Out of all of the games announced at E3 the one that most interests me is MAG. Massive Action Game which supports up to 256 online gamers. Half are the attackers and the other half are the defenders. Each team has a commander and the rest are split up into squads with a squad leader. This game looks impressive but maybe a little too ambitious.

There are a multitude of problems that have to be overcome in order to make this a good game. The first thing I can think of is the syncing between all the players and the elimination of the lag between all of them. Another is the match making. Finding all these players to create a game will be difficult. Because the maps are so large and the objectives so spaced out, a game that only has say a forth of the total players will not be very enjoyable.

Another problem is the PS3's current voice chat. The mics suck compared to the XBOX 360. Is there going to be the ability to quickly mute a loud mouth breather or an irritating young kid? Can players vote kick players?

What about an incompetent commander or squad leader. Will there be voting to allow the players to remove acommander or leader and be replaced with someone else? What about players that do not follow orders? There are going to be people that will not even attempt the objectives given to them by their commander or leader. The game has incentives for players to complete objectives but they do not have to. If the players do not complete the objectives given to them then what is the point of having commanders or leaders. There should be more consequences to those that do not participate in their team's strategy.

These were just a few problems I saw and have yet to find out of the development team has come up with solutions. I understand that from their point of view it maybe easy to assume that every player is going to be a team player. After all they are working as a team to develop the game, but in the real world not every player is going to be a team player and this could ruin the gameplay for everyone else.

Iam going to try and sum up all of the big releases of E3 2009. With this E3 being the biggest ever I have a feeling that something is going to slip through the cracks.

Nintendo (exclusive titles)

Let's get this one out of the way. I am not a big Nintendo fan but they did release some good stuff this year.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii: brings back the old 2D platformer we all remember and love. This time you can compete with up to four of your friends. Scheduled release in Q4 2009.

Super Mario Brothers Galaxy 2: Is a sequel to Super Mario Brothers Galaxy and for the most part very similar but there are a few new additions to the gameplay including Yoshi. Scheduled release date was not given but is probably going to be Q1 or Q2 of 2010. Nintendo always spaces out releases of their big franchises to keep sales up.

Red Steel 2: I did not play the first game but the concept looks interesting. The protagonist is a katana wielding gunslinger set in a wild west setting. The game utilizes the Wii motion plus controller for the katana and the nunchuck for aiming your gun allowing you to create interesting combos of slashing and shooting. Unfortunately because it is on the Wii the graphic violence is a little lacking. Schedule release date is TBA but will probably be out "early next year" (Quote of E3 2009)

Metroid: Project M: Nintendo also released a new Metroid Prime game called Metroid: Project M which is supposed to be geared more towards hardcore gamers but looks like a very very tame 3rd person shooter. Scheduled release is TBA but will certainly be in 2010.

Dead Space Extraction: This is probably the most hardcore of all the games announced for the Wii. The story takes place just prior to the events of Dead Space. Scheduled Release September 29, 2009 (OMGZ! a release date).

Microsoft (exclusive titles)

Forza Motorsport 3: The next release of the Forza franchise. This time they are going to include more customization options and a video editor to allow gamers to create their own videos and share them with the community. The game also features a new physics engine to allow the cars to actually roll as well as a rewind feature like Grid to allow players to fix their mistakes. Scheduled release October 10, 2009.

Crackdown 2: The sequel to the beloved open world third person crime fighting game Crackdown. This will still include the player's abilities as seen in the previous game but appears to introduce a new kind of bad guy that could rival the player's powerful character. Schedule release sometime in 2010.

Halo 3 ODST: The next installment of the Halo franchise. This time instead of Master Chief the player will control an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper prior to the events of Halo 3. Schedule release September 22, 2009.

Halo Reach: This unknown game will follow up Halo 3 ODST. Nothing is known about this game other than a demo of Reach will be included in Halo 3 ODST. Schedule release Q4 2010, that's right Q4 2010.

Milo (working title): Lionshead studios were the first to create a possible new game using the new XBOX 360 motion capture peripheral Natal. The demo was short but it showed a little boy named Milo and the player can interact with him through normal conversation as well as through the camera. This does not have a scheduled release date.

Sony (exclusive titles)

God of War 3: The last game in this trilogy. The game is supposed to create the feeling that the Gods and the Titans are at war throughout the whole game. In fact portions of the game are actually played on the Titans themselves which causes the environment to shift and change from their movement. Schedule release March 2010.

Uncharted 2: Amongst Thieves: The sequel to Drake's fortune is a third person shooter and features an improvised cover system, multiplayer gameplay and amazing graphics. Schedule release Q4 2009.

MAG: Massive Action Game multiplayer squad based first person shooter. It delivers with up to 256 players. Half of the players will be the attackers and the other will be the defenders. Each side has a commander and the rest are broken up into squads and given squad leaders. Scheduled release in Q4 2009.

