ven though Midway had quite a few titles on display at their annual Gamers' Day in Las Vegas, there were three titles that ultimately stood out as games to keep your eyes peeled for in 2007. Three games hitting the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC - Unreal Tournament 3, Blacksite: Area 51 and Stranglehold shined the brightest, and if it weren’t for the venue closing and the bouncers kicking us out, we’d most likely not have slept and still be playing these three hotties as you read this.

Unreal Tournament 3

The moment Midway wrapped up their stage presentation, I darted to one of the 10 UT3 stations to get my frag on. Only one map was playable, and attendees were privy to the new vehicle capture-the-flag mode. Even as much of the gameplay felt familiar, there was plenty new in our first taste of what could most likely be the hottest first-person shooter of 2007.

The playable map was titled CTF Corruption, in which the Necris battle the Axon in a map littered with foliage, streams, rocks, Necris infection tubes and futuristic temples. Players have the ability to tackle adversaries with up to seven different weapons, including the rocket launcher, flak cannon and bio rifle. This version of CTF included vehicles, and a total of seven vehicles were strewn across the map–three for the Necris, and four for the Axon.

While vehicles aren’t completely new to the franchise, and Epic has tweaked some old favorites, the new rides are brilliant additions to the game. The Darkwalker was the serious ass-kicker, and when you saw it creeping up on you it was either get the heck out of the way or die. The Darkwalker is a tripod walker that can crouch and climb across terrain. Although it’s a little slow and has a lengthy turret rotation, it packs a serious punch. If opponents get a little cocky and try to run underneath the Darkwalker, players can unleash a newly added concussion attack that will send adversaries sailing. Two players can ride this vehicle and operate separate turrets to take out ground and air enemies. Another favorite was the Viper, which has expandable wings that allow the vehicle to hover. Even though it’s a lightly armored ride, it has the ability to destroy pretty much anything with its suicide mission-esque alternate fire.

However, most likely our favorite addition is the hoverboard. Corruption was actually a bit too large for 5v5 play, but by tapping Q you could get on a hoverboard to swiftly carry you to where the battle was at. While allowing for speedy transportation, you couldn’t fire weapons, and if you hit anything or got shot, your player would go flying. The most beneficial part of the hoverboard is that you can carry the flag while riding, so it’s a nice boost when you’re running like hell back to your base. Oftentimes, we’d encounter another enemy on the hoverboard, both of us would jump off, duke it out and then jump back on the board to continue on. While still a tad floaty, if Epic tunes it properly this could be the best transportation addition since the translocator from UT2004. Players also can grapple onto friendly vehicles and get a speed boost, or reel themselves into the vehicle itself with the mouse scroll wheel. This will hopefully alleviate the problem of a friend leaving you behind.

Even though it was only a morsel of what UT3 will have, it was quite fulfilling. Battles were extremely heated and a really good time. Unfortunately, it’s going to be a while until release. With astounding visuals, Vista and DX10 support, UT3 is surely to not only be a spectacular successor to UT2004, but a bold leap forward for the franchise. Sure, it’s coming to consoles, but we’re readying our PCs for this bad boy. Bring it on.

Blacksite: Area 51

While Midway’s last attempt with Area 51 was met with mixed results, their Austin studio is taking another crack at the license with Blacksite: Area 51. Everything from the last game, including Ethan Cole, Rosewell and mutation powers are being thrown out in favor of a modern-day spiritual successor.

Blacksite’s premise focuses on the question, “What are people afraid of in the world today in the post 9/11 world?” You’ll play as Aaron Pierce, the athletic squad leader of a Delta Force assassination group. The first level of the game will flash you back two years prior, where you’ll head to Iraq to infiltrate a bunker where weapons of mass destruction are being held (sound familiar?), and along the way you’ll find something mysterious. Alien technology, perhaps?

Throughout the game, you’ll move throughout different sites in small-town America. The level we previewed takes place in Rachel, Nevada. Midway’s Austin team has changed the first-person-shooter element of Area 51 to include fast-paced squad tactics. By clicking the left trigger, you can tell your squadmates to do a number of different things. Aiming the reticule behind cover will send your squad to that position. Clicking on a door, your squad will set a charge to blow the door open. Target a vehicle or turret and your squadmate will get to work. You can also use these tactics to flank enemies. While not as deep as a Rainbow Six or Full Spectrum Warrior, it allows for you to quickly send your squadmates where you want them to go and focus on the battle.

Blacksite will also be introducing a dynamic moral system. If you’re giving orders a lot, racking up headshots and not letting your squadmates go down, they’ll get psyched and battle more aggressively. Play poorly, and your squad will hunker down, take cover more often and not take to action as strongly. How Midway will balance this at the end of the day is unknown, but it’s an interesting dynamic that we’re interested in seeing how it gets fleshed out.

Even though the demo could be played through in a few minutes, Blacksite definitely has some promise. The squad direction worked extremely well, and sending quick tactical information to your squadmates was simple and focused. Weaponry was fairly standard fare–an assault rifle, grenades and a grenade launcher, and only two alien enemy types were shown. One was a brutish type of soldier, and the second was a towering nemesis that, when toppled, had its head and arms crawl towards you like a heat-seeking missile. The environments are highly destructable, and the Austin team is leveraging some of the “Massive D” technology from the Stranglehold team to make this possible. Everything isn’t as brittle as it is in Stranglehold, which helps make the game feel much more grounded.

While you’ll be able to play the game solo, Blacksite will have two player cooperative gameplay, where one player will control the squad and another will have a totally different, undisclosed set of abilities. Midway is also planning for a host of multiplayer modes, team co-op multiplayer and vehicular multiplayer.

The Austin team seems to be taking a very fresh approach to Area 51, which we think is a much better idea than the last attempt, which felt much like a poor man’s Halo. With an interesting moral system to spice up gameplay, and quick squad directions, Area 51 seems to have a few ingredients to help it stand out from the FPS pack.