22. Rock Band 2 - Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, TBA EU
It's Rock Band with a big number 2 at the end, so we know what that means. It's more of the same, but tweaked and refined, but considering the small matter of the original being one of the best games ever, that's absolutely all we ever wanted. There are 100 songs out of the box, and with the ability to port over most of the original game's play-list and the obligatory, seemingly-endless DLC, you're never going to run out of things to do. And if you do, there are always the improved online modes and the option of actually learning to play real drums to get on with too.
23. Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip - Wii, Christmas Worldwide
All versions of Shaun White are looking good right now, but we wanted to draw particular attention to the Wii version. With the Balance Board enabled, it's a fantastically tactile and thrilling experience once you calibrate your feet. Controlling movement, jumps and tricks with tilts of your body and flicks of your feet is as close to a real snowboarding simulator you'll ever get in your living room, and although cartoonier than their high-def counterparts, the graphics and art design are crisp and endearing.
24. Skate it - DS, 17th Nov US, 20th Nov EU
We've only had brief hands-on time with the DS version of Skate, but we're already excited. Drawing movements across the deck illustration on the bottom screen to pull off tricks seems a strange concept before you try it, but in practice it's an incredibly instinctive experience. As long as the full game makes proper use of the control scheme's potential, we're going to lap this up when it arrives.
25. Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix - Xbox 360, PS3, TBA
The justified hype over Street Fighter IV has left its downloadable ancestor a little over-looked lately, but forget about it you certainly should not. SSFIIT is the pinnacle of the SFII series, but this newly rebalanced, hand-drawn HD edition is actually going to improve on it with new moves, pimped-out characters and artwork that makes it feel like playing a comic. It's late for release already - we originally expected it over summer - but earlier in the week we were told by Capcom that it's still "89% probably" coming out this year.
26. Tomb Raider: Underworld - Xbox 360, PC, PS3, 18th Nov US, 21st Nov EU
Yawn. Aren't we sick of Tomb Raider by now? Well no, no we're not. You see with Underworld, we look to have the most dynamic entry the series has seen in ages. Lara's movement and combat flows better than ever, and a concerted effort has been made to loosen up the rigidity the games have been maligned for in the past. This is a tooled-up, tricked-out Croft for the modern gaming era, and she's looking very slick indeed this time around.
27. Tom Clancy’s EndWar - Xbox 360, PC, PS3, 4th Nov US, 7th Nov EU
If it plays as well as the demos we've seen indicate, EndWar could do for console RTS what Halo did for FPS. The voice-activated control seems accurate and easy to use, and the way that the game combines it with a detailed third-person action game perspective makes EndWar seem an incredibly accessible and immersive experience. This is RTS with a friendly, familiar face. Hands-off strategy dressed up as hands-on action. We can't wait to mic up and give it a proper try.
28. World of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King - PC, 13th Nov Worldwide
Every time that talk kicks up about leaving WoW, Blizzard throws up another reason to stay. And here we go again. There's a new level cap of 80, a new playable class in the form of the Death Knight, and a whole new continent to explore in the shape of Northrend. Blizzard hasn't exactly been lazy with the additions this time, and the obsession is going to be instant come launch day.
E3 '08's biggest games reviewed NOW
10 minutes to play, 10 minutes to write - we brutally judge totally unfinished games after scant first looks
Why wait? Leipzig's biggest games reviewed NOW!
Knee-jerk reviews after ten minutes' play-time. As is only right and proper
