Xbox editor Mike Fehlauer said this game looks like Halo, and I think he meant it as a compliment. Most of the game is played in the first-person... read more

Xbox editor Mike Fehlauer said this game looks like Halo, and I think he meant it as a compliment. Most of the game is played in the first-person view through Samus's visor, which offers both heads-up display and scanner abilities, but Samus can also roll up into a ball to negotiate tight spots. What's really cool is that the game shifts to a third-person trailing perspective in this mode, which helps refresh the gameplay. Metroid Prime has some original weapons, such as the grapple beam, wave beam, and freeze beam, and the Big N is promising loads of others, too. The game looked great at the show, but we didn't have enough time to really get used to the controls. --Porter B. Hall (hide)

DOOM Collector's Edition brings together the classic shooter action of the DOOM games. Relive the beginnings of first-person shooter action in Ultimate DOOM, where you'll navigate a radioactive... read more

DOOM Collector's Edition brings together the classic shooter action of the DOOM games. Relive the beginnings of first-person shooter action in Ultimate DOOM, where you'll navigate a radioactive moonbase and blow away demonic aliens. In DOOM II, the aliens have reached Earth, leaving millions dead. Pick up your guns again and fight them off. Then close off the incredible, blood-spattered story in Final DOOM. (hide)

The Galactic Federation's Base Sector Zero is under attack by Space Pirates. As Samus you must boot up the generator to restore the defense systems. But at the... read more

The Galactic Federation's Base Sector Zero is under attack by Space Pirates. As Samus you must boot up the generator to restore the defense systems. But at the end of her path, someone awaits you. If you think you knew what it felt like to be the bounty hunter behind the visor, think again. Take aim at evil with Nintendo's revolutionary controller. You control Samus by moving with the Nunchuk controller and aiming with the pointer, allowing for a level of immersion unlike anything you have ever experienced before. Through the eyes of Samus, you experience a quantum leap in first-person control as you wield the Wii Remote. Samus will employ well-known power-ups like the Grapple Beam and Morph Ball on top of new surprises to help her survive her coming trials. (hide)

This action shooter takes place on a mysterious alien world. It offers a combination of team-based first-person-shooter gameplay (reminiscent of Tribes) and third-person vehicle combat elements. Gameplay kicks... read more

This action shooter takes place on a mysterious alien world. It offers a combination of team-based first-person-shooter gameplay (reminiscent of Tribes) and third-person vehicle combat elements. Gameplay kicks off with the player heading down to the planet's surface in a troop carrier, à la Aliens. As the player and fellow marines exit, the remaining troopers form a flank in reaction to an oncoming onslaught of human and alien enemies.

It's this smart AI system that makes for a noticeably unique gameplay feel. Another very nice feature is the seamless transition into vehicular elements. As you venture through mission objectives, a variety of enemy flyers and on-ground buggies are yours for the taking. Come across a vehicle and the camera will pull back to a third-person view as you strap in and motor through crossfire. A co-op mode allows a friend to join you in the single-player missions. For chaotic fighting action, up to four players can duel in split-screen deathmatch mode or link systems for LAN play. However you choose to hero your way through Halo: Combat Evolved, the action should break in your new Xbox in explosive style. (hide)

Half-Life 2: Game of the Year Edition compiles all the best elements of this incredible game, with all-new player options and even better graphics. Start out with Half-Life... read more

Half-Life 2: Game of the Year Edition compiles all the best elements of this incredible game, with all-new player options and even better graphics. Start out with Half-Life 2, where you return to the alien research facility called Black Mesa. The aliens are now pouring into our world and you'll join the resistance movement to stop them. Battle it out with friends in crazy, realistic mulitplayer action with Half-Life 2 Deathmatch. Then test your tactical abilities with Half-Life: Source -- where the gaming kicks up anotch through the amazing Source game engine. With the Source engine, you get high-resolution textures, detailed character models, realistic physics and lighting, support for up to 64 players, shiny water effects & better objects - creating a more realistic gaming experience. The action continues in bigger, better form with Counter-Strike: Source (hide)

This is the highly anticipated next installment in the Quake series of adventure games. Quake 3: Arena continues the action of the earlier two games but adds more... read more

This is the highly anticipated next installment in the Quake series of adventure games. Quake 3: Arena continues the action of the earlier two games but adds more intense action, surreal graphics, and a phenomenal multiplayer mode. Three player classes (light, medium, and heavy) with their own strength, speed, and armor levels, together with new characters and weapons (plus old favorites, such as the BFG), make this a thrilling first-person shooter game. The game also features body armor and health kits to help keep you alive.

