The US Official Xbox Magazine's top games of E3's first two days

After the OXM team washed the taste of Kinect failure out of their collective mouths, the editors focused on what tasted great – the system’s stellar E3 reveals. OXM Features Editor Kevin Smith was able to get an extended look at Lara Croft’s new look. Call it a revamp, snuff film, torture porn, or a quick-time-focused take on Tomb Raider, but we’re very interested to see what’s got Lara all bloody and bitchy.Check out OXM’s extended preview here.

Above: Lara looks more like a real woman and she's now vulnerable instead of an unflappable badass

Even though Tomb Raider had a sizable Xbox press conference presence earlier in the week, many unique Xbox experiences have gone under the radar so far. First and foremost is the game that looks to be the top-tier title for the Summer of Arcade, Bastion. It’s got an old-school adventure RPG look, with a unique narration style. We’re confident the disparate pieces will come together nicely, but thankfully, nobody will have to wait to find out, as the game will be one of the Summer of Arcade’s major players.You can read more about Bastion here.

Above: Bastion is purty

OXM Senior Editor Ryan McCaffrey is looking for love in the first-person perspective, and the cavalcade of samey shooters hasn’t warmed his heart. Thankfully, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim looks like it will fill that void, with a wider variety of attacks and a deeper world to explore.You can read more about The Elder Scrolls V: Skryrim here.

Above: Skyrim apparently introduces actual dragons

Last, and certainly not least, OXM’s newly-crowned Web Editor Dave Rudden found a game that mates the best of gaming circa the early 1990s and 2000s. El Shaddai’s mixture of Limbo-esque experimental platforming and Devil May Cry-style quick combat would normally be enough to excite fans looking for new gameplay experiences, but the crazy visual style and Old Testament-infused storyline put the game over the top, leading Dave to award it his favorite game of E3 Day 2.You can read more about El Shaddai here.

Above: El Shaddai is kind of weird... in a good way

Jun 8, 2011