The Mozilla Foundation.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 PST

  About Mozilla Firefox
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iTunes Dupes Barrier 1.2.0 in Gaming, Arts and Media Downloads
iTunes Dupes Barrier 1.2.0
Allows you to search the duplicate songs inside the iTunes and iPod songs' databases.

Publish Date: Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 PST

  About iTunes Dupes Barrier
Allows you to search the duplicate songs inside the iTunes and iPod songs' databases.
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