Most Anticipated of E3: Neon

E3 is all but upon us, and the hype trains are running totally out of control. Remember that bit at the end of Back to the Future Part III? That's what they're like this year. Where we're going, we don't need roads... although we sort of do, actually, because Los Angeles is like one giant freeway with a few shops next to it.

In this series of articles, VideoGamer.com staff members single out some of the games they're most eager to see at this year's show. Today it's Neon's turn.

XCOM

Last year, 2K's XCOM was one of the unexpected highlights of my E3. It was creepy, atmospheric and thoroughly unnerving. Some 12 months on, and how much have we seen of the game since? Nothing, zilch, nada.

Normally, I'd take this as a sign that we should be concerned. There might be a very good reason for keeping the game behind closed doors, but when all falls silent it's hard not to think something is amiss. After all, the X-Com series' history is in turn-based strategy outings; long-terms fans have previously expressed concern about the switch to narrative-driven first-person shooting, and it's not unthinkable that 2K Marin might have been swayed by these comments.

On the other hand, it's hard to see the developers lurching back towards the strategy genre, and its relative lack of popularity. The bottom line is that I want to find out what the hell is going on, and since I really liked what I saw at the first showing, I hope it has retained the same tone. The 50s Roswell style worked for me, and more importantly the aliens were decidedly unnerving. We're all used to fighting extra-terrestrials that are either giant bugs or simply humans, but the black blobs in last year's demo were genuinely alien - especially given that you had to shoot them in their strange white lungs to kill them.