Capcom:
Firebrand
Strider Hiryu
Phoenix Wright
Vergil
Nemesis
Frank West

Marvel:
Hawkeye
Ghost Rider
Dr Strange
Iron Fist
Rocket Raccoon
Nova

On the Capcom side we’ve got Firebrand, buff shirtless demon of Ghosts and Goblin’s fame. You may recognize him from accidentally clicking on crossover slash art of him and Brooklyn from Gargoyles.

And even more bizarre is the choice of Rocket Raccoon on the Marvel side. Remember him? No, of course you don’t. But he’s here, and that’s kinda really fucking awesome.

The rest of the Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 roster is various levels of awesome/boring as well. Phoenix Wright is an incredible choice, but Ghost Rider, Nova, and Iron Fist? Meh.

Best Motion Picture
Alpha and Omega
How to Train Your Dragon
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole
Toy Story 3
The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Editor’s Choice: You gotta go with How to Train Your Dragon on this one, right? Granted, Toy Story 3 is a far superior film, but it’s not a furry film. The other three films in the category are nowhere near as good, despite what certain dragons keep trying to tell me.

Best Dramatic Short Work or Series
Adventure Time With Finn and Jake
“Foxy Bingo”
Mongrels
“Orangina Naturally”
The Regular Show
Wallace & Gromit’s World of Invention

Editor’s Choice: Honestly as long as anything but Foxy Bingo and the Orangina campaign win, I’d be fine. Yes, I know what fox was a dancing machine, and yes, god yes, that gay cougar is hot, but there is no way in hell the fandom should give an award to commercials for gambling and sugar water when some of the smartest written shows on television are in the same category.

Best Novel
Basecraft Cirrostratus by Justin Lamar
Descent by Phil Guesz
Otters in Space by Mary Lowd
Save the Day by DJ Fahl
The Seventh Chakra by Kevin Frane
Shadow of the Father by Kyell Gold

Editor’s Choice: Wow, this is an exciting year for novels, and I can see it being a close race. That said, I’ve got to go with The Seventh Chakra. It’s definitely the most ambitious novel on the list, and Frane pulled off an exciting original thriller, and one of the most unique novels I’ve read from the fandom.

Best Short Fiction
Bridges by Kyell Gold
“False Dawn” by Kyell Gold
“Felis ex Machina” by EO Costello
“Gerty and the Doesn’t-Smell-Like-a-Melon” by Mary E Lowd
The Peculiar Quandary of Simon Canopus Artyle by Kevin Frane

Editor’s Choice: I’m leaning towards Bridges in this category. It was one of those experiments that did something new, even if it was a bit… superfluous. It’s hard to argue the literary merits of writing the same spit-roasting scene three times, but hey, there it is. That said, Simon Canopus also has a cool experimental writing feel to is, as the Cupcake branded books tend to have.

Best Other Literary Work
Furpiled #4 by Leo Magna
Different Worlds, Different Skins edited by Will A Sanborn
Iron Claw Bestiary by Chris Goodwin
i.s.o. #1 by Vince Suzukawa
Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by Dave Sedaris

Editor’s Choice: In any other situation I’d automatically say Dave Sedaris, but his latest book is actually one of his weakest, so go for one of the fandom made choices. Furpiled and i.s.o. both are cool for slice of life stuff, and the Iron Claw Bestiary is something that nerds tell me is pretty cool.

Best Graphic Story
Concession by Immelmann
Furthia High by QuetzaDrake
Cruelty by Rukis
Lackadaisy by Tracy J. Butler
Twokinds by Tim Fischbach

Editor’s Choice: Lackadaisy. No question. The others are good, but don;t really compare, except maybe Cruelty for it’s potential. Rukis has the art talent, and if she can tighten up her storytelling I can easily see her winning this award in the future, but not this year.

Best Comic Strip
“Broken Plot Device” by Lis Boriss
“Faux Pas” by Robert and Margaret Carspecken
“Little Tales” by Genesis Eve Whitmore
“Housepets!” by Rick Griffin
“Sandra and Woo” by Powree and Oliver Knörzer

Editor’s Choice: Everyone’s got a favorite, just pick one. They’re all good.

