The thing about E3 booths is that they often shaped in a very strange fashion, so that approaching them from this or that angle will sometimes reveal games you missed, even though you were quite certain that you saw all the stuff. The density of the stimuli compounds this effect. In any case, I saw a game called Culdcept in the Capcom booth long after I'd considered it "done" that really aroused my curiosity.
Culdcept has had more than one incarnation before this, including an appearance on the Dreamcast, and I believe that the version we'll receive as a domestic release is actually called Culdcept II or some variation on that. Originally published by Sega in Japan, the PR lady at the Capcom booth was actually having a very good time with it and seemed genuinely suprised at the fact. Culdcept can be described as follows: Monopoly plus Magic: The Gathering. It has deck building, boardgame-style gameplay. She mentioned that it is actually a physical, table-top game in Japan in addition to the electronic versions. In any case, I was rooted in place as she played monsters of varying ability on the board's elemental squares, monsters who - like hotels - exact a toll from players as they pass. You can choose to do battle with a beast drawn from your own deck in lieu of coughing up the cash, playing various ability cards on your creatures to bolster their effectiveness.
Gabe laughed and laughed at me when I described it to him, but I think it sounds awesome.
(CW)TB
