
The poll police make yet another triumphant return this week, despite the rainstorms plaguing their office. Even though they lost power and internet for most of the day, they worked by candlelight, researching files and folders of recent rumors and PS3-related gatherings until once more, the poll police call upon you for help. This week, the poll regards three upcoming titles that have all been hyped up since before the launch of the PlayStation 3:
Warhawk,
Lair, and
Heavenly Sword. These titles are all coming out with little time between them, so now we ask: which one of these games is getting eclipsed by the others?
Don't read too much into the poll, rather, listen to the poll police's logic (good or not). Since
Warhawk is coming out first, some may pass it by since they plan to purchase the latter two anyway and can't stomach the investment for two or all three. Some might pass on
Lair because they're still playing
Warhawk, but will pick up
Heavenly Sword since it comes out a bit later. Even still,
Heavenly Sword may get ignored because it comes out last in the trilogy of releases. Some people might not want to buy it, as they're still enjoying the other two. This is all assuming more than one of these games interests you, but if not, just think abstractly about which of these titles is most likely to get overshadowed.
Last week's poll results are after the jump.

Once again, we're proud to have a result that shows just how much our readers love Insomniac. When asked how important
Ratchet and Clank was to you, a little under half of you firmly stated it was a day one purchase. That's fantastic to hear! While an approximate 35% of you aren't enticed by the game, we hope you'll at least give it a shot. If a demo is released, why not, right? As always, thank you guys for voting and we'll see you next week!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Andy @ Aug 26th 2007 6:39PM
For me its not so much eclipsed as less awesome. When I see trailers for LBP, Warhawk and Uncharted I am always amazed and excited. When I watch Lair vids I am not.
xrich @ Aug 26th 2007 6:50PM
too many good games is a welcome problem for ps3 users
Consolcwby @ Aug 26th 2007 7:03PM
Since all three games are being released so close to each other, I am assuming that Warhawk will be the title of choice for multiplayer gamers, Heavenly Sword for those who like a good beatem up or story, and Lair for those who like experimental/flying games. The fact that all three games have gotten lackluster reviews, tell me that they are pretty much equal in most people's eyes. So, therefore I picked Lair as the game that will be looked over, since it is the "middle child" of the group, and since I predicted that it would one day become one of those niche (read "cult") titles. I like to try to be consistent as much as possible. =D
On another note, I am going to bypass both Lair AND Warhawk, since I have just got into Persona 3 (thanks, Nick!) and am drooling over playing Heavenly Sword. So, hopefully, I'll finish out Persona in time for HS, and if I've got time, I'll look into the one of the other titles!
PS2 + PS3 = Too much gaming! =DD
GRT @ Aug 26th 2007 7:16PM
There's no "I don't think any of the them will be eclipsed" option so no vote for me.
I'll skip Warhawk because I'm not into MP gaming with strangers and none of my friends has taken the PS3 plunge yet.
Lair looks meh.
Heavenly Sword is the one I'm lusting for. None of the lukewarm reviews have put me off it yet.
hoffer @ Aug 26th 2007 7:24PM
Personally, I'm let down by all three games in one way or another.
I've never been interested in Lair, but was hoping it would be so awesome, I'd have to try it. Reviews have shown me I was right with my first impression.
I saw Heavenly Sword as a GoW type game, but with a hot chick and in HD. I'm still buying the game, but the recent IGN reviews were a letdown.
Warhawk just disappoints me because a download only game shouldn't cost $40. I guess we'll find out from reviews and such if it's even that good a game. If I do get it, I'll wait for a used retail copy.
Matt B @ Aug 26th 2007 7:42PM
I"ll be getting all 3 at their launches. I may be spreading myself too thin at first, but I don't care.
