San Diego ( CNN ) -- Gaming has become an important part of Comic-Con International , the annual gathering that brings 150,000 attendees to San Diego for a celebration of comics , movies , television and pop culture . Game publishers and developers are offering exclusive hands-on opportunities to fans , including the chance to demo upcoming games on next-generation consoles from Sony and Microsoft . Sony has a booth inside the mammoth San Diego Convention Center where gamers can play games like `` Driveclub , '' `` Knack '' and `` Octodad : Dadliest Catch '' on its forthcoming PlayStation 4 . Microsoft has set up shop inside the Hard Rock Hotel across the street , where Xbox One games like `` Ryse : Son of Rome , '' `` FORZA Motorsport 5 '' and `` Project Spark '' are on display . Perhaps the most interesting place to play a next-gen game here is on board the 1863 windjammer Star of India , which is docked behind the Convention Center at the Fifth Avenue Landing . Players can control the virtual Jackdaw pirate ship in Ubisoft 's much-anticipated `` Assassin 's Creed IV : Black Flag '' game , which ships October 30 . Game publishers also are setting up free arcades throughout the neighboring Gaslamp District for the hordes of fans who do n't have a convention badge . Sega 's Pop-Up Arcade is offering the first public hands-on with the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS game `` Sonic Lost World , '' along with other titles . Inside PetCo Park , home to baseball 's San Diego Padres , Nerd HQ has an arcade filled with old-school coin games like `` Donkey Kong '' and `` Centipede '' alongside the latest Xbox 360 games from Microsoft . It even has the new Kickstarter virtual reality setup , Virtuix Omni , with Oculus Rift 3D head-tracking goggles for a full immersive experience . Also inside the ballpark is the second variation of Ruckus Sports ' `` The Walking Dead Escape , '' which allows fans of the AMC TV show to experience the undead live . The spectator option includes The Walking Dead Fan Festival , featuring `` The Walking Dead '' video games from Telltale Studios , including the new PS Vita version of the game . Outside the stadium , Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment is promoting its 2014 open-world combat game , `` Mad Max , '' by offering fans photo ops with a replica of the Road Warrior 's car . The game is being developed by Avalanche Studios and will serve as a standalone story in the movies ' fictional universe . For attendees who do have those coveted badges , gaming also has been incorporated into convention panels . `` South Park '' creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are in town to talk about their collaboration with developer Oblivion on the role-playing game `` South Park : The Stick of Truth . '' And fans will learn what 's next for the groundbreaking hit `` Defiance '' at a panel with creators and actors from the hit TV show plus game developers who have launched a massively multiplayer online ( MMO ) action game set in the same universe . Here are five promising games from San Diego Comic-Con . `` Batman : Arkham Origins '' ( Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment ; October 25 ; Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , PC , Wii U ) With WB Games Montreal taking over this popular franchise , gamers will take control of the Dark Knight very early on in the Batman mythology . This prequel , which is set on Christmas Eve in a snow-swept Gotham City , has the Black Mask putting a hit on Batman . Gamers must use all of Bruce Wayne 's resources as they contend with eight criminal masterminds , including the Penguin , Deathstroke , Deadshot and the Joker , along with their assorted thugs . This Batman is aggressive and athletic , and he has a few new toys like the Batwing and the remote claw , which allows him to target multiple enemies in one swoop . Players will also explore new areas from the comic book mythology like Amusement Mile , Old Gotham and the city 's docks . Much like Christopher Nolan 's films , the `` Arkham '' franchise has excelled at bringing a fresh take to the Caped Crusader , and this third game is shaping up as another crossover hit . `` Dead Rising 3 '' ( Capcom ; November ; Xbox One ) It would n't be Comic-Con without zombies . This latest game from Capcom Vancouver may be set 10 years after the events of `` Dead Rising 2 , '' but everything about this next-generation horror game is different -- beginning with the horror . The humorous tone of previous iterations is taking a back seat to real scares in this open world game . These zombies are frightening and a lot tougher to deal with . The city of Los Perdidos offers plenty of challenges ( it 's so large , you can actually fit the first two game worlds inside it ) , since it 's been overrun by the undead . It 's a huge seamless playground that 's completely destructible . Vehicles , including a hearse , are at your disposal as transportation and another weapon against zombies . Players take control of mechanic Nick Ramos , who has the ability to build some very cool customized weapons . The game also utilizes Kinect voice , allowing players to distract zombies with voice commands . And the Xbox SmartGlass opens up exclusive missions and second-screen functionality for what looks like a bloody good time . Share your mini-interviews from Comic-Con . `` Octodad : Dadliest Catch '' ( Young Horses ; 2014 ; PlayStation 4 , PC ) Sony has embraced independent developers with its PS4 console and invited them onstage during its E3 news conference last month . One of those featured games comes from the Chicago-based Young Horses , and it 's unlike any next-generation game out there . Players take control of an orange octopus somehow passing as a human by wearing a blue suit . The challenge is in accomplishing mundane tasks like shopping at a grocery store or cooking on a grill while controlling your tentacles to walk and pick things up . Those suction cups quickly get in the way , however . The objective is to remain unnoticed by the humans ( who do n't seem to mind an octopus until he starts flinging plates across the room by accident ) . The challenges get progressively more difficult , as players must navigate a wedding ceremony without tripping on banana peels or knocking over the priceless vases that line the aisle . This game offers plenty to laugh at and requires a lot of skill to complete . `` Total War : Rome II '' ( Sega/The Collective Assembly ; September 3 ; PC ) In this real-time strategy game , players must assume control of a powerful ruler from the earliest days of the Roman republic with the goal of conquering the world . This sequel to the popular PC game returns us to the rich history of ancient Rome and incorporates everything from epic battles featuring hundreds of soldiers , horses , catapults and African war elephants to the political intrigue of diplomacy and nation-building . Players can zoom in to the battles as soldiers slice and dice their way through enemy lines . The game also allows naval battles , meaning warships can destroy enemy vessels , and sailors can board and fight the survivors . Even novices can command huge battlefields , moving from skirmish to skirmish with the click of a mouse . If you have a higher-end PC , the developers have brought every detail , from the weapons to the landscapes , to life in high-definition glory . History has never been so much fun . `` Watch Dogs '' ( Ubisoft ; November 19 ; Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , PC , Wii U , Xbox One , PlayStation 4 ) Ubisoft is introducing a massive open-world game that recreates the city of Chicago and allows players to control every camera , traffic light and El train within it . Playing as Aiden Pierce , a hacker with a smartphone that connects to Chicago 's central operation system , players can access every element of the city 's infrastructure and learn about every citizen who surrounds them . All of this power creates superhero-like capabilities through technology . Players must decide how to use this power and gauge their own morality level by choosing to help crime victims or aid the bad guys . Every action will have repercussions , as the police and even citizens will get involved . The game utilizes Xbox SmartGlass , allowing a second player to either help or hinder Pierce as he explores this world .
Developers are offering hands - on experiences at San Diego Comic - Con . Sega is offering a public hands - on with the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS game ` ` Sonic Lost World '' Warner Bros. Interactive is promoting its 2014 open - world combat game , ` ` and Max '' Trey Parker and Matt Stone are promoting a role - playing game , ` ` South Park : The Stick of Truth ''