PlayStation 3 preview blowout

Originally posted on October 19, 2006

Granted, GamesRadar staffers rarely turn down a party invitation, but when Sony asked if we'd like to come over and play some PlayStation 3 games, we more or less shouted, "Hell, yes!" Even if we weren't excited, we'd do it for you - if you're die-hard enough to burn hours of your life persevering in a line full of probably-annoying strangers standing in sure-to-be-craptastic weather for your right to plunk down something like eight thousand dollars for your new PS3... well, the least we can do is kiss and tell with the launch lineup and help you choose what to buy on day one.

So here it is: the latest info on every game you could possibly care about. We'll be adding new links as quickly as our trained gorillas can type them in, so check back through the weekend. After all, those lines on launch day are going to be hellish.

Update: Check us out in all our gaming glory with two video podcasts directly from the Sony show floor. For a look at Resistance: Fall of Man,right click hereand choose "save target as."Do the same for Hot Shots Golf 5 byright clicking here. Now you can finally take a GamesRadar editor with you wherever you go!

PS3 launch titles:

Blazing Angels
World War II flight combat actioner. Also on 360, where we gave it an 8 before it even worked in swoopy-loopy support for the Sixaxis controller.
360 review

Call of Duty 3
World War II first-person shooter in a series known for intense action sequences. We've had tons of hands-on time with this one before, but there was a new level today.
New PS3 movie
New PS3 preview - Laison River
PS3 preview- Island level
360 review for Call of Duty 2

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
This was THE game on 360, and it's definitely fantastic, with lush graphics, a vast, open world, and lots of enemies to singe with fireballs or stab holes in with sharp metal objects. The PS3 version is packing improved graphics and an extra mission pack, Knights of the Nine, that PC and 360 folks will have to pay for. This was a no-show on the floor, but it's still expected to be waiting for you at launch, and given that we've collectively spent hundreds of hours with the other versions, we'll just tell you it's good right now.
360 review
Knights of the Nine news

FEAR
A paranormal first-person shooter with tense action, solid graphics and the scariest little girl since that freaky pre-teen from The Ring. It's been out on PC for awhile, and a 360 version is slated for Oct 31. Feature-wise, it looks like the 360 and PS3 versions are the same. But we can't be sure, because it wasn't on the demo floor.
360 hands-on

Fight Night Round 3
Visceral boxing sim with awesome graphics. The PS3 version adds even better graphics, a very cool first-person view the 360 version lacked, and illegal moves. Read all about it below.
360 review
PS3 news- first-person mode
PS3 hands-on
PS3 trailer

Full Auto 2: Battlelines
The 360 version billed itself as "the most destructive racing game ever made." This was true - it was definitely destructive - it just wasn't very fun. This upgrade hopes to improve things.
New, more promising PS3 hands-on
PS3 hands-on
360 Full Auto review

Genji: Days of the Blade
Super-powered samurai take it to the beaches in this hyperactive slasher. Throw in some light exploration and the ability to swap out characters on the fly and you're looking a prettty decent multiplayer launch title. We even saw a new, fourth playable character named Buson who's a god inhabiting a corpse. Nice.
Updated hands-on with Buson
PS3 preview

Madden NFL 07
Honestly, if you don't know this is a football game by now, we can't help you. The PS3 version is a virtual clone of the 360 version, which looks far better than the normal console versions, but lacks several features. What's different? You'll see pile-on gang tackles now, and it also uses the Sixaxis controller's tilt power to enable your offense to fake the snap and juke. Conversely, itenables your defense to jump the snap and tackle harder.
360 review

Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
An Action RPG with super heroes like Iron Man, Wolverine, and Captain America. There are a zillion versions, but it's prettiest onPS3, if only by the tiniest of margins.
PS3 hands-on

Mobile Suit Gundam: Crossfire
A graphically impressive giant-robot actioner that's all about blasting other machines from afar and hacking them up with your energy sword up close. It'll probably look better than it plays, but it's better every time we see it.
New video
PS3 hands-on

NBA 07
The first of three NBA titles for the PS3, this one's exclusive. Does that make it the best? Maybe, maybe not.It plays okay, and the way the crossover dribble, spins, and low-post shoves are executed by jerking the Sixaxis is pretty cool. However, it still isn't as pretty or as smooth as 2K7,so it's gonna have to bring its A game to reach the coveted number one spot.
Trailer
PS3 hands-on
PS3 images

NBA 2K7
On 360, this jaw-dropping basketball game slam dunks all comers. On PS3, it looks exactly the same. You'll see slightly improved faces, a few new player-specific moves, like Tony Parker's floating layups in the lane. There is one controller tweak: you cantoss free throws by holding theSixaxis like a basketball and lifting it as if shooting, then snapping your wrist forward at the moment you want to release the ball. It feels great... unless you're clanking them off the rim as Shaq.
360 review

NBA Live 07
Electronic Arts' big basketball offering lags behind 2K7 on 360, and appears poised to retain its second-place standing on PS3. Wasn't on the show floor, and we hear rumors it might not make the launch after all.
360 review

Need for Speed CARBON
This flagship street racer is one of only two launch-day tire squealers, but the 360 demo played well, and our time with the PS3 version is virtually identical both functionally and visually. The only big difference is that PS3 players can tilt the controller to extra steering power.
PS3 preview

NHL 2K7
If you care about hockey at all, you should be interested in this title. However, if you care about hockey at all, you're probably going to buy NHL 07 instead, which rocked on 360. Still, this version's Sixaxis support enables you to throw a body check by jerking the controller forward, right, or left, and gives you finer control over your goalie's line of sight when you play from his perspective using "crease control."
360 review of NHL 07
360 review of NHL 2K7

