3-Day Nirvana for game lovers unveils new software

Jason Van Winkle, center, plays the PlayStation 2 game 'Syphon Filter the Omega Strain' at the Electronic Entertainment Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles. PHOTO: AP

The E3 -- based on past shows I have attended -- is an explosion of sight and sound: Screens pulsating with previews of the very latest in computer and console games, kiosks where game lovers can sample what's going to be on the shelves in the months ahead, and all kinds of tchotchkes and gimmicks -- frequently involving scantily-clad women -- designed to build up a buzz for new titles.

Think of it as a three-day-long amusement park ride for game geeks, as companies vie for a chunk of the $7 billion that folks in the United States spend on electronic games each year.

The sequels -- like "Halo 2," "Half-Life 2," "Doom 3" and "Final Fantasy XII" -- will get most of the attention this year. But here's a rundown of some other titles from the thousands being previewed at the show, which opens May 12, including a few I might put on my wish list.

"S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl" is based on the adage: It's always darkest before things get totally black. It's bad enough that Ukraine's Chernobyl reactor in 1986 was the site of the worst nuclear power disaster in history.

This game is set in 2010, four years after another explosion has hit the area, releasing a bizarre form of radiation that special suits cannot protect against. Scavengers known as S.T.A.L.K.E.R.s are allowed to enter the disaster site. As the player, you are looking for loot, but you'll find a lot more, including a creature with the oddest looking lower lip ever seen in a computer game and areas where gravity has gone haywire. THQ is promising that "S.T.A.L.K.E.R." will have at least eight different endings. It will be for the PC.

"Ghosthunter" offers an interesting twist on the usual ghostbuster story line. In this third-person shooter, two Detroit police officers are checking out an abandoned high school when they stumble onto a secret paranormal laboratory. To make matters worse, the male cop of the duo releases hordes of malevolent ghosts, one of which fuses with him, allowing him to see into the spirit realm. Naturally, he has to save the world and his female partner.

His name: Lazarus Jones. Nice touch. Namco Hometek is planning an August release for the PlayStation 2 (news - web sites).

The pseudoscience folklore of psychic phenomena come into play with two games. Codemasters is promoting "Second Sight," where the hero comes out of a coma and discovers he can use his mental powers to move objects, take possession of the bodies of others and even deliver a fatal blast to his enemies. It will be available for Xbox (news - web sites), GameCube and PlayStation-2.

Midway's contribution to psychic silliness is "Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy," scheduled for release next month on Xbox and PlayStation-2. It sounds very similar.

Then, in the fall, it's off to "Area 51," named after the reputed sanctuary for UFOs and abducted aliens, where in the game you can meet the big-eye extraterrestrials and discover why -- wink, wink -- the moon landings were faked and the cheesy "Alien Autopsy" movie was real. It will be for Xbox and the PS-2.

Speaking of stretching your mind, Sammy Studio's PS-2 game "Spy Fiction" involves a couple of secret agents with the ability to turn invisible or quickly transform themselves into other characters in the game (known as the "identity theft system), allowing players to get out of tight spots. The old "Mission Impossible" series used to do this all the time, but not nearly as quickly as these spies.

The original "Backyard Wrestling" got some notoriety for taking the idea of extreme wrestling to new heights -- or depths, depending on how you view a pseudosport where some of the participants seem to be a couple of cans short of a six-pack.

Eidos is trying to outdo itself with "Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighborhood," designed to take the over-the-top violence even higher. What other wrestling game lets you go after an opponent with a weed whacker? But when players pick up a chainsaw or a razor wire-covered baseball bat, you have to wonder whether things have not gone too far.

The interesting feature of this game for Xbox and the PS-2 is that it will let fans of this genre play each other online, making for some interesting conversation between players.

Those who watch professional wrestling for the divas may have trouble tearing their eyes away from "Rumble Roses," an all-female grappling game, due in November for the PS-2. It looks like it will have plenty of bounce, with Konami promising more than eye candy. It will have over 20 fighters, a special "mud mode," and the ability to turn a wrestler into a heel or hero, depending on whether you fight dirty or fair.