Monday’s E3 conferences were stocked to the gills with new announcements, as was to be expected with Microsoft and Sony taking to the stage and laying out the plans for their respective platforms. Ubisoft also managed to squeeze into the middle of the console sandwich and crank out their own announcements too. Here’s a roundup of the day’s action.
Microsoft Shows New Boxes And Wires
As was leaked before the show, Microsoft showed off the new Xbox One S; a slim version of the Xbox One. The console will be around 40% smaller and will come in a range of sexy SKUs. However, Microsoft also announced the existence of Project Scorpio (yes, that’s the name they’re using for now). The new console will not be available until 2017, but will feature VR support and will technically outpace the rumoured specs of the PlayStation 4K, with its many, many teraflops. This was undoubtedly the most interesting aspect of Microsoft’s conference.
Gears Of War 4 – Old Man Marcus
Gears 4 got a new gameplay demo which, while graphically pleasing, featured annoyances such as environmental puzzles and piss-weak weaponry in the form of a saw blade launcher. To try and make up for this, Marcus Fenix appeared as an old man to remind you of the past when Gears Of War actually mattered. Perhaps they should go all the way and just have Gary Jules ride in on a Brumak. Either way, it’s coming out in October whether you like it or not.
Surprise! Here’s Forza Horizon 3
In the most shocking move in the history of video game conferences, Microsoft announced another annual installment of it’s now-annualised franchise, Forza Horizon 3. The game will feature cars and tarmac, and will have an emphasis on cooperative play. Expect lovely-looking brum-brums and detailed Australian backdrops.
Moving on, it was then Ubisoft’s time to shine.
Ghost Recon Wildlands Features Four Player Co-Op
Ubisoft kicked off their presentation with a look at Ghost Recon Wildlands, the new Tom Clancy game. The game features four player co-op and a seamless open world, allowing you to infiltrate bases silently or go in guns blazing. That’s all there is to say about that.
For Honor Gets Two Trailers
Not content with just one trailer, Ubisoft’s upcoming medieval brawler For Honor gets two. One is more of a concept video where a samurai, a viking and a knight duke it out while piles of bodies appear around them. The other is a gameplay video. At least we’re starting to build a picture as to what this game actually is.
Grow Up or Grow Home
A sequel to the charmingly awkward indie game Grow Home has also been announced. Grow Up looks to have a larger scale than before, with a whole planetary surface available to explore. It looks bigger and generally has a bit more of everything. Expect the game to arrive in August.
With Ubisoft out of the way, the mic was then passed to Sony.
Bend Makes Up For Lost Time
In what is their first home console game since 2004 and their first game of any kind since 2012, Bend Studio announced Days Gone, a post-apocalyptic survival game. It might treading on Ellie and Joel’s toes somewhat, but our very own JD Schmidt said it “tugs on the heartstrings”, and he’s the toughest guy I know.
The Last Guardian Isn’t Cancelled
Resident Evil 7 Is Now A Horror Game
The original survival-horror game is coming around full circle and is transitioning back into being a survival-horror game, if this announcement is anything to go by. Sony and Capcom showed some gameplay for Resident Evil 7, which saw the protagonist enjoying some lovely psychological horror. Plus, it’ll all bea beamed straight into your eyes through PlayStation VR. How delightful.
Crash Is Back, Alright!
Much to the whooping and hollering of game journos at the conference, the first three Crash Bandicoot titles will be remastered and released on PS4. It appears that some deal has been struck to pry Crash from the icy grasp of Activision, but this isn’t the new game that many were expecting. Even so, it’s good news if you like jean shorts (or jorts).
Kojima Is Back, Alright!
Kojima Productions took some time out from designing their mascot to release a trailer for a game called Death Stranding. Norman Reedus is in it, as is the fetus from P.T., but at least it has skin on this time. As is usual with a Hideo Kojima trailer, it is both batshit insane and incredibly intriguing. This is something to keep an eye out for in the future. As we all know, it’ll never be game over.
Spider-Man – By Insomniac Not Sucker Punch
Spider-Man, Spider-Man, developed by the guys behind Resistance: Fall Of Man.
Many people expected Sucker Punch to be behind the new Spidey game, what with their experience of superhero open-world games. However, Insomniac Games are behind the wall-crawler’s latest effort. No release date has been offered, but it doesn’t appear that this rendition of Peter Parker will be tied into any movie adaption.
And that’s it! Stay tuned to Power Up Gaming for all the latest E3 news, features and opinions.