Quake 3 makes for an exhilarating single-player game, but to truly discover what makes this game great, try out the mulitplayer mode for up to 32 players in one-on-one matches or group conquests. (hide)

The award-winning Battlefield franchise invades the high tech frontlines of modern warfare in the new sequel, Battlefield 2. Engage in battle with over 64 players in some if... read more

The award-winning Battlefield franchise invades the high tech frontlines of modern warfare in the new sequel, Battlefield 2. Engage in battle with over 64 players in some if of the largest online battles on PC, as you fight for one of the three military superpowers - the US, the Chinese or the newly formed Middle East Coalition. A variety of solider classes including Assault, Sniper, Special Ops, Combat Engineer, Medic, Heavy Weapons, and Anti-Tank units New state-of-the-art weapon systems, including wire-guided missiles and laser designated bombs Material penetration feature makes sure players know the difference between cover and concealment Character Persistence and Growth. With in-game success, players increase their rank from recruit all the way to General and unlock new weapons, medals, and more Join a squad or select the new Commander Mode to assume the strategic role of a battlefield commander directing his forces Full in-game community support including, buddy lists, stat tracking, live chat rooms, and in-game clan creation Voice over IP supported with headset (hide)

The year is 1943. You are William "B.J." Blazkowicz, the Allies' bad boy of espionage. Your mission is to infiltrate the Nazi fortress and find the plans for... read more

The year is 1943. You are William "B.J." Blazkowicz, the Allies' bad boy of espionage. Your mission is to infiltrate the Nazi fortress and find the plans for Operation Eisenfaust, the Nazi's blueprint for building the perfect army. Captured in the attempt, you're taken to a Nazi prison where you await execution. However, you know where the plans are kept, and the Allies face a great defeat if you don't escape and risk the horrors of the prison known as Wolfenstein. Playing as an escaped prisoner in a Nazi war prison, you will move smoothly through a 3-D world full of guards, snarling canines, and rooms packed with Nazi treasure. With 60 action-packed levels full of secret passages and hidden rooms, Wolfenstein 3D for Game Boy Advance will appeal to audiences from the novice to the experienced.

Note: This is a rare M-rated GBA game, and is not appropriate for those under 17. (hide)

Counter-Strike: Source kicks up the action in the world's most popular online game. It's the same Counter-Strike you've played and loved, but with the enhancements of the Source... read more

Counter-Strike: Source kicks up the action in the world's most popular online game. It's the same Counter-Strike you've played and loved, but with the enhancements of the Source engine. With the Source engine, you get high-resolution textures, detailed character models, realistic physics and lighting, support for up to 64 players, shiny water effects & better objects - creating a more realistic gaming experience.
Become a squad leader in an elite counter-terrorist operative, use new intel and weapon skills to complete an incredible collection of single-player missions. Lead your team in increasingly challenging scenarios -- from harsh jungle environments to severe arctic terrains, unforgiving deserts to dangerous international city streets. Rescue hostages, escort VIPs to safety and locate and defuse bombs. It's all in a day's work, for the world's deadliest soldiers. Downloadable content and new maps for extended gameplay (hide)

Unreal Tournament 2004 is a multiplayer first person shooter that combines the kill-or-be-killed experience of gladiatorial combat with cutting-edge technology. Ten game modes, both team-based and "every man... read more

Unreal Tournament 2004 is a multiplayer first person shooter that combines the kill-or-be-killed experience of gladiatorial combat with cutting-edge technology. Ten game modes, both team-based and "every man for himself," provide even the most hardcore gamer with palm-sweating challenges through unbelievably detailed indoor arenas and vast outdoor environments. As the ultimate techno-gladiator of the future, players will take their fates into their hands, battling against up to 32 other players online in action-packed, frag-filled arenas.

Guns. Lots of guns.

Reload, rev up and ride out. The new Tournament is faster, higher and meaner. Land and air based vehicles take combat to a new level; while an arsenal of new weaponry, daunting arenas and battlefields and the challenge of the Assault and Onslaught modes make the gladiator blood sport of the future a brand new experience. Buckle up; it's gonna be one hell of a ride!

New Modes

Assault Mode - Assault mode returns! Redesigned for UT2004, this fan-favorite mode sees teams face-off to defend and attack fortified bases, from fast-moving trains, barreling across an arid alien desert to a Skaarj mother ship, poised to attack the human home world.

