**Disclaimer: I’ll only be writing about Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony, since that was all I had the time to view, but also check out EA, Bethesda, and Ubisoft, and other stuff.**
Ahh E3, the console gaming event of the summer. Where people from all around the world come together (well, I was watching livestreams) in order to see what companies will bring them in the near future. This year’s showcase was pretty good, and a lot of titles were displayed with great anticipation. I’ll preface this summary by saying don’t get your hopes up. Not that the games are bad, but just in case. It’s happened to me before so I’m obviously a little biased. Nonetheless, let’s start with Microsoft.
So Microsoft’s conference wasn’t bad. Their main highlight was the new Xbox One X (pronounced “zox?”). It’s the acclaimed “Project Scorpio” that they’ve had in the lab for some time and was revealed at E3. It will be released on November 7th this year, but unfortunately for a $499 price tag (USD). So it’s a little pricey for us university students, but it’s got pretty good specs. 2.3Ghz x86 8 core CPU, 12 GB of DDR5 RAM, 1TB storage, and even a 4K UHD Blu-Ray Optical Drive. Not only that, but Microsoft also stated that there will be potential backwards compatibility with games from the original Xbox, and also, lots of games are expected to get Xbox One X updates in the future, so that’s pretty cool. I’m glad Microsoft is taking backwards compatibility past just one generation of console. Some games showcased included Crackdown 3, Forza Motorsport 7, and even a first look at Assassin’s Creed Origins. Also, Minecraft will be coming to the console in 4K, so get excited for those high quality Minecraft squares. The Last Night was also revealed, as well as a pretty cool Dragonball Z game, titled Dragonball Fighter Z. All in all it was a decent conference, but I feel Sony did a little bit better.
Sony this year had some great games. Not only that, but not a lot of the conference was talking about the game. It was a lot of trailers and showcases, which I respected wholeheartedly. Games included FIFA 18, a Shadow of the Colossus remake, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy (shoutouts to all you nostalgic fans out there), a God of War game for 2018, and a new Uncharted, titled The Lost Legacy. This seems exciting, as the Uncharted games have always pleased me. Some other games included a new Spiderman game, and two games for Playstation VR: Bravo Team and The Inpatient. Sony seems to be working to VR environments for games, so we’ll see how it pans out in the future. Finally, there was a limited gold edition of the PS4, which was $249.99 USD (so about $330 CAD). If you’re interested in PS4 gaming, this seems like a good time to buy this console, as it’s not too much different from the PS4 pro and a good way to get started on some games and enjoy it as a light hobby. While I don’t usually like saying companies “win” E3, I feel like I need to be a bit hypocritical and talk about how Nintendo swept the floor with their announcements.
Now, I’m a huge Nintendo fan, so this article is 100% biased. That being said, they showcased some amazing games that have promising gameplay. I’ll start with the bad though, as they revealed Mario and Rabbids Kingdom Battle. This game isn’t bad per se, but it’s…odd. If you google it, you’ll see what I mean. It feels like a weird combination of two games. Nonetheless, we’ll see how it pans out in the future. Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild DLC was set to be released soon, along with Splatoon 2 (hey, if you’ve read this far and haven’t ever played Splatoon, don’t. That game will eat your time like no tomorrow). There was also a demo of Miitopia, a personalized RPG adventure, and a new Fire Emblem game, titled Fire Emblem Warriors. Nintendo continued their showcase of classic titles by announcing a remake of Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga and Xenoblade Chronicles 2. New Kirby and Yoshi games were also revealed, the Kirby one being especially praised due to similarities between the N64 game Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. Rocket League is also coming to the Nintendo Switch, and Metroid: Samus Returns accompanied with a Samus and Metroid amiibo is coming soon too. My favourite announcement, however, was not shown through gameplay, but simply a number. ‘4’ was displayed on the screen, along with some very familiar music. I screamed, as Metroid Prime 4 was announced for being in development for the Switch. So for all you nostalgia bugs out there, replay the first three in anticipation for this. Although this was my favourite announcement, the most revered one was the release date of Super Mario Odyssey, the next platformer in Nintendo’s lineup. This game featured many cool aspects and details, including the ability to control objects with Mario by throwing your hat at it. It’s set to release on October 27th, 2017, along with 3 new amiibo: wedding Mario, wedding Peach, and wedding Bowser. However, the Switch is still $400 though so I suggest waiting until the console is bundled with a game of some sort to buy one. No smash for Switch was announced, but I wouldn’t worry since Smash 4 is still not explored as much in my opinion. Sad at no Melee HD for you competitive smashers out there, or any Gamecube Virtual Console, but I’ll still have fun with Smash 4 on my Wii U playing through everything I haven’t touched yet. But I need to play Metroid Prime 2 and 3. And the Uncharted series. So I guess I’ll get started on that.
To conclude, E3 was pretty good this year. No company blundered and each of them had a strong showing in terms of games. Yes, I’m Nintendo biased but others are Microsoft and Sony biased. I suggest checking out all the trailers and release dates for yourselves (since I didn’t mention many) and start thinking about making time to play these games in the future.
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