Genre: Sports
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: EA Canada
Release Date: Q4 2006

Behind closed doors at EA's booth, you can see interactive setups of EA's 2007 sports lineup - that is, if you're as cool as we media-type people are. You can also see the PS3 Tiger Woods demo up close and personal. (I thought it was a video feed from the back room. I still do, and distrust anyone who says otherwise.) This isn't about the PS3, however.

Tucked away in a back room even further out, was a game that was still earlier in its development

Genre: Role-Playing
Publisher: BioWare
Developer: BioWare
Release Date: October 20, 2009

RPG fans have already experienced Bioware's storytelling expertise in titles such as Baldur's Gate and Knights of the Old Republic. When Bioware announced the development of Dragon Age, it helped the prolific RPG developer break out from the shackles of having to work within someone else's IP. Mass Effect's runaway success has already proven that the developer can easily stretch its legs beyond its former work, and with Dragon Age: Origins, it's ready to do the same within a world of dark fantasy.

At E3, a playable

Get the Ar Tonelico trailer off WP (32mb)

Banpresto's PS2 exclusive sim RPG, Ar tonelico, marks a new approach to the RPG genre by seamlessly combining simulation with role-playing. Gamers can not only customize weapons and items, but now design their character’s personalities, skills, and appearance through virtual interaction. Also past events will intersect with future game play as well as the outcome of the game.

Ages ago, the world was like any other. But, two apocalyptic wars changed everything. The sky has been sealed off by a deadly electromagnetic field and the ground is now an ocean of

Genre: Racing
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Turn 10
Release: October 29, 2009

I didn't know what to expect at the Forza Motorsport 3 demo at E3, and not only because I haven't played the previous two iterations, but because we weren't actually told beforehand that the hush-hush appointment would be the Forza 3 demo. After checking out the game and chatting with one of the lead designers, though, Forza 3 certainly looks to be an impressive piece of work.

The developer immediately set forth the very interesting argument that there is no such thing as "arcade" versus "simulation"

Set in the realm of Greek mythology, God of War 3 is a single-player game that allows players to take on the climatic role of the ex-Spartan warrior, Kratos, as he treads through the intimidating heights of Mt. Olympus and the dark depths of Hell once more to seek revenge on those who have betrayed him.

Genre: Shooter
Publisher: Playlogic
Developer: Metropolis
Release Date: Q4 2006

As far as original plots go, a battle raging between good and evil with one man stuck in the middle is not terribly unique or interesting, but fortunately, Infernal is better than the plot might suggest.. Infernal has an interesting stand on the typically stark, concrete concept of good versus evil. The main character, Ryan Lennox, was once a member in the army of good, fighting for those above, until he was deemed a liability, struck from the ranks and left to roam the earth. Shortly thereafter,

Get the Blade Dancer trailer off WP (24mb)

Dread Knight, the evil dark knight that killed the legendary hero Blade Dancer in the Great War, has appeared once again. The reappearance of Dread Knight signals the rise of the demon empire, which threatens all humanity. Now Lance, a young knight with mystical powers from the land of Foo, and his fellow comrades must rise to stop Dread Knight and his army of darkness.

In Blade Dancer: Lineage of Light, players will take on the role of a young hero named Lance and travel the full 3D real time world

Genre: Adventure
Publisher: Lucastarts
Developer: Lucasarts
Release Date: Q3 2009

Adventure games are a bit of a niche genre. Compared to many other games, they focus on crafting an interesting and enjoyable story and don't require a tremendous amount of natural skill to play. Some adventure games take themselves incredibly seriously, such as the classic CD-ROM title, Myst, but the titles that are most fondly remembered by gamers are ones that had a sense of humor, such as Grim Fandango and Sam & Max, which are infinitely quotable and fun to replay. The Secret of Monkey Island was

Genre: Adventure
Publisher: City Interactive
Developer: City Interactive
Release: Sept. 2009

City Interactive is a relatively new publisher, especially in North America. While they have been doing PC games since 2002, this is the first year that they've started on consoles with a few games for the Nintendo platforms. Among the games that they demoed at E3 was a DS iteration of their recently established adventure game series, Chronicles of Mystery. The game showed off just enough to potentially be a fun romp through a genre that has earned its resurrection on the Nintendo platforms.

Chronicles of Mystery: Curse

Naruto Shippuden: Clash of Ninja Revolution 3 is a classic 3D fighting game featuring new and improved gameplay mechanics and multiple gameplay modes, 40 3D environments to choose from, including nine completely new stages, over 30 characters, and for the first time, includes Wi-Fi multiplayer capabilities.

