While at PAX we got to see a demonstration of the incredible new coop mode for Portal 2 (you can hear our thoughts here).  Developer, Valve, is pulling out all the stops for this follow up title.  To wet your appetite here is the official Portal 2 Coop Trailer.

PAX Prime this year was awesome! Surprisingly enough Sony wasn’t shoving Move down our throats, Kincect was for the most part in a quartered off area, and Wii was… well Wii… Motion controls were present but as a delightful surprise they weren’t the focus. Tons of great games were represented, and there was a great variety for the many types of gamers present.

Here is my top 10 list for PAX Prime this year (this list includes playable games only, so you won’t see games like Rage or Portal 2):

#10 – Mortal Kombat

A good gory Mortal Kombat game! It was a ton of fun to play with the bros and it brought back all the memories of Mortal Kombat from back in the day. The graphics were much improved, the controls were very familiar and smooth. The distance you had to be from the other player to execute some moves was changed, but not to the point it was bothersome. Awesome game, tons of fun!

#9 – Killzone 3

Killzone 3 is sitting lower on my list for pretty much one reason; aside from some added features, it is Killzone 2… The demo at PAX was good, don’t get me wrong, but it didn’t really show anything that made it stand out. I am very excited to see the story, the graphics are beautiful, but I think the best part of Killzone is the story.

#8 – Kirby’s Epic Yarn

This game caught me by surprise. At first I thought it was following to closely to Little Big Planet, but after playing it… It’s completely charming. The way you alter certain portions of the levels is creative and fun. The way co-op is implemented may not be a new idea, but it is done very well. It definitely doesn’t have the same appeal to hardcore gamers as most of the titles they play have, but it is definitely worth trying out.

#7 – Assassins Creed: Brotherhood

At PAX Prime this year, we got a chance to try out the new multiplayer mode in Assassins Creed: Brother hood. At first I wasn’t sure how this was going to work, but after getting my hands on it, it was surprisingly fun. It does take a little bit of a shift to get out of the single player mindset, but once you make that change it gets pretty fun. I can’t see myself putting a ton of hours into the MP, but it does make a great addition to the game itself.

#6 – Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2

Having only played the first game for a few minutes, this game is awesome! I am not a huge Star Wars fan, but this game is very stylish and it’s “cool” factor is through the roof! It controls very smooth and targeting is very good. The story is what you would expect from a Star Wars branded game, great! Check this game out!

#5 – Halo Reach

We got a chance to play firefight mode. Awesome! A ton of little tweaks have been made to the game, but those tweaks go a long way. Firefight matches now have an ending point unlike the last iteration. New weapons, new enemies, and new levels. It’s a good breath of life for Halo fans. On top of that, the campaign story is promising to be “the last hurray”.

#4 – Tron Evolution

If I were putting together a sleeper list for PAX, this game would be at the top. I didn’t hear much about this game and if I did, it more than likely was brushed off to the wayside. Man did I get caught off guard! The combat is awesome, very tight and full of combos. The level traversing may not be fully original, but it is executed extremely well. The story is tied in very closely with the movie and sounds very interesting from what I have heard so far. I am super excited about this game and never expected to be. (keep an eye out for our video interview)

#3 – Fable 3

First of all, I am a Fable fan, so I am already a little bias. The first thing that caught my attention was the narration. The demo had two competing narrators that were telling the story as you were acting it out in a hilarious manner. The movement and combat seems to be a little slower which concerned me a little, but it didn’t seem to affect combat as much as I thought it would. Switching between weapons and magic continues to be super fluid and works very well. Very excited for this title.

#2 – Duke Nukem Forever

15 years later! Hail to the king baby! Duke Nukem returns just as you remember him. I remember playing Duke Nukem 3D back in the day and I loved every minute of it! I am very excited to see him return. We got our hands on the demo and got a chance to kill some aliens and pig monsters, loved it! It looks pretty good (not amazing) and plays great. Control-wise it isn’t hard to get used to and you feel like a B.A. no matter what you are doing!

#1 – Brink

Easily my number 1 game this year. Brink takes the true meaning of co-op and puts in your hands. I have been excited about this game since PAX last year and finally getting a chance to play it has solidified its place as number 1 on my list. With Brink you are almost getting two story campaigns, depending on who you play the campaign as changes your perspective on the given situation. Different objectives and different motives. It’s not even funny how excited about this game I am, thank you Bethesda and Splash Damage!

If you let it, PAX can be learning experience.  It may not teach you the meaning of life but it definitely has life lessons….at least for us gamers.

