8 Games You Need to Know About and Why

This holiday season, gaming consoles and games are red hot items on everybody's most wanted to give and receive lists, according to the latest CEA research.

Gamers are ripe for high-end A/V systems and games are getting more advanced, with high-definition graphics and surround sound audio.

So with all this attention on gaming, what are the games that integrators should know about and recommend to their clients?

Here are eight games you should know about and why.

Halo 3

At the top of the list is a no brainer: Halo 3.

This game not only crushed Spider-Man 3 (the movie!) in sales and caused the lowest attendance at movie theaters for an October in ten years, but it's also a great game with a level of depth that reflects the three years it took to make.

At 720p, it doesn't have the highest video resolution, but the creators at Bungie chose to favor faster frame rates over sheer higher resolution. So, there are a few motion artifacts.

On the audio side, the surround soundtrack is really well done and engaging.

One of the best new Halo 3 features is the single player co-op mode that allows players, via System Link within a house or online through Xbox Live, to play together on the campaigns. Most players will want to choose the Legendary or Heroic settings, and the addition of three other players/friends helps you get through some of those levels that just seem impossible alone.

Another great new multiplayer feature is Forge, which allows custom maps to be created. It's great for making the existing maps more challenging by eliminating sniper rifle campers from hiding in hard to reach areas. One fun variation in Forge is having all players in vehicles (called "God" mode) where one player monitors the map, placing new objects accessible to lesser skilled players, balancing out play.

Of course, any game that has a Theater mode has got to beloved by custom installers. Halo 3's Theater mode does not disappoint.

Theater mode allows clips of player's best kills or crazy antics to be saved not only on the customer's Xbox 360, but also uploaded to Bungie's Halo 3 site and viewed by their friends and other players.

BioShock

Right from the start of 2K Studios' BioShock, a horror-based first person shooter, you see water effects and a level of graphic detail that is really stunning to look at, especially on a high performance display monitor or projector, as the game supports up to 1080i and 1080p resolutions.

Not only is this a great first person shooter, but it mixes in puzzles and a well thought out storyline that really pulls you into the underwater world of the city of Rapture. The game's AI (artifical intelligence) has an ability to constantly change, so every time you play a level it is different.

The audio in this game has a myriad of ambient water and room effects that really bathe and envelope a player in a properly set up surround sound system.

If you want a title to really show off a custom gaming room or dedicated home theater, this is the one to use.

Mass Effect

Mass Effect, from BioWare, appeals to both first person shooter gamers as well as RPG (role-playing game) fans.

There's plenty of interaction with characters within the game, and the decision you make when relating to those characters will have implications later on. Enough shooting action and depth of story make this another winner for all gamers.

Scene It

The ever increasing popularity of casual gaming has forced developers for the Xbox 360 to come up with new games based on easy-to-play group party games. One of the current best titles in this genre is Scene It.

This game, based on the DVD board game series, comes with four custom large button controllers that allow for players to buzz in first to answer questions about film clips and film facts that are presented as the game progresses. This is the perfect game for the parents of a house, because they can invite over three other couples to have some wine and play Scene It in their large home theater while the kids are out of the house.

The game is fun to play and downloadable expansion packs from the Xbox Live Marketplace will keep the content fresh and ever changing.

Rock Band

For more party-based casual gaming, Rock Band from Harmonix allows players to sing, play the drums, play the bass guitar and the lead guitar in karaoke-like fashion.

It's not only a hit with kids and teens, but will be great fun for parents in search of their former Karaoke glory days. Couples can once again have a bottle or two of their favorite beverage and have a great time making fools of themselves in the comfort of their own homes.

Both Rock Band and Scene It are great ways to convince potential customers that don't see the value in having a gaming console in their theater into giving the go ahead to include one.

Blast Factor

On the Sony front, we have some great casual games, including Blast Factor, a full 1080p game that was developed with THX's new games certification program.

It is a great homage to the original Asteroids game and the graphics are really stunning, thanks to THX's supervision and guidance throughout the development process. It is easy and fun to play and a great quick way to show 1080p graphics and surround sound effects.

Resistance: Fall of Man

Another THX developed game for Sony's PlayStation 3 (PS3) perfect for demonstrating the importance of the back two speakers in a 7.1 surround system for gaming is Resistance: Fall Of Man.

Like Halo 3, the game has 720p video, but it's the audio that really shines here.

A demonstration that THX's Dr. Mark Tuffy likes to promote is playing the game head on as a soldier, then turning backwards when the alien enemies begin to home in on your position. When you keep walking backwards, you can hear how the all the gunshots and whizzing bullets now properly shift from being heard in front of you (in the center and left and right speakers) to the back left and right speakers.

This demo really got the attention of attendees at the recent Custom Gaming Room on Demo Alley at the Fall EHX in Long Beach, Calif.

Crysis

On the PC, Crysis is all about the combination of unbelievable graphic resolution and high frame rates.

The initial demos that have been available for download have already taxed all but the highest-end Direct X10 video cards. The game demos that I have seen look stunning. This will be a reference quality PC game.

It's now available for full game download and it will have hardcore PC gamers clamoring not only for the highest-end video cards, but new PC rigs like the fully loaded HP Blackbird 002 and the Dell XPS 720H2C desktop gaming computers.

The Hits of 2008

The prospects for gaming in 2008 look promising.

With titles like Grand Theft Auto 4, Little Big Planet and Fable 2 as standouts, it'll be another great year of gaming and game titles.