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GamingExcellence's Best of E3 2010
We've scoured the show floor, seen hundreds of games, and made our picks for best of E3.

By Staff, GamingExcellence
Posted June 25, 2010

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Genre Awards

Whether you like shooting the lights out, punching the gas out of the starting line, placing yourself in the shoes of a fantastical knight, or even racking your brain to solve a puzzle, everyone has a favourite genre of game. Every staff member at GamingExcellence is the same way, and here are our choices for the best of each individual genre.

Best Action Adventure Game

Like Elvis once said, "A little less conversation, a little more action." That's what this genre is all about, telling a great a story while moving the action forward with satisfying action and impressive set pieces. All of the games listed below brought those elements together in convincing fashion.

And The Winner Is...

Dead Space 2

From the moment the first Necromorph jumped onto our hero in a terrifying visceral way, we knew we had to get our hands on this frightening little gem. While an evolution, not revolution, of the formula set forth by the first game, Dead Space 2 is clearly a labour of love for horror fans, by horror fans. It's hard to put a finger on what part of the demo blew us away the most, be it the intense action, gorgeous graphics, outstanding production value, the zero gravity freedom, or the sickening gore, but we can confirm that all these things come together in a way that have Dead Space 2 standing head and shoulders above the rest of the competition in the Action Adventure category at E3 2010.

Nominees:

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (Konami / Kojima Productions)
Dead Space 2 (Electronic Arts / Visceral Games)
Mafia II (2K Games / 2K Czech)
Metroid: Other M (Nintendo)
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine (THQ / Relic)
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo)

Best Fighting Game

Video games are all about competition, and what form of competition is more pure than going mano-a-mano with a friend or the CPU? Historically fighting games have been one of the most popular genres in gaming, but have gone stale in recent years. This year at E3 however, we witnessed a resurgence of fighting game quality, if not exactly quantity.

And The Winner Is...

Mortal Kombat

In one of the most stunning turnarounds in video game history, we haven't been this excited about a franchise reboot since... well... ever we guess. The new Mortal Kombat is lean, mean, and quite possibly the most deliriously gory game ever burned onto a disc. It's not all gore and entrails though, as our time with the game has convinced us that 18 years after it's initial inception, Mortal Kombat is finally ready to compete with the mighty Street Fighter franchise is terms of technical depth and skilful game mechanics. Sound the gong, because we're ready to jump into the pit for this one.

Nominees:

Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (Capcom)
Mortal Kombat (WB Games / NetherRealm Studios)
WWE All Stars (THQ / THQ San Diego)

Best Massively-Multiplayer Online Game

The MMO genre has been one of incredible growth for the PC market, both in popularity and, consequently, in developers. Many independent studios are releasing MMO titles under the shadow of the most popular game of the genre, Blizzard's World of Warcraft. From space epics to medieval battles, this genre is all about teamwork with people you'll probably never meet in person.

And The Winner Is...

Star Wars: The Old Republic

BioWare is already the king Western RPGs. With titles like Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect, and Dragon Age already under their belt, they're looking to step into the MMO business in a big way. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have the rich, unending universe of Star Wars at their disposal. Featuring a fully voiced cast, epic story lines for each character class, and solid MMO mechanics, Star Wars: The Old Republic is looking to be one of the most promising MMOs in years - perhaps even great enough to unseat the once untouchable World of Warcraft.

Nominees:

DC Universe Online (Sony Online Entertainment)
End of Nations (Trion Worlds)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (LucasArts / Bioware)
Vindictus (Nexon)
Warhammer 40,000: Dark Millennium Online (THQ / Vigil Games)

Best Music Game

What begun as a small, insignificant genre a decade ago, has exploded and ballooned into a meta-genre that has not only capture the imagination of millions, but even given a significant revenue stream to a music industry that rivals even the mighty iTunes. While strumming on plastic guitars may be getting a little long in the tooth, these titles show that the music genre still has plenty of rocking out left to do.

And The Winner Is...

Rock Band 3

Rock Band 3 blew way past its well-known competitor this year by being the first to cross a major milestone and key argument against these kinds of games: the fact that it can't teach you how to play a real instrument. In fact, some musicians outright declared their opposition to the games. Notable examples include Billy Talent's release of Guitar Villain, the guitar-less version of the Billy Talent III album, and with legendary players like Metallica's Lars Ulrich, Matchbox 20's Kyle Cook, and even Ringo Starr claiming they can't get a handle on the gameplay. Well, Harmonix has thrown out the mold from which was cast too many titles, and has shown the E3 crowd that there's some ingenuity left in the genre. They've created a plastic guitar with (about) 21 fret buttons throughout the length of the neck, add added a two-octave keyboard that can be played either as a 5-button standard control, or with the full 16 keys in "pro mode". If that wasn't enough to wow disenchanted fans, they've managed to convert a real Fender Strat into a Rock Band controller, using some kind of adapter that probably measures the frequencies produced by the instrument. The "pro mode" for the guitar now has six strings displayed vertically, with tune-accurate fret numbers coming down the appropriate string. It won't instruct any form to your playing, but it's a very exciting start. Plug in the Strat and blast away that-other-title-that-shall-remain-nameless into oblivion.

