E3 2008: GOONL!NE’s Best of E3 2008 Awards – Jonathan Cullen’s Picks

LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, PLEASE TAKE YOUR SEATS AS THE SHOW IS ABOUT TO BEGIN!

Okay, cheesy and quirky but…meh. So…E3 is now over and say want you want about how crap E3 is nowadays but in fairness, we had some great games, great announcements and one nuclear bomb of an announcement.

We really hope that we could have given you the best of E3 coverage as we possibly could, especially on our YouTube channel (The rankings on the page right now show it)

So…what were the great grames shown at E3, what were the biggest announcements? Your about to find out.

To kick off, we’re going to go with my choices of whats been the great games, find out what they are after the jump.

Best Xbox 360 Game [Playable]:


Winner – Fallout 3

Seen for the first time in public, Fallout 3 was just amazing, the gritty nature of the game in the continuing aftermath of a nuclear war as well as its sense of humor [] plus the depth of the world, developed by Bethesda Games in the aftermath of Oblivion for the PS3 and 360, in Washington DC just make this game a big one to watch out for, it just looks unique.

And if Oblivion was anything to go by, come this Autumn, we’re gonna be in for a massive treat because Fallout 3 may just be like nothing we’ve ever seen before in an open ended game like this (Not even Grand Theft Auto comes close to this now)


Runner Up – Resident Evil 5

Chris Redfield return’s once again in Capcom’s brand new illteration of the popular horror series. With the release of Resident Evil 4 in 2004 for the GameCube and in 2005 for PlayStation 2 being not only the best game of 04 and 05 for many but also being probably one of the best games of all time, people have been waiting for No 5 but at long last, the wait is [ALMOST] over.

Plus, with more and more info getting revealed more often now and with online co-op confirmed to be in the game as revealed at the Microsoft E3 Press Conference on Monday.

Come Friday the 13th 2009, you may wanna get a clean pair of knickers…actually, you may wanna get clean PAIR’s of knickers.

Honorable Mentions:

- Gears of War 2
- Mirror’s Edge
- Fable II
- Banjo Kazooie 3: Nuts & Bolts

Best PlayStation 3 Game [Playable]:


Winner – Resistance 2

Out of all the games shown at E3, this was the best of the lot from Sony. There maybe Killzone 2 but that aint until next February. Resistance 2 will this year go toe to toe with Gears of War 2 to see which game will win this christmas and while Gears of War 2 looks brillant, Resistance 2 would be the favourite.

After launching Resistance: Fall of Man at the launch of the PlayStation 3 last March 2007, it recieved some decent scores between 7/10 – 9/10 but now, having adjusted to the PS3 Dev Kits with Resistance 1 as well as Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction, Resistance 2 looks better then its older brother and looks set to play better, I cant wait to get my hands on Nathan Hale’s next adventure with an in-depth story campaign featuring Hale, a seperate story campaign for up to 8 player online co-op and 60 player multiplayer.

November cant get here soon enough.


Runner Up – LittleBigPlanet

This maybe a game where you’d think this would be for kids 6 and up in all honesty, LittleBigPlanet is for everyone but not just is it a great looking game with a cutesy look to it, it’ll be the most innovitive game not just this year but also this decade.

You get to make your own game in a way with custom levels which you can upload to the PlayStation Network and let other people download. In a way, it aint Media Molocue who arent developing the DLC, it’s you.

Its the cuteness of Sackboy’s plus the fact that you can develop all these levels that makes this game unique. The only limit to the game is how far your imagination can go and I for one anticpate LittleBigPlanet in October.

Honorable Mentions:

- inFamous
- Killzone 2
- Mirror’s Edge
- Resident Evil 5

Nintendo:


Winner – Wii Music

It’s only by default that we’ve put any games you see from Nintendo here as there ware bare enough anything for the Wii shown, let alone stuff for the ‘core gamer. But admittingly, Wii Music does look like an interesting IP from Nintendo. Yes, its not gonna be a Guitar Hero or Rock Band replacement but it does look like a very interesting game.

