This article was written before Monday, July 14 and therefore does not contain current E3 updates. More commentary on E3 revelations will follow. Sorry for the delay. We are kinda lazy. =P
Well E3 is coming up soon and I figured I might as well copy all the other gaming sites and announce the five top games that I am looking forward to the most. Unlike some gaming media websites who believe that another Guitar Hero with some updated graphics and billions of more songs to obsess with is something to get excited about (cough IGN cough), I believe that REAL games, not a DDR version for the hands, are the reason to get hyped up about E3. Now before the anticipation explodes into an array of trumpet blasts (sorry, I’m listening to Mars, the Bringer of War by Holst), here are my personal top games to look forward to at this year’s E3.
Final Fantasy XIII – Square Enix (PS3)
Even though I don’t have a PS3, this might as well be the best reason to get one. I’ve never gotten into the whole Metal Gear series and no other games in Sony’s current lineup interest me as much as this game. I admit, I’ve been a fan of Final Fantasy. I thought FFVIII had great gameplay, but the storyline got quite out of hand near the end. FFIX was paid homage to the old school days and was fun to play. FFX was just amazing, changing the formula but still managing to retain its old school roots. Ever since then, Final Fantasy as seem to wind down a bit. FFX-2 was a pure marketing cash-in. FFXI was an MMO (ugh) and FFXII just was too weird, with the new battle system and bleh story. The trailer than Square Enix released for FFXIII looked amazing, but they’ve been recycling the same trailer with a couple of seconds of new footage for each trailer release. Way to be lazy guys. I hope this E3 Square Enix will announce something epic related to FFXIII, or the other games they are developing for not only the PS3, but for the 360 and PC.
Fallout 3 – Bethesda Game Studios (X360, PS3, PC)
I’ll be dead honest with you. I have never played the previous two Fallouts. If you asked me before Fallout 3 was announced what Fallout was, I probably would have guessed a racing game. Since Bethesda Game Studios, my homeboys up in Maryland and mostly known for their work in the Elder Scroll series, are taking on the classical PC classic and adding a bit of Elder Scroll flavor to it. Fallout 3 is going to be huge, creating your own weapons, having up to 50,000 different endings, and other wild various unbelievable super-mega-awesome features. Fallout 3 could be another reason never to leave the house this year and hopefully we’ll see a new trailer or some gameplay footage this E3. On a side note, I heard Bethesda is making an MMO. If they can make the average human addicted to a single-player game, imagine what they will do with an MMO. The world might end. Literally.
Mirror’s Edge – EA / DICE (X360, PS3, PC)
This game has me so excited. I love games that attempt to revolutionize an old and beaten down genre. Now I know its EA. I hate EA as much as the next guy. They’re the super corporation that’s attempting to brainwash our minds into believing that this year’s Madden game is TOTALLY different from last year’s and is necessary to buy it to live. However, it seems as though EA is trying to change their image a bit. They’re sponsored a lot of more unique games that aren’t part of a series or franchise. Mirror’s Edge is just one of several games they have announced. If you haven’t seen the trailer, its almost mind-blowing. I go coo-coo for the whole utopian environment (I used to love 1984 before my transvestite English teacher killed it for me) and the new perspective and almost simplistic graphics could change our expectations for first-person shooters. Now, granted it is EA and DICE and therefore they could totally fuck it up. Not much has been released about this game at all and that actually gives me hope. If its secretive, it might be good. I don’t understand my logic either. Just try to comprehend with me.
Half-Life 2: Episode 3 – Valve Corporation (PC, ???)
WHERE IS IT?!?! WHERE IS IT!! I have never wanted a game to come out this badly. Valve is evil. They end off Episode 2 in a cliffhanger and don’t even give us a brief trailer like they did in Episode 1. I hate you Valve even though I did liked your Orange Box idea. I got the Orange Box for 25 bucks on Black Friday. Greatest deal I ever made, although getting two Dr. Peppers for the price of one comes in a close second. Doug Lombardi has cruelly announced that Episode 3 won’t be featured in this year’s E3, but a little boy can dream, can’t he? Instead, Valve will be showing off their multiplayer survival-horror zombie game Left 4 Dead, which looks phenomenal. Maybe Valve should come up with a package similar to the Orange Box, with Episode 3, Portal 2, and Left 4 Dead. Oh, and Natural Selection: Source. Man that would be sick. I’d call it… the Purple Box. Yeah, that’s what they should do. That wouldn’t be gay at all.
Spore – EA / Maxis (PC)
This game has been promoted for nearly three years and finally it is coming this year. The amount of interactivity of this game is incredible. The Spore Creature Creator has become a game of itself, now boasting its users have created over 1.8 million unique creatures (that’s more than known real species on Earth folks!). This game will be amazing without a doubt. Creating your own civilization from the tinniest molecule to the expanse of space. Whether you believe in evolution or not, this game will be entertaining and one of the many reasons to never go out and see the sun again.
That’s it folks! Oh whoa don’t freak out and yell at me. There are plenty of other games for E3. These are just five that I’m REALLY excited about. A man’s gotta cap it off an article sometime, right? Resistance 2, Banjo-Kazooie, Sonic Unleashed, inFamous, Prototype, DC Universe Online, the list goes on. I have never seen an E3 lineup of this epic proportions. Add all these games with rumors of a new Nintendo DS, new Sony PSP, price cuts, better Xbox Live / PSN / WiiConnect, and more. There is so much happening this E3, my brain can’t comprehend it. Tune into your favorite source of gaming news and make sure to keep in touch with CEREV for our (not so) professional thoughts on the Big Three (Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo) presentations and more.
-Sheel Kumar