I'm most excited about Lair though I'm a little disappointed that some of the gore was taken out to get a Teen rating. Peoples issues with the control scheme won't bother me since I had to train myself how to play Resistance being it was the first console FPS I've ever played. The PS3 is the first console I've owned since the N64 because I am a big PC gamer.
nick @ Aug 26th 2007 7:52PM
i think lair will get overshadowed because Warhawk will be the greatest multiplayer and Flying game and heavenly sword will be an amazing offline game with a great story but lair will have a bit of both but not specialize in either one. and since i think most people will buy 2 of the three they will get the two games that are great in their own ways.
the release dates being so close together will most likely turn out to be really bad timing for both ps3 users and the game creators or whoever profits off of the games because if the launches were spaced apart most people would buy all three instead of 1 or 2.
secret @ Aug 26th 2007 7:52PM
1. MGS4 / COD4 / Ratchet & Clank. These seem to hold my attention the most. Unless these games surprisingly get bashed in reviews, I'd like to buy these for sure. But because these games really do look promising, I highly doubt that there would be negative reviews. Good games can speak for themselves though, and any journalists writing negative reviews will be suspect of lying and putting their credibility and career at risk. But, who knows, if the pay-off is large enough, a journalist might just decide to retire and take a vacation.
mccomber @ Aug 26th 2007 8:09PM
I think Lair is the one that's going to be most affected by it's date; if it had come out weeks ago like it was originally going to, I would have picked it up that day, no questions asked. Now, right in the middle of Warhawk and Heavenly Sword, both titles that have received several good reviews (along with a couple disappointing ones) as well as titles I've sampled and enjoyed... it's harder to say "yeah, I need that immediately." I'm still 100% excited to play it, but I'm not sure if it's one I'll need the day it releases.
apease @ Aug 26th 2007 8:09PM
Warhawk saddens me because I really wanted to play the single-player game that was featured in their early trailers... that's the kind of game I like. I'm not big on multiplayer games at all, but I'm half-tempted to pick up the retail copy just for the bluetooth headset (I wonder if I can use it with my cell phone).
Lair is nearly a must-buy due to it being a dragon game... I loves me some dragons. So do all my friends. That and it looks like it could be a good game.
Heavenly Sword looks like God of War. I'm not too worried about the IGN review, since it complained about the same things that bugged me about God of War 1 and 2, such as arena fights where you're locked in a room with a bunch of baddies, massive re-use of the same monster models (spanning both games even), and so on. I still loved those games though, and I'm sure I'll love Heavenly Sword too.
Michael K. @ Aug 26th 2007 8:12PM
i think heavenly sword is eclipsing the others to a degree, its getting so much hype with all the wallpapers, making of videos, animes and all the hype on sites like this, and i thought the demo for it sucked. im not big on online multiplayer so i think ill skip on warhawk (i was in the beta and barely played). i plan on getting lair though, im kinda skeptical but i hope it pulls through
secret @ Aug 26th 2007 8:13PM
Lair never held my interest from day one.
Heavenly sword looked promising, until I noticed that there were some design issues that really bothered me. For one, they focused very little on her. That wouldn't be a problem except that they clearly made that her signature, trademark feature. When we think of Nariko, we think of her red hair. And we should remember a realistic flowing hair, not twigs while everything else looks so good. Doesn't make me feel good at all. Secondly, the idea of blocking while pressing absolutely nothing runs against my intuition to press or do something in order to block. If someone wants to punch me in real life, I wouldn't just stand still. At the very least, I'd flinch. So when I play a game, I'd like to do anything, something to initiate a block animation. Who the hell came up with this design decision of pressing nothing to block? And third, not being able to jump. I'm irritated by that alone if nothing else. I rarely jump in games, but without that ability, I'm disgusted.
But the storyline might be enough. Looking at the trailers alone, I care about the characters more so that I've found in any other game. I want to know more about their pasts, present, and future. I want to know who they are and what they've been through. And I think Nariko has been giving a great personality from what I've been able to see. And her stepdaughter is so adorable. These are high quality people in the games. That alone might be worth the admissions fee. But I'll have to do some research before buying the game. I might or might not buy it. It's in the middle leaning more towards the buy section. MGS4 / COD4 / Ratchet & Clank are already in my buy list. Warhawk is in my do not buy list because I don't play online yet. Though I will someday. I want to, but I'm not sure on how to do it.
sectionz @ Aug 26th 2007 9:55PM
i keep forgetting not everyone can buy every freaking game that is coming out.
i think its important to point out that im going to be BROKE this xmas .. all of these games coming out at once .. so scary!
anyhow i didnt vote because there no .. NONE option .. i dont think anything is getting eclipsed the noise right now is for warhawk. but thats it.
