#FF00AA

Presumably concluding this blog’s coverage of E3…

• Mass Effect 2: I’ll judge the graphics upgrade when I see it running on my own screen, but the interesting point is that it looks like they could be keeping their promises that the sequel would be more realistically playable like a shooter. (If you want. And I do.)

• Castlevania Lords of Shadow: Nice graphics, nice cast. (Damn, I ought to buy it just for Natasha McElhone!) But I know now that God of War 3 is gonna be too good for any clone-ish game to be relevant.

• The Agency: Not showing anything very new, but it just feels like it could be fun (if you forget the pretense that it’s an MMO). As for any game of this type, though, success won’t depend on graphics, or ping, or whatever, but on how well it enforces cooperation among a group of assholes.

• Aliens vs. Predators: I like the multiple view modes and the way you select where to jump, but it looks like your Predator uncloaks automatically every time you use a weapon, or even your blades; I understand the necessity for balancing, but it looks like you have to re-cloak manually each time and that’s idiotic.

• Split Second: It’s quite pretty (the on-car HUD is a nice gimmick… that might not be so usable) and might even be fun, but I’ll forever despise the absurd conceit.

• PixelJunk Shooter: I was very much seduced by the videos of Eden, but this time I just don’t get the point. Probably hard to judge that way.

• “Crysis 2 pushes PS3 to limits”: I don’t know how realistic it is that a relative newcomer to the platform could assess how efficiently they tap the hardware, but I’m more interested in the fact they don’t mention the Xbox. The PS3 is supposed to be so much more powerful than the 360; if it’s maxed out, what does the same game look like on the other platform? (And why aren’t I paid by a magazine to roam the E3 floors if I’m the only one thinking to ask?)

• Invizimals: I love everything having to do with augmented reality, but that’s a particularly smart implementation (even though I have no interest at all in a Pokémon-like game).