BitSnark

Making its long awaited debut was the first in-game footage of Final Fantasy XIII running in real-time off of the Xbox 360 hardware. For those of you who shed some worry over how it would fare on Microsoft’s console, fear not, as the title looked *identical* to the PS3 version, but as always we’ll have to wait for an HD video comparison to really nitpick any real visual differences.

The level that was demonstrated was the one from the PS3 demo and it seemed to run absolutely fine. We were also treated to a summon of the esper Odin (something we were told not possible until later on in the game) as a treat for onlookers. So for those of you who weren’t sure how the 360 version would fare, rest easy, Square Enix seemingly have the situation well in hand.

Final Fantasy XIII was given a release date of Spring 2010 worldwide.

Perhaps the title that has suffered more press leaks than any game ever, Forza 3 was finally made official at E3 and pencilled in for a release this October. The demo gave the audience an impressive display of what the game will bring to the table this Autumn.

These features included a choice of over 400+ cars, a completely reworked graphics engine that allows for proper physics based crashes (the demo showed a crash and a subsequent full car rollover) and extensive customisation of cars beyond anything that was shown in Forza 2.

Oh and it looks very pretty.

The wanton hollering and screaming can now STOP as a sequel to 2006’s darkest horse is due in 2010 and, as rumours correctly suggested, is being coded by new development studio Ruffian Games. Rabid followers of Crackdown will be happy to know that from the trailer that was shown (again all CG) that a focus appears to have been placed on multiplayer and the use of fellow players to achieve key objectives.

As far as the story goes, some kind of virus has torn through the city and it is essentially up to you and your ‘roided up super agent buddies to restore order any way you can.

Not nearly enough was shown about this title, hopefully the further we get into E3, the more crucial details will hopefully become available.

Well when Valve said that they would be at E3, we all hoped that this is what they delivered (as well as some Portal 2 and Episode 3 love), and while the previous two titles may be MIA, Left 4 Dead 2 is thankfully a tangible, visceral reality; and one that is exclusive to 360 and PC owners on November 17th 2009.

The trailer that was shown was CG in nature but still managed to provide a number of informed glimpses as to what the sequel will offer. In terms of setting, the title appeared to be set during the day in what *seemed* to be a crowded Compton suburb in downtown Los Angeles, with the protagonists being predominantly African-American and the locales certainly evocative of the slum ghetto’s that are so much a part of films like Boys N The Hood and Menace II Society.

As far as new weaponry goes, there seemed to be a focus on melee weapons with axes, hammers and the ever enduring icon of zombie destruction; the chainsaw. No other details were currently available, but hopefully we’ll get the skinny on this welcome addition to the 360’s online FPS library sooner rather than later.

Halo: Reach

An in-game unveiling of Halo 3:ODST wasn’t the only thing that Mr. Staten had up his sleeve, oh no. Welcome the newest addition to the Halo family; Halo: Reach.

Being once again developed by franchise stalwarts Bungie, all that was shown of Halo: Reach was a CG trailer of a planet and some ships slowly being destroyed and some obscure radio chatter. Given the moniker of the title, it would be reasonable to assume I think that this is based off of the much loved Halo novel Halo: The Fall Of Reach.

Nothing else of the title is known at this point other than the release date; Autumn 2010 and the little tidbit that people who buy Halo 3:ODST can gain access to the multiplayer beta in Halo: Reach; eerily mirroring the Crackdown/Halo3 Beta situation nearly three years previously.

We always knew it was going to be at the conference, however that fact didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the audience one bit as they were treated to the first in-game footage of Halo 3:ODST.

After a crash landing in Halo’s favourite terran theatre of war, New Mombasa, the demo (provided by none other than Bungie Creative Director Joe Staten) showed us what the Halo universe looks like from a perspective of a soldier less physically gifted than the Master Chief and who relies on squad tactics and gadgetry to win the day.

One of these gadgets is a multi-faceted Metroid-style visor which allows the ODST to switch viewing modes and spectrums, allowing them to see hidden dangers or enemies. In regard to weaponry, ODST’s are outfitted with light assault gear consisting of EMP grenades (useful for knocking out vehicles and installations) light assault rifles and a pistol not at *all* unlike the much beloved head-shooter from Halo 1. A range of heavier weaponry was also shown too, including a modified rocket launcher, mines and a variation of the Spartan laser seen in Halo 3.