Best Magazine
Anthropomorphic Dreams Podcast by Will A. Sanborn
Heat #7 published by Sofawolf
New Fables Summer 2010 edited by Tim Susman
South Fur Lands edited by Bernard Doove
Tales of the Tai-Pan Universe edited by Gene Breshears

Editor’s Choice: I’m tempted to say go for Anthro Dreams because it might spur an entire Podcast category next year (God knows there are enough of them to warrant it). But there are so many great stories in New Fables that I can’t snub it. Go with that.

Best Published Illustration
Big Red: Lady Sings the Blues by Richard Bartrop
Cenotaph by Susan Rankin-Pollard
The Seventh Chakra by Kamui
Shadow of the Father by Sara Palmer
New Fables Summer 2010 by Mary Mouse

Editor’s Choice: All of these illustrations are fantastic and every one of them is deserving of the award. These are some of the best talent the fandom has to offer. Personally, Kamui’s The Seventh Chakra is one of the most eye catching covers I’ve seen. It also has an array of symbolism that tie it in with the book. Plus it’s bright fucking yellow.

Best Game
Disney Epic Mickey
Furry Basketball Association
Rocket Knight
Sam & Max: Season 3, Episode 1: The Penal Zone
Sonic Colors

Editor’s Choice: There’s only one game on here that is done by the fandom, for the fandom. I don’t care if you like basketball, or like roleplaying, the Furry Basketball Association is a beast that is fueled by talented and dedicated players. Add on to that, it’s fun to follow even if you’re not participating. That’s way cooler than an XBLA game about a franchise everyone forgot about.

Voting for the Ursa Majors ends April 17. Visit the official site to cast your vote.

I’ve been cautious about this game because early demos had some major control issues, but I can’t help but get a bit excited seeing some of my favorite characters together.

Wait is that Dark Daxter? Oh, you motherfuckers.

The pack includes 60 mix-and-match costume pieces, covering Feline, Avian, Minotaur, and Wolf designs. Based on screens and art, the felines and avians include multiple species.

New emotes allow you to not only hiss, but sniff at other players. We don’t suppose “scritch” or “yiff” are included as actions.

There are other new features like additional auras and a Beast Run Travel Power.

And did we mention a Three Wolf Howl t-shirt featuring some buff and busty anthro wolves? Yeah, your furry superhero can pretend to wear shirts ironically while secretly loving them.

The City of Heroes Animal Pack will be available from the NCSoft Story for £5.99 or EUR 8.99.

Dino D-Day answers that much debated question, “What if Hitler went all Jurassic Park on this shit and we had to blow a dilophosaurus’ tiny brain out?”

Dino D-Day releases on the Steam service for PC on March 1, 2011.

Kinectimals
Microsoft
There’s no denying that these cats are cute. But honestly unless you’re under 10-years-old and are obsessed with wild cats (see: me in the early ’90s) then you’re not going to be into this somewhat clunky virtual pet game. Still, many people can probably get a solid day and a half of adorable good times here, which is enough for a rental.

Adrenalin Misfits
Konami
I know that wolf and dragon look kind of cool. Trust me, they aren’t. If listening to the dumb ape announce refer to you as “my baby” isn’t enough to get you to turn the game off, the slow, boring gameplay will finish the job. You’re not missing anything here.

Sonic Free Riders
SEGA
I’m not sure why so many people are into the Sonic style of talking animals, but yeah. If what you want in a video game is to stare at Tail’s butt as he leans forward to turn on his hoverboard, then this is the game for you. It’s actually a pretty fun little hoverboard kart racer, assuming you can get the controls to work properly, which take a good deal of patience.

Dance Central
Harmonix
I know, it’s not actually a furry game, but I’ve been to enough fursuit dances to know you people need some new moves. And this game actually teaches you some pretty cool (and some pretty lame) dance moves. If there is any reason to get Kinect, this is it.

Note that most of these games work pretty well even in fursuit. Yeah, I do my fucking research for you people.

Looks like the lion has some blackmail fodder. Serves cheetahs right for being such sluts.

