We've had a few publishers whip their E3 lineups out this week, so we're starting to get a picture of all those publishers and developers packed inside the LA Convention Center next week - but hold up, a few won't cut it. There are over a hundred different companies flocking to show their goods at the Electronic Entertainment Expo - publishers, developers, retailers, game sites, and all sorts of businesses having to do with electronic entertainment. For this edition of our QuickPeek E3 Specials, let's put the spotlight at what some of gaming's hottest companies have in store for us at the expo.

Overall, the April line-up for video game releases were what we could safely describe as abysmal. Not all hope is lost though, as the final week of April 26 brings about an improved stable of games. Kinda. Well, Wolverine's out to save the day, and I say that ought to count for something, right? And Velvet Assassin's painting the town violet, too. Ready to dive in?

If you thought last week was a ho-hum time for game releases, then there's really no other way but to describe this week of April 12 to 18 as worse.  There are a couple of bright spots here and there, however, so you might as well check out the list anyway. You know, just in case something catches your fancy.

Another week of On Shelves, and the major consoles are apparently missing in action. That doesn't mean, however, that there won't be any fun to be had in this week's slew of game releases. Final Fantasy IV will finally be getting its turn in the DS spotlight, for one, and there are several other sports and adventure titles to keep you busy through the summer lull.

Not long after Grand Theft Auto 4 (Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3) rocked the world, and a few weeks before Metal Gear Solid 4 does the same, we're left with several decent titles that can't be dubbed as mere distractions. This week marks the release of Myst on the Nintendo DS, while Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King is set to build a kingdom on the Wii. The rest await at the full article, so hit that jump!

* Article originally posted May 12, 2008 at 12:05AM

For many of us, this isn't really such a big deal. For the purists and hardcore-fans, however, the topic of whether a localized game should be subbed or dubbed is a factor that can potentially alter the entire play experience. We'll be taking a look at this matter a littler further, by way of a feature piece. Check it out in the full article.

 

Some hot titles are hitting the shelves this week, what with much anticipated titles like Heroes of Mana and Luminous Arc finally arriving. EA's explosive Madden NFL '08, which should sell like hotcakes, will also be available on all platforms.

DS owners are getting much love - noteworthy titles include Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon that promises to take the favorite farming game deeper into RPG territory. High School Musical: Makin' the Cut also expands the library by adding a sing-and-dance game for all ages.

Dungeons & Dragons: Tactics. Yet another shot at making a video game based on phenomenal tabletop RPG Dungeons & Dragons, D&D: Tactics faithfully implements D&D 3.5 rules as players follow the story of a young child. Taking either good or evil alignment ultimately decides the ending. Co-op allows players to work together, while deathmatch mode pits them against each other.

• PSP - August 14, 2007
• US$ 39.99
• ESRB T (Teen)
• Atari

Heroes of Mana. Square Enix takes the latest installment in the Mana series to an entirely new direction, turning action adventure into real-time strategy that you'd want on your DS.

• Nintendo DS - August 14, 2007
• US$ 39.99
• ESRB E (Everyone)
• Square Enix

Madden NFL '08. One of EA's biggest annual sports titles returns to all platforms. New in this installment are Weapons, providing players with different specialized abilities at their disposal. Graphics department also received a revamp, and other gameplay tweaks make this year's NFL a worthy addition.

• PS3, Xbox, Xbox 360, GC, Wii, PC, PSP, DS - August 14, 2007
• US$ 59.95  (PS3, Xbox 360), US$ 39.99 (Xbox, PC), US$ 39.95 (GC, PSP), US$ 49.99 (Wii), US$ 29.95 (DS)
• ESRB E (Everyone)
• Electronic Arts

Check out the rest of the titles coming out On Shelves This Week behind the Full Article link below!

 

For an event that reportedly shrank down in order to give even the smaller voices some chance in the spotlight, the new E3's "complete" list of publishers and developers is a bit disappointing to say the least. Only 32 companies (far from last year's 400) are listed in the announcement made available to the press.

The companies are: 1C Company, Activision, Akella, Atari, Atlus, Disney Interactive Studios, Capcom, Codemasters, Crave Entertainment, Eidos, Electronic Arts, Konami, LucasArts, Majesco, Microsoft, Midway, Namco Bandai Games, NCsoft, Nintendo, Sega, Sony Computer Entertainment, Sony Online Entertainment, Square Enix, Take-Two Interactive, THQ, Ubisoft, Vivendi Games, and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.

The reformatted E3 will consist of an exhibit hall in Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, and company-run demos in nearby hotels. Third-party press conferences will be held in a common location while platform holders will have their own bashes. The big three, Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft, are yet to make any announcements regarding the event.

Invitations are expected to number between 3,000 and 4,000 a fraction compared to last year's 60,000.

The new E3 is set to take place on July 11 to 13.