Nominees:

Dance Central (MTV Games / Harmonix)
Patapon 3 (SCEA)
Power Gig: Rise of the SixString (Seven45 Studios / Music Maker)
Rock Band 3 (MTV Games / Harmonix)

Best Platformer

While music games might be one of the newest additions to the video game market platforming games are one of the biggest staples of the video game market. From early examples like Donkey Kong and the original Mario Bros. these games have found their way onto almost every gamers shelves at some point. Having grown far beyond their initial humble roots there is still a whole lot of innovation at play in this well respected genre.

And The Winner Is...

Epic Mickey

Officially announced late last year, Epic Mickey is being developed by Warren Spector's Junction Point Studios and is a Wii exclusive release.

With a unique art style, and the entire Disney archives to build upon, Epic Mickey is an extremely rich platformer with some RPG elements thrown in. Set in a fantasy world called the Cartoon Wasteland, Epic Mickey brings back classic Disney characters including Mickey's predecessor, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. What makes Epic Mickey so innovative is the unique paint and thinner system used to solve puzzles, you'll move around the Cartoon wasteland using thinner to remove elements from the world, or add paint to create new objects or fight off enemies. You can also white out characters (but they won't like you much for doing it). This is one of the first games to redefine Mickey's squeaky clean image, exposing a more mischevious side of his personality. Epic Mickey is a very creative platformer that will offer something for all ages, and will be a real treat for Disney fans.

Nominees:

Donkey Kong Country Returns
Epic Mickey (Disney Interactive / JunctionPoint Studios)
Kirby's Epic Yarn (Nintendo)
LittleBigPlanet 2 (SCEA / Media Molecule)
Sonic Colors (SEGA / Sonic Team)

Best Puzzle Game

If it doesn't make you stop and scratch your head once in a while, it's not nominated in this category. There's tons of puzzle games out there; from web-based arcade games to high-profile behemoths, many developers have realized that the human brain is attracted to problem solving. What sets our nominees apart is their ability to present problems in creative news ways and get those gears spinning, without boring you to death.

And The Winner Is...

Portal 2

What started out as a game released in a bundle with already established game franchises as a safety net, quickly broke away from the pack and became a phenomenon. Portal was given massive praise by nearly everyone who touched it. From the solid portal puzzles to the character, GLaDOS; every aspect of it reached cult status. Now Valve is returning once again to Aperture Science to bring us a whole new slew of puzzles. Portal 2 is bringing back all the things fans loved from the first one and is even adding more items to make the puzzles even more challenging. With gel that makes you run faster and jump higher, new characters you'll be laughing your socks off at and the return of your homicidal robot captor, Portal 2 will be a tough puzzle game to match.

Nominees:

Portal 2 (Valve)
Puzzle Agent (Telltale Games)
Super Scribblenauts (WB Games / 5th Cell)

Best Racing/Driving Game

It's simply human nature to compete, and the purest form of that competition is racing one another. Gamers being the competitive beings that they are, it only makes sense that the racing genre remains one of the most popular amongst casual and hardcore gamers alike. From unrealistic arcade thrills to the uber-realism of the simulation spectrum, racing games came back in a big way at E3.

And The Winner Is...

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit

There were quite a few good contenders in the driving category this year, but Need for Speed raced into pole position with ease. The reasoning is really quite simple: the game is pure fun, on a "party like it's 1998" scale. Hot Pursuit holds true to the gameplay and mechanics of the franchise favourite of the same name (or more accurately the 1999 title, High Stakes). It's the classic tale of cops and robbers, but this time it's on consoles and in HD. Expect the same over-the-top racing action from either side, in a vast open world that dissipates any hope of road blocking the obvious bottleneck in a fixed track. In our uber-connected world, the developers saw fit to add challenges through an "auto-suggest" feature based on the successes of your friends, such that even single player racing never gets dry... but we all know the real fun (and bragging rights) will be found in eight-player online configurations of your choosing.