Resistance: Fall of Man
The console's biggest piece of artillery. It may be just another FPS, but the human/alien hybrid creatures howling for your blood may think otherwise. Big guns, bigger explosions and a gruesome fate await all those who enlist.
New trailer
PS3 hands-on
Show floor podcast

Ridge Racer 7
It's a running tradition for Namco to have a version of this, its flagship racing franchise, available every time a new system launches. This is no exception, and actually, though it's very pretty, this particular Ridge Racer isn't really notably different from any other. Which is to say, you can expect tight, drift-happy racing with plenty of cars and a fair, arcadey sense of speed.
Updated PS3 hands-on
PS3 preview

Sonic the Hedgehog
The latest in the spiny speedster's 3D offerings might shape up to be his best - and we're hopeful someone out there still cares - with publisher Sega determined to get back to the series' roots. Exactly howadditional playable characters Silver (a new, telekinetic car-throwing hedgehog) and Metal Sonic fit intothat planis anybody's guess.
PS3 hands-on

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07
This visually sumptuous duffer is identical to the 360 version, complete with refined, fantastic gameplay and (unfortunately) only 12 courses instead of the 21 that the Xbox and PS2 versions have. The only difference is that holding X and tilting the controller after your shot can adjust the spin of your ball.
New movie
360 review

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas
We've seen quite a bit of this tactical action shooter, and unless we put them side by side, we wouldn't be able to tell the difference between this and the 360 version. Which is to say, they both look fantastic.
360 preview
360 multiplayer hands-on

Tony Hawk's Project 8
We had a detailed hands-on with this skateboard stunt-fest about a month ago. Nothing has changed: we're still a little tired of it, but also really interested in the new tweaks - especially the complete integration of the Sixaxis controller. You literally don't need the d-pad any more; the Sixaxis steers, tiltingit helps you balance when grinding,a quick forward jerk triggers a manual, and you can pull off any trick in the book by holding circle or square and flicking the controller in a direction.Itcan even control your feet when they detach from the board during those special, "Nail the Trick" moments. It looks great and feels really right.
New Video
PS3 preview
PS3 multiplayer preview

Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom
Okay: this is an Action RPG, so everything basically boils down to you pressing two buttons repeatedly in an effort to hack entire armies of uglies to bits. We've had a steady stream of videos and character profiles since playing the game in May, and while it doesn't seem to be breaking new ground (it may be the only launch title that doesn't use any Sixaxis trickery), it's definitely bashing open plenty of skulls. We played a level as the Scout, a cute, lightning fastchick who dual-wields shortswordsin a whirling tornado of bad guy carving-uppery.
Scout hands-on debut (from 07/10)
PS3 preview

Non-launch games on the show floor:

DEF JAM: ICON
This incredible fighting gamedoesn't actually ship until next March, so you can't grab this at launch - but there's no guarantee that PS3s will be readily available until then anyhow, so you're probably fine. When it does drop, you'll find rappers squaring off in stylized environments that actuallymove to the beat of the music - including environmental hazards, like flames shooting from broken gas pumps.
PS3 preview

Devil May Cry 4
The further adventures of the world's coolest sword-and-gun-slinging demon hunter were nowhere to be found at Sony's hoedown, but our UK brothers have dug up a killer video that your eyes want you to see.
PS3 video

Formula One 06
Like your organized racing with a little less NASCAR? Try on some Formula One. Each time there's a new console generation we're treated to a slightly more realistic version of this sport - thus, this is the most realistic F1 racer ever.
New trailer
PS3 news

Gran Turismo HD
The definitive tweak-racer makes its next-gen debut. So far it plays just like the others, but perhaps all you gearheads really want are fancier graphics - if so, you're in heaven.
PS3 hands-on

Lair
You ride a dragon, fighting other dragons and sometimes "dragon-jacking" the other guy's scaly ride or landing to fry ground troops. Amazing graphics, and flying the dragon by tilting the controller feels as natural as flying a dragon ever could. We're all over it.
New trailer
PS3 hands-on

MotorStorm
Do you like rocky, sandy deserts? How about if there are buggys, motorcycles, and the occasional truck blasting throughthem, and sometimes slamming into one another?Yeah, we like that too. Wanna play this game?
New trailer
PS3 hands-on

Virtua Fighter 5
If you don't think the Virtua Fighter series is the best 3D punchfest out there, you're just wrong. And this arcade port from Sega looks to prove it to you. We played it at TGS, and we still love it. We'll tell you now that this won't sell as well as it deserves to.
PS3 hands-on

Virtua Tennis 3
It's funny how boring it is to most people to watch tennis on TV, yet how incredibly difficult it is to put down the controller when playing this game. Another title that hasn't changed much from TGS - not that it needed to.
PS3 hands-on


Sony's downloadable games

Blast Factor
Hey, look! It's an arcade-style, top-downshooter in which you can move and shoot in any direction independently and enemies with abstract shapes attack you. We're split in the office as to whether this one is cloning Xbox LIVE's Geometry Wars or Mutant Storm - also on Xbox LIVE - but imitating the best could lead to a good thing.
Hands-on

Criminal Crackdown
A cel-shaded, isometric-viewcross between the artillery-fueled destruction derby Twisted Metal and old-school arcade games like Rally X. Vehicles compete in a bombastic version of hot potato in which your goal is to capture a criminal by ramming his car, and hold onto him long enough to drive him to the clink.
First look

flOw
This one's so abstract that it's tough to describe. You're this microbe-looking thing, and you control your movements using the Sixaxis controller, and... well, just watch the video or play the demo we link to in the story, okay?
flOw first look