G

Gladiator AD (Wii)
• Publisher: No publisher yet
• Developer: High Voltage
• Release Date: TBD
• What We Saw:
The closed door demo showed two gladiators squaring off against one another in two different arenas, one you're normal gladiatorial pit type arena and one an underground cave featuring some pretty impressive water effects in the shin deep water. Both gladiators were the same for both matches and they looked good, albeit a bit rough around the edges. Players will have the ability to use money gained in fights to upgrade armor and weapons as well as the ability to be merciful at the end of battles or just kill their opponent with these decisions having ramifications as the player progresses through the story. In addition to this, players can choose to take part in private matches in between public bouts, for more money however doing so puts the player at the risk of being at a stamina loss for their “official” bouts. Local, split screen competitive play will be available as will multiplayer, however no multiplayer details were released.
• What We Think:
Brandon: This is definitely a more strategic fighter with swinging and button mashing rewarded with a kick to the groin and a sword in the throat after you lose all of your stamina from flailing around like a crazy person. Bouts go on much longer than most fighters which, along with the rarely used setting could make for a unique fighting game. I'd like to see more of the game's story mode to know how much more to the game there is other than just bout after bout, however it doesn't come out until late next year, so these details probably haven't been nailed down. Fighter games really aren't my thing, and I'm not sure I saw enough here to change my mind on the genre, but the fact that High Voltage is making it means I'll be keeping my eye on it.

Go Play: Street Sports (Wii)
• Publisher: Majesco
• Developer: Digital Embryo
• Release Date: August 2009
• What We Saw:
The first stop at Majesco’s tour was this family-oriented title, the latest in the company’s series of casual party game collections. It’s all about kid friendly versions of street sports like stickball, handball and street hockey, with plenty of environmental mayhem. Definitely the most impressive of the games available was the street hockey title – which brought back fond memories of NES Ice Hockey. It’s a fast-paced 3-on-3 game with no goalies (instead, a blocky traffic cone keeps the net), requiring players to make strategic use of their boosts in order to slam the “goalies” out of the way and score.
Less exciting was the stickball demo, which played a bit like a glorified Wii Sports Baseball rip-off. There was some fun environmental stuff going on (all of the games are set on squeaky clean versions of urban neighborhoods), but otherwise, it was unremarkable. The presentation overall is incredibly colorful and character-based, and the “street” aesthetic is adorably (and comically) overplayed. If you are six years old (and hence a target audience member) you will very likely think this game is incredibly badass.
• What We Think:
Danielle: Games in this category are everywhere on the Wii. So far, this looks like one of the better-polished entries, with the promising hockey entry and several other cool-sounding games in the package (including a soccer shootout). The urban flavor is a unique touch, though the competition from Nintendo’s own Wii Sports Resort and 2K’s kid-friendly lineup will be stiff.

God of War III (PS3)
• Publisher: Sony
• Developer: SCE Studios Santa Monica
• Release Date: March 2010
• Screenshots
• Trailer
• What We Saw:
God of War’s heavy presence at E3 made for interminable, impenetrable lines at Sony’s booth. We were lucky enough to get a private, developer-demoed presentation behind closed doors, and it looks like the Greek myth-inspired action/combat is sticking to the same formula that’s made it one of the most renowned combat/action games of the last couple generations. A few new ideas and additions should give God of War III a bit of new life – enough to suck in new fans and haters alike.
• What We Think:
Mitch: I’m not really into God of War. It’s always felt like a series that involved pressing the square button until the credits rolled, and honestly, God of War III’s combat doesn’t get me excited. The men presenting the game to me basically admitted as much, but credited the simplicity as a major factor for the game’s “accessibility.” Kratos definitely looks awesome as he cuts up his enemies, what with his ability to pull himself into an enemy with his chained blades (in slow motion, no less). But button mashing always seems to follow up with button prompts that take away the tangibility of actually attacking, forcing you to watch an execution instead of taking part. God of War III has amped up the gore significantly, to the point where you can see skin ripping and sinews snapping as Kratos tears off Helios’ head with his bare hands.
What’s cool about the game isn’t the big stuff like the massive scale, flashy fighting and impressive graphical detail. It’s the smaller things that interest me. Using Helios’ dismembered head to blind enemies with its shining light, or using it to look through walls to find secrets is rad; sticking your sword into a Cyclops to drive him around and smash everyone around you changed the pace of a battle that Kratos seemingly couldn’t win; and when Kratos zipped up a massive, crumbling tower with Icarus’ wings stuck to his back I was genuinely stoked to see where it would lead. The sequence was fast, and though dodging falling debris is hardly original, the music’s crescendo just made it feel so intense. It gives you a wider variety of things to do than murdering your attack button for eight hours. I hope this kind of stuff crops up more often, because if GoW III manages to mix things up enough between button-mashing battles then even I’m willing to give it a go.

