Loose Threads: Which of E3's handheld revelations has you the most excited?

Well the dust has settled, appetites have been sated, hopes have been dashed and ill-fitting freebie T-shirts have been consigned to the bottom of wardrobes.

Much to our surprise, this year's E3 turned out to be pretty eventful as far as handheld games were concerned, and we were treated to a generous handful of unexpected portable surprises.

But there's no accounting for taste and where some people are jumping up and down at the thought of GTA coming to the DS, others can't see past the visual splendour of Resistance: Retribution. So last week we put the question to you lot to see which got the needle on your OMFGometer coursing off the chart.

First to the debate this week was a new face, Rich B:

"Chrono Trigger on DS wins the war for that device, for me! Although I can only assume, as Square Enix don't try very hard to pursuade us otherwise, they just don't like us enough to release it over here�"

Well it's probably a wait-and-see on that one, currently anyway. Next to the table was hunter-alien, and regular readers should already know what he was excited about:

"Resistance Retribution seems to be one of the best looking portable games to date, and after marvels like Chains of Olympus and Crisis Core there are few games that could impress me. "Resistance Retribution did, and it also quickly pushed Dissidia and Birth by Sleep from my #1 and #2 most wanted position and gently settled on the throne. "This, combined with LocoRoco 2, Patapon 2 and Super Stardust Portable and quality multi-platform titles like Duke Nukem Trilogy, Midnight Club LA: Remix and Star Wars: the Force Unleashed made the PSP's future look brighter. So yeah, for me the PSP won this year's E3."

There's no denying, the PSP had a strong E3 showing and, it has to be said, things are looking much less bleak than they did a month ago. Following this, Accelorata Jengold seemed to be in agreement on the PSP front. The DS however, not so much:

"I have to say that E3 was all about the PSP for me too this year. Resistance Retribution is a very predictable path for Sony to take, but it's a tried and tested one and I fully expect it to be a great game. Given how gorgeous it looks, it's bound to stir up some real excitement when it releases. "Still lamenting the absence of a wireless PSP Store but then, at least the PSP has that sort of functionality. I know I'll probably be slain for saying it, but Chrono Trigger doesn't really interest me at all."

Blasphemy! Even so, we have to agree that we were a little disappointed that a wireless PSP Store wasn't announced too. Here's hoping TGS or the Leipzig GC bring better bounty. Mixing things up a bit was our very own Stuart Dredge:

"Puzzle Quest: Galactrix was the title that caught my attention on handheld, having only recently come out of a fearsome addiction to the previous game on DS. "The space-based theme could be interesting, and the fact that new pieces fall onto the board from all sides when you make matches could be a more significant gameplay tweak than it sounds. "Wish it was coming out sooner than 2009 though."

In agreement was another of PG's fine statesmen, Joao, with:

"I'd definitely go with Stu's PQ: Galactrix but also can't deny Resistance: Retribution certainly has my interest - possibly because Chains of Olympus convinced me that PSP can do action beautifully. "Other than that duo, I'm oddly intrigued by Rhythm Heaven. No, really. Probably something to do with going back to Elite Beat Agents recently. And the fact it's got robots in it. Kind of."

It's true: if you don't like robots, then you should probably forget gaming altogether and take up knitting. Some say we're a touch harsh. They have all since mysteriously expired (joke).

(Where? - ed).

Next to the table was the extravagantly coiffured SetsFireToPoshHammer with a very excited, somewhat tangential rant:

"Five comments in and nobody has mentioned GTA DS yet! Has the entire world gone stark staring raving mad? "Though it hasn't been shown in any way yet, I have my money on Rockstar turning out something that fits the DS like a glove. It's just brilliant that the company is making a game that is tailored to the system, instead of a quick port of some of the original top-down games, I for one can't wait. "I have to agree, Rhythm Heaven has caught my interest too, but similarly, I can't really say why. It certainly looks quirky and everyone knows the DS loves quirky like roast beef loves gravy. "I'm hungry."

So are we, for some screens of the aforementioned GTA: Chinatown Wars so that we can get stuck into the serious business of unreasonable amounts of anticipating and speculating.

Stuart then revisited the topic with a suggestion that will only make the final game feel like so much missed potential, now that the idea has been put in our heads.

"I'd be more interested in GTA DS if it lets you hit'n'run Pokemon."

Indeed, as would hordes of others...

So it seems that the PSP won the day, but the DS was not without its crowd pleasers. Different strokes, different folks as always, which is the essence of a good discussion.

And so with little column space left available to us, we must march bravely on with next week's topic.

Which flash games should get a handheld release?

Answers on a postcard addressed to the Deepest Darkest Depths, Underworld, Hell SAT 666 will do nothing but make your postman think you are not of sound mind, so why not drop by the forum (where you will find more details on this topic) to post your thoughts instead.

That's all for now folks, click 'Track It!' to be sure to catch next week's Loose Threads.