Video Game Awards brings on the sequels

I don't usually care much for the makeshift "awards shows" that some of them Americans mount, but when there are game announcements as major as, say, a Batman Arkham Asylum sequel, you know that there must be something to video game awards shows that is of much commercial appeal.

Today's Spike Video Game Awards (VGA's) showed off quite a few major trailers. No gameplay demos, but still, confirmation of some pretty exciting games, if not sequels.

The one I'm most excited for?

Batman: Arkham Asylum... the sequel

Daaaaaamn! Hot off the heels from the blockbuster that was the first game, the VGA's best studio Rocksteady is crafting the sequel, and it looks damn good. While the Joker is still pretty much the boss, there might be a few new fan-favorites along the way. I haven't finished the first game so I can't see the connection between the release of the bad guys to Gotham (so don't spoil it), but one thing's for sure: the game's gonna be awesome.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2

The first Force Unleashed was probably one of the most overblown games of '08, what with all the hype it got. While critics praised it for having a good story, the rest of its parts didn't really sum up a potentially good experience. But the beauty of the game industry is that unlike movies, sequels are things that enable game developers to improve upon an established formula, or some control issues, and fans are hoping that this will be the case with the sequel to Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

And come on, there are probably gonna be some epic monster battles!

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands

While I'm always game for a Prince of Persia, I'm not particularly fond of this new addition. It doesn't feature the 2008 edition's storyline, but it's more of a return to, yes, the Sands of Time. And this time, it's actually a Jake Gyllenhaal-ish Prince at the helm, and it feels rather weird. At one hand, it features the original rewind mechanic that was the distinctive feature of the old Sands of Time franchise, but on the other hand, it may just be a tie-in to the movie, which personally, sounds like a bad idea. Thankfully, Ubisoft is the one working on the game, and there doesn't seem to be a trace of any Disney-owned trademark in the trailer... not yet. Anyone betting on seeing Buena Vista Games in the next trailer? I am.

Green Day: Rock Band

Harmonix had an excuse to make a Beatles: Rock Band. It could take on any of those Guitar Hero artist games, and I thought that maybe, just maybe, Harmonix would just end the trend there. I mean, The Beatles: Rock Band is pretty much the be-all and the end-all of this type of franchise milking, but apparently, Harmonix is now succumbing to what is probably more of a command from the people high up at MTV, and it's hard not to blame them: if the Beatles: Rock Band got commercial success, why can't a Green Day: Rock Band?

Well, there's a number of reasons. But I can simply simplify it to this:

The Beatles = timeless.
Green Day = blatant promotion.

While The Beatles: Rock Band also promoted the re-released, remastered discography of the band which was released the same day as the game, Green Day doesn't have enough of that musical credibility for the promotion part to slide. 21st Century Breakdown was already promoted through Rock Band DLC, something I get, so I can't seriously understand the point behind Harmonix riding this bandwagon. I don't want Rock Band to become a Guitar Hero. I want Rock Band to stay Rock Band, and I'm just criticizing this decision to make this game because I love it too damn much.

For Chrissake, just release it as a track pack ala AC/DC. Better yet, an album on the Music Store. The Who has a whole album, Nirvana has a whole album, The Foo Fighters have a crapload of songs, so why can't Green Day just have the same treatment? Hell, The Who, I think, is more deserving of a single game than Green Day. It's not that I hate Green Day, I like some of their songs, but it just breaks my heart that something like this can pass through Harmonix's standards.

But if Harmonix is just gonna push with this anyway, I want to ask one thing: if the Beatles had harmonies, what'll Green Day have?