Gran Turismo (PSP)
• Publisher: Sony
• Developer: Polyphony Digital
• Release Date: 10-1-2009
• Screenshots
• What We Saw:
Gran Turismo was initially slated as a PSP launch title back in spring 2005, but it missed its release window and wasn’t heard from again. Now, just in time for the release of the fourth iteration of the handheld, Gran Turismo is finally coming. Polyphony’s renowned racing sim is always packed with more cars than one person could conceivably drive, and GT on PSP is shooting to have 800 cars. We got to try just a couple.
• What We Think:
Mitch: I’d be floored if I saw 800 cars in a console title, never mind a PSP game. But Gran Turismo isn’t pulling any punches – even though it’s a portable version of the renowned racing series, this game means business. The visuals are expectedly gorgeous yet unexpectedly clear, unquestionably taking home the trophy for Best Looking PSP Game Ever. The representative I spoke with gave me the spiel about GT taking almost five years to achieve the “60 frames per second, from-the-ground-up graphics engine” level of quality. I almost want to say he’s right. GT has the racing chops to match. Cars control wonderfully and realistically, sending you spinning if you hit the wrong patch of grass in a speedy Mitsubishi. It’s slow and methodical like the series has always been, and as someone who isn’t a hardcore car or racing nut, I’ve always found GT to be too technical in spite of being incredible games. I’m ridiculously excited for October anyway, if only so I can trade cars with and race against my dad.

The Grinder (Wii)
• Publisher: TBD
• Developer: : High Voltage
• Release Date: Late 2010
• What We Saw:
We watched a closed door demo of the next shooter coming out of the studio bringing us The Conduit. Improvements over The Conduit were readily apparent, both in terms of the number of enemies available on screen and various environmental effects such as the ability to set fire to the fur of the murderous werewolf bearing down on the game's protagonist. Four playable characters will be available, as will online, four player co-op for those looking to get a Left 4 Dead vibe on the Wii. The game's levels are all streaming, allowing for a seamless transition from area to area and the grindhouse patina that's all the rage with the kids these days is a marked difference from the futuristic sheen of The Conduit.
• What We Think:
Brandon: Well, it's pretty early, but the same graphical and control chops present in The Conduit are on display in The Grinder, so it's hard not to be excited. Adding three other players into the mix as well as online co-op gives me pause as I only saw a single person playing, but again, it's early, and if anyone can pull this game off, I have no doubt that it's High Voltage. At the very least, being able to see a werewolf tear through a crowd of vampires as it tries to kill you is always a thing of beauty as is the Jason Vorhees looking dude who steadily marches at you brandishing dual axed. In true horror movie fashion the developers cheat by having this guy appear behind you once you successfully ditch him, so you're never given a moment to rest which, given the game's setting and the ambiance they're looking for, is a very, very good thing.

Guitar Hero: Van Halen (Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Wii)
• Publisher: Activision
• Developer: Neversoft
• Release Date: August 2009
• What We Saw:
We played the PS3 version of the most-recent-to-be-announced version of Guitar Hero at Sony’s booth. Sadly, the game had not been calibrated and there was significant lag on all instruments. Van Halen’s Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love blared through our headphones as we rocked with three other E3 attendees.
• What We Think:
Mitch: Laggy calibration aside, I was disappointed by Van Halen. I like their music, and I loved Guitar Hero Metallica, but the natural saturation that comes from releasing a countless amount of Guitar Hero titles in a year didn’t help my impression. The most absurd thing to me is the game’s track list – 25 Van Halen songs seems awful low, and even though it compensates with other bands between VH sets it’s hard not to feel like this is a quick cash grab. Like GH Aerosmith was a shoddy port of GH3, Van Halen feels like a rushed version of Metallica with a few new songs. Does this mean the game will be split into one of the two Van Halen eras (Sammy Hagar/David Lee Roth)? Either way, fans are going to be bummed by the missing songs, while everyone else will yawn at the similarities to previous iterations.