Here are the Things I Learned At PAX 2010:

1. Sometimes Being Juvenile Is Just Fun

I have been very vocal about my disdain for calling something “mature” by a developer only to have lewd and crude jokes interspersed with gargantuan breasts (Bayonetta, I’m looking at you). However, this year at PAX two of my most anticipated were, in fact, simple juvenile fun.

Mortal Kombat brought back the gory fantastic-ism of old with fatalities that included dismembering and de-spining your foes. It also brought back the 2D plane combat and responsive control that had been lacking for some time. Ed Boon’s return to form is something that I am generally excited about, and this is coming from someone who usually abstains from fighting games.

In a similar experience, the first showing of Gearbox’s Duke Nukem Forever was fantastic. Yes the game that no one ever thought would be is actually going to be. I actually went into the game having little nostalgic love for the franchise. Maybe it was all the hype that Randy Pitchford brought to the table during our playthrough, but I genuinely laughed out loud at the game several times. Everything from starting the game peeing in a urinal to kicking a large beast’s heart through the uprights in a football stadium made me giggle.

Maybe it’s just me trying to hold onto my youth but PAX taught me that sometimes, if done right, juvenile humor and gore can be fun.

2. Some Games Can Exceed Already High Expectations

Walking into PAX most people have their games they want to get their hands on.  Sometimes you walk away disappointed, other times you walk away in awe.  This year a few games high on my expectation list still left me in awe.  This is a rare treat.

Killzone 3 is one of those games that has a lot to live up to.  Killzone 2 on the PS3 was a great addition to the PS3 library but it also had a lot of issues (mostly dealing with sluggish controls).  Sony’s third installment showed me that with a little finesse they can get it right.  Not only is it prettier than the already impressive KZ2, it controls like a dream without losing that Killzone feel.  Movement feels more responsive and the addition of things like jetpacks and mechs (even in multiplayer) just add to the core gameplay.

My most anticipated game and the one I expected the most out of  from PAX was Brink.  We got a chance to see it and interview the developers last year at PAX and we walked away impressed.  Not only was I impressed, I now am more excited for this game.  Simply put they got it right.  First off, the visuals are stunning; granted they were running on souped up PCs, but my hope is that these graphics carry over to the console version.  Secondly, the character customization and class system is incredible and deep.  I could have spent hours customizing my character with every nuance from hair style and shoes to gun color and scopes.  Some of these elements also play into your mobility and accuracy in the game.  We will post a preview of the game up soon on our YouTube page, but if you haven’t yet, go order it now.

3. Great execution Does Not Always Equal Great Fun

Here is where I hit on  a bit of TWB controversy.  Unlike some of my cohorts (really #1 Lasse?), after playing Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood’s multiplayer at PAX I walked away only impressed that it works.  Sure the execution is there, you choose your class and go off running to hunt down your target.  Sneak through crowds stealthily enough and you are rewarded with bonus points for the assassination.  Make too much noise and you go on a roof top chase.  All of this sounds good and fun and honestly it all works fine in the game, but it’s a slow plodding solitary multiplayer game.  The experience is also easily spoiled if someone kills your target or if you accidently tap square or X  at the wrong time, causing the game to have to find you a new target, then it all starts over again.  I also still question it’s longevity , variety and frankly it’s necessity.

4. Good Gamers Does Not Always Equal Good Personal Hygeine

Ok for the most part, PAX attendees are some of the nicest people out there.  On the other hand a large enough number of them do not exercise good personal hygiene.  Add to that the new hotness that is motion controls and you have a convention that is desperately begging for sponsorship from Degree Deodorant.

5. Activision Still Doesn’t Get It

Activision has some big games coming out this fall, including one of the biggest gaming franchises in Call of Duty Black Ops and yet they have never come to PAX to show their games.  For shame.

Every year I attend PAX with certain expectations. I have the list of games I want to see, the panels I want to attend, and industry personalities that I want to connect with. However, I have learned to expect to be surprised by something I didn’t anticipate or know about before the show. At PAX 2008, Left 4 Dead blew in out of left field to bowl me over; in 2009, Heavy Rain stormed in from the shadows and caught me in it’s spell. This year, I wanted to share 7 things I discovered at PAX that came out of nowhere to blow my socks off.

#7 – NBA Jam

Nostalgia can have a big impact upon any gamer, especially if gaming was a big part of their childhood.  EA Sports is counting on this factor to sell their remake of the NBA Jam franchise and, if our experience at PAX is any indication, they shouldn’t have anything to worry about.  The Weekly Blend crew found ourselves at the NBA Jam booth multiple times during the three-day event, screaming and shouting as we drained 3-pointers and slam dunked with style.  The quirky stop-motion animations are smooth and the game plays well on the Wii controller; but most of all the game is incredible throw-back fun.  To our surprise, EA Sports recaptured the magic of the original and brought it into the modern era.