Onslaught Mode- Onslaught mode takes team combat to the next level! Opposing teams are pitted against each other to capture and hold strategic points in order to attack and destroy the enemy power core. Taking place in massive outdoor environments, here is where vehicular combat comes into its own. Flying and driving machines take combatants to the frontline and gigantic mobile battle stations serve as a platform from which to launch devastating attacks.

Vehicles

Take a spin in armor-plated luxury.

Rev-up and ride out in an array of land-, air-, and space-based vehicles that play critical roles in a successful combat strategy in Assault and Onslaught. With vehicles ranging from single man fighters to five man behemoths, Unreal Tournament 2004 provides players with plenty of choices when shopping for a mechanized implement of destruction.

Levels

Docking Bay 94 it isn't.

More than 95 maps will be available immediately, including more than 45 brand new maps for all existing game play modes as well as new modes of play. Vast outdoor environments, deep space combat areas and tightly packed indoor techno-arenas are all waiting for the latest entrants to the Tournament.

Weapons

The entire smorgasbord of frag-dealing weaponry from Unreal Tournament 2003 returns for the experienced player to wield masterfully against new contestants. Those armaments are joined by three new implements of doom: the Mine layer, which disperses spider-like bombs that chase and harass any enemy that comes within range; the anti vehicle rocket launcher, or AVRiL, which deals out a payload of massive rockets tuned to seek and destroy enemy mechanized units; the Grenade Launcher, which launches timed explosives that will bounce on the ground and stick to enemies and enemy vehicles, only to be triggered by the weapons altfire command; and, the return of the notorious Sniper Rifle from the original Unreal tournament, completely redesigned and upgraded to make heads roll.

New Characters

Meet new, interesting people--and kill them.

Unreal Tournament 2004 introduces 32 new characters on four new teams: The human Thunder Crash, lead by Tournament hero, Malcolm; the Robotic Corrupt, lead by an upgraded Xan Kriegor; the Iron Skull, a team of merciless Skaarj warriors; and the Hellions -- reckless human mercenaries and pirates who delight in the thrill of the kill.

New Technology

Unreal Tournament not only brings new content for hardcore fans to relish, it also delivers a tremendous technology update over its predecessor, delivering a faster, slicker, deeper experience than ever before. New technological features include:

• Voice-over IP support - command and coordinate. Give orders, rally your troops or talk smack with the enemy
• Voice recognition - give orders to bots; no more typing when you should be fighting
• Completely redesigned menus, including a new server browser with right-click menus and many brand-new configurable features
• Improved AI: vehicle control, advanced dodging and wall-dodging, improved aim, better team coordination
• Deeper single player mode with comprehensive team management options, challenge matches, multiple endings and more
• Integrated map vote and match set-up for Internet play UnrealTV - a proxy broadcast system allowing a huge number of spectators to watch a match live over the Internet
• Pixomatic software renderer allowing incredible performance with no 3D card required- Play UT2004 on your laptop
• A re-designed HUD, improved weapon effects (bullet decals, incredible explosions), improved first person weapon rendering and innumerable improvements for mod authors, new announcer voices, rendering optimizations...the list goes on!

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Splinter Cell: Double Agent brings back veteran agent Sam Fisher, for an enemy unlike any he's faced before. To stop a devastating attack, he must infiltrate a vicious... read more

Splinter Cell: Double Agent brings back veteran agent Sam Fisher, for an enemy unlike any he's faced before. To stop a devastating attack, he must infiltrate a vicious terrorist group and destroy it from within. For the first time ever, experience the relentless tension and gut-wrenching dilemmas of life as a double agent. As you infiltrate a terrorist organization in its American headquarters, you must carefully weigh the consequences of your actions. Kill too many criminals and you'll blow your cover. Hesitate too long and millions will die. Do whatever it takes to complete your mission, but get out alive. New authentic gadgets, used by NSA government agents in addition to black-market terrorist weapons (hide)

Gears of War, an Xbox 360 exclusive game that blends tactical action with survival horror, thrusts gamers into a deep and harrowing tale of humankind's epic battle for... read more

Gears of War, an Xbox 360 exclusive game that blends tactical action with survival horror, thrusts gamers into a deep and harrowing tale of humankind's epic battle for survival against the Locust Horde, a nightmarish race of creatures that surface from the bowels of the planet. The storyline plays out like a Hollywood blockbuster -- lead character Marcus Fenix pits advanced human technology against the overwhelming Locust Horde. Built around a revolutionary third-person tactical combat system and breathtaking, high-definition visuals from the Unreal Engine 3, Gears of War immerses you in a horrifying tale of war and survival.

Gears of War is harrowing tale that pits humankind against the Locust Horde.

