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We're not very good at lying, so when we say "A Mother's Inferno was an absolutely terrifying indie game," we mean we played it alone, at night, on a big-screen TV, and we just about peed our pants no less than seven times. Seriously, we haven't slept soundly in weeks.

Not all of the games at IndieCade's E3 exhibition were psychedelic horror fests; some of them were eccentric, rich platformers, such as Arcen Games' A Valley Without Wind. And a few were downright happy, such as Steve Swink's Scale.

Check out a few of our stand-out IndieCade titles in a guided tour right up there.

Ralph Fulton of Playground Games was very insistent that Forza Horizon is not, in fact, an arcade racing game. It may take place in an open-world version of Colorado, may be free from traditional Forza career modes and may feature a youth-focused licensed soundtrack (read: dubstep), but the actual driving is built on Forza's physics engine.

The problem with arcade-style racing games, according to Fulton, is that the appeal of racing different vehicles is lost due to the fact that all cars have to handle roughly the same in order to preserve an "arcade" feel. By using Forza's existing physics engine, Playground Games hopes to circumnavigate this problem and preserve the series' pedigree for for automotive accuracy.

That being said, the only car featured in the demonstration I saw was the 2013 SRT Viper, and as it was a hands-off demonstration, I was unable to compare its handling with my experience driving similar cars in previous Forza games. What I can say, is that the Viper did more than its fair share of drifting around Colorado's mountain roads, and that it racked up wicked popularity points doing so. See, in Forza Horizon, you're not just driving around for the hell of it. You're driving to get famous.

Dance Central 3 includes a revamped multiplayer system, designed to offer a greater deal of variety than its predecessor. Dance battles are now broken up into multiple sections, each with a different set of rules and different music. For example, "Keep the Beat" allows players to perform freestyle moves and awards maximum points for movement variety and keeping to the beat.

"Make Your Move," however, ups the ante. It is, essentially, the dance equivalent of HORSE.

We'll have a more detailed preview of Dance Central 3 shortly. For now, enjoy a reel of our very best moves.

We're not very good at lying, so when we say "A Mother's Inferno was an absolutely terrifying indie game," we mean we played it alone, at night, on a big-screen TV, and we just about peed our pants no less than seven times. Seriously, we haven't slept soundly in weeks.

Not all of the games at E3's IndieCade were psychedelic horror fests; some of them were eccentric, rich platformers, such as Arcen Games' A Valley Without Wind. And a few were downright happy, such as Steve Swink's Scale.

Check out a few of our stand-out IndieCade titles in a guided tour right up there.

The unimaginable weirdness of NBA Baller Beats finally became a reality in my mind today, as I saw, and played, the ball-dribbling Kinect rhythm game for myself. In practice, it works out to a sort of blend of Dance Central and Guitar Hero, in that you see instructions coming down a "lane" at you, directing you to dribble the ball with your left or right hand.

Gestural "moves" show up to transition from one hand to another, or to dribble through a leg, or perform a fake, or a (partial) pass, all to the rhythm of the licensed soundtrack, which included songs by Busta Rhymes and Gorillaz, among others.

But of course the big difference between this and those games is that you are bouncing a basketball instead of dancing or hitting buttons. I can see this being an excellent tool for teaching someone this fundamental basketball playing skill, within an exciting, clever rhythm game package. I say this as someone who could clearly use a few hours of practice, as evidenced by the video above.

#e32012 When I was told that Kirk had turned into a bear, I was very confused. My immediate thought process went something like: "How did that happen? What do we do? Is he going to have to find a new job? He can't type on a computer or hold a controller if he has paws, right?" More »

Forza Horizon's take on Kinect integration will be a bit more utilitarian than the dynamic head tracking seen in Forza 4, allowing players to use voice commands to activate the game's GPS system and find their way through Horizon's open-world version of Colorado.

"We received two recurring feedback points while we were looking at this game," Playground Games' design director Ralph Fulton told us during E3. "The first one is really simple, people said 'This world so big, I found it really easy to get lost.' The second is kind of related to that, people said 'Sometimes I forget where I'm going, or what I want to do next.'"

Forza Horizon's solution to this problem is a voice-activated GPS system that the player can use to find specific locations, such as the game's eponymous Horizon Festival ("GPS, Festival, Autoshow"), as well as ask more generic questions ("Where's my next race? Where's my nearest event?"). Once the Kinect registers the player's request, Forza's familiar line of green arrows extends from the underbelly of the vehicle, guiding the player to their destination.

#kinect The upcoming "Trading Faces" app for the Xbox 360 is more creepy than cool, but still a funny demonstration of what Microsoft's hands-free Kinect sensor can do. "Trading Faces" will be added as a downloadable Kinect Fun Labs program some time in the future. No release date. More »

#filthflarnfifa In Microsoft's E3 keynote yesterday, a demonstration of voice-command Kinect support in FIFA 13 yesterday left the impression that if you're on the adverse end of an official's decision and you swear at the judgment, you could draw a booking for dissent. It sure looked that way on the video. There was a bleep and an official showing a yellow card and everything. More »

#nbaballerbeats No, NBA Baller Beats, a Kinect rhythm game, is not a joke, but I'm sure as hell going to look like one attempting to play it when I swing by Majesco's booth later this week at E3. I can't do a crossover dribble. I can't even dribble with my left hand. Now, I can dribble in my left hand, but that's a different activity. More »

It's not just for Microsoft stores anymore. The 4GB Xbox 360 with Kinect and a two-year contract will soon be available in US Best Buy Stores and select GameStop locations later in June. You'll have to contact your local store to find out if it's participating in this expanded "pilot program."

