"This universe already exists - we just have to open a door." So said DC Universe Online creative director Chris Cao, presenting the game at E3 this week. His team at SOE isn't creating their vision of the DC Universe. They're letting players create their own hero or villain and letting them come inside the DCU as envisioned by Jim Lee, one of the most successful comics artists of all time. You'll see Batman patrolling the streets of Gotham at night, and Superman flying through the skies of Metropolis, and if you're lucky you'll be able to fight with or against these iconic characters as you add your own chapter to the comic book world.

They've got decades of history, beloved characters, infamous villains and settings that some fans no so well they practically live there, but what sets DC Universe Online apart from other superhero MMO games?

Bionic Commando Has Control Issues

"Wow I suck," I thought to myself as I sweated through a demo of GRIN and Capcom's upcoming sequel to the beloved Bionic Commando. The nice gentleman from GRIN guiding me through the level was being extremely patient with me, but I sensed he was a bit frustrated as his simple instructions - run, jump, press A to shoot out your arm and then release when the blue hourglass shape appears on the HUD to signify the optimal angle - were consistently met by me falling into a pit, or off the side of a bridge, or any number of places that you could fall.

"The controls are skill-based," he explained with a smile, taking the controller and easily navigating the part I was having issues with. He made it look so simple, but then I suppose he's logged a few more hours on the game. He tells me that once you master the controls you'll be able to do amazing things. Unfortunately fifteen minutes isn't long enough.

The best thing about going to E3 are the little surprises - games you either didn't know about or hadn't paid attention to that simply knock you off your feet. Blue Omega Games' Damnation is just that sort of game. Due to be published by Codemasters for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, Damnation combines third-person shooting with acrobatics in a unique steampunk setting to create a game that has amazing potential, both online and off.

After wowing the assembled press during the demo of Devil May Cry challenger Bayonetta, the folks at PlatinumGames pulled out a demo of another of their upcoming titles, MadWorld. MadWorld places you in the role of Jack, a brutal killer with a chainsaw for an arm. Varrigan city has been taken over by a mysterious organization known as "The Organizers", who are pitting the city's citizens against a series of mysterious foes in a deadly TV show called Death Watch. Jack must tear his way through hordes of enemies, killing them in creative and humorous ways, earning points to unlock powerups and mini-games as he progresses. Designer Shigenori Nishikawa's plan is to make the violence so over the top that it's humorous, and from what I saw he seems to be succeeding, to a point.

It's Official - Achievements Coming To World Of Warcraft

While most companies were driving themselves crazy at E3 this week, Blizzard quietly confirmed rumors from early last month, officially announcing achievements for World of Warcraft, coming with the next expansion, Wrath of the Lich King. Achievements are broken up into several categories - PVP, Dungeon and Raid, Quests, Professions, Events, World Exploration, Reputations, and the more whimsical General category, which includes an achievement for getting a shave and a haircut using WotLK's new barbershop feature.

Some achievements will carry rewards such as tabards, pets, and other prizes, and Blizzard promises more with each new content update. Players will be able to compare their achievements with others both in-game and via the Armory.

My girlfriend just got her first character to 70 this week, and asked me what she could do now. If she can be patient it looks like Blizzard has an answer forthcoming.

Wrath of the Lich King Achievements [World of Warcraft]

Silent Hill: Homecoming Gets Pyramid Head, PC Version

Earlier this week I watched a Konami rep play through a bit of Silent Hill: Homecoming while we were awaiting the coming of Castlevania creator Koji Igarashi. The quick play through showed off the opening moments of the game, with protagonist Alex Shepherd waking up in Silent Hill and setting off on the search for his little brother. The game looked rather nice in motion, and creepiness immediately ensued as Sheperd's little bro seems to have a penchant for scampering in and out of shadows, a staple of the horror genre since Uggok the caveman drew the first horror cave painting. Note to Alex: your brother might be more receptive to being found if you don't slowly walk towards him with an axe in your hands.

While the demo was cut short by Iga's entrance, two bits of news to come to light. Pyramid Head will indeed be playing a part in the game, and now the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game is coming to PC, as did Silent Hill 2, 3, and 4 before it. What will Pyramid Head do in the game? Not sure, but I'm ruling out the hokey pokey.

Up until my visit to Sega at E3 this week, all I had seen of Obsidian Entertainment's spy thriller action RPG Alpha Protocol was a few screenshots. Yesterday I got a chance to see a demo of the game in action, and I can safely say that fans of BioWare's space epic Mass Effect should be extremely pleased. In fact, had the Obsidian folks at the demo not denied it, one could easily assume the two games were using the exact same engine, with a few tweaks in place to freshen things up a bit.

Oooo, so very close. I sat in on a presentation of Sonic Unleashed at the Sega booth today, and things look pretty much as I feared when I first heard about the game. On one hand you have the daylight gameplay, which features Sonic racing across levels inspired by real-world locations such as Greece and China, alterating between the 3D platforming we know from Sonic Adventure and the 2D perspective from classic Sonic titles.