Graphically, as one would expect the title appears very similar to Halo 3, albeit with darker environments and what seems to be slightly more detailed character models.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the game on show is the manner in which the narrative is laid out to the player. Players will routinely come across ODST visors left on the battlefield. The deal with these visors is that they store the visual ‘memories’ of the last trooper to have used them and as such when you find one of these visors, you effectively ‘re-live’ the experiences of that particular individual. For example, if you discovered a visor at the base of destroyed bridge and activated its visual memories, you would then be thrust into the thick of the conflict, either protecting or destroying the bridge as the respective mission entailed.

The co-op mode for Halo 3: ODST was also hinted too, known as ‘Firefight’ no details were immediately available, although the mode is expected to get a substantial play through during the trade show itself and this will hopefully yield all the juicy details regarding this mode.

Halo 3: ODST was given a date as well. We can all expect to drop worldwide on the 22nd September 2009.

Confirming what many knew to be true, especially since the leak back in March of an animator listing the project on his CV, Warner have now confirmed the existence of Lego Harry Potter: Years 1 -4. Formats are yet to be announced, but given the series history (of both the Lego and Harry Potter titles) I fully expect it to be on as many formats as humanly possible.

Once again developed by TT games (the team behind all previous Lego license based titles), the title promises to be more of an RPG type affair than the typical block smashing, coin collecting that we have been accustomed to with other Lego titles.

Taking place across the events chronicled in the first four books, the game will allow players to switch between Harry, Ron and Hermonie and will also offer the now standard drop-in/drop-out co-op feature that is a notable hallmark of TT’s Lego titles.

Players can attend lessons, learn spells, mix potions, take part in Quidditch and earn house points all the while exploring famous locales such as the village of Hogsmeade and The Shrieking Shack and involving themselves in major storylines taken from the books. Being a Lego title, we are also ensured the same jolly humour that has punctuated all the Lego titles to date and for once, this is one Lego title that I am actually willing to bat an eyelid over.

Presumably, TT will follow with Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 the year after.

Take a peek at the trailer below:

Using the new CryEngine3 tech, Crytek and EA have announced that Crysis 2 will be hitting console formats as well as the PC in 2010.

Now this is a quite a revelation, as the first game to use this new tech I had assumed would have been a conversion of the original Crysis or a brand new IP; *not* a sequel to Crysis.

Colour me surprised. The CEO and President of Crytek Cevat Yerli had the following to say about the news:

“The development of Crysis 2 marks a major stepping stone for our studio. This is not only the next game in the Crysis franchise, it’s the first title we are developing for consoles and the first title being built on CryENGINE 3. We are excited to have the support of EA Partners again as we work together to make the launch of Crysis 2 a huge event.”

David DeMartini, the Senior Vice President and General Manager of EA partners also had this to say regarding the announcement:

“Nothing speaks more to the success of the EA Partners program than when a studio the calibre of Crytek continues to work with us,” said David DeMartini, Senior Vice President and General Manager of EA Partners. Crytek is already one of the elite PC development studios in the world and we are excited to have the opportunity to partner with them in bringing their award-winning technology and gameplay to more platforms and a wider audience with Crysis 2.”

There will be more on this suprise announcement at E3, whereby our hungry retinas shall hopefully have some Crysis 2 eye candy with which to appease them.

Bioware’s upcoming dark fantasy RPG has at last been given a date. 360, PC and PS3 owners can get their hands on copious amounts of gore, sex, swords and sorcery on October 23rd.

I personally cannot wait for this and hopefully E3 will shed some much needed light on the console versions of this gleefully gritty, adult fantasy RPG.

Developed by Quake Wars developer Splash Damage and published by RPG powerhouse Bethesda, comes Brink; a title in which something known as ‘The Ark’ a so-called milestone in human engineering and science goes wrong, with the predictable end result of people shooting each other in the face.

Given the developer pedigree of Splash Damage, it doesn’t seem likely that the title will be anything else other than a large scale FPS.

The teaser trailer below however, sheds very little on this:

Hopefully Bethesda and Splash Damage will be more forthcoming with details regarding this curious title.