In case you missed out on Thursday.

Friday

Backing up a bit to Thursday, we arrived a little late due to seating issues, but Jill and I did in fact get to jump into the Gears of War 3 panel. What I can tell you is that the graphics and sound definitely appeared to have been given a bit of an upgrade. The creators told the fans that the finale wouldn’t answer all of the questions people had, as they wanted to keep the universe a bit open, but many plot points would be resolved.

On Friday, fans were given a sneak peek of Mass Effect 3 by Legendary Pictures. The trailer was really short, and only focused on a pinned down sniper lamenting that Shepard better show up soon. The creators then brought out the screenwriter for the movie, Mark Protosevich, who has previously worked on such projects as Thor and I Am Legend. Protosevich commented that the Mass Effect universe had such a great story, it would be easy to design a film that is epic in scope. He noted further that the movie is still slated for 2012 and will only focus on the first game.

Later, Halo fans were given a few treats. There was some discussion of Halo 4, which is completely underway and will follow the continuing adventures of Master Chief. Unfortunately, the developers were tight-lipped regarding any details. The panel also showed off their most recent build of Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Edition. For anyone who enjoyed the very first title in the franchise, this will be a treat. The graphics and sound have all been supremely upgraded so it can now be experienced in a very rich environment. Also, players can switch from the original graphics to the new ones at any point during game play with the tap of a button. Finally, it was announced that the super-charged magnum pistol would return in the new build.

And before we close the door on 2011′s con, I got to see a few seconds of Star Wars Kinect, and it looked amazing! One section I saw was for podracing where players hold their arms out and steer their pods with them. The other demo had users engaging in Jedi-fighting. Players would move their hands to use the Force, jump to leap over opponents, and swing their lightsabers in realistic motions. The gameplay seemed to focused on the prequels more than the original trilogy, but some locations from Episodes IV, V, and VI are expected to appear.