Genre: Action/Adventure
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Release Date: November 17, 2009

The first Assassin's Creed left me a bit cold. It was a visually stunning game with silky-smooth controls and lots of interesting ideas, but it also had enough flaws to be solidly average at best and tedious at worst. I was understandably hesitant when I went to see Assassin's Creed 2 during E3. Fortunately, Assassin's Creed 2 appears to have been designed entirely to counter every almost every criticism leveled against the original game. From the moment the demo began, I found that every

BioShock was one of the more interesting games to hit in the past few years. A pseudo-sequel to the cult PC hit System Shock, it combined survival horror and first-person shooter elements in an interesting and exciting way.

Genre: Action Role-Playing
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Vicarious Visions
Release Date: September 15, 2009

It's hard to make a good superhero game but nearly impossible to make a good superhero team game. Characters like Superman, Spider-Man or The Hulk are hard enough to make work when the entire game is focused on them, but trying to put a bunch of heroes into a single game usually leads to iffy results, such as the lackluster Justice League games. The one notable exception to this has been the Activision superhero titles, X-Men: Legends and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance. The two games

Genre: Action
Publisher: LucasArts
Developer: LucasArts
Release Date: Q4 2007

Normally, the most anemic demos at E3 are the demos of the games too early in their production cycle to be playable. Often, they're not demos so much as trailers, and while seeing footage of a long-anticipated game like Final Fantasy XIII, Halo 3, or Smash Brothers Brawl can be elating, the high eventually ends, and you realize that you don't really know much more about the game than you did before. One of the most depressing E3 experiences possible is to lay hands on a long-awaited title

Genre: Action/Adventure
Publisher: Eidos Interactive
Developer: Avalanche Studios
Release Date: TBA 2010

The original Just Cause had some big ideas. It thrust gamers into a gigantic tropical sandbox and invited them to tinker with some interesting gameplay mechanics. Unfortunately, glitches and an overall lack of variety kept the game from being anything above mediocre. There was the potential for a truly unique game, but it was buried under the repetitive gameplay. Fortunately, Just Cause 2 looks to be anything but repetitive. In our brief demo at E3, we got a glimpse of a handful of the game's

Genre: MMORPG
Publisher: Funcom
Developer: Funcom
Release Date: Q4 2006

Conan: Hyborian Adventures is an upcoming MMORPG from Funcom, the makers of Anarchy Online. At E3, I was able to take a look at the latest build of Conan and get a detailed overview of the game's character creation and combat systems.

For those unfamiliar with the title, Conan provides an interesting blend of the genres of action/adventure, strategy and MMORPG. At its heart, it is an action RPG, placing players in the role of a hero among the barbarian tribes in the Conanverse. Combat is

World of Zoo takes players beyond the fences and into their own zoo, allowing them to care for and build relationships with numerous animals through hands-on interactive gameplay.

Ninja Gaiden Sigma is a remake of Ninja Gaiden Black, with an improved combat system, updated graphics, new weapons, and the ability to wield dual katanas.

Get the Spectral Souls Trailer off WP (12mb)

In Spectral Souls the player will switch between the three opposing kingdoms to play the Royal Demon Kingdom, the Imperial Army, or the Rebel Army. Depending on how you progress through the game with each of the forces, the story of the game will change. A vicious circle of violence has erupted. The battle torn continent of Neverland is caught up in a great war between good and evil once again. Now, three young soldiers rise to put an end to this madness once and for all.

Geo battle system that adds new depth and strategic possibilities to the combat by altering the actual battle conditions. Another revolutionary feature is the Dark Court system where the good are punished and the evil are praised. In the Netherworld, you can never be too evil. Whether you love the innovative battle system or the massive character and item customization system, Disgaea 2 will fulfill the darkest needs of gamers today.

“Disgaea 2 is an evolutionary title created with the help of many people, including our fans. We really appreciate the support and I simply hope everybody will enjoy

Mercury Meltdown

Genre: Puzzle
Publisher: Ignition Studios
Developer: Awesome Studios
Release Date: September 2006

Mercury Meltdown is the sequel to the acclaimed PSP game, Mercury, which plays sort of like Marble Madness with a few twists. For those who do not know what Mercury is, it's a really simple yet complex puzzle game that can really challenge players of all ages. The objective is to move as much mercury from your starting point to the goal, with several physical challenges that will require you to think outside the box to get there. This title is great to take on the road and