Nintendo Wii
It's safe to say that Nintendo really stole E3 this year, from the reported four-hour wait to play the new Wii console, to how impressed most critics were with the system. Even Sony's pathetic attempt to throw in tilt-sensor technology in their "redesigned" controller couldn't steal Nintendo's thunder. It's a good thing that the Wii was recieved so well, because this is exactally what Nintendo had to do to convince people that their new direction wasn't a bad one. The Nintendo Wii console is the one thing (among many) I really want this fall. It's going to throw gaming into an exciting and innovative new direction, and it's also going to be the console that will be the easiest on our pockets (although I really wish price was revealed). Sure, the new name is strange, but I want the system for the gameplay, not the name.
PlayStation 3
Although I just criticized Sony for pathetically stealing one of Nintendo's concepts, the PS3 still does seem pretty attractive. Without a doubt, the graphics are the biggest draw of the system, although really that doesn't make a great system. But the PS3 does have strong support from thrid party companies, as well as a pretty good first party lineup (although they could have done more with the GTHD demo). The system will also double as a Blu-Ray disc player, which will run similar in price to just stand alone units. You won't have to go without a hard drive like the Xbox 360, but there are still two flavors of PS3's: one with a 20GB hard drive, and one with a 60GB hard drive and additional hookups and Wi-Fi support. But, the price is far from right. The cheapest system will be $499, while the high end version will be $599. While Sony has been dominant for two console cycles, will the sticker shock scare off gamers? We'll wait and see.
Red Steel (Wii)
It was the first game ever shown for the console before E3, and it seems to be an interesting shooter that really offers a level of control not seen in other first-person games. The game doesn't look too bad, while not on PS3 levels, it's certainly better than I expected.
ExciteTruck (Wii)
This one is a bit of a suprise from Nintendo. They said they were working on a racing game, but who knew it would be off road trucking? ExciteTruck looks to be a very fun racing game, although it does look like an off-road Burnout (and that's a complaint?). The sense of speed looks great, the game offers some dynamic, changing environments during the race, and it looks to be pretty addictive. Like Wace Race 64, it may be the one game that you didn't know you wanted at launch.
Mercenaries 2: World In Flames (Next Gen)
I really liked the first Mercenaries, and I was hoping Panedmic was developing a sequel, and it turns out they are, but for next gen. Not too much has been revealed about the game, but it looks great so far, and if the gameplay is anything like the first, it will be fun as hell.
Forza Motorsport 2 (Xbox 360)
Another game I wish they showed more footage for was Forza Motorsport 2. From what has been seen, it looks nice (although according to one who has been working on the game says that the actual game looks better than the demo shown). Micorsoft is promising more cars and courses, more customization, and what appears to be an option for importing images for cars. Microsoft says this one will be on shelves this fall, but if history has shown us anything, don't be suprised if Forza 2 is delayed until May 2007.
Super Mario Galazy (Wii)
It's been almost four years since Mario's last 3-D platforming adventure, but Galaxy is going to take platforming to a whole new place. The game looks pretty great on the system, and the control is said to be very intuitive. It may not be a launch title, but it's still worth waiting for.
Gears Of War (Xbox 360)
Microsoft is really hoping this will be the game that moves systems like Halo did for the old Xbox, and it might just be that game. The game looks better than it did the last time we say it in 2005, but the framerate still needs to be ironed out. But this shooter does look very promising, and very bloody.
Star Fox DS (Nintendo DS)
This is one of the best looking games on the DS so far, and it's a bit of an unexpected suprise. Hopefully, this will have all new stages, rather than a port of the N64 version.
Ridge Racer 7 (PS3)
It's not a proper Sony console launch unless a Ridge Racer game is available, and Namco will deliver once again with RR7. The game promises to have some innovative online features, but hopefully it will be just as fun offline, too. Also, let's hope that the graphics are going to be better than RR6 on the Xbox 360, which was said to look like an Xbox game.
