Game trailers worth watching

There are a few game trailers and videos that caught my eye this week. They're all over at TeamXbox, and all in Hi-Def. Those guys rock.

Team Fortress 2:

Fans of the original and newbs alike have reason to be excited about this refresh of the multiplayer classic. This team-/class-based multiplayer first-person shooter was a riot before, but it looks like Valve is seriously deepening the gameplay, taking a stylish cartoonesque note from the Free Radical (TimeSplitters, Second Sight, Haze), and the result is really appealing. The fun art style may make playing on Xbox Live with jerks all the more irritating, but we'll see.

And, if TeamXbox.com is right, the game will include everything, as it "will not only include the second chapter of 'expansion' episodes for Half-Life 2 [Episode 2] but also enhanced versions of Half-Life 2 and Episode One plus the all new Team Fortress 2 and Portal."

Watch the Team Fortress 2 hi-def trailer at TeamXbox.com.

Crackdown:

Merge comic-book sensibilities and a sandbox world, from the guy who created the Grand Theft Auto concept (well before the Hot Coffee debacle)? Brilliant!

I re-watched the Xbox Live E3 behind the scenes footage on this game a few nights ago, and had already got myself all excited again, but these three gameplay trailers have me even more pumped. My one concern is that it looks really hard to avoid inadvertently killing civilians -- lots of civilians. It's not like I'm a softy, but I like games that create a strong emotional experience (like regret at innocent life lost), rather than irritation at cannon fodder. But that's me. I'm still excited about the game.

Watch the Crackdown hi-def game play videos at TeamXbox.com.

Stranglehold:

Yun-Fat Chow fan? Check. John Woo fan? Check. Fan of the fact that Woo created Tiger Hill Entertainment as a brilliant way to do new IP and maintain creative control of it? Check.
Hey, this is the game that CliffyB (Gears of War) said was the most impressive game at this year's E3, and said he couldn't figure out why it didn't get more buzz.

Watch the trailer -- it's really looking like we're going to get to play a John Woo film -- how amazing is that? There will probably be doves. There will probably not be a dove-shooting mini game. But they should think about that. It might extend their target audience.

Watch the Stranglehold hi-def trailer at TeamXbox.com.