As I shut of my 360 a little after midnight last night, it occurred to me that I had played a lot of different games that day. Now, I play games pretty much every day, but usually I'll max out at two or three -- one I'm reviewing, one someone else is reviewing (gotta lend a hand!), and one for a few hours of late night relaxation. Yesterday, I realized, I played five different games. Not a really big number, granted, but they were all on different systems, so it felt like more. It was a diverse group that made me feel well-rounded in a geeky way, and better yet, they were all kind of fun!

Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars (DS) - Ah, the morning commute. I grabbed a seat on the train and continued investigating a mysterious string of murders that was blossoming into a full-on international conspiracy. After reading Alex Sassoon Coby's review of the game, I got a hankering for some old school adventuring. It's not very tough, but I'm not in it for the challenge. It's fun to just play along with the story, and it helps a lot that the game looks great. Vibrant colors, clever animations, and beautiful settings make this a fun way to start the day.

And Yet It Moves (PC) - Once I arrived at work, it was back to the grind with this delightful indie platformer. I really enjoyed the unique rotation mechanic in this bad boy. It forces you to reorient your sense of spatial awareness, and I'm partial to games that stretch the mind in such ways. To get a good idea for what I'm talking about check out the gameplay video I embedded in the review. And maybe, you know, do some reading while you're over there.

Bit.Trip Core (WII) - Just across the aisle from my desk is one of our capture stations, and Shaun McInnis has this one fired up for a hands-on preview he was working on. Being the helpful (and easily distracted) co-worker I am, I sauntered over to give this one a look-see. I enjoyed Bit.Trip Beat, but the tilty Remote controls weren't as tight as I wanted them to be. Imagine my delight then, to discover that Core has a new control scheme (D Pad and 2 button) that was more my speed. Same crazy fun retro game stylings, but now more quantifiably responsive. High praise, I know. Anyway, the game is rad, and I've been cramming in sessions all day today as well. Still getting fried on Wave 3 of the boss, but soldiering on undeterred.

Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce (PSP) - Yup, you read that right. As I mentioned before, I try to help folks around the office out. Completely altruistic, goodness of my heart and all that. Justin Calvert passed me a copy of this earlier this week, so I took it for a spin when the world-turning platforming got too much for me wee brain. I didn't do much, but I did choose a giant burly man with a mohawk for my character and named him B. A. Baracus. Then I killed some bandits and upgraded some of my skabilities (skills & abilities -- it's a technical term). Fun slashy action, made oddly more fun because I didn't have to kill every last bad guy to complete my mission. Something about just leaving jokesters in the dust makes me feel like more of a baller. Some fools don't deserve my pity.

Red Faction: Guerrilla (360) - I finished up the day by playing a game demo, something I actually don't do that much but still enjoy. I find it kinda interesting to see how a developer chooses to slice away a bitesize morsel of their game for the public to taste. In the case of Red Faction: Guerrilla, there's a timer on the brief mission you undertake, or something like that. I just kind of destroyed a lot of stuff. Swinging that hammer and busting structures to bits is a load of fun. The game seemed a bit more cartoony than it did a year ago when I previewed it, with buildings blasting apart more easily from vehicle collisions and such. More destruction ain't bad, though, and getting in the mining walker (pictured above) was downright hilarious. The thing can windmill its arms and pretty much shred concrete and rebar without breaking stride. So that's what I did. Upon completing the mission there was this zoom-out teaser thingy that showed a sprawling map spotted with objectives and mission icons. It reminded me of Assassin's Creed, and that's a good thing.

So yeah, fun day! I'm off to see Wolverine with some friends and my expectations are low. For the movie, that is. I find it best to work that way in these situations. But before I go, I gotta ask: What's been your busiest gaming day lately?

Cheers!