Shingeru Miyamoto’s next project for the Wii, while nothing on Guitar Hero and Rock Band, should be an exciting prospect for the Wii.


Runner Up – Wii Sports Resort

Again, by deafult its here, but Wii Sports was very popular when the game launched with the Wii a year and a half ago. Now, the new Wii Sports will have new modes featuring Frisbee, Sword Fighting and Water Sking Plus with the prepheral WiiMotion + bundled with Wii Sports Resort when it goes on sale next year. Good times have come again with Wii Sports

Honorable Mentions:

[I'm gonna be kind to Nintendo by adding a handheld game to this list as 1 - Other then them two, it was bare. 2 - There was nothing else]

Grand Theft Auto: Chintatown Wars

Best Non-Playable Game:


Final Fantasy XIII – Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3

It was not only the biggest announcement at E3 but probably also the biggest announcement in the games industry ever/ It was the biggest and best kept secret in all of gaming and also for Microsoft, kind or ironic considering most of their surprises and announcements beforehand for the conference was leaked.

However, what would have made a destrucable nuclear bomb of an announcement would have been that it was exclusive to Xbox 360 but it remains on the PlayStation 3 (In Europe and North America. In Japan, it actually remains an exclusive for the PlayStation 3 at least for now + Final Fantasy Versus XIII remains of PS3)

None the less, while it remains un-playable at least for now, it was an announcement that delivered an killer blow to the PlayStation 3 and delievered some great news to the Xbox 360 in this “Year of PlayStation”

Honorable Mentions:
God of War III
MAG

Best Multiplatform Game:


Winner – Mirror’s Edge

Simply put, it maybe getting the same amount of hype that Assassins Creed and it could be because of that hype that for some it didnt live up to, Mirror’s Edge looks stunning, graphiclly and gameplay wise.

The game, mostly based on parkour, see you play as Faith, a runner who deliever’s sensitive packages unable to be sent through the traditional and normal ways must try to clear her sister of a crime she didnt commit.

As much games as I’ll try to be getting this Autumn, Mirror’s Edge is only one of five games I’ll be getting from release day (Fallout 3, LittleBigPlanet, Gears of War 2, Resistance 2 and Mirror’s Edge) and it is a game I cant wait to play.

Honorable Mentions:

Fallout 3
Resident Evil 5
Dead Space
Rock Band 2

Best Exclusive:


Winner – Gears of War 2

Marcus Fenix is back and by the sounds of things from the new E3 trailer [], he may just have a death wish.

But will he get it? We’ll find out, Wednesday November 7th 2008, when GOW2 is released for the Xbox 360. A continuation of the story from GOW1, co-op returns, a new co-op mode called Horde where 5 players take on a horde of Locust, timeless and harder each time and 10 player 5on5 multiplayer

It goes up against Resistance 2 that November but while its possible that Resistance 2 is the favourite between the two games, Gears of War 2 should not be written off yet. As Cliff Blezenski put it, its bigger, better and more badass…this shouldn’t dissapoint.

Best Game of E3 2008:

To be in this catagory, the game must have been playable on the E3 showfloor (Sorry FFXIII, your not eligable)


Winner – Fallout 3

So…Fallout 3 from Bethesda is the one I have picked as Best Game of E3. Why? Simply put for one reason. We all know Bethesda made a great game with Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and made it better with Shivering Isles but if Fallout 3 is anything + the exclusive DLC for Xbox 360 and Games for Windows, this game should not only meet the expections put so high compared to Oblivion, it should exceed them.

This game is a must buy when it comes out for the XBox 360, PlayStation 3 and Games for Windows. Bottom line: I cant wait for Fallout 3.

Honorable Mentions:

Resident Evil 5
Little Big Planet
Gears of War 2
Resistance 2

So there you have it, my list of the best of E3. I hope this list will give you a helping hand in picking the games you get between this autumn and next July when E3 2009 takes place.