Amaterasu, star of the critically acclaimed and fan loved PS2 and Wii game Okami was officially revealed on Marvel’s website, and is being announced during Capcom’s MvC3 panel.

In Okami and the upcoming Nintendo DS game Okamiden, the wolf god uses the power of nature to defeat enemies. Capcom hasn’t shown Amaterasu in action yet, but we’re pretty psyched (can everybody say “Please be overpowered so I can kick everyone’s ass with a wolf”?)

Marvel also announced Thor, which brings the total character count so far to 16.

Known characters so far: Chun-Li, Trish, Doctor Doom, Super-Skrull, Chris Redfield, The Hulk, Dante, Captain America, Felicia, Wolverine, Morrigan, Deadpool, Iron Man, and Ryu.

Marvel vs Capcom 3 is set to release Q2 2011.

Say hello to Duroc and Corvi.

We figured that since a lot of people just post chat logs to SoFurry and pretend they’re stories, we can do the same thing with an article. This is raw and unedited peeps, and by that I mean so terribly geeky.

Lovejoy: So Corvi and I attended the show (though he wasn’t at any of the press cons). But clearly the biggest things coming out of the show were 3D and motion control. Seems like the big three were pimping one of the other (or both for Sony).

Duroc: But the question is, did they succeed?

Corvi: By biggest you mean the things that the companies think are the biggest, right? Because I don’t really give a shit about either.

Lovejoy: Hehe, well right. It’s kind of hard to say whether they succeeded. Especially because the general public can’t see any of the 3D or experience any of the motion. Assuming they even care.

Duroc: Yeah, I’m not sold on 3D. Which is kind of why I think the 3DS actually worked. From sitting at home, they sold me on a 3DS, and I couldn’t see the effects. No glasses. No expensive TV. They have something there.

Corvi: I will admit the 3DS is cool. I’m surprised people are convinced without seeing it though, because I had to hold it in my hands before I stopped scoffing.

Duroc: I think the trailer showing the reactions of the developers said a lot for someone sitting at home.

Lovejoy: Right, the 3DS is definitely some amazing tech. And it’s almost a relief to see so many developers getting behind it so fast. Though most of the things being shown were just trailers or tech demos, so I’m not sure I’m entirely convinced yet, but it was still awesome to see it working.

Corvi: Dude that Metal Gear Solid demo alone sold me. Forget the 3D part of it, it looks great. The things seems on par, if not better than a PSP.

Duroc: I think the general opinion seems that Nintendo won E3. The 3DS impressed, they showed some cool games, and they whipped out a couple of surprises. Kirby’s Epic Yarn reminded me of the first time I saw Super Mario World 2. The art style looked really neat.

Lovejoy: Yeah I’m normally not impressed with Nintendo’s conferences, but they really gave the hardcore fans a lot to be excited over. And Kirby is incredible. The art style is great, the co-op seemed fun, and I’ve been dying for a new Kirby game.

Duroc: Well, Nintendo’s last few conferences were… not very good.

Corvi: Was I the only one not really impressed with Nintendo’s conference? They said a bunch of titles, sure, but they didn’t have much to show. And the Zelda demo didn’t even work.

Lovejoy: Well to be fair, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword works just fine. Tt wasn’t a very exciting demo, but it does work.

Duroc: I probably depends on the kind of gamer you are. But when compared to the other two cons, Nintendo’s did seem to be the best.

Corvi: True, but for those of us not at the conference itself, or worse, people at home, there’s no way to know that. You see the live demo just fail miserably, then journalists turn around and say the game is good. I actually thought Sony did pretty well. Except for trying to keep the PSP alive.

Duroc: I was kind of insulted by the Move, to be honest. They said it was new and innovative, when all it’s a Wii Remote with a light on the end.

Lovejoy: Not a Move fan? Having played with it, the thing is a lot better than a Wii remote.

Duroc: Yeah, not a Move fan. I think for me, I don’t want to invest in other motion device when I already bought a Wii for that.

Corvi: I’m fine with it being a Wii remote. Have you played the new Tiger Woods 11 on Wii? It’s fucking sick as hell. But it looks awful. Now Sony is going to let me play that True Swing stuff with HD graphics and a good online component? Hell yes.

Duroc: Though the Sly Cooper, Jax and Daxter, Ratchet crossover will make any furry stop and say… okay, maybe.

Corvi: That Heroes on the Move game is going to suck ass.

Lovejoy: Aaaw hey it might be good!

Corvi: No way, dude. When Sony lets third party people mess with their mascots it’s always bad.

Duroc: I think it depends on who they’re trying to sell the Move to. Are they selling it to someone like me playing Gran Turismo or Marvel vs Capcom 3? Or kids? I’m not sure yet. But I had similar feelings about the Kinect.

Corvi: Well I’ll be playing the new SOCOM on it. But I’m not touching that family stuff.

Lovejoy: Neither of you wanna play with the Eye Pet or the Kinectimals? You can name your tiger Skittles!

Corvi: …Fuck that, dude.

Duroc: That was flippin cute as hell. Skittles. Come here, skittles.

Lovejoy: Aaaw Skittles stop licking me!

Duroc: The furry perverts will have a field day.

Corvi: This is the part where I mention that they programmed the cat to freak out if you try and touch its asshole.

Lovejoy: Why did you try to do that?!

Duroc: Skittles isn’t smiling anymore.

Corvi: He wouldn’t roll over! So when he turned around I tried to finger him. And he flips out!

Lovejoy: Thank God they didn’t let you near Milo, Corvi.

Duroc: Milo was creepy. But being truthful, I think the Kinect has more potential then the Move, in the long run.

Lovejoy: I could see the Kinect being a bigger seller. Unfortunately nothing I saw, save for Dance Central, really worked that well. In fact I’m not even sure if Dance Central worked well, but it was fun and had Lady Gaga music.

Duroc: I think when it all comes down to it, did Sony or Microsoft sell people a Move or a Kinect after E3? For me, it didn’t happen. Not saying they won’t later. But… not at E3.

Corvi: That’s the kicker for me between Move and Kinect. The third party Move stuff actually works and looks fun, and developers will be able to make Wii Motion Plus and Move games simultaneously. Kinect has really shitty snowboarding games starring Sonic and a wolf. No I think they both have a lot of convincing to do for the general public.

Lovejoy: Agreed. They’re both expensive pieces of hardware that don’t seem necessary. Pulling it back to the 3DS here. Do you think people are going to flock to buy this?

Duroc: Yeah, I think so.

Corvi: How the hell is Nintendo going to market it? They’ll need to have demo unit in every store in the country because if you can’t see it, you won’t think it’s cool.

Duroc: Nintendo owns the handheld market. And Japan will eat this shit up. They’ll sell product.

Lovejoy: I think the word DS, plus the sexiness of 3D may be a perfect storm. Oh and Nintendogs.

Corvi: +Cats, bro.

Duroc: Right now, Nintendo is in the catbird seat. They’ll make it work, and people will buy into the hype. It seems like they already have. The ones who need a boast, are Sony and Microsoft with the Move and the Kinect. And I don’t see anyone excited about Sony’s 3D.

Lovejoy: Yeah we drank that koolaid up.

Corvi: Sony’s 3D is cool and all. But that is a lot of money to pay for stuff that doesn’t seem worth it. Plus everyone knows Sony makes the early, expensive tech, then gets outshone by other companies.

Duroc: Plus, 3D was hip and cool back in the sixties.

Lovejoy: So do you guys think 3D is a fad, or is this where all gaming is headed?

Corvi: It better be a fad. Even the 3DS will probably be a pain in the ass. I don’t want this shit everywhere.

Duroc: I think it’s a fad, but I do believe Nintendo has the right idea. No expensive glasses or TVs.

Lovejoy: Well I had a friend that can’t see the stereoscopic stuff on the 3DS. The say something like 10 percent of people just can’t see it. And even in the little time I played it I was getting kind of annoyed having to keep it in that sweet spot.

Duroc: It’ll have its growing pains, similar to the Wii.

Corvi: If they can get that movie thing to work though I’ll be glad to watch 3D films on the 3DS.

Lovejoy: It’s the same sized screen as an iPhone, which seems very intentional.

