Our first day at E3 started with a three hour wait in line to get our press passes, which pretty much used up the majority of our day, along with much of our patience. Once we finally got into the building, we did manage to get a look at a few actual games. The big announcement of the day came from Mythic, who announced they had gained the rights to produce Warhammer Online. We were at the press conference where they made the announcement (they lured us there by offering free beer). The only question I asked is whether this was the same version of Warhammer Online that had been shown off and on at E3 for several years, and had really been showing its age (OK it kind of sucked). We were assured that version was being trashed and that Mythic was starting the development process from scratch. So basically, right now, they have a name and little else. Still, it is a well known name and Mythic certainly knows how to make a good game. The other games we got a glimpse of were Imperator and Vanguard. Imperator is Mythic's gladiators in space MMORPG. All I can say about it right now is that it looks very sharp. Unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to try it out yet, but I hope to play it before the end of the conference so I can give you more detail. Release is scheduled for summer, 2006. Also potentially scheduled for that time is Vanguard by Sigil Games. For those who don't know, Sigil is made up of a large number of the original Everquest design team. Their project is ambitious to the extreme, with a huge world, immersive crafting systems, and complex game play. It's really too early to tell if they will be able to pull off everything they want to put into the game. However, graphically, it looks marvelous. Remember E3 is all about fluff and looks. Very little substance gets shown here. Any report about what is shown at E3 needs to be read with the understanding that everything you see here is pre-processed to remove any deformities or blemishes. This makes it difficult to make any really substative report. That's my report. I think I'll soak my feet now. Next year I'm bringing a portable chair with me.