Airtight Games' upcoming Dark Void is a title on many a gamer's radar, not only because Airtight is comprised of some of the developers responsible for Crimson Skies, one of the original Xbox's gems, but because flying around with a jetpack is really awesome. You don't have to take our word for it, though, as this developer diary does a good job of showing what makes jetpacking around so fun (hint: it's the jetting). Disney, we hope you're taking notes for that inevitable The Rocketeer reboot!

E3 was brütal! If you blinked, for a split/second, you missed something. Even if you were trine to keep up, it was a blur -- staying a.wake like that, you only pushed yourself to the brink of your own dark void. That's where Joystiq comes in; to crackdown on the madness; to reach out ... with conviction -- phew! Crysis averted.

We've scoured the dark corners and survived the inferno to piece together this roundup of all things Xbox at E3. Why? Just 'cause we love you. So, draw nier and shift your eyes past the break.

There's not much we can say about our latest hands-on session with Dark Void that we haven't said five times before. The jetpackery? Still breathtaking. The vertical cover system? Still brilliant. The visual presentation -- well, you get the picture. Needless to say, Capcom hasn't taken any of the previously seen awesome stuff out of the build we just played -- but they've added more than a few subtle differences that caught our eye and quickened our pulses.

The most important difference we noticed? The build of Dark Void we just played featured a helmetless Will, so perhaps it's time to cut out all the "toasterhead" jabs. Dude's got feelings, too.

"Dark Void coming this fall, better than the Rocketeer" -- Capcom rep. on the show floor getting people to play the game.

We understand you're currently wandering through a maelstrom of exciting megaton announcements, but we want you to take a moment to soak in this wonderful, albeit non-major announcement: Capcom senior producer Morgan Gray confirmed that Bear McCreary's incredible-so-far Dark Void soundtrack will be getting a standalone CD release.

NO! WAIT! Rein in your narrow attention span for just a bit longer. See, McCreary had been trying to get the fans he acquired during his work on Battlestar Galactica to ask Capcom to release the original Dark Void score on CD -- it seems Capcom got the message. Gray explained that Capcom had actually paid McCreary more for his Dark Void score than Galactica ever did, so why wouldn't they want to put it on CD? That's sound logic -- not to mention sound economics. We're already planning on buying a few dozen copies.

Capcom has released a new developer diary for Dark Void. Lest you've missed our numerous hands-on sessions with the game, the video pretty much explains everything you need to know about the game. Everything from the game's story to its design to its use of vertical combat is laid down, all complemented by some nice, moody lighting. We're also required by gamer law to inform you that the video includes robots, explosions, a jetpack and the Bermuda Triangle.

Capcom's business and strategy VP Christian Svensson mentioned in a recent interview that the company plans to release future titles on Steam day and date with retail. ButtonBasher, following up on information provided in a recent Rock Paper Shotgun interview, discussed the topic of PC digital distribution and Svensson noted that Dark Void and Bionic Commando will be available on Steam at the same time as retail. The executive also noted that Capcom's western offices take digital distribution "very seriously."

Svensson added that the company is "considering" more DLC for Resident Evil 5. He notes that "there's nothing to announce by any stretch," but that a request for DLC suggestions on the company forums created a thread that's "hundreds of posts long." That's not really shocking, considering fans are passionate enough to give their blood for RE swag.

[Thanks, Jono]

This isn't the first time we've played Dark Void, having gotten a chance both at last year's E3 and this year's CES. But, when a game is about flying with a jetpack, we really can't resist playing more. Rest assured, Dark Void seems to get better and better.

Capcom could have scrapped the compelling plot and simply released "Jetpack: The Game," and we'd have been satisfied. Seriously, the flying is that solid. You're not just leaping into the air like a rocket-propelled Superman, you're an aerodynamic missile who has to bank, roll, loop, carefully navigate turns and constantly be aware of your surroundings. You can easily forget that there's humanity to save once you hit the boost button and send the hero, Will, soaring through the air, weaving around the game world.