#6 – Little Big Planet 2′s Creation Tools

The original Little Big Planet was a magical game, giving gamers the ability to create worlds with just their controller and a creative spark.  With its sequel, Media Molecule is looking to expand its tool kit and allow gamers to take their creations even further.  Media Molecule PR Rep Tom Kiss created, duplicated, and played back a musical loop in the time frame of a just a few minutes, using the game’s audio creation tools.  While it lacked the professional look of programs like Pro Tools, everything is still customizable.  This is likely just a fraction of the creative power being put before players in LBP2 and I, for one, cannot wait to see what the LBP community brings to life when the game ships in November.

#5 – Mortal Kombat

I first discovered Mortal Kombat in my hometown mall arcade as a 10-year old boy, and promptly spent the afternoon as Sub-Zero upper-cutting my opponents into oblivion.  Despite a fun first experience, the game didn’t stick and I hardly revisited the franchise until I played the remake at PAX 2010.  I was floored.  Ed Boon pulled out all the stops when he retook the reins of his brainchild and infused it with jaw-dropping graphics, solid controls, and visceral Fatalities.  Throw in a combat system that recalls old-school MK with a Tekken twist and place it in 2D, and any fan of Mortal Kombat owes it to himself to anticipate this game.  Toasty!

#4 – Killzone 3 Singleplayer

I enjoyed Killzone 2 for the most part, although I thought the narrative was underdeveloped and the controls were a little too weighty.  So, as you can imagine, I went in to PAX 2010 without much excitement about playing Killzone 3.  Guerrilla Games had other ideas, though.  I got to play two versions of the Killzone 3 single-player demo at the Sony booth: a jetpack level that blew me away with the tightness of its controls and gorgeous graphics, and a 3-D level that proved that the technology is the real deal, even if it isn’t for everyone.  The developer has really taken this title to the next level and fans of the franchise deserve to allow the hype to set in.

#3 – Bioshock: Infinite Gameplay Video

When Ken Levine and Irrational Games first announced that Project Icarus was indeed Bioshock: Infinite in August, a limited number of press were allowed to see 10 minutes of actual gameplay in addition to the widely-release teaser trailer.  At the time, the rest of us had to be content to hear the gameplay details second-hand from “impressions” articles published by the attending journalists.  At PAX 2010, that all changed for a group of 150 attendees.  During the Game Informer panel “Concept to Cover,” Irrational Games lead designer replayed the 10 minute gameplay video, and held the room in stunned silence.  Everything from the new gameplay mechanics to enemy types to scripted sequences took our breath away and quickly cause Bioshock: Infinite to jump to the top of our most-anticipated lists.  We do have a long wait ahead of us, though, as Skyoshock isn’t set to release until Fall 2012.

The rumor is that the gameplay video will get a YouTube release a week or so after PAX ends.  Will post it to the site when it launches.

#2 – Duke Nukem Forever

This game, much like Starcraft: Ghost, has been a Unicorn of the gaming industry; always lurking just out of gamers’ reach with the promise of it’s existence, but never truly materializing.  When it was announced last year that the franchise was finally dead, gamers wept as a legendary hero of the gaming world died.  However, Duke Nukem Forever had become a bastion of gaming culture, an icon unto itself, and Gearbox studios simply could not let that legend die.  Randy Pitchford and Co. shocked the world, and had PAX attendees waiting for 4+ hours in line, when they revealed that Duke Nukem Forever was alive, playable, and well on its way to completion.  Hail to the King, Baby!

#1 – Assassins Creed Multiplayer

When I first heard that Ubisoft was working on Assassins Creed: Brotherhood and incorporating a multiplayer element, my first thought was, “It cannot be done.”  My disbelief continued even as the mechanics were explained, gameplay videos shown, and media impression articles published.  I simply couldn’t get my head around how they could pull this ambitious effort off successfully.  Now that I’ve had the chance to play it live at PAX 2010, I can say now with absolute certainty that Ubisoft has done it and AC2′s multiplayer is the real thing.  They’ve crafted a system that makes stalking and assassinating your opponent tense, interesting, and fun.  Silent kills can be countered, failed attempts can break into rooftop pursuits, and you never quite have a feeling of safety.  There is some question of longevity, but all the elements of a great multiplayer experience are there.