E3 '10: Get Loud With WB's Mortal Kombat And Fear 3

I could tell I was in for a treat today just walking up to the Warner Bros. booth. Even before walking through the theater doors I could the eruptions of laughter, shouts, and shrieks of terror. For anyone to hear anything on the floor is one thing, to hear crowd reactions from afar is quite another.

The first game that was shown was the recently revived Mortal Kombat. To say that this game is disgusting, gory, down right filthy is an understatement. Don't get me wrong; watching this game in action was an absolute delight. Fans of the first three games will delight in the subtle and not-so-subtle call backs to the previous entries of the series. Some very infectiously energetic devs took us through a few battles featuring all the big characters you would expect to see (Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Reptile, Johnny Cage, etc.) in some very familiar settings such as the Living Forest and The Pit. The biggest change to the series is that it actually behaves like a "real" fighter. 2D gameplay is back. A super meter, not unlike Street Fighter, is seen with some horrifically brutal moves that give players a brief X-ray of bones breaking and organs mashing together. A tag team mode brings new offensive and defensive opportunities into the mix. And what Mortal Kombat game would be complete without their legendary fatalities? Everything about this all too brief demo told me that the devs know exactly what this game needs to be and are unafraid of stirring up some of the same controversies the original titles faced.

For shooter fans, Warner had Fear 3 (sorry, but I refuse to spell it "F3ar"). I'll be honest about the fact that I haven't kept up with the series, but this title's very unique approach to cooperative gameplay has me itching to try it out at home with friends. Players take on the roles of Point Man, a badass with a gun, and his recently deceased brother, Fettel. That's right, one of the player characters is a ghost. While Point Man brings his signature slow motion abilities, but Fettel's otherworldly powers allow him to possess enemies and see things that Point Man cannot. Seeing how scare moments would look and sound differently to each character was riveting and will certainly make for some interesting multiplayer sessions.

Both games ship next year across the Xbox 360 and PS3. Judging by the reactions I saw today, each of these titles will be scoring big points with their respective plans.