E3 is here and well, I’m one of those unlucky fellows who never gets a chance to take part in one of the greatest annual gaming conventions. So far, browsing through the games from various websites, they are looking really good and even if I don’t own two of the current generations consoles (namely the PS3 and the XBOX360), these games look very promising based on trailers and their descriptions from interviews and developer diaries.

Top 10:  Dragon Age: Origins

From the makers of Knights of The Old Republic, Bioware once again unleashes a new single player Role-Playing Game (RPG) that’s sure blow away PC RPG enthusiasts away with top-notch RPG Gameplay. Bioware so far has a great track record especially with RPGs, especially with their amazingly written stories and detailed character development.

Dragon Age: Origins gives the player a choice on how to start his game in the world of Ferelden. From there, the player can basically play the role of any type of character he wants his/her character to be. So far, that sounds like a common idea in RPGs but knowing Bioware, there’s a few tricks up their sleeve that they have yet to reveal. Based on the trailers and screenshots alone, the game looks beautiful and the interface looks to be a classic RPG type that most RPG gamers are used to. If only, they’d stop marketing their game with the heavy metal music, this game could have been more epic in scale. Not that I’m against heavy metal, the music just doesn’t fit too well with the medieval fantasy setting of the game. In fact, it feels like a fantasy B-movie that has high production values.

Anyway,  it looks like Bioware is going to have a blast this E3, since a sequel of one of their hits will appear this E3.

Top 9: Prototype

Sandbox games are the biggest trend right now. The feeling of  having to do anything without strictly following a story is what a lot of gamers are after these days.  I myself have been a big fan of Sandbox games (except the GTA series) like Far Cry 2 and more, and Prototype seems to look real promising.

What’s even better is that you get to be like Wolverine, Hulk and Spider-man all at the same time. Having almost limitless powers that give you the strength, speed, and the skills to kill enemies violently seems to be a great idea especially when you get to do that almost endlessly. So far, the game looks good and the story, even if cliched, sound interesting. So far, the only things that make this game not get a higher spot in this list is because of the shoddy animations and a lot of clipping issues.

Top 8: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2

Marvel is on a roll these days. Eversince starting up the Comic book movie franchise, they had to get into the videogame industry as well. With the success of the first Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Marvel comics comes out with another game and this time the story is based on their best selling crossover of this century, Civil War.

I’m not sure if pitting heroes against heroes sends a good message to kids out there, but to those who are familiar with the story, having the opportunity to play as some certain villains is going to be interesting. Hopefully, even if there are two sides to this story, people will still be able to select their favorite character from either side. Cause if Iron Man is going to be unplayable, count me out. Oh well, at least there’s Deadpool.

Top 7: Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising

I haven’t played any Operation Flashpoint game ever. But hearing some opinions from a friend about the series got my interests peaked. The only reason I don’t play the older games were because they were– well, old.

Upon hearing that a new OF game was coming out, I knew I had to try it. So, I started looking at some screenshots, I think I’m going to like the game. If the game feels as real as I was told, this game is going to be real nice. The classic Ghost Recon series was so good and realistic, I still sometimes play the game a lot. Hopefully, OF:DR will give me that sense of Nostalgia.

Top 6: Mass Effect 2

Bioware is getting real popular these days. Having played only around 2 hours into the first game, I could say that this sequel will be very interesting. The story (based on what I’ve played so far) of the first Mass Effect was so interesting that it puts most Star Wars (maybe even the entire roster of prequels) films to shame. I’m a fan of sci-fi and Mass Effect introduced us to a whole new universe that you can actually explore.

Yes, I said you can explore and entire universe. You can travel from galaxy to galaxy with a bunch of companions to finish the main quest or even a lot of side quests. What’s also good about the first game is that it’s a mix of a shooter and a deep RPG. I just hope most of the videogame press just keeps quiet about the whole “is Shepard alive” thing so that I could play the game again and enjoy it without knowing the ending.

Top 5: Brink

Bethesda are RPG geniuses. They made Fallout 3 even better and more enjoyable. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion was great too. Too bad the characters look like puppets. Now, they bring us Brink. A new tale set in a Sci-fi theme. Lately, Sci-fi games seem to be a trend now. First, horror gamers get Dead Space and RPG gamers get Mass Effect. Now another Sci-fi game enters the RPG arena and hopefully it will be as freeform as Bethesda’s initial hits.

Not much is revealed except that the game looks and feels a lot like Mass Effect. Seeing that Bethesda are very good developer when it comes to first person RPGs, this game will be a sure fire hit. Let’s just hope Bethesda creates prettier characters this time.

Top 4: Batman: Arkham Asylum

The Dark Knight is back and he’s back to get the Joker… again. The Joker seems to be the real star of the Batman universe these days with the release of the Nolan film last 2008. But this game aims to put back the Batman in the throne that he deserves to be.

I’m not entirely sure if this game is based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel of Grant Morrison and Dave McKean, but it sure doesn’t look like it. The trailers so far show great visuals (as most Batman games do) but is the gameplay that good? Most Batman videogames in history either turn out to be really mediocre or really bad. Only a few of them turn out to be good or even a bit above average.

Arkham Asylum looks to beat that curse of bad Batman games with it’s prevew gameplay mechanics and so far it looks like they work. The only problem is they’ve shown so little that those gameplay mechanics are all that we will get. That may cause the game to become repetitive.

So how did this game end up in the Top 5? Well, based on the gameplay previews, the game looks both exciting and full of stealth goodness. And it’s been a while since I played some stealth in the darkness. So, bring it on Joker!

Top 3: Dante’s Inferno

Yes, I know. All they’ve shown so far are cinematics. But those cinematics looks so damn interesting. Loosely based (or not?) on the first part of Dante Alighieri’s Divine comedy, the game takes a God of War like feel to the old prose and makes it somewhat accessible to common audiences. The game’s main character, Dante, goes to hell and tries to find the love of his life Beatrice.

So far, not much gameplay is shown but the cinematics are really top notch. The cinematics alone are a price worth of admission and seeing a more modern concept of the 7 deadly sins plays looks to be real intersting.

Top 2: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

A sequel spin-off from the series of Call of Duty sequels, it looks like Infinity Ward aims to rule the world again with COD:Modern Warfare 2. As I’m currently playing the single player campaign of the original Modern Warfare game, this sequel has got me pumped. The original game (so far) is so cinematic an intense that I get nearly deaf just playing the game. Unlike previous Call of Duty games, the original Modern Warfare has an interesting storyline that’s sure to continue in this second outing.

The best part about this Modern Warfare series is getting to use high-tech weaponry with ease and great cinematic appeal. The issues also tackled in the games seems so current that it would truly give that feeling that we are living in a world full of conspirators and politicians who care more about numbers than ethics.

Top 1: Assasin’s Creed 2

The original Assasin’s Creed broke a lot of barriers in the gaming industry. It broke the barrier of having only one single storyline in a game. It also broke the barrier of only having one theme in a game. It also broke the barrier of linear platform games. Assasin’s Creed was a great adventure hit that it’s ultimate cliffhanger ending was forgivable. Why not? Won’t that mean more?

And that “more” is here. Assasin’s Creed 2 brings us nearer to the present with a new character with more abilities, missions, and challenging features. With Leonardo da Vinci and Machiavelli around, this game is sure to be more intersting as to how historical events could have actually happened with an Assasin’s league that exists. With 16 more new side-missions added to the previous 6, the game is sure to boast more possibilites than ever.

So that’s it, my top 10 most anticipated games to be shown on E3. If you have any violent reactions feel free to comment below.

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