Reminder: the math for the contract bundle is roughly $460 over the next two years. The 4GB Xbox 360 Kinect bundle has a suggested retail price of $299, with Xbox Live Gold subscriptions costing about $50 a year, for a upfront total of $399 if you bought now.

Dance Central 3 was announced yesterday and was Usher'd into reality during Microsoft's press conference. Check out the Kinect game's latest moves in just released screenshots... and for good measure we added yesterday's announcement trailer too.

Gore Verbisnki's Xbox 360 title Matter was just announced during Microsoft's pre-E3 press conference. The trailer showed a personality sphere-like robotic eyeball orb navigating through a maze of altering metal structures, like some kind of Tron Marble Madness. Matter will launch sometime in 2013.

We've just been told we were athletes, shown Lara Croft put through all kinds of hell, and been shown a very lovely motorcycle that is, reportedly, loco. Join Joystiq and Engadget live as we make sense of the spectacle, after the break.

See a tease of a new puzzle game from Pirates of the Caribbean director, Gore Verbinski.

Dance Central 3 is a thing and it's coming out this fall for Kinect, Harmonix announced at Microsoft's pre-E3 presser today, complete with a performance by Usher.

Dance Central 3 introduces Crew Throwdown mode for up to eight players, in two teams of four. Players will progress through the popular moves of the '70s, '80s, '90s, '00s and "beyond." Looks like Harmonix is really ushering in a new era of dance games, huh?

Dance Central 3 is a thing, Harmonix announced at Microsoft's pre-E3 presser today, complete with a performance by Usher.

Details are still slim (how does this relate to SmartGlass?) but, as rumored, a Kinect-enabled Internet Explorer web browser will be released on Xbox 360 this year. You'll be able to select from your favorites using voice commands.

Gore Verbisnki's Xbox 360 title Matter was just announced during Microsoft's pre-E3 press conference. The trailer showed a personality sphere-like robotic eyeball orb navigating through a maze of altering metal structures, like some kind of Tron Marble Madness. Matter will launch sometime in 2013.

Microsoft has announced a new music service, branded Xbox Music. Calling it the music service Microsoft "always wanted" to develop, the new service will feature 30 million music tracks that'll be accessible on the Xbox 360, Windows 8 PCs, tablets and phones.

Previously, Microsoft's musical efforts were focused on the Zune Marketplace, which may or not be a thing. No one at Joystiq seems to remember.

Nike has joined up with Microsoft for a fitness app called Nike+Kinect Training, set to arrive on Xbox in the future. The system will include Nike's high-end fitness training system, ties in to Nike's social and online system (along with Xbox Live), and other special modes and insight for a personalized training program.

Nike+ Kinect Training should be out sometime this holiday.

Kinect support for FIFA 13 won't just mean calling for formation changes or ordering substitutes in. You can even swear at the officiating and get yourself booked for dissent. More »

FIFA 13 and Madden 13 will be "better with Kinect," allowing players to change formations and handle other team management functions with voice commands in FIFA 13. Madden 13's Kinect integration will work in a similar fashion, letting the player issue quarterback commands and call audibles while on the field.

Fable: The Journey will launch fall this year, a video at Microsoft's E3 conference revealed.

Of course you should follow along with our liveblog of Microsoft's E3 press conference, but while you watch our real-time reporting, you can also keep a window open to see the actual press conference, without ever leaving your warm, cozy Joystiq home!

Joystiq is happy to present a live stream from Spike TV's presentation of the conference, as part of our incomprehensibly comprehensive coverage of E3 2012.

We're seated and ready for Microsoft's E3 2012 press conference, live from cloudy and cool Los Angeles. What will today's press conference bring? Duffy, perhaps? Maybe more news on that "Smart Glass" app we've heard so much about? We'll see in another 30 when the conference begins. For now, we sit in wait and listen to top 40.

Microsoft has sold 67 million Xbox 360 consoles since its launch in 2005, raking in more than $56 billion at retail. Kinect has sold 19 million units and Xbox Live has 40 million members, leaving us to question what the remaining 27 million people are doing with their Xboxes if they aren't downloading games or watching video on Amazon Instant, a service announced and rolled out just today.

It would appear the current generation of gaming consoles has sustained itself on its broader entertainment options, and Xbox 360 sales have increased from years four to five, five to six and six to seven, as the above graph indicates.

"The more entertainment options we add, the more time people spend on Xbox," Microsoft said.

Ever since PlayStation 3 owners got Amazon Instant back in April, those of us with just an Xbox 360 have been left in the lurch. No more!

developing ...

#kinect A pair of satellites, both based on cheap, consumer electronics components, will be launched in the coming year, part of a project run by a British university and tech firm. More »