If i had to pick a favorite game, the easy answer for me is Rez.  For me, Rez was a game that made me take games seriously.  I've had similar moments in other forms of media: 2001: A Space Odyssey made me realize that film could be used to tell stories more awesome than Raiders of the Lost Ark (not that Raiders ain't awesome; it definitely is) and Rage Against the Machine and CKY got me to stop listening to bad music when I was a teenager. 
 
Rez got me to think about games as more than just Sonic the Hedgehog and Counter-Strike.  And it got me to pay $80 for a used PlayStation 2 game.
 
So, needless to say, I was extremely anxious to hear what the new Q Entertainment game was going to be, especially when they used the word "synaesthesia" in a tweet about the upcoming announcement.
 
Enter Child of Eden.  It's easy to think of it as Rez II: Synaesthetic Boogaloo, and, as such,  I'm so excited about this game (as evidenced by my wiki edits and constant "YESYESYES" comments in response to any blog/news/forum posts about it) that it might be the thing to get me to buy Microsoft's poorly-named and poorly-considered Kinect controller.  However, I think I'd prefer having force feedback with a regular ol' controller like in the original Rez, which I'm assuming Child of Eden will also have (because, seriously, thing is pretty much a sequel to Rez...seriously). 
 
Anyways, even if I won't personally buy a Kinect controller, I'm glad that Child of Eden seems to be one of the most exciting games to be a part of Microsoft's lineup for the EyeToy Plus.  This is getting it way more publicity and I'm so glad people who aren't already fans of Rez seem interested in this game.  I don't think Rez ever got its due (probably because it's such a short game), but hopefully this is the game that gets Tetsuya Mizuguchi to be as much of a household name as any Japanese game designer's name can be.

If i had to pick a favorite game, the easy answer for me is Rez.  For me, Rez was a game that made me take games seriously.  I've had similar moments in other forms of media: 2001: A Space Odyssey made me realize that film could be used to tell stories more awesome than Raiders of the Lost Ark (not that Raiders ain't awesome; it definitely is) and Rage Against the Machine and CKY got me to stop listening to bad music when I was a teenager. 
 
Rez got me to think about games as more than just Sonic the Hedgehog and Counter-Strike.  And it got me to pay $80 for a used PlayStation 2 game.
 
So, needless to say, I was extremely anxious to hear what the new Q Entertainment game was going to be, especially when they used the word "synaesthesia" in a tweet about the upcoming announcement.
 
Enter Child of Eden.  It's easy to think of it as Rez II: Synaesthetic Boogaloo, and, as such,  I'm so excited about this game (as evidenced by my wiki edits and constant "YESYESYES" comments in response to any blog/news/forum posts about it) that it might be the thing to get me to buy Microsoft's poorly-named and poorly-considered Kinect controller.  However, I think I'd prefer having force feedback with a regular ol' controller like in the original Rez, which I'm assuming Child of Eden will also have (because, seriously, thing is pretty much a sequel to Rez...seriously). 
 
Anyways, even if I won't personally buy a Kinect controller, I'm glad that Child of Eden seems to be one of the most exciting games to be a part of Microsoft's lineup for the EyeToy Plus.  This is getting it way more publicity and I'm so glad people who aren't already fans of Rez seem interested in this game.  I don't think Rez ever got its due (probably because it's such a short game), but hopefully this is the game that gets Tetsuya Mizuguchi to be as much of a household name as any Japanese game designer's name can be.

Great post man. I agree with pretty much everything you said, and said well. (The only difference for me is that I will be trying it out first on a Kinect, and am kinda looking forward to seeing what that experience is like)

I still play Rez all the time. It's the first thing I think of to do when all my housemates leave. I like to have it cranked to neighbor-disturbing levels, so I can't really do it properly with other people around who don't appreciate that sort of thing as much as I do. The timing of my new projector upgrade purchase was actually dictated by Child of Eden, so to say I'm looking forward to next week is an understatement!

I sunk god only knows mow many hours into Rez. it was very cerebral. Now im not going to sit here and say im above saying i really wanted to try that game rolling haha, but that game has really stuck with me over the years. Now im going to have to go buy Child of Eden, it is one of the reaons i bought a Kinect in the first god damn place. but i can see my self settling back into the game with just a controller.

FEAR IS THE MIND KILLER!

If you love Rez then rest assured that Miz still has his touch and this is a true successor.

I've never really understood people's fascination with Rez. Could you explain the appeal further? I've tried it a bunch of times and always end up getting bored and quitting for three years.

I must be missing something.

@Rolyatkcinmai: Nope, you're not missing anything. I know tons of people who aren't moved one iota by these games, and people like me, who are practically moved to tears by how awesome and inspiring they are. It feels sometimes like Mr. Mizuguchi has pulled the concepts for these games straight out of my subconscious. But I think it takes a certain type of person to love them (which I'm trying to figure out how you can determine), and if you're not that person, that's just how it goes...there's probably a type of game, or entertainment, or whatever, that totally works for you, and it'd be that thing that I totally don't get. ;)

PS. Pardon the weird touchy-feely rambling, if that's what I'm doing. I just finished a couple hours of Child of Eden, and now I'm settling into an evening of drinking.