Going vertical is one of the more prominent themes of this year's E3, but before players fly around the Dark Void using a jet pack, they might be scaling the buildings of Damnation. Damnation takes place in an alternate history United States, where the industrial revolution took a radically different turn. The result is a 1900's America that looks both new and familiar at the same time. The characters of Damnation come straight out of an old-west movie and run around dusty mesa environments armed with steam punk weapons. The sci-fi western also features aircraft and proximity sensing mines.

Apart from the great setting, another aspect that sets Damnation apart from other shooters is the emphasis on vertical map design. Areas can be up to three miles wide while spanning thousands of feet in height. The main character will have a large degree of acrobatic skill to help him scale cliff walls and jump from building to building in this open-world environment. However, there won't be any emphasis on pixel perfect jumping the way Tomb Raider games do. Damnation will feature a physics system that will figure out when a jump is "close enough" to keep players from falling down deep pits. Players will also need to get by without the use of a map or compass, since both have limited use when playing vertically. Instead, the main character will have something called "Spirit Vision," which allows him to see all the people around him as heat signatures. That way, players can get a sense of where to go next, how many enemies they'll encounter and figure out the best way to deal with them.

A trusty NPC will follow players around as they cross Damnation and work to take down a crime boss before he has a chance to take over the nation. However, players can't outfit their partners with specific weapons or issue orders. NPC's will do their own thing instead, which could end up being a hindrance or annoyance, depending on how well the AI turns out to be. To overcome potential problems, the game will support drop-in cooperative multiplayer. So friends can immediately join the game and assume the identity of the NPC and play normally from wherever the host player happens to be.

Damnation will have to do a lot to stand out from other shooters. Its unique setting and style and massive maps go a long way, but things will essentially come down to control and AI behavior - both still need to be proven. We'll soon see how things turn out in the new old west since the game is currently scheduled for a winter 2008 release.