Heavy Rain: The Origami Killer: Have you ever wanted to control the FBI agent in a dangerous chase of a serial killer. In Heavy Rain the story is played out as if your watching a TV show complete with the appropriate camera angles. The player interacts with the characters by means of small boxes shown on screen that when pressed will change the course of the narrative, and yes if you screw up the main character in this detective story can die. Schedule release Q4 2009.

The Last Guardian: The most beautiful game ever made. Seriously check it out. This game clearly takes the PS3 to its graphical limits. The game appears to be about a boy who has befriended a massive beast and their adventures. Reminds me of Atreyu and Falkor (Never ending story reference). Not much is known about the game and it has no scheduled release date at this time.

PC (exclusive titles)

Star Wars the Old Republic: Brought to you by the creators behind the Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR) games Bioware will bring you a fully voiced massively multiplayer online game set between the KOTOR universe and the Star Wars movies in a prime time for the epic battles between the Jedi and Sith. Schedule release date sometime in 2010.

Cross platform Titles

There are many

APG: A massively multiplayer online game that will feature the freelance good guys vs the notorious criminals of a massive city. Massive character customization options. Schedule release Q3 or Q4 2009 for the PC and XBOX 360.

Final Fantasy XIII: The next installment in the Final Fantasy franchise. This one has been long in the making and the graphics look great. However the gameplay still looks to be the traditional turn based system seen in the games before. Schedule release Q2 2010 on the XBOX 360 and PS3.

Final Fantasy XIV: Is another attempt at creating a massively multiplayer game based on the Final Fantasy franchise. Not much is known about this game but is scheduled for release sometime on 2010 on the PS3 and PC.

Mass Effect 2: All hail Commander Shepard. This game picks up a few years after the events at the end of the first game and Commander Shepard is presumed KOA. Scheduled release Q1 2010 on the XBOX 360 and PC.

Assassin's Creed 2: Desmond is back and is now reliving the life of another ancestor of the name Ezio of the Italian Renaissance in 1486. Ezio will have the help of a little known inventor and renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci. Schedule release is November 17, 2009 on the XBOX 360, PS3, and PC.

Brutal Legend: Jack Black voices the character of Eddie Riggs a roadie that gets transported into the world of rock album cover art. This game also includes the voiced rolls of many famous rockers including Ozzy. Schedule release Rocktober 13, 2009 on the XBOX 360 and PS3.

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2: Oh Yeah! This is the sequel to one of the best first person shooters ever made. Two exclusive map packs are already scheduled exclusively for the XBOX 360. Schedule release November 10, 2009 on the XBOX 360, PS3, & PC.

Left 4 Dead 2: Sweet! Valve is going to release a sequel to Left 4 Dead. Their reasoning for this is that Left 4 Dead was kind of had a rushed release and there was much more the developers wanted to do with it so they decided to release a second game only a year later. Valve is not known for cranking out sequels so quickly. I'm still waiting for my third episode of Half-life 2. Interestingly enough the game will feature day time modes and not just at night. Apparently zombies can eat your brains during the day too, who knew?. Plus, the player will have the opportunity to saw some zombies in half with the addition of a chainsaw for when you run out of bullets, how considerate. Schedule release November 17, 2009 on the XBOX 360 and PC.

Splinter Cell Conviction: This game looks great. Sam Fisher has gone rogue in order to uncover the truth about his daughter's death. The game has several unique features including the ability to mark targets ahead of time so that when you burst through a door the character can take a few quick headshots and clear a room like you see in a Bourne or James Bond movie. The game also never takes you away from the character. Cinematic and objects are projected onto the environment. The demo showed cinematic being projected onto the side of a building near Sam Fisher. Schedule release date Q4 2009 for the XBOX 360, PC, and DS.

Well I tried. One thing is for sure. From September of 2009 to March of 2010 we will see the release of more big titles than ever before.

The PS3 motion controller looks like it would be more precise than the Natal. It has those wands which have the gyros and accelerometers like the Wii controllers, plus the camera which can record the player's movements along with the additional accuracy of the tracking balls on the controllers for precise hand movements. For video game developers, having a controller to design a game around is easier than developing a brand new and unique control systems using body movements. Also, in some instances it is more immersive to have a controller. For instance in a racing game it is more immersive to have actual pedals to use and a wheel with feedback to interact with than just holding your arms up and miming driving a car. They demoed a racing game on Natal but did not show how the player was using the foot pedals, what if the player's foot is out of camera? In a shooter, a controller is needed anyway or how else is the console going to know when the player uses the trigger. Why not just make a controller that has a trigger and a thumb stick, for movements, that looks like a pistol. This will give the player more control over the game and provide a more immersive experience. No matter what the player will always need at least some kind of controller even if it is just a small remote with one button. I think that Sony is on the right track. The Natal looks like it is good for navigating menus and casual games but ultimately Microsoft is going to need add controllers of some kind to the Natal to make hardcore games possible. Either way they are both aiming to surpass Nintendo's Wii motion. However, nothing they can do can topple Nintendo's hold over the casual market. It is clear that innovation has switched from an emphasis on graphics to the controller and player experience. I look forward what we will see next year with these new controllers.