When last years E3 was over and done with, it was hard not to let the hype consume you. The Last Guardian resurfaced. A Final Fantasy 7 remake was finally happening. Even Shenmue, a series thought dead and buried was given new life in the form of Shenmue 3. In an age of gaming where triple-A companies are afraid to take risks, it was refreshing to see fans get what they’ve been wishing for.
But that was an entire year ago, and now every major publisher and developer ascends upon the Los Angeles convention center once again in a fight for the public’s attention. What games will be announced? We have no idea, but we can sure as hell guess.
EA – Sunday June 12th – 9PM
Looking through EA’s list of announced games at their press conference, some of them pale in comparison to other conferences. The new entry in the Mass Effect series was announced with minimal fanfare: an establishing shot of an alien world and an over-the-shoulder shot of someone dressed in N7 armor. For a massive series like Mass Effect, it felt lackluster. Likewise, Mirrors Edge: Catalyst tried to dazzle with a cinematic trailer setting the tone of the next game but left us longing for something to get excited about. Pele discussed football for what felt like an hour to promote Fifa which offered a good chance to use the restroom. Out of all the big budget titles, it was Unraveled, a lowkey physics platformer that came as the biggest surprise. With its shy but charming lead developer discussing his thought process behind creating the game, it added a personal touch that EA had been missing for awhile.
This year it wouldn’t be surprising to see EA release more details about Mass Effect: Andromeda or Mirrors Edge: Catalyst as neither games have been released yet. Titanfall 2 is expected to show up, mechs wielding swords in tow. Battlefield One could get more details prior to the announcement trailer that released a couple weeks ago. Fingers crossed EA takes another risk like Unraveled.
Bethesda – Monday June 13th – 3AM
Despite last year being Bethesda’s first ever press conference by themselves, they killed it. They knew Fallout 4 was going to be a hot commodity, so having their own press conference that allowed them to focus more time on it was a smart move. With other announcements like a sequel to Dishonored was in the works and a Fallout mobile game being dropped during the press conference, it was easy to overlook some of the lesser announcements like the elder scrolls card game.
This year, Bethesda is again hosting their own conference and this fills me with hope. If last year thought us anything, its that Bethesda is aware of how to fill up a press conference. Dishonored 2 is bound to take up a majority of the conference, but I have a sneaking suspicion that won’t be the biggest thing shown off. We may get a glance at the latest Fallout 4 DLC, or perhaps they may be adding more to the recently released Doom? I might be incredibly optimistic, but I wouldn’t mind seeing an Elder Scrolls announcement that isn’t related to a card game.
Microsoft – Monday June 13th – 5:30PM
Last years Microsoft conference felt like Xbox trying to regain their footing after the DRM issues of the previous years E3. They showed us Hololens, an augmented reality device that allows you to build Minecraft worlds on top of your kitchen table. Halo and Gears of War both made appearances, with GOW 4 spouting a much more dialed back atmosphere compared to the dudebro shoot-em-up that was Gears 3. They even announced backwards compatibility would be coming to Xbox One, which allowed Microsoft to rip on Sony with the line “We won’t charge you to play the games you already own.”
Despite the digs directed towards Sony, Microsoft still seems to be playing catch-up with Sony and their press conference this year might show it. A new version of the PS4 has been rumored which could spur Xbox to react with a similar new model. Gears of War 4 is bound to have an extended gameplay demo, but could we see anything on the future of Halo? Xbox is currently lacking in the worthwhile exclusives department, so a new IP or a sequel to a beloved IP might be the ticket to Xbox getting some limelight. (My money is on Dead Rising 4)
Ubisoft – June 13th – 9PM
Ubisoft might be the press conference directed mostly towards causal players, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have fun announcements. Last year saw the reveal of a new South Park game, the latest Assassin’s creed and a new Ghost Recon. We also got a release date for the Division which went on to sell incredibly well.
Leaks have confirmed that Watch Dogs 2 will be making an appearance during this years conference. Perhaps something more surprising is that Assassin’s creed won’t be making an appearance due to the series taking a year-long break. (We might see snipets of the movie starring Micheal Fassbender which is slated to be out later this year however) I’m hoping for a Valiant Hearts or a Grow Home to give us some form of a surprise announcement.
Sony – June 14th – 2AM
Goddamn. If there was ever a press conference to point to as an example of how to get people hyped up, last years Sony press conference was it. All the big games that I mentioned in the opening paragraph (Last Guardian, FF7 Remake, Shenmue) were at Sony’s conference. Besides those big names we got glimpses of No Man’s Sky, a game that is incomprehensibly huge. Naughty Dog wowed us with an Uncharted 4 gameplay presentation. Media Molecule showed off Dreams which felt like a pipe dream in motion. There was barely any room to breathe between each major announcement.
Its a nigh impossible task to top last years conference. The heavily rumored Playstation 4K is bound to make its first official appearance. The Last Guardian is due out this year, so we may get more details on that. Apart from that, maybe Last of Us 2? Honestly I’m more excited about the surprises they have in store rather than sequels to already existing IP’s, and thats a good place to be in.