I know we are about a month removed from this year's E3 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, but with so much revealed, so much shown, and so much I got a chance to play, it has taken me this much time to really gather my thoughts enough to put them down. Part of it was a bit of fanboyism due in part this was my first outing back at E3 since 2006. Trying to put that behind you when it had been so long since you have attended can be a bit hard sometimes. But now that I have had more than enough time to think it all over, I want to share with you all some of the highs, and lows, of E3 — in my own humble opinion, of course. 

Games in General

Best Action/Adventure Game — Although a lot of people saw Metroid: Other M as the best game in the category at the show, I am going to have to go with a series that has been hot since the very first with no letdown. God of War: Ghost of Sparta looks to continue the precedence set by the previous games in the series and deliver one hell of a fun game. 

Best Downloadable-Only Game — I have to give this one to Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Any game that takes me back to those old beat-'em-up games like Double Dragon and River City Ransom is doing something right straight out of the gate. I just hope it is as fun to play as it was to watch the trailer. Of course, that is the same reason Shank almost took this spot as well.

Best Driving Game — This should be no surprise, but I have to give it to Gran Turismo 5. With a final set upon release date, this game looks to deliver in every way. Although other good driving games are set to come out or are already on the market, GT5 still looks as though the wait would ultimately be worth it, and I think it is the anticipation level that just edged out Motor Storm: Apocalypse for this category.

Best Fighting Game — Although I am definitely high on Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, the new Mortal Kombat just blew me away. Taking the storyline and pretty much just redoing it from scratch, Mortal Kombat looks to get back to old visceral and violent roots that made the series legendary in the first place.

Best Multiplayer Game — Just barely beating out the new Medal of Honor game I really want to get, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood just looks plain intriguing. Team up with people around the world to form assassination squads. Hell yeah, sign me up right away.

Best Online Only Game — Three games were in a tight race to take this spot in my list. Although Final Fantasy XIV and DC Universe Online seem like solid games, Star Wars: The Old Republic just looks freaking epic. To be able to take on either the Republic or the Sith during the height of their struggle is any Star Wars fan's dream.

Best Platforming Game — Don't get me wrong; Kirby's Epic Yarn looks surrealistically amazing, but Epic Mickey looks just as the title suggest: epic! Taking Mickey Mouse back to his scamp ways and full of mischief, Epic Mickey just looks like it will change the way Disney Interactive might look at its properties ... in a good way. 

Best Rhythm/Music Game — Granted, I am not the biggest fan of this genre. So even with games like DJ Hero II and Rock Band 3 showing at E3, I will give my nod to Disney Sing It: Family Hits because in all honesty, I prefer karaoke games to those band and dj sims any day of the week.

Best Role-Playing Game — Although I am excited for Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light, Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep has been on my radar for more than a year now, and I am very interested in seeing this prequel to the Kingdom Hearts series reveal a bit more of the luscious past the series keeps alluring to.

Best Shooting Game — Although I really, really want to get my hands on Medal of Honor, there is no denying that id Software's Rage was all the, well, rage at E3. I mean, these guys brought us Wolfenstein, Doom, and Quake for stars sake. How could you not look at Rage and wonder just how great this game will be to finally play at home?

Best Sports Game — Although many people see Madden NFL 11 as the best sports game at E3, I was interested in NCAA Football 11 more than anything. Maybe because I am more interested in college football more than pro football, but I like the expansive season and multiple conferences to choose from when playing this game. 

Platform-Specific Games 

Best DS/DSi Game — I am really looking forward to Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies, but Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light just barely, and I do mean barely, beats it out. Both allow you to play each game as a multiplayer game, but the fact that Final Fantasy is returning to the "fantasy" aspect of gaming and stepping back from the realistic and tech ways the series has gone is definitely a throwback to fond memories for me.

Best PC Game — Although Rage and Star Wars: The Old Republic are knocking down every game on the PC with regards to anticipation, I was personally moved by Jumpgate Evolution. Something about the trailer I saw just freaking moved me. Maybe it was the slight allusion to those old Roman Empire movies I enjoy or the sheer amazing gameplay I witnessed firsthand, but Jumpgate Evolution caught my attention good. 

Best PlayStation 3 Game — Portal 2 is very high on my radar, especially considering how it was announced at E3, but there is no denying Killzone 3 certainly wowed a lot of people at E3. With its fully functioning 3-D mode on display at E3, Killzone 3 looks like it will just freaking rock, and I can't wait to get it.

Best PlayStation Portable Game — Yes, God of War: Ghost of Sparta and Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep are games I have listed before, but I am going to surprise a few people by saying that the PSP game I want the most is The 3rd Birthday. I was a big fan of the Parasite Eve series on the original PlayStation, and although this may not be a true sequel, I thank the people at Square Enix for not letting us fans of PE down. Now how about a true Parasite Eve 3?

Best Wii Game — Man, to choose between Epic Mickey and Metroid: Other M should be a crime. They both look like excellent games. However, when push comes to shove, I want to see what Team Ninja has brought to the table on Metroid. Not that Warren Specter on Mickey isn't magic, but I have a feeling Metroid will have a higher replayability factor.

Best Xbox 360 Game — Funny, I am not a big fan of either series I have as my final two contenders here, but there is simply no denying their effect on gaming today. Gears of War 3 looks to continue that fun-to-play, fast-paced shooter action we have come to expect from the series. And Halo: Reach seems to continue that truly epic storyline the Halo series is forging for itself even beyond the confines of gaming. In the end, I have to give it to Gears of War 3.

