Marvel vs Capcom 3 was the first stop at Capcom's booth. The style for the third outing of Capcom's crossover series shares a lot with the recent Tatsunoko vs Capcom on Wii with cel-shaded 3D characters that looked gorgeous in HD. The biggest change in the fighting formula is the addition of a launcher button. This is a one-button solution for sending your opponent skyward for some air combos, and works quite well without destroying what little semblance of balance is allowed in Marvel vs Capcom games. Of course, I had to try out the new additions to the fighting roster, so I pit my team of Chris Redfield, Dante, and Deadpool against one of the Capcom representatives for a healthy beating. Unfortunately, I think he might have been practicing since I was on the receiving end of that beating. Chris is probably my favorite of the new characters, with his mix of close and ranged attacks, while Dante seemed extremely button-mash friendly pulling off some very flashy moves before I even realized what I had pressed. Deadpool I was a little disappointed with, though in later matches when I was fighting against Deadpool he was far more capable, so the issue was likely with me rather than the character's moveset. But what was probably the highlight of my time with Marvel vs Capcom 3 was the level design: specifically the Manhattan level. The Manhattan level takes place atop a float in a big parade, and smack in the middle of the stage background is a giant rainbow pride banner. I tried to ask around about this fabulous inclusion, with the best response being a shrug and asking me back "why wouldn't it be there?" as if there had never been any question or doubt. I'll admit, I swooned a little.

Next up was Okamiden, which I was very excited about being a huge fan of the original. Thankfully, Okamiden will be very familiar for any Okami fans, with the gameplay making a perfect transition to the smaller dual screen. I might even say that the DS sidestory (I was corrected several times when I tried to call it a sequel) controls even better than the original thanks to painting with the DS stylus. Okamiden stars Chibiterasu, the son of Okami's heroine Amaterasu. Riding wolf-back is the son of Okami's blundering Susano, who can be controlled via stylus strokes for solving some new and interesting puzzles. I was told that later in the game using him to solve puzzles would be an integral part of the game including boss battles, which are promised to be more diverse than the first game. And though I know this point has been made time and again, Okamiden is utterly adorable. More than just Chibiterasu, all of the celestial animals return to grant you brush abilities, and they too have been adorable-ified and kept me grinning the whole time while I played.

I then took a look at Bionic Commando: Rearmed 2. I was skeptical about the addition of a jump button in the classic Bionic Commando formula, but in practice it doesn't seem to make the game any easier. It's more of a hop than a jump really, since it doesn't give you much height and is mostly used for climbing over small ledges rather than a replacement for the signature swing mechanics. Since this sequel isn't based on any past game, Capcom has allowed itself to be more free with the level designs this time around, with a greater variety of locales and layouts to take advantage of jumping and some of the new weaponry. There will also be new passive abilities that can be equipped throughout the game, with a health regenerating ability shown in the E3 demo. These abilities can have a pretty drastic impact on the game, but you can only equip one, so there is a huge trade off in choosing the right ability for the right mission. The most lethal of the new armaments in Rearmed 2 is a napalm launcher, which probably caused more accidental deaths than pitfalls and enemies combined. But assuming you can use it properly, it fills an entire platform with fire to ensure that anything that once was living there isn't anymore. If the napalm launcher is the most deadly weapon this time around, Rad Spencer's new bushy moustache would have to a close second. To quote the game's associate producer Rey Jimenez, "As soon as I saw it I gave it as many thumbs up as I could possibly give up. If we could add another inch to the thickness that would be awesome."

Dead Rising 2 stole my attention next as I got a first look at the Xbox Live Arcade exclusive prequel Dead Rising 2: Case Zero. Case Zero takes place two years prior to the event of Dead Rising 2 and sees new hero Chuck Greene stranded in a zombie-infested town trying to build a bike so he and his daughter can get out as fast as they can. The only catch is, his daughter is infected and needs an injection every 24 hours to stay zombie-free. While I didn't get enough time with the game to see how 24 in-game hours play out, it seems like a good compromise for providing tension without the Otis levels of annoyance from the first game. Like Frank West before him, Chuck Greene isn't afraid of playing dress-up in the middle of a zombie infestation, sporting both a sundress and some Daisy Dukes in my playtime. And while the camera is gone, there are a ton of new ways to re-kill the undead for PP, Dead Rising's experience points. Lawn darts are a personal favorite for how they amusingly fall from the sky, but for efficiency nothing beats the new crafting system that can give you powerful weapons like two chainsaws attached to a kayak paddle.

My final stop at Capcom's booth was to see Resident Evil 5 re-imagined using the Playstation Move controller. For anyone who has played Resident Evil 4 on the Wii, you'll feel right at home. Aiming didn't feel as precise at first because I personally didn't feel as comfortable pointing with a large glowing sphere than the Wii remote, but once I stopped thinking about it as a ball and just pretended I had Nintendo's controller in my hand it all felt second nature. I will say that the Move's version of a nunchuck isn't quite as comfortable to hold as I would have liked, since it's a straight tube instead of curving to your hand like the Move itself or the Wii's nunchuck, but the level of control it gives you is a huge improvement over the standard controls with a 360 or PS3 controller.

There was more at Capcom's booth that I would have loved to spend more time with. I briefly looked at Ghost Trick on the DS, which brings Phoenix Wright's witty writing to the realm of spirits as you haunt objects like telephones and cupboard doors to manipulate a series of events to prevent murders from taking place. I also didn't get to spend enough time with Sengoku Basara, which is actually the third game in the series and will be coming to Wii and PS3. From what little I saw it looks a lot like Dynasty Warriors with Devil May Cry's combat mixed in. There's also a character that looks like the X-Men's Juggernaut. With a jetpack. It's going to be a busy buying year for Capcom fans.