Now that E3 ‘09 has been over with for a couple of weeks, it’s time for the major game critics to come together and decide on what really blew them away. Here’s a look at some of the bigger categories followed by the full list after the break:

GAME CRITICS AWARDS BEST OF E3 NOMINEES:

Best of Show
- Brutal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Mass Effect 2 (BioWare/Electronic Arts for Xbox 360, PC)
- Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Splinter Cell Conviction (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS3)

Best Original Game
- Alan Wake (Remedy/MGS for Xbox 360)
- Bayonetta (Platinum Games/Sega for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Br�tal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream/SCEE for PS3)
- Scribblenauts (5TH Cell/WBIE for Nintendo DS)

Best Console Game
- Br�tal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- God of War 3 (Sony Santa Monica/SCEA for PS3)
- Mass Effect 2 (BioWare/Electronic Arts for Xbox 360)
- Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS3)
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Besides the rediciulously long James Cameron speech and the amount of time focused on casual gamer junk, two things really bummed me out about Ubisoft’s E3 ‘09 press conference: there was no mention of the rumored Beyond Good and Evil 2 and there was no footage of No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle. Well, Ubisoft solved half of the problem by releasing a full trailer (check it out below, it’s amazing), and now they’ve released a short interview with the most original game maker out there: Goichi Suda, otherwise know as Suda 51.

Check it out here! Extended E3 trailer after the jump.
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Seemingly set to follow the tradition of lackluster licensed games, Populous DS
developer Xseed games will drop Ju-on: The Grudge on North America and Europe this October (July 30th in Japan). This “haunted house simulator” for the Wii has two players running around with flash lights trying to spook each other. While some out there have reported that some of the scares are quite effective, this trailer doesn’t do it much justice:

The object of the game is to walk around a house and pick up things while getting scared by ghosts. You are equipped with a flashlight which fades while time passes requiring you to find batteries along the way. If the flashlight completely fades, the spirits will kill you. The controls are incredibly simple: move to WiiMote to move your flashlight and hold B to move in the direction that it’s pointing while using the A button to pick up stuff. The multiplayer mode allows a friend to orchestrate the scares. I’m going to go out on a limb here and just say that this game is going to be horrible. Xseed plans to release the game at a discounted price of “$20 to $30″, though I’m kind of wondering why the game isn’t just released as WiiWare.

While you’re counting down the days until you can get your Grudge, check out this little flash game that’s actually pretty nifty.

1up.com posted a video demoing the new skateboard peripheral for Activision’s next installment in the Tony Hawk series Tony Hawk: Ride. While this most certainly offers a fresh way to play, is it enough to breathe new life into this stale series? (more…)

To me, watching the E3 conferences on G4TV this year was like a football fan watching the Super Bowl (or like me watching the Super Bowl, another thing that people are surprised to see me get into, mainly because I’m a indie rocker/nerd). The Microsoft pre-show was more than thrilling, bringing us Project Natal, Crackdown 2, Modern Warfare 2, and Splinter Cell: Conviction (just to name a few). Ubisoft’s developer conference was a borefest. Assassin’s Creed 2 looked fantastic, but I was really hoping to see Beyond Good and Evil 2. I couldn’t wait to see what Nintendo was going to bring the next morning.

Wednesday morning I woke up bright and early, made some coffee and turned on the TV to see that Sarah Palin looking lady talking about another “Super Mario Bros.” rehash. Not excited. More casual gamer-oriented drivel follows. More Reggie Fils-Aime. More boredom. Finally, some “core” gamer stuff. Mild excitement. Excitement passes. Tears begin to flow. Sleep comes. Heavy drinking. Sleeeep.

I wake up with one thing on my mind: What the hell is the Wii Vitality Sensor?

Here’s a video of Nintendo President Satoru Iwata speaking about this new device: (more…)