E3 2012: Those left behind...

There were some rather unfortunate omissions in the E3 lineup, so I want to highlight those games that weren't represented at any of the conferences.

The one I was most disappointed not to see was Dishonored.  This game has come from nowhere to be my number one most anticipated title this year (now that Bioshock Infinite has been pushed into next February).  You play as Corvo, a supernatural assassin who can use a ton of powers and gadgets to assassinate targets.  This game looks to meld Thief, Deus Ex, Bioshock and the art style of Half Life 2 into an incredible experience with giant replay value depending on how you approach the game.

Despite its flaws, I enjoyed the Zelda/God of War mash-up known as Darksiders.  With the new footage from E3 of Darksiders 2, it looks to improve on the original in almost every way.  I'm wary of the graphics, I know they're going for a more stylistic approach but they really don't look any more refined than what we saw in the first game which is a little disappointing.  Still, the more agile, rogue-like Death looks to play just the way I like to play which is cool.

Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two looks to bring the well acclaimed (besides issues with the camera) Epic Mickey series to every platform out there.  When I first saw Epic Mickey I had to wonder why it wasn't immediately ported to the Move.  After all the Move is basically an upgraded Wiimote.  Still, for Disney fans who don't own a Wii it looks like you'll finally get your chance to experience the magic.

The developers of Metro 2033 lovingly call it their "flawed masterpiece".  I myself haven't played it, but after seeing the intense action/survival horror of Last Light, I might have to.  Interesting weapons, great visuals, intriguing plot and a supernatural element thrown in for good measure.  Sounds like a winner to me.

The new Devil May Cry reboot irked a lot of fans with its redesign of Dante, and after the first look at it I'm going to agree with them, not only because he now looks like an emo douchebag but because his voice is also terrible.  However, it appears the gameplay, the true staple of DMC, is still intact with an interesting black-and-white-and-red take on the devil trigger (supercharged mode).  Personally I loved the Devil May Cry games (and their spiritual successor Bayonetta) even though I was never really good at them, and the story was never the strong point anyways, so I think a wait-and-see is appropriate here.

Borderlands 2.  I was frankly shocked at how little was shown.  Admittedly they've been showing a lot elsewhere, but this one is right behind Dishonored in my most anticipated.  4 new classes, a 5th downloadable class free if you preorder, more guns, more loot, more everything that I loved in the first Borderlands plus more.  Can't wait.

Defiance is going to be a sci-fi MMO with a TV show tie-in on Sci-fi.  What?  Due out in April of next year, the idea is that the actions of players in the MMO will determine how the TV show plays out.  Very curious to see if this kind of model will flop or fly.

Hitman: Absolution ruffled some feathers with its trailer, with shows Agent 47 taking on some scantily clad nuns who then pull out assault rifles and RPGs.  I haven't really kept up with the Hitman franchise but this one looks to keep up the blend of stealth and gruesome kills the series is known for.

The Lost Planet series has had its ups and downs, from the average but enjoyable first game to the poorly received co-op-necessary sequel.  As such Lost Planet 3 was announced with I think very little fanfare.  Thankfully this one is returning to the roots of the series with a more solitary experience, mechs, and giant monsters.  It already looks better than 2, though whether it will live up to and surpass 1 remains to be seen.

There are so many more I think I have to revert to a list of the ones I can comment on:
-Aliens: Colonial Marines.  The only successful Aliens game I know of was the first Aliens vs. Predator, though with Gearbox behind the helm (Borderlands) this could be a lot of fun.
-007 Legends which looks to relive famous Bond moments
-Sly Cooper Thieves In Time.  Enjoyed the Sly Collection, and even though this one isn't being developed by Insomniac it might be worth checking out.
-Lollipop Chainsaw. At first I thought this looked like stupid fun, but the more I see of it the more I think it just looks plain stupid.
-Dust 514, a free to play FPS running concurrently with EVE Online?  Pretty damn cool.-Elder Scrolls Online.  The look of the Elder Scrolls is certainly there, but with so little details released about it it's hard to say whether this will be like Skyrim with tons of other people, or just another MMO.
-Lego Batman 2 and Lego Lord of the Rings
-Papo & Yo.  I have no idea what this game is but it involves trippy Inception-like visuals, jetpacks, and platforming.  Curious to see more.
-Transformers: Fall of Cybertron looks like it might actually be a decent Transformers game.  Just, don't get your hopes up because let's face it, they always look good at first and then turn out to be not that great.
-Guardians of Middle Earth is apparently a basically self-admitted League of Legends clone using characters from Lord of the Rings as the legends/heroes.  Could be interesting, but I doubt it.  I really highly doubt it.
-Injustice Gods Among Us is a fighter with DC characters using the enhanced Mortal Kombat engine.  The DC vs. Mortal Kombat game didn't fare well, but the recent standalone Mortal Kombat came out to high praise, so maybe a standalone DC title will as well.  Wait and see.
-The Unfinished Swan is an indie title where you start in a completely white space and have to figure out what's going on by throwing black paint around.  Very interesting concept.
-Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is essentially a new Studio Ghibli movie that you can play.  Sign me up.
-Star Wars 1313 sets you in the feet of a bounty hunter in the bowels of Coruscant.  Initial gameplay looks like your standard cover-based 3rd person shooter, but the graphics are reaaally good, and hey, it's Star Wars and it looks halfway decent so please don't remind me of Force Unleashed.
-Sleeping Dogs used to be True Crime: Hong Kong before Activision shut it down.  Problem was, the game was nearly done.  So Square Enix snatched it up and is now releasing it as Sleeping Dogs.

There were many more, but doubtful any you care about.  So with that, I'm officially wrapping up my E3 2012 coverage.  I'm out!