Software and Details

Best 3D Graphics — From what I have seen in person and online from both contenders here, when it comes down to which game looked cleaner and crisper in 3-D: Killzone 3 or Crysis 2, I think Crysis 2 slightly edged out Killzone 3, and that is hard to admit being a Killzone fan.

Best Graphics — As odd as this is going to sound, Kirby's Epic Yarn takes the cake when it comes to graphics of the non-3-D variety. Sure, Final Fantasy XIV looked damn pretty to me, but considering what Kirby's Epic Yarn is trying to portray with its style, I think the artistry and innovativeness behind it made it stand out in this category.

Best New IP — Rage looks like an awesome game, no doubt about that, but Bulletstorm just looks to bring something new to gaming. Not just a shooter, you need to rack up bigger points using stylized kills. The more imaginative your kill and the bigger the chain, the bigger the score. I can see perfectionist here competing for the biggest single-shot score over and over again. 

Best Overall Software Lineup — For my taste, this boiled down to the Wii and the PS3. In the end, the PS3 slightly edges out in this category. Take into account the amount of exclusives and multiplatform games available for it, and the PS3 just wins. It almost came down to the 360 versus the PS3, but considering many of the 360 games are also on the PS3 and doesn't have as many exclusives, I had to go with the Wii over the 360.

Best Trailer — You would think with two Star Wars games on here, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, I would choose from one of them. But wrong, you would be, for Metal Gear Solid: Rising, the winner is. Sorry, had to do the whole Yoda thing. Showcasing not just some awesome CG graphics but some amazing gameplay as well is what brought MGS: Rising to the head of the pack here.

Game to Watch — And those reasons are also why Metal Gear Solid: Rising is my Game to Watch coming out of this E3. Sure, I am anticipating XCOM like a motherfucker, However, from what I saw of MGS: Rising, oh yeah, get me some watermelons. Now!

Most Innovative — This category boiled down to LittleBigPlanet 2 and the new 3DS. Although I like the concept of being able to make my own game, the technical beauty of the 3DS just has to stand out head and shoulders above anything else. Full 3-D without the glasses? Oh, hell, yeah; that innovation is something that should come to all forms of media, not just gaming. Imagine that innovative tech on your TV at home…

Show in General

Best Booth — Although the Fallout: New Vegas booth was truly awe-inspiring, nothing beats seeing a full wrestling ring with several matches held throughout the show the way Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes Del Ring had. And to have some of the company's top stars appear to perform was just the cherry on top of a delicious sundae. 

Best Press Conference — Sony had some awesome "wow" moments during its show, while Microsoft seemed content to show off Kinect. But for sheer awesomeness during a press conference, no one could beat Nintendo this year. With an amazing assortment of games lined up, it was the introduction and demonstration of the 3DS that certainly brought the crowd to its feet for this one. 

Best WTF Moment — Although everyone agrees the 3DS was an amazing surprise, I almost fell outta my chair when I saw Valve's Gabe Newell come onstage during Sony's keynote address at its press conference. Here is the guy who, in 2007, heavily criticized the PS3 as being "a waste of everyone's time" and "a disaster on many levels," among other things. So, to see him up there announcing Portal 2 for the PS3 was like having Kobe go up to Shaq and apologize. 

Hottest Booth Babe — I almost considered having a three-way tie for this category between the NOS Energy Drink girls, the Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes Del Ring ring girls, and the PDP Afterglow girls. However, after several hours of fap ... er, I mean thinking about it, I have to go with the NOS girls. And they weren't even representing any kind of game. They just all looked so damn hot in those outfits and next to that car.

Most Disappointing — Not that I have a lot of high hopes for either Microsoft's Kinect or Sony's Move, but Move at least looked and felt familiar. Kinect just did not deliver in my opinion. I mean, who wants to play a shooter when you have to motion your body like that just to get a shot off? Kinect has a lot of promise, but I certainly didn't see any of it at this year's E3.

Most Embarrassing Moment — Although seeing Shigeru Miyamoto struggle with the Wii remote during the Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword demo was pretty funny, I have to wonder just what the fuck Konami was thinking during its press conference. Did they all drink from the same bottle of Everclear before going on stage? From Russell Simmons to Tak Fujii to Naoki Meada to Niais Taylor to that silly luchador fight and that stupid magician and that god-awful Glee performance, Konami's press conference was just one big fail. Don't get me wrong, I like the people there and thank them for letting me visit, but man ...

Where Were You — Although I was glad to see that Nintendo's stupid Wii Vitality Sensor and Microsoft's ridiculous Milo and Kate missed showing up at E3, where the fuck was Team Ico's The Last Guardian? I was really looking forward to seeing that game at this year's E3 only to find it was M.I.A. Sorry, Sony, but leaving that game behind is probably one of the biggest dumbfuck moves I have ever seen.

Those are my main highs and lows of the 2010 E3. Lots of good things came out of this event as well as a couple of rotten eggs. But more than not, it was a great show with lots of news, announcements, and wonderful games to get your hands on. Of course, only one of the games on the floor can be the best of the best. Narrowing that down to just one game after a stellar E3 is difficult. However, this game definitely left the biggest impression on me. So without further ado, here is my Best in Show.

Best Game of the Show — When it is all finally said and done, after going over every category I have done research on, there is one game that consistently came in on almost every list. Although it may not have won many of my category's top spots, there is something to be said for a game that just kept appearing. Rage just looked too damn good, no matter what console you saw it on, to deny it is anything but special. Awesome graphics, great shooter mechanics, an interesting-looking plot, blood, and gore aplenty all brought to us by the people who all but perfected the shooter genre, Rage was simply the game that seemed to have done everything right. I can't wait to get my hands on this game when it is released; whenever that may be in 2011.