The Electronic Entertainment
Expo (E3) is one of the most
significant events each year for the
video gaming industry. The three day trade show features presentations
galore, giving the world a sneak
peak into upcoming releases. The
event has just wrapped up for 2019,
with significant reveals from many
companies about their future projects.
Nintendo took to the stage
with one of the most unexpected
reveals: a sequel to The Legend of
Zelda: Breath of the Wild, one of the
best-selling and most highly acclaimed
titles, for the Switch. It will be taking
place in the same Hyrule, running
under the same engine. Producer Eiji
Aonuma explained that the idea was
originally born from the team having
far too many ideas for a new DLC.
The remake of Link’s Awakening
for Switch is a burst of nostalgia for
fans familiar with the 1993 original
for the Game Boy. Gameplay footage
and details were revealed for the first
time at E3, with a confirmed release
date set for September of this year. As
a surprise announcement, Nintendo
also revealed that CD Projekt Red’s
bestselling RPG The Witcher 3 will
be released on the Switch, including
all the currently released DLC.
On the topic of CD Projekt
Red, a new trailer and a confirmed
release date for the highly awaited
Cyberpunk 2077 was unveiled. Taking
the stage by storm was Keanu Reeves,
who was revealed to have an in-game
character modelled after him. Reeves
enthusiastically praised the game
and brought joy to the audience. The
different editions and pricing were
finally presented, and the game is
now up for preorder, with a release
date set for April 2020.
Open – world RPGs were
definitely a highlight of this year’s
E3, with Ubisoft following suit with
their new Watch Dogs game: Legion.
Set in a post-Brexit London, the game
has the unique concept of allowing the
player to play as any character present
in the game world through quest
chains and in-game activities. Fans
laughed as they watched a gameplay
demo featuring a grandmother fighting
her way around. Ubisoft also revealed
a new Ghost Recon game, as well as
a new Just Dance title, which will be
released for the dated Nintendo Wii,
likely the last game on the platform.
Microsoft showed up strong
to this E3, firing the first shots of
the new console war with the reveal
of their Project Scarlett console.
Powered by AMD’s Zen 3 and Navi
hardware and equipped with a new
SSD, Microsoft promises the biggest
generational leap in Xbox console
history. Performance numbers given so
far indicate 8K resolution support, up
to 120fps, and hardware-accelerated
ray tracing. The launch title for this
console, which is releasing in late
2020, is Halo: Infinite, which will also
be released for PC. Another notable
announcement by Microsoft is the new
Microsoft Flight Simulator, launched
13 years after the dated, but still
immensely popular Flight Simulator
X.
In the Playstation world,
Sony has been comparatively tightlipped. The given specs at the moment
look comparatively in-line with
Microsoft’s offering, also utilizing a
Zen 3 processor, Navi GPU, and SSD,
with 4K 120fps support, and up to 8K
resolution. It’s been also stated that
the PS5 will support 3D Audio. More
importantly for the Playstation is the
details for 2 upcoming games: Death
Stranding and the Final Fantasy VII
remake. Death Stranding is Hideo
Kojima’s first game under his own
studio, and each trailer only presents
fans with more questions. The release
date has been confirmed for November
of this year and Kojima has stated that
the game will be an action game set in
an open world, with some multiplayer
elements. The remake of Final Fantasy
VII was teased for years by Square
Enix, starting from a tech demo even
prior to the PS4. A full trailer was
finally unveiled this E3 and a release
date confirmed for March 2020.
Finally, both of the legendary
long-running FPS franchises revealed
their future plans. Call of Duty:
Modern Warfare was announced,
with a short cinematic trailer leaving
fans wanting more. Infinity Ward
mentioned that the game will be more
grown-up and mature, and act as a
soft reboot of the Modern Warfare
sub-series. For the first time in series
history, it will support cross-platform
multiplayer, and a release date has
been confirmed for October of this
year. Battlefield was more lacking,
with Battlefield V still being fairly
recent, but DICE confirmed the
addition of more content, including
the highly awaited Iwo Jima campaign,
taking the game into the Pacific
Theatre.
Of course, with such a large
event, there’s much that we could
not cover here. While the highlights
may be the ones mentioned above,
the industry is so vast that anyone
with specific interests may find other
reveals that are more significant
for them. Certainly there would be
something that will invoke excitement
for anyone interested in video gaming,
and the countdown now starts for next year.
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