Marcus Fenix and his team battle nightmarish creatures. View larger.

In Gears of War, you must take cover to survive. View larger.

Gears of War presents a focused and well-paced cinematic experience. View larger.

The gameplay is focused on a fire team co-op so advanced that your A.I. teammates are indiscernible from human players. Voice recognition and real-time lip synching heighten the absorbing experience. The Unreal Engine 3 technology brings out the smallest details in the largest of battles. With GOW you're sure to experience a rich, dynamic world where characters spring to life. Speaking of life, the battlefield is a lethal place. To survive, you must suppress your enemy with blindfire, take cover in interactive environments, and use weapons and teammates to outwit your dreaded, inhuman foes. And with a title like GOW, it would be shame if you couldn't get online and challenge live gamers. With the next-generation of Xbox Live, you'll be able to experience individualized matchmaking, view player statistics, earn player achievements, customize games, and build personalized gamer profiles.

Gears of War shined bright at Microsoft's pre-E3 press briefing, but a deeper demo at Microsoft's E3 booth revealed many of the game's mechanics. GOW is built with both the hardcore and casual gamer in mind. But, instead of selecting a difficulty level at the start of the game, GOW offers a choice at the beginning of each level. In the vein of choose your own adventure, you can select between a difficult or easy path. And it's not just a simple choice of battling tougher enemies; each path (explained by a comrade) represents additional content that is crucial to the storyline. After easing your way into the experience of the gameplay with the simpler paths, you can go back and test your skills on the more difficult routes and never feel like you've played through the areas before.

Standing around in the open is likely to get you killed in GOW. You must use cover to survive. With a context sensitive A button function, you won't have to sweat memorizing cumbersome button combos. The A button will:

• Slam you into cover. As you approach cover in GOW simply tap the A button to slide and make immediate use of cover.
• Vault you over the cover. Once you're in cover, pressing up and A will vault you over your cover to engage the opponent or next cover opportunity.
• Evade enemy fire. When you're forced to be out in the open, tapping the A button will engage a roll maneuver to evade enemy fire.
• Activate a "Swat Turn." When taking cover on the side of a doorway, pressing the A button will spin your character from one side of the doorway to the other, helping avoid fire.

Ripping a magazine free and replacing it in the midst of bloody combat is no easy task. GOW simulates this difficult action by forcing you to perfect your reloading skills. To be effective in combat you'll need to allot for time to successfully reload your weapon. Do it well and the battle is yours; do it poorly and you may actually jam your gun. Time it perfectly and you'll earn a bonus with a temporary damage boost. Though GOW clearly showcases a sci-fi experience, its roots are in tactical, realistic combat scenarios. Therefore, running and gunning makes for seriously erratic shooting. Think about what you're doing. Unless wasting ammo is your goal, you better stop, aim, shoot, and then move on. Otherwise, the Locust Horde might swarm you and take your life.

Gears of War presents a focused and well-paced cinematic experience, and nothing ruins that faster than a time-consuming exploration of every switch or button to find the elusive trigger to open a door. This game introduces a "point of interest" button that comes up on the screen so you can immediately interact with the necessary item to move forward in your gameplay. GOW certainly offers drool-worthy graphics, but the mechanics have also received equal attention. Keep your eyes and ears on high alert for a release date, as Microsoft hasn't let the cat out of the bag on when gamers will be able to tackle this great-looking and great-playing title. (hide)

Call Of Duty 2 redefines the cinematic fighting game. It's a complete wargaming experience with more immense, more intense, more realistic battles than ever before. Beautifully rendered graphics,... read more

Call Of Duty 2 redefines the cinematic fighting game. It's a complete wargaming experience with more immense, more intense, more realistic battles than ever before. Beautifully rendered graphics, dynamic lighting and shadows, groundbreaking AI, and choice-based gameplay innovations make this the most intense WWII shooter yet. Go online for Axis vs. Allies team-based multiplayer action, building on the intense Call of Duty multiplayer modes (hide)

Remedy and 3D Realms present Max Payne, a story-driven 3rd person action game aimed for a mature audience. Realistic weapon setup includes over a dozen real-life guns, all... read more

Remedy and 3D Realms present Max Payne, a story-driven 3rd person action game aimed for a mature audience. Realistic weapon setup includes over a dozen real-life guns, all fitting the crime-story setting like a bullet in the head. The action is surrounded with more than 80 hand-painted comic-screens that enhance the game's gritty atmosphere and attitude, introduce the game's murderous cast of characters, and carry the plot from one location to the next. (hide)