E3 2008: Star Wars: Force Unleashed

The Star Wars movie series is over, but the brand name lives on, thanks to spinoffs like toys, novels, and, of course, video games. The dozens of Star Wars video games released over the past 20 years have gotten something of a bum rap--after all, the source material inspires such loyalty that a video game made with minimal involvement form George Lucas can't possibly live up to fans' expectations (and yes, a lot of those Star Wars games were pretty mediocre, too).

Aiming to remedy this, and update their product line for a generation used to slick action-packed experiences such as Gears of War and Halo 3, Lucasarts has created a game designed to appeal to adrenaline junkies and Star Wars fans alike. By "unleashed", the game's title indicates that the mystical Force powers used so sparingly in previous Star Wars games are the main star here--and using them to toss enemies around, rip open giant metal doors, and zap lightning bolts from your fingertips is very fulfilling experience, judging from our hands-on time with the game.

At its core,this is a basic follow-the-path third-person action game, where your character (Darth Vader's secret apprentice, if that's important) walks down corridors, finds an open area full of enemies and has to wipe them all out before moving on. Despite the somewhat repetitive set-ups, the game's all-too-brief opening level where you play as Darth Vader himself, is a total kick.

A note for trivia junkies--Darth's familiar guttural tone comes not from James Earl Jones but an amazing soundalike named Matt Sloan, who was discovered playing the voice of Darth's cousin, Chad Vader, in a series of popular internet shorts.

Via CNET Crave

E3 2008: Trend alert--cooperative gameplay

Each year, the selection of games on display at E3 reveals what the hottest current trend in the video game industry is at the time--usually manifesting itself as an overused gameplay mechanic that every developer suddenly feels the need to shoehorn into their games.

This year's big buzzword is cooperative gameplay--meaning gamers play together, but are collaborating, rather than competing, to complete the game's goals. This often happens online, where gamers connect via Xbox Live or the PlayStation Network from remote locations.

We've seen several examples this week of the cooperative gameplay mechanic added to games that don't seem to need it, except as a bullet point on a marketing plan. Resident Evil 5 is adding an online cooperative mode, where players can assist each other in surviving an onslaught of zombie-like creatures. It seems oddly out of place in a game series that has traditionally been a single-player experience designed around building a tense atmosphere through fear and isolation.
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Philips may be hanging with the wrong crowd

Et tu, Philips? Please say it ain't so. Despite all the madness that is the world of gadgetry, the Dutch company has almost always managed to keep above the fray and stay true to its aesthetic sensibilities. Sure, it has lapsed into the bling thing on occasion, but it always seemed to come back to its tasteful origins.

Now we're not so sure. The names alone of its new USB drives--"Robot Naughty Raymond" and "Happy Laura"--are disturbingly out of character, not to mention a jarring departure from the sleek designs that have been a hallmark of Philips products. The latest additions to the company's "Active Crystals" collection are 2GB trinkets, according to Slippery Brick, but they look more like toys from a bubblegum machine.

We fear Philips has fallen under the influence of the wrong crowd. Namely, Swarovski.

Via CNET Crave

E3 2008: Mirror's Edge

Mirror's Edge is a unique first-person game where you assume the role of Faith, a woman constantly on the run. The game offers a graphical style unlike anything seen before, where you must constantly scan your surroundings for items colored in red in order to progress seamlessly. Mirror's Edge is scheduled to be available this year for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.

Via CNET Crave

E3 2008: Resident Evil 5

We first saw Resident Evil 5 at last year's E3, and for a while, we thought there was a chance we'd see it again next year's show--but Capcom has now announced a release date of March 13, 2009, for the latest installment in this bestselling series.

This 13-year-old Japanese horror franchise--about people battling undead monsters created by an huge multinational corporation--has inspired a big-screen movie trilogy and tons of copycat games, but also seemed to be loosing steam until 2004's Resident Evil 4 put it back on the map with an updated action-oriented vibe, and controls and camera angles that weren't a bigger health hazard than a roomful of shuffling zombies (the previous Resident Evil games were infamous for a flaky camera and stiff controls).

The newest installment keeps the over-the-shoulder RE4 gameplay style, but moves the action to Africa, where once again the evil Umbrella Corporation is up to no good. The most surprising new addition may be the game's co-operative mode, where a friend can join your game via Xbox Live or the PlayStation Network and play along as a second character. It seems a bit out of place at first, but co-op gameplay is clearly the biggest buzzword trend of the show, and is turning up in several surprising places.
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