Five Games I Want to See at E3 2009

Like most gamers, I'll be watching this year's E3 unfold from the comfort of my office chair. But the fact that I won't be there doesn't stop me from looking forward to new information about some upcoming releases.

I Am Alive: I've heard next to nothing about Ubisoft's upcoming survival (horror?) game since last year's E3, and Ubisoft doesn't seem to be in any hurry to divulge new info on it--the game's official site still has nothing on it besides the same trailer that debuted a year ago. Granted, the hardcore resource management of the survival horror genre was wearing thin by the end of the last console genreation, but transplanting those game mechanics into a new genre might make them feel fresh again. At any rate, the thought of having to explore a ruined city in the shoes of an average Joe sounds like a cool change of pace from other recent disaster games like Fallout 3 and Infamous, with their focus on leveling up into a super-powerful hero (or villain).

Alan Wake: With Duke Nukem Forever finally having been put to rest, Alan Wake seems to be a strong candidate for the new most sought-after piece of vaporware. The game has been in development since 2005, which isn't that long, but information on the title has never come in more than a trickle. Very little is known about the story, and the one trailer that exists doesn't show anything that looks like gameplay. Hopefully Remedy can pull off a really interesting psychologial thriller in the medium of video games, but right now I'd be satisfied if they announced a release window.

Faith and a .45: This one is a longshot. Back in January, it was announced that Deadline Games' Bonnie and Clyde-inspired shooter was indefinitely on hold due to lack of a publisher. This immediately inspired people to complain that the video games industry was no longer willing to take chances, but for all any of us know, it might also mean that the game was not looking very promising. Since Faith has commonly been described as "Gears of War in the great depression", the latter does at least seem like a possibility (since the world is hardly in need of another Gears clone). Regardless, the screenshots looked beautiful, and the setting is one that has rarely, if ever, been explored in games. However the final product turns out, I'd love to see it get made just to show that there are still unexplored settings out there to be taken advantage of.

Mass Effect 2: Mass Effect was a game I really wanted to like, but which had some problems that kept me from being able to get into it--especially the fact that everywhere I turned, even while I was waist-deep in a firefight, there were crowds of people calling out to me to accept side quests from them. The game was a prime example of what Penny Arcade's Tycho once called "opportunity paralysis". What makes me excited to see more of Mass Effect 2 is the fact that Bioware might have learned a lesson from Fallout 3's superior execution on the same concept. If they can tone down the number of strangers shouting at me to take care of their dirty laundry, I'll be up for giving it a second try.

Capcom's Mystery Title: Capcom has promised to deliver a new title from one of their previously existing IPs, specifying only that it won't be Devil May Cry 5. With most of the company's Japanese staff pulling out of the show due to irrational swine flu fears, there's a chance that the announcement will be put off (maybe until Tokyo Game Show), but that's merely speculation on my part. Capcom has some incredible IPs to choose from, so hopefully this announcement won't disappoint.