Since I know that many of you are clamoring for more details on the mysterious XCOM, we'll start with this interesting series reboot. The producers on hand said that the original X-COM was all about terror, the fear of not knowing what's around the corner. This new interpretation of the series takes this concept and applies it to a story-based FPS experience. Players are cast in the role of William Carter, a man who finds a strange alien artifact that leads to the formation of XCOM, an organization that researches studies aliens and their technologies. The demo I saw started out in the bustling and hidden XCOM offices with Carter chatting with fellow field agents, choosing a mission (from a very familiar looking map), and even stopping by one of the engineers desks to check out the latest gadgets developed with the help of alien technology. The mission selected for our demo was responding to an emergency call from a suburban family. Once Carter arrives on the scene things get eerily quiet as he looked around for signs of life, that is until the alien black blobs show up. Now as much I thought the enemies presented here were absolutely silly (and not very interesting), everything leading up to their introduction was filled with tension and an effectively creepy set up. Nearly everything about the tone and storytelling reminded of Bioshock. I'm not talking about the deliciously 50's vintage setting (though, that does help), but rather the gunplay, pacing and presentation. The demo concluded with a hint at a bizarre boss made up of cubes that looked like it belonged in Rez. Before we could see how Carter would combat something like this, the screen faded to white and the game's logo appeared. Everything about this demo was a little odd, in both positive and negative ways. I have a feeling that this isn't a title that will never demo well in a noisy environment like E3 since it relies on mood and atmosphere so heavily. It's still way too early to say if this is one of the best reinventions ever or one very strange misstep for the highly respected series. However, what this demo did do quite well was ensure that players keep talking and debating this highly controversial title.

Up next was Civilization V. While not too much has changed since the last time I saw the impressive looking strategy title at GDC, we did get a longer look at the Revolution-influenced interface, new leaders, and more information on the adaptive notification system which alerts players to major world events in a very facebook styled way. New to E3 was the reminder of and first look at full steamworks integration, which was a very welcome surprise, and our first look at city management in Civ V. While past titles would require players to manually make adjustments in order to raise funds and discover technologies, the next entry in the series allows players to make a quick selection from a list of options to optimize city resources towards a particular goal. Players can still go through individual options just like they always have, but this new option makes things run a lot smoother. For a game that gets stereotyped as tasking players to manage frivolous details, its little improvements like these that go a long way in building a new, more casual-friendly experience in Civ V.

The last game that I saw at 2K's booth was for SpecOps: The Line. I'll be honest, when I entered the demo room for this game I was not looking forward to it. "Great, another third person shooter filled with manly men playing pretend war... just what I want!" I thought to myself. While it might not be my traditional cup of gaming tea, after only a few minutes into the demo I found myself caught up in German developer Yager's unique take on a squad based action. Most of the gameplay featured in the demo was the typical fare you would expect to see in the genre: Player and AI buddies take on waves of bad guys, there's a cover system you should use, and you can get into some close quarters fighting. It's all fairly standard stuff, right? What was not standard about all of this were the unique setting and storytelling options Yager showed off. Set in a near-future Abu Dhabi after a nearly apocalyptic sandstorm, US troops are sent in to help stabilize the once pristine city. But not everything is as it seems as two factions (one possibly headed by a group of US soldiers) begin to compete to control the city. Players take on the role of Captain Walker, who's been sent into the city to find and rescue key military personal missing in action. While moving through the city Walker and his men witness the absolutely devastated exteriors and still maintained interiors as they search the city. This striking visual design isn't just there for looks as the boatloads of sand covering the city can be used to take out enemies by shooting out windows and supports. Placing a focus on a hard military story, players and Walker are going to face some extremely tough choices in The Line as they run into situations that can either jeopardize the rescue mission or cost them the lives of innocent civilians. Finding their own moral and ethical "line" along the way is something that developers at Yager hope players think long and hard about long even after the game is over. Seeing some of the ways these choices are presented to players in the demo, it's hard to imagine that this won't stay inside player's heads. At no point before E3 did I expect that one of the most thought provoking and oddly stylish games of the show would be a military squad based shooter, but SpecOps: The Line blew me away not with its action, but story driven consequences that are up to the player.