The level we demoed this time is set well into the game, with Will having already mastered his jetpack. The current objective is to take out the Watchers' anti-aircraft guns and to gain access to one of their bases, which serves as an internment camp for human slaves. It's located deep inside a canyon filled with sharp, stone fingers that poke into the air. As you fly around, you'll be under fire from both AA guns and enemies ... in flying saucers. Yep, just the sort of wake up call to shake us out of flying around with that big dopey grin on our face.

At a recent media event, Joystiq sat down with Capcom's Morgan Gray, senior producer of Dark Void. Gray fielded our questions on jetpack gameplay, multiplayer, DLC (confirmed!), and much more, including the frightening revelation that the helmet design could be confused with -- oh, let's not even go there ... Continue on for the full interview, and stay tuned for our latest hands-on preview coming soon.

Alright, perhaps "centuries" is a minor exaggeration, but waiting patiently for new media is no easy task when the game in question -- Capcom's Dark Void -- contains all of the following:

• Jetpacks
• Lasers
• Robots
• Jetpacks
• UFOs
• Gateways between worlds
• Dimensions ruled by fear
• Jetpacks

You'll find further glimpses of the third-person shooter slash aerial dog fighter (referring to the jetpack-propelled combat, not the presence of antagonistic flying canines) embedded after the break.

In an effort to reach out to its fans in the Western European version of CAPTIVATE08's setting, Capcom announced details (via Capcom-Unity) this week about its "totally not a gamer's day" event, unironically titled CAPTIVATE09. Taking place in Monte Carlo, Monaco, the company says it's announcing "new games" at the event (emphasis on the "s" at the end there) -- an especially interesting statement to make considering Capcom's Chris Kramer said this week on the Giant Bombcast, "We are announcing at least two titles at E3." How many games are in development at Capcom right now that we don't know about?!

Other items of note are new looks at Spyborgs (the "actually a game" game for Wii) and Resident Evil The Darkside Chronicles. If you're one of the lucky few already chosen from the Capcommunity (see what we did there?) to attend, make sure to bring your jewel-encrusted Wiimote and blood-spattered Tricell messenger bag, so you don't look out of place. And send us tips!

Hey, guy -- what's the matter? We've noticed you've been looking positively sullen these past few weeks. Has the series departure of Battlestar Galactica got you down in the frakking dumps? There's not much we can do about that, though your spirits may be lifted by checking out a recent blog post from Battlestar composer Bear McCreary, the recently revealed songsmith behind the score of Dark Void. His blog contains a video (posted after the jump) previewing a few clips from the game's soundtrack, which is shaping up to sound just as awesome as the title looks.

If soaring orchestral tunes aren't really your thing, you might still want to check out the preview for a few new Dark Void gameplay clips. Then again, if you've yet to be swept off your feet (and propelled hundreds of feet into the air) by Capcom's jet pack-centric action title, you may be entertained by McCreary's declaration of love for Mega Man -- any composer who creates 8-bit versions of their pieces then saves them on hard drives named after Robot Masters is okay in our books.

"I have been looking for the opportunity to compose a game score for a long time, but I've been waiting for the right one," said McCreary, who is held in high regards by fans of the recently departed syfy sci-fi show. He noted that Dark Void's "epic story and unique gameplay" drew him in, a somewhat generic admission that only serves to highlight a terrible injustice. Not only will he score Dark Void, but he'll probably score an early copy too.

Capcom has plenty of big titles in the coming months (Dark Void and Bionic Commando, to name a couple), but it looks like its fiscal year stands to get even more packed. On Major Nelson's most recent podcast, Capcom spokesman Chris Kramer mentioned "big titles for next year, Lost Planet 2 and Dead Rising 2," to the Xbox Live programming boss.

Kramer told us he was talking about the next fiscal year, which begins on April 1, 2009 and goes to March 31, 2010. Whenever they arrive we're sure it won't be soon enough, but, in the interim, if you've really got a zombie bloodlust, we're certain you can find other channels for it.

[Via D-Pad]