The sense of speed in the daylight sections is completely amazing. The Sega rep informed us that once Sonic fills up his ring power and boosts he can reach the real-world equivalent of 300 miles per hour. Watching Sonic speed through the levels made my hands ache to get my hands on the controller.

Then the evening comes.

Dante is a pansy. Bayonetta could completely kick his ass. Star of her own eponymous game, the fruit of the partnership between Sega and PlatinumGames, Bayonetta takes the over-the-top melee and shooting combat of the Devil May Cry series and cranks things up to completely ridiculous levels with amazing results.

Bayonetta herself is a sultry, scantily clad witch with long dark hair and glasses. From the way her hips sway when she walks and her poses during special moves you might think she was a pushover, but the twin revolvers in her hands AND on her feet speak differently, and even should those fail, she has some really killer hair.

Resident Evil 5. An eagerly awaited game awash in a sea of racial controversy that seems silly when every morning for the past week I woke up, look out the window, and was greeted by a 200 foot tall advertisement for Tropic Thunder featuring Robert Downey Jr. with his face painted black. I think the gaming public has pretty much moved on at this point, which is nice, because I don't want my hands-on impressions of Capcom's E3 demo for the game sullied by conflict.

The demo starts off with my character (Chris) holed up in a shack with Rosario Dawson.

I'm not sure if it is a good thing that the best MMO at E3 2008 could be a game aimed at 9-14 year-olds, but I am sure that Sony Online Entertainment's Free Realms is a very good thing indeed. There are plenty of free MMOs aimed at the kid market out there, but they all tend to share certain bad traits. Shoddy graphics, poor-quality interfaces, and an overall lack of polish. SOE is taking the social children's game concept, applying a World of Warcraft level of polish, packing it with personality and mini-games, and unleashing it upon the computing family for free. They are going to tear the kid's MMO sector apart.

Funcom - Age Of Conan Reviewable In A Month

I was visiting the Eidos area early, chatting with the man in the Age of Conan t-shirt waving a sword around about World of Warcraft, when a realization dawned on me. I never actually reviewed Age of Conan. I had done initial impressions, but I never deemed the game final enough for a full-fledged review. I asked the PR guy, but as the question left my lips, Age of Conan product manager Erling Ellingsen wandered by. You may remember Erling from the PVP video I posted a couple months back. Yes, he is just as glorious in real life.

So I posed he question to him. "When will Age of Conan be complete enough for a full review?" His answer? "About a month."So there you go folks, directly from the product manager. Age of Conan should be review ready in a month, when the PVP portions are firmly in place.

I really sympathize with Erling here. To have to stand there and admit that your game - already on retail shelves for nearly 2 months - will be finished in a month? This is why he makes the big bucks. Well, that and his awesome hair.

UPDATE: Eidos contacted me this morning to give their side of the story, so in all fairness, here it is. According to them, they were responding to a question about when the PVP update would be implemented, and not my question about when I should review the game. I posed both questions separately and would not have posted the story if I felt there was a question of validity.

Can the dreams of a flower change the world? This is the question explored by flOw creator That Game Company's latest game, Flower. Far from the plant life simulator some imagined, Flower is an enchanting adventure game that explores environmental issues through the subconscious minds of the most unique game characters – potted plants. .

That Game Company director and co-founder Jenova Chen explains that the theme of the game is “Life in Balance.” As reflected in flOw, The company's goal is explore what is possible to communicate through video games, from the complex concept of evolution and adaptation to the power found in a simple potted flower.

Yesterday I was among a group of games press-related folk sitting in on a presentation of Rock Band 2, the next iteration of the smash hit band simulator from MTV, Harmonix, and EA. After being presented with the game's new features and spending some lungs-on time with the title, one thing became perfectly clear – Rock Band 2 isn't about innovation. Rock Band 2 is about tweaking existing concepts and adding a few new ones to try and provide the most complete experience possible. Rock Band 2 is about perfecting the game. From what I've seen so far, they're well on their way.

You saw the complete track list that Leigh posted for the game on Monday? A truly impressive set of songs. Now add the Rock Band 1 music and the DLC, and you've got one hell of an iPod setlist. It looks very impressive plastered across the back wall of the tiny conference room the presentation takes place in, but the main draw is the tiny stage up front, where the plastic instruments await.

It's time for the Take-Two Interactive E3 2008 press conference! What mysteries lie beyond the jump? Will they talk about GTA DS? Will they concede and hand over the company to EA right then and there? Will they...I dunno...talk about an upcoming movie for an hour?

God I hope not.

Capcom E3 08 Press Conference Liveblog - Lost Planet The Movie

Ever since it was revealed that the new Castlevania game for the Nintendo Wii, Castlevania Judgment, would be a fighting game, one question has been on fans' minds. Is that really Fahey standing next to Castlevania creator Koji Igarashi, and why does he look so rough? I am hunching down to try not to tower over Iga out of respect, as he just spent several minutes answering my questions via translator. Questions like, "Why a fighting game?"

Igarashi's answer? It's not a fighting game. See? Simple.