Skyfire360 @ Aug 26th 2007 8:21PM
Where's my "They aren't overshadowing each other" option?
From my point of view, if a title was overshadowed it'd mean that it would be a hit if it had gotten more press (i.e. Viva Piñata). All of 'em are going to be big hits.
ryano @ Aug 26th 2007 8:25PM
the one thing that got me in the Heaven Sword review was the low enemy types, the boring Arrow sequences and the total lack of replay ability.
When you have all the content unlocked via download, what's the incentive to replay?
PuniPuniSakura @ Aug 26th 2007 8:56PM
don't really care about any of them.. i'm (im)patiently waiting to play Folklore
Todd @ Aug 26th 2007 9:41PM
As of now it seems like Folklore and Ratchet and Clank are the only two good Playstation 3 games coming out. I may try out Uncharted or the Gundam Dynasty Warriors, but other than that, Heavenly Sword, Warhawk, and Lair all look retarded.
Seriously, I'm upset in the direction most of these games are heading. At least I can still play just about every other Psx/Ps2 game on the Ps3, so I'm really not complaining too much. Wild Arms 5 should hold me off for a few weeks.
Afsheen @ Aug 27th 2007 12:43AM
I'm just going to keep playing Resistance (I'm on my 4th tour of duty) and the few games I've downloaded until Killzone 2 comes out. And, in my case, the latest barrage of info on Killzone 2 has eclipsed everything else. If I can, I'll probably rent Lair and Heavenly Sword just to see what all the hype is about. But I'm just an FPS kinda guy, what can I say?
Toby @ Aug 27th 2007 1:46AM
@11
The headset is BT, its intended to be used with anything that has BT also, including phones.
Trini 2001 @ Sep 5th 2007 1:59PM
I personally thinks that lair is going to get overshadowed.Although i reserve it and read the reviews on ign i dont like what critics are saying but i'll see when that time comes.
Justice @ Aug 27th 2007 8:50AM
If I had money, I would buy all 3. IDC about other people's reviews because my own is the only one that matters. I would pick up HS 1st then WH and finally Lair.
Alex @ Aug 27th 2007 8:54AM
You make it seem as if there have been so many good titles coming out one on top of another that they are eclipsing one another. Every "AAA" title claimed by this website has come back with lukewarm to disappointing previews. Let's fase it the PS3 is a powerhouse machine with a lot of muscle, but with nowhere to drive to enjot it.
wh1ttle @ Aug 27th 2007 10:38AM
well at £15 the "overshadowed" title is gonna be the top seller out of those 3
Dave @ Aug 27th 2007 11:07AM
You mean there are games on the PS3!?!?? And here I thought it was just a cheap blu-ray player!
mccomber @ Aug 27th 2007 11:58AM
"When you have all the content unlocked via download, what's the incentive to replay?"
Umm... the game itself? Remember when we played games to play them, not just for achievements and unlocks?
I personally enjoy the combat style of Heavenly Sword, seems like it falls halfway between God of War and Ninja Gaiden as far as I'm concerned. I have a feeling the people thinking they can make it through just mashing buttons will be caught by surprise; I know with even the demo that when I focused more on counters and combos that my enjoyment of the combat went way up, as did the amount of health I had left when it came to it's way too sudden halt.
Oh yeah, and for those on the Warhawk hate train; Edge in the UK gave it an 8/10; the same score they gave BioShock. What does that say about the game?
Popfrogs @ Aug 27th 2007 2:46PM
#25: That's the Xbox syndrome, gamers playing for that carrot on the end of the stick and not for the game experience itself. I hope to god this mentality never takes root with the PS3.
jack_shat @ May 28th 2008 4:50PM
none of them can really overshadow one another can they? the ps3 has like what... 5 or 6 games? how does that work?