And so it begins once again…another edition of the annual gaming craziness that is the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). Another year of getting up before the crack of dawn, getting on a crowded plane with overpriced food and no onboard entertainment (other than the games on my iPod touch), and ground transportation that just barely gets me to my hotel in time for the first event. But I’m at ground zero in the video game industry, in a place where most gamers would love to be. So I should just shut up, stop bitching and get on with it!

A $10 taxicab ride gets me to the historic Orpheum Theatre in downtown Los Angeles just in time for the start of the Electronic Arts press briefing. CEO John Riccitello starts us off with new footage from the now-delayed-to-2012 Mass Effect 3, in which Cmdr. Shepard calls down fire during a battle with the Reapers on Earth. Just enough new content to make the ME fans in the audience want to step into the wormhole and come out next year. Other highlights of the EA presentation include Need for Speed: The Run, a race that literally crosses the country and also includes some on-foot sequences. The Autolog feature included in last year’s NFS game returns, making it possible for you to keep track of your friends’ progress. Star Wars: The Old Republic made another appearance this year, but BioWare’s presentation video was nothing more than a collection of footage that has been previously released, and no release date was announced, which was disappointing. This transitioned into a very slick trailer for the snowboarding game SSX, showing two athletes trying to stay ahead of avalanches and otherwise trying to survive. Players will be able to try their luck on courses laid out on all of the world’s major mountain ranges, with graphics help from NASA. EA Sports president, Peter Moore, then introduced new editions of the Madden and FIFA franchises. For Madden 12, EA trotted out three NFL players in full uniform, but said very little about how the new game compares to last year’s model. FIFA 12 was another matter, as improvements in defensive play, ball control and physical gameplay were demonstrated. Also, EA Football Club, on online service that serves as a social connection between footballers all around the world, was introduced as a free extra feature for FIFA 12, with plans to extend it to all previous FIFA games at a later date. Also on the menu were some new third-party offerings which include Kingdom of Amalur: Reckoning, a fantasy RPG developed by former baseball star Curt Shilling’s 38 Studios (Shilling appeared onstage to introduce it); and Insomniac’s Overstrike, a squad-based shooter with equal parts action and dry humor, if the trailer can be believed. The EA presentation ended with some footage of Battlefield 3, built on the new and impressive Frostbite 2 engine. A multiplayer open beta is planned for September 2011, and the full version hits stores on October 25.

Three blocks down Broadway is another classic old movie house, the Los Angeles Theatre (this part of town is strewn with old movie palaces in various states of disrepair; such a shame). This was the site of the Ubisoft conference, but there wasn’t much of real interest to be found. A new Rayman game (Rayman Origins), the oft-delayed Driver: San Francisco (now scheduled for a March 2012 release), a slick new iteration of the Trackmania series, and new games in the Just Dance and Your Shape franchises. Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson were shown talking about the game version of their upcoming animated film The Adventures of Tintin. There was a live demo of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, and the announcement of a free-to-play online version of the original Ghost Recon. Gearbox president Randy Pitchford, who much be grateful not to be talking about for a change, showed some footage from his new Brothers in Arms game, Furious Four, which looks very much like it was inspired by Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds. Ubisoft seems to want to try to keep the music-game genre alive while Activision has Guitar Hero on hiatus; Ubi’s Rocksmith teaches you how to play guitar using your own instrument instead of a plastic one with colored buttons. No details were shared on how you actually make that happen, but it looks cool from a musician’s standpoint. But Ubi’s major announcement was for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, which takes place in Constantinople in 1511 and has Ezio Auditore trying to track down information about his family’s colorful past. Revelations is planned for release in November 2011.

And just to show that E3 isn’t all work, fellow Avaulters Mark Turcotte, Chris Micieli, Patrick Watts, Matthew Booth and I attended a cocktail party hosted by Jagex to tout their upcoming Transformers MMO. Much refreshment was imbibed (Matthew graciously agreed to be our designated driver, since he lives out here) and many finger foods were consumed (mostly by me, since I hadn’t eaten since I paid $8.50 for eggs, bacon and home fries at the Philly airport), but there wasn’t much talk about the game we were there to celebrate. But it was free, so once again, stop complaining.

Tomorrow is the first real day of the convention. I’ll be visiting the booths of Bethesda Softworks, Sony, Activision and Paradox Interactive, as well as checking out the Nintendo press briefing, which promises to include the unveiling of the company’s new console. And on the party front, we travel to a local country-western bar for the annual Bethesda party, which features mechanical bull riding. Who will stay on the bull longest? Tune in tomorrow to find out (here’s a hint…it won’t be me).