Eh, for some games, they need it. I'd rather watch a 20-minute slice of a game that doesn't demo well in short chunks, like Dead Space or Hitman, and get a good idea of how it actually plays and what's cool about it, than some 2-minute sizzle reel, you know? That said, I totally get where you're coming from. I've…

Remember when Medal of Honor wanted to name the Al-Qaeda forces "Al-Qaeda" in multiplayer until the mainstream complained and said it was anti-American to let people play as Al-Qaeda and kill American soldiers?

For marketing purposes, it makes total sense. Don't think about you or I, gamers hardcore enough to be reading this article and thinking critically on this issue; think about the average Joe Schmoe in Walmart. They don't want to see Americans being killed. They don't want to see people we consider HEROES being killed.…

"It doesn't really matter."

Yeah, and look up videos of Arkham Asylum running with PhysX on and PhysX off. It's a ridiculous difference. Watch Dogs has been shown running on a really high-end PC just like 1313 has been, all to make a great first impression.

Eh. For Assassin's Creed 3, they've been talking about how every NPC in the city will now have a purpose. They won't just randomly wander anymore; they'll actually have goals. I just didn't see anything in the Watch Dogs trailer that screamed "next-gen" to me, and I definitely argue that there are current-gen games…

Based on the idea that "if the next generation of hardware isn't a significant step up, then what's the point?"

The Last Of Us was the best-looking game of the show for me. Now THAT was impressive. Star Wars 1313 had a very small area to render and a very high-end PC to run on, and Watch Dogs just... just looked like a PC version of a current-gen game. Look at videos of the PC version of Batman compared to the console versions.…

If that's a next-gen game, that's not good. If you have to wonder whether a next-gen game is truly next-gen or not, it's not a far enough leap forward.

Then make it like how RE6 is taking cues from Journey. Seamless drop-in, drop-out. It only happens once. The rest of the game you're alone. Or maybe they come back later.

I can envision a scenario where co-op Dead Space is scarier: Where it's quiet. Where it's dark. Where you take solace knowing that your bud is with you. And then he's gone. They took him away from you, and now you're both alone. They cut off voice chat. Definitely can't be split-screen multiplayer.

Yeah, but in all those situations, they'd be scarier without other people. I watched Paranormal Activity on my laptop with headphones, by myself, in my dorm at 3am while my roommates were sleeping. Super engaging. I watched Paranormal Activity 2 with people. Not nearly as scary. They did typical stuff like cracking…

You had me at "balance while walking across this log."

At first, I thought that music was supposed to be a joke. Also: "And when the battle raging around you reflects the battle within, the only path back to the light is through the darkness" might be the most cliche sentence I've ever heard delivered seriously in a trailer.

Gotta hit both markets, man.

One word: Jetpack. Play Dark Void and tell me there isn't some real potential in a third-person shooter with some sick jetpack mechanics. And we're finally getting another Star Wars game that isn't in that disgusting, cutesy prequel trilogy art style.

Best news all week.

Can't the middle ground just be not looking at the minimap? Like, not trying to be condescending, but you don't need it for combat unless you're looking for dots. I rarely looked at the minimap unless I was driving and needed turn-by-turn directions, and Saints Row: The Third did great work there, putting the…

That was for the graphic novel, not the game.

The problem with not having enemies on the minimap in GTA is that it's such a different style of game. Max Payne is a linear experience where you're moving from one enemy encounter to the next. GTA is not. It's open-world, and enemies could be anywhere. It's like a fail-safe, having them on the minimap, because it…