Best of E3 Awards

by GD Staff

Now that the video game world's annual look at all that's new and exciting is over for the year, what were the games that stood out above the crowd? What, in short, was the best E3 had to offer?

It was a tough choice. Every year, much of what's shown turns out to be vaporware -- smoke and mirrors designed to fire up the imaginations of conference-goers, and get the marketing ball rolling before the games are even half finished. We've done our best to cut through the hype to the substance - so here's a run-down of the games we think showed the most potential, handily categorized for your reading pleasure.

Best of Show: SPORE (Electronic Arts)

Some games were visually appealing. Some were original. Some had a chance to make it out with the original features intact. None of them, however, were all three of these things -- except Spore.

Spore is the latest concept from Will Wright, creator of smash hit The Sims. It gives players the chance to follow the evolution of an organism from microorganism to intergalactic domination, through a bewildering variety of game styles. What really defies belief, in a show filled with smoke, mirrors, and hype, is that Wright actually seems to have most of the heavy lifting already done -- and there's still a year and a half for his team to tweak and polish the game. To say that we have high hopes of the results would be a huge understatement.

Runner-Ups

Xbox 360 (Microsoft)
The press conference may have fizzled, but Microsoft's new box is definitely groundbreaking in its online component and hardware. We can't wait for November.

Best Action Adventure: SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS (Sony)

The developers of the enchanting PlayStation 2 title Ico prove they're not a one-hit wonder. Shadow of the Colossus was one of the most inspiring games at the show, with its haunting and majestic environments, characters, and animations. The coup de grace is the dizzying boss battle that involves climbing the backside of a giant creature that's half-mechanical and half-organic. All we can say is: give us more, more, more!

Runner-Ups

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo)
Gorgeous visuals, varied gameplay... how can Zelda ever disappoint?

Okami (Capcom)
Be a... er... wolf-god thing in this wonderfully surreal fantasy.

Best Shooter: PREY (2K Games)

Back (quite literally) from the dead, this 3D Realms shooter was cancelled in the '90s. What we saw at E3, though, was most definitely a game of 2005. Or possibly 2006. Shooters with realistic physics are ten a penny these days, but Prey deliberately twists and subverts the law of gravity to produce environments that aren't like anything else we've ever seen.

Runner-Ups

Gears of War (Microsoft)
Gears of War hits all the right buttons with gorgeous graphics, tactical combat, physics puzzles, and cooperative multiplayer

F.E.A.R. (Vivendi)
Does the horror-shooter game better than anything since Undying

Perfect Dark Zero (Microsoft)
It's been a while since GoldenEye, but it looks like Rare still has the magic touch, based on our demo of the multiplayer gameplay

Battlefield II (Electronic Arts)
Battlefield 1942 practically created this genre, and now DICE is bringing it bang up to date with this awesome-looking sequel.

Best Driving: FULL AUTO (Sega)

Fast cars and big guns are definitely a winning combination. Here's Burnout taken to its logical extreme -- heavily-armed vehicles, and the ability to rewind time to avoid (or cause) horrifically graphic accidents. Conference-goers were wowed by the crash physics... not to mention the sheer sadistic appeal of being able to step back in time to deliberately worsen a "racing incident."

Runner-Ups

Burnout Revenge (Electronic Arts)
EA's racing series is going from strength to strength, and this one looks like being the best yet.

Burnout Legends (Electronic Arts)
2005 wasn't a great show for the PSP, but this was one of the standouts.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted (Electronic Arts)
Completing a strong EA racing game showing, Most Wanted puts the cops back into the picture.

Mario Kart DS (Nintendo)
It's Mario Kart on a handheld with wireless multiplayer -- it can't fail.

Best Massively Multiplayer: AUTO ASSAULT (NCSoft)

Fed up with the usual MMORPG sword-waving? Here's something far more original -- massively multiplayer car-on-car combat in a fully destructible environment. Korean publisher NCSoft is doing more to challenge the conventions of online gaming than anyone else, and Auto Assault looks like another winner.

Runner-Ups

Dungeons & Dragons Online (Atari)
An online RPG with mechanics from a pen-and-paper game sounds like a snore-fest, but D&D Online is turning out to be very playable

Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar
The world actually evolves in Turbine's Middle Earth.

Best Role-Playing Game: THE ELDER SCROLLS - OBLIVION (Bethesda)

Morrowind was one of the best RPGs on the original Xbox, and its creators at Bethesda are aiming to make a greater impact on the 360. NPCs are gaining their own routines, priorities, and desires, so rather than stand in the same shop round the clock for months, they'll get bored and go for a nap. How much of this can the team actually pull off? We'll find out later this year.

Best Strategy: COMPANY OF HEROES (THQ)

Fresh from sci-fi real-time strategy stunner Dawn of War, Relic's next project is closer to home. Yup, it's another World War II themed game, but it's been ages since we've seen an RTS this good based on the period. Company of Heroes' superb visuals, real-world physics, and excellent friendly and enemy AI make it one every strategy buff should be watching carefully.

Runner-Ups

Age of Empires III (Microsoft)
You'd have to be the most jaded of RTS fans not to be worked up at the prospect of another Age of Empires game, especially one that looks this sumptuous.

Civilization IV (2K Games)
Firaxis is hard at work fixing Civ 3's shortcomings, and looks to be producing another outstanding entry in the epoch-spanning series.

The Movies (Activision)
Part movie-maker, part management simulation, this creation from game development icon Peter Molyneux is looking well on track.

Best Original Game: NINTENDOGS (Nintendo)

Promising all the fun of a pet puppy (but none of the mess, bills, or mailman harassing), Nintendogs is a brilliantly innovative way to use the DS's touchpad and microphone. Nothing else we saw this year approached the level of personality. Who could resist a portable pet that responds to your individual voice?

Okami (Capcom)
Original doesn't even begin to describe Okami's surreal, watercolor-style visuals.

Spore (Electronic Arts)
OK, so this was probably the most original game at the show, but we had to let someone else get a look in.

Special Mention for Graphics: KILLZONE 2 (Sony)

Sony's press conference held the most tantalizing peek at what we can expect from the next generation of consoles. Everything about the Killzone 2 presentation dripped realism: the particle-based smoke and fire effects, the faces of the soldiers, the flying debris -- what a show. If the game turns out to look even half as good as this, it'll be sure to be at the top of every PS3 owner's wish list.