Nominees:

Driver: San Francisco (Ubisoft)
F1 2010 (Codemasters)
Gran Turismo 5 (SCEA / Polyphony Digital)
Motorstorm: Apocalypse (SCEA / Evolution Studios)
Nail'd (SouthPeak Interactive / Techland)
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (Electronic Arts / Criterion Games)
Twisted Metal (SCEA / Eat Sleep Play)

Best Role-Playing Game

Role-playing titles have deviated heavily from their late-80s definition that Final Fantasy started. Nowadays, role-playing games share elements of many genres, but there's always a unifying element of customization, of choice, and progression of strength through the completion of goals.

And The Winner Is...

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

The Witcher was a game that looked to redefine fantasy gaming, drawing on the source material of the Polish novels to create a dark, mature fantasy world where your choices had some real consequences. The sequel brings all that and more to the table, with an improved combat system, more choices and characters, all while streamlining the gameplay to make it less obtuse and easier to play. There're also more options for customizing Geralt, as well as a easier-to-learn alchemy system. Built on a new engine, it was the RPG of E3, though unfortunately behind closed doors. For any fans of the genre, it's definitely going to be a big game to look forward to.

Nominees:

DeathSpank (HotHead Games)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Square Enix / Eidos Montreal)
Fallout: New Vegas (Bethesda Softworks / Obsidian)
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (Nintendo / Camelot)
Hunted: The Demon's Forge (Bethesda Softworks / InXile)
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings (Atari / CD Projekt Red)
Two Worlds II (SouthPeak / Reality Pump)

Best Shooter

The shooter genre has come a long way since the days of Wolfenstein 3D and Doom back in the days of DOS and 386 computers. What is likely the most crowded and popular genre in all of the industry, competition is always tight and this year's E3 was no exception. It was a massive firefight between these titles.

And The Winner Is...

Homefront

What must a shooter do to get voted ahead of leading franchises like Gears of War and Killzone? Small variations on the pervasive themes in the genre would certainly not edge out these storied war veterans. Instead, relatively young developer Kaos Studios seeks to raise the bar by which shooters are measured, and has rightly succeeded so far. Homefront not only laughs at shooters with weak back stories rapidly assembled to provide a mildly interesting setting, it cracks "yo mama" jokes at them it its sleep. Simply put, this game has the most developed fictional story and setting, which imbues the gameplay with uncanny realism and player immersion, in part due to the plausibility of the events described (we said plausible, not realistic). Combined with a conceptual gameplay mechanic engineered to involve the player in unprecedented first-person action sequences deserving of blockbuster Hollywood movies, this boxed adrenaline overdose will eagerly leave you breathless and plugged in 'til the end.

Nominees:

Bulletstorm (Electronic Arts / Epic Games)
Gears of War 3 (Microsoft Game Studios / Epic Games)
Homefront (THQ / Kaos Studios)
Killzone 3 (SCEA / Guerrilla Games)
Rage (Bethesda Softworks / id Software)
Red Faction: Armageddon (THQ / Volition)
Spec Ops: The Line (2K Games / Yager)
Vanquish (SEGA / PlatinumGames)

Best Sports Game

Why go out and play a real sport when you can do it in the comfort of your living room? Okay, moral obligations require us to remind you that playing sports is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. Still, these titles bring together the best aspects of their respective representations of their chosen sport in some of the best ways possible.

And The Winner Is...

NHL 11

NHL 11 was one of hidden gems at EA's E3 booth this year. A lone demo station sitting in the corner of an un-labeled room it stood proud. The franchise has dug deep to completely revamp the engine, the same one that drives EA's Fight Night games. Real-time collisions, broken sticks, a new face-off mechanic, better stick-handling abilities, and of course the ability to grow a beard during the playoffs.

Nominees:

EA Sports MMA (EA Sports / EA Tiburon)
Madden NFL 11 (EA Sports / EA Tiburon)
Mario Sports Mix (Nintendo / Square Enix)
NBA Jam (EA Sports / EA Canada)
NHL 11 (EA Sports)

Best Strategy Game

Though problem solving is inherent in all games, strategy games are less about shooting your way out of tough situations than thinking your way out. Naturally, this still leaves a world of possibilities open to developers of the genre and opens the doors wide to a variety of titles.

And The Winner Is...

Civilization V

If there's one thing that Sid Meier knows about, it's strategy. The Civilization series has been around since 1991, offering players the ability to bring a society up from the stone age into the modern era. Civ 5 doesn't do much in terms of reinventing the wheel, but it does look much more accessible than previous games in the series, and is able to maintain its depth and complexity at the same time. Featuring 18 civilizations each with their own unique leader, a revamped combat system, and much smarter AI, Civilization V is shaping up to be a must-have for PC strategists.

Nominees: