The Darkness - 2K Games, for Xbox 360/PlayStation 3; June 25

The spiritual successor to Starbreeze’s original Xbox sleeper hit The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay, The Darkness brings unique first-person action onto the Xbox 360 and PS3 this summer.  Players control Jackie Estacado, a young Mafioso recently imbued with demonic powers. 

The intense first-person action will be complemented by Darkness powers that allow Jackie to summon all sorts of demonic creatures called “darklings” to do his bidding in a war against the mob.  Add in demon tentacle-snake-things that reside on the main character’s shoulders and act as your HUD and a hellish alternate dimension players will visit where a world war is fought in perpetuity, and you’ve got a very dark, disturbing take on first-person shooting.  

Ninja Gaiden Sigma - Tecmo, for PlayStation 3; June 26

When one of the biggest titles coming for your new console is a port of a game released for your competitor’s last-gen console over three years ago, you’d think you might be a little worried.  With Ninja Gaiden Sigma, however, Sony is welcoming what is no doubt the authoritative version of the third-person brawler as the exclusive triple-A action title for the PlayStation 3’s summer. 

With all the content from the Black Xbox re-release and a new playable character, Sigma on PS3 will have plenty of meat into which gamers can sink their teeth.  And with the entire game’s graphics massively scaled up and running at 60 frames per second, PS3 owners can expect a fast-paced action treat.

Overlord - Codemasters, for PC/360; June 26

This action RPG game with a dash of strategy from developer Triumph studios will give PC and 360 owners the chance to be evil for once.  Putting gamers in charge of an army of bumbling demon minions, Overlord mixes third-person action with strategy-style command of an intelligent horde of monsters. 

The player character and minions will be able to gain new skills and equipment as the game progresses, and the player’s lair will be rebuilt and refurbished as the game progresses and the player’s minion army grows in strength.  Look for Overlord on PC and 360 later this month.