Summer is, for many gamers, the second-best time in the video game world (second only to the pre-Christmas rush of must-have titles). While a lot of games come out over the course of the blazing summer months, the truly major point of interest occurs in just over a week: E3 (the Electronics Entertainment Expo). The LA Convention Center opens its doors for the annual gaming extravaganza from May 9 until May 12. And although almost none of you (maybe some were willing to shell out hundreds of dollars for a ticket) will be attending the conference, all of you are more than welcome to watch G4TV's live coverage of E3 between cramming for finals.

But with the dozens upon dozens of gaming giants touting their latest creations to droves of hungry gamers, it's truly difficult to tell what's actually of importance. Luckily, you have the know-how of gaming's most respected journalists: Ryan and Sundeep. In this, our final column of the year, we're going to give you a run-down of what to see, what to ignore and what to talk about for the coming year at this year's E3. Game on.

Ryan:

There are relatively few things I get excited about. A few weeks ago there was a "Seagal vs. Van Damme" marathon on Spike TV. That was arguably pretty exciting. Then there was the time I got a Nintendo 64 for Christmas. Quite exciting. But nothing gets me jazzed on a yearly basis like the buzz surrounding E3.

There's just something so beautiful about going from blips all over the place about random games to suddenly facing a figurative flood of gaming news about anything and everything. This year's E3 is no different, featuring actual playable Wii (shudder … I truly loathe that name) games, some "God of War 2" goodness, a glimpse at "Halo 3" and, best yet, more information about "Metal Gear Solid 4."

Clearly, there are hundreds of things going on at this year's conference — way too many to list in one column. But what has me really pumped? PS3, for starters.

I know Sony has insisted it won't unveil the price or official launch date of the console at this year's E3, but I have a feeling they still might. They need to finally put gamers' minds at rest, preparing them for this fall's launch. As minor as it might sound, gamers need to know what they're going to be paying for the console in order to make an educated decision about the next generation of gaming.

The average gamer just doesn't have the funds to buy every console out there, but until they know whether or not a PS3 is going to cost more or less than a 360 it's difficult to justify holding out for a purchase they may not end up making. But if Sony finally takes a stand and says the PS3 will be priced at $399 (as the latest issue of PSM claims), people will continue to claim the 360 is a better purchase.

As for PS3 games, they will be showing even more than at last year's E3. Expect to be wowed by "Killzone 2" and "The Getaway." Don't forget possible glimpses of a new "Ratchet & Clank" game and "Madden 2007" on Sony's baby. Will Rockstar show off a new "GTA" game? My gut tells me they could, but don't expect much beyond a name or some vague information. And then there's this little game called "Metal Gear Solid 4." Hideo Kojima has never failed to steal the show at an E3 — why should this year be any different?

Sundeep:

Woohoo Nintendo Wii!! … that just doesn't sound right. Woohoo Nintendo Revolution!! … much better.

While E3 stands to be a great showcase for upcoming PS3 titles, functions and pricing, I'm hooked on all things Nintendo at this point. Much of that has to do with the fact that there's no way I will probably ever be able to afford either the PS3 or Xbox 360.

From the looks of things, the Wii will be considerably cheaper than its competitors.

As we get closer and closer to E3, game developers are releasing information on new games for the Wii almost every week.

In particular, Ubisoft's "Red Steel" could end up being the Wii's signature title when it's finally released. The combination sword and gun-fighting game will allow players to use the Wii's motion sensitive controller to fight through enemies using a host of fresh weapons — I'm assuming a lot of swords and big guns.

While I'm very excited for what happens with the Wii, I'm somewhat perturbed that I've had to wait this long just to hear anything about the "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess." It's really been too long.

Hopefully though, Nintendo will have used that time wisely and given it enough Wii-only features that the game is ten times better than how it would have been, had it finally released on the GameCube.

Ryan:

I just don't see the Wii going anywhere. Nintendo will probably show off "Twilight Princess" compatibility and maybe video of a new "Mario Bros." game … but beyond that? Sure, "Madden Wii" sounds interesting. But remember back when everyone thought the Virtual Boy would change the way we game? Exactly.

I expect to see Microsoft have a really strong showing at E3. As much as it pains me to say it (man, I hate the Xbox), Gates and his crew of goons will be showing off "Halo 3." And that's enough to get anyone listening.

The Xbox 360 has been somewhat of a let-down up until now and Microsoft almost needs to come out swinging at E3 if they have any hope of getting real attention from gamers. "Oblivion" was a great start, but they need to show off some truly must-have games that will release during the next year if they expect consumers to lay down cold cash for a 360. "Halo 3" is going to be huge, but that's also not launching until 2007 as far as I know. Sony and Nintendo are already set to make a lot of noise next week — but what does Microsoft have?

My guess? They announce a deal with Will Wright bringing the highly-anticipated "Spore" to the 360. Either that or, as some sources have been speculating, they throw enough cash at Rockstar to secure "Grand Theft Auto" exclusivity for the 360. A blow on that sort of scale is arguably the only way Microsoft will come out of E3 without egg on its face — much as I'd love to see it.

Sundeep:

Yeah, I'm with Ryan on this — screw Microsoft. They've got some serious stepping-up to do if they're going to plan on competing with Sony. However, I doubt "Spore" will go to the 360.

If anything, "Spore" will show up on at least two of the upcoming platforms if not all of them.

"Halo 3" will rock. Seeing as how "Halo 2" ended, it better rock.

Where we'll see some serious gaming though, is on the Square-Enix front. The RPG kings will come to E3 packing some serious heat this year with information on several huge titles.

Most importantly, Square will finally give us some insight into their sequel/prequel/mega-conglomeration (what?) "Final Fantasy VII Compilation." "Before Crisis," "Dirge of Cerberus" and "Crisis Core" should all get some headlining.

In addition, Square will be releasing the first real information on "Dawn of Mana". "Dawn" will be Square's first real sequel (or rather prequel) to the original "Sword of Mana" in over a decade and will be leaving 2-D Land and saying hello to 3-D Extravaganza.

Yes, that's right, no more playing a Mana game with the overhead view. In addition, Square promises that this next release will allow players to actually "feel" their environment. I'm not sure what this means. It's actually kind of creepy.

Ryan ([email protected]) and Sundeep ([email protected]) are hopelessly addicted to video games. Ryan has been making his way through "Kingdom Hearts 2," but isn't impressed so far. Sundeep has been revisiting the classics by immersing himself in everyone's favorite: "Chrono Trigger."