Duroc: I don’t think Nintendo’s worried about the PSP, but the iPhone or the iPod Touch… maybe.

Lovejoy: Well Nintendo has officially declared them the enemy.

Duroc: I see a lot of people playing games on their iPod Touch. It makes sense for Nintendo to maybe shift its focus. So, did anyone have any particular games that stood out?

Corvi: Well I’m a huge Portal fan, and Portal 2 was incredible. Looks way more story driven this time.

Lovejoy: It wasn’t the best game there or anything, but I love Epic Mickey. Everything about it makes the Disney fan in me so happy.

Duroc: I was excited about Marvel vs Capcom 3. I’m a fighting game nut. And I’ll be picking up a PS3 in November right along with Gran Turismo 5.

Lovejoy: With Move?

Duroc: Ahhh… no. But I’ve been waiting and waiting for that official release date on GT5.

Corvi: I’ll probably buy Kinect, because my girlfriend was more excited about that shit than anything else there.

Lovejoy: Waiting to buy a PS3 for GT5? Damn that’s a cocktease. Well I’m looking forward to your review for Kinectimals, Corvi.

Corvi: “This panther gets mad when I poke it’s asshole. 6/10″

Duroc: GT5 is a must have. Games like that sell systems. At least for me anyway.

Lovejoy: So we all agree that the 3DS is cool (though just exactly how cool remains to be seen). Move and Kinect have a lot more convincing to do before we’re sold. And Sony’s 3D and PSP can go ahead and die.

Duroc: Pretty much.

Corvi: In a nutshell!

So there you have it folks. But enough from us. What do you guys think about all this 3D and motion control? What was your favorite game from the show?

Now I liked the first Super Mario Galaxy just fine. It had its issues, but the game was a lot of fun, looked good, and was definitely the best thing on the Wii that year. However I didn’t get pulled into it and wasn’t motivated to fully beat the game.

Galaxy 2 has that right combination of fixing the problems I had with the first game, and adding new things that make the game better. The story is completely different, making the game more of an alternate title than a sequel (so if you never played the first one, don’t worry). And it’s a much better story, going back to the simpler roots of the series. Bowser steals the Princess, Mario has to save her. It’s basic, but it works, and honestly, I don’t need a ton of exposition in a Mario game. The story that is there is amusing, and the dialogue is humorous. The jokes even get a little self deprecating, which is weird and awesome coming from Nintendo.

Oh and did I mention Bowser is a giant in the game? Nintendo seems to be making their main villain go the Godzilla route, because this is the fourth game in three years where he’s all macro. Just sayin’.

It’s all about the level design in Galaxy 2. These are just straight up fun planets to play on. Everything explodes with style, and the gameplay switches up so often that it never gets stale or repetitive. Sometimes you’ll be running around with a giant drill having to punch through the entire planet. Or you’ll be in a sidescrolling plant level, swinging off giant flowers. Or in a haunted house avoiding ghosts. Or hopping through clouds. I never got to a level and went “Oh this again.” I did however get to plenty of levels and think “This is really cool”, and that’s becoming a rarer occurrence these days.

Yoshi is definitely a welcome addition to the game, and I’m thrilled to see him back. The transition to 3D for the dinosaur is actually pretty smooth. He plays just how you’d expect him to in Super Mario World on the SNES. Plus he’s got three different powerups, all of which are fun. Combine those with the numerous classic and new suits for Mario, and there’s a ton of variety to make the game eclectic and awesome.

Galaxy 2 is also packed with homages to Mario’s entire career. From the music to the themes of the level, it’s a tribute to the spunky plumber. If you’re a fan it’s great, and if you’re not a fan it’s fine because it’s not some inside joke you have to “get”. It’s more of a visual “best of Mario games” collection.

Really my only complaint with the game is that some of the cooler levels that require some serious, unadulterated platforming skills are only unlocked after getting all 120 stars. I would have liked to play those throughout the entire game instead of having them in one huge chunk at the end.

If you own a Wii, there’s really isn’t a reason not to get Mario Galaxy 2. It is, quite possibly, the best Wii game I’ve ever played, and one of the best platformers ever.