RandomReview: Sony's E3 2016 Press Conference

#E32016 Sony Press Conference Recap/Predictions Review

Whoa… Sony did amazing. Let’s get into why.

The show started with the big announcement about God of War. It was a live demo, and it looked amazing. Looks great in the snowy forest setting. Kratos has this axe he can teleport back to his hand, sort of like Thor’s hammer. The demo consists of Kratos training his son how to shoot a deer. While hunting, they run into a Titan that Kratos effectively kills. There’s a rage meter as well, which measures the temper Kratos has. At a certain point, he can unleash a rage mode. Would like to see more of how that plays into the story. At the end of the gameplay, I noticed an “Archery +50” notification pop up in the corner when his son finally killed the deer. So I suppose there’s a bit of a skill tree involved? I would like to see more on that as well. Looks good so far. God of War always great gameplay and this should be no different.

Finally, Sony Bend’s game, Days Gone, got shown off. At first a CG trailer was shown early, before going to a live demo to end the shown. The main character looks to be a biker, and gives off of a sort of Red Dead Redemption vibe. Especially with how his pistol and rifle are visible on his body. Seems like it’s open world as well, but we can’t know for sure as of yet. I know some people are tired of zombies, but I kinda like this one. It looks amazing so far.

The Last Guardian got a tiny little trailer. Good. I want to be surprised when I finally play it. The game was dated for October 25, 2016 - to roaring applause. This makes it Sony’s big Fall game.

Horizon: Zero Dawn. Mind blown. It’s an open-world RPG, with the player as a female protagonist named Aloy. The world seems dystopian, with the world filled with these cybernetic creatures. You can loot their bodies for components. (Like Fallout) There are dialogue options via a wheel, like Fallout 4. Instead of buttons, it instead is ticks on the wheel, which allows for more options if possible. There wasn’t many options in the gameplay demo, but it looked like it was possible for more dialogue options to be added in certain situations. The foliage and landscape was gorgeous. There’s this sort of VATS-like thing that lets you spot weak points on enemies, which allows you to take them down easier. Weapons are chosen in a wheel system, like Red Dead Redemption. It is also possible to tame these cybernetic creatures. Aloy tamed a cybernetic bull and rode it towards the end of the trailer. Which is cool. Very excited for this game, and I feel like it’ll do very well at launch. Did I mention the lead writer of New Vegas is working on this game?

Detroit: Become Human looks really cool as well. The opening scene showed an android named Connor, who was sent out to deal with a hostage/suicide situation atop a rooftop. A man was holding a little girl at gunpoint (not sure if they’re related) at the edge of the roof. The mother of the girl showed a bit of anti-android beliefs towards Connor, showing displeasure in having an android taking care of the situation. I wonder if that will be a topic later in the game. It’s very Heavy Rain-like, with branching storylines. They showed different endings to the situation, like one where the man drops with the girl, and one where Connor shoots the man down, the girl safe. You can look for clues in the case that aids with handling situations better, it seems. They showcased the branching story part a lot, but not much of the cases that they mentioned. I’d like to see more on that aspect in future trailers.

Wow, what a clever presentation here. They talked VR a bit and then showed a horror game with the opening line of “Before Kitchen…” Kitchen was the horror VR game people raved about last year. So this was presented like another horror VR game. Nothing too special, really. It was really creepy, and caught the atmosphere correctly. Then the reveal. This was Resident Evil 7. Wow. Back to the horror roots! If you have PS Plus, the demo should be available tonight for you! The game releases January 24, 2017.

PS VR got time. It will release October 13, 2016. More than 50 games will be available for PS VR in the first year. Several big franchises will have VR functionality, which was really cool. Among those franchises are Arkham, Final Fantasy 15, and a special X-Wing mission for Star Wars: Battlefront.

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare got time. Crowd barely reacted, as I expected. It did look kinda cool, to be honest. At least the ship battles did. The combat on the “ground” on the spaceships wasn’t that interesting. Looked generic COD in those sections. Those moments in the ships were awesome. I just wish COD would innovate and be bold enough to do a space battle mode. Because jumping between ships and foot combat would be nice to see outside of campaign.

COD 4 Remastered was shown as well. Looks greatly improved graphically. The crowd was hyped for this. It’s nice and all, but I wish I could buy it separately. Curse you, Activision.

Lo and behold! Crash Bandicoot! Crash 1, 2, and Warped are coming straight to the PS4, remastered for your enjoyment. I do like Crash, but I don’t love it like a lot of nostalgic people do. Good for those people then. Crash is back!

Then they showed off a new Lego Star Wars game, based on Episode 7 of course. Cool, I guess? I used to play Lego games when I was a bit younger. They were always great at gameplay. I don’t think a single episode is enough for that game, though. Maybe Rogue: One will be in it too?

Hideo Kojima came out to ecstatic applause! People were chanting his name! I loved it. Such a warm welcome for Kojima. His first line of “I’m back.” really brung it home. He showed a teaser for his new game. It’s very… “unique”, is the proper term I suppose? Norman Reedus was in this trailer… naked. On a beach full of dead sea characters. Let’s not forget the part with the baby. What the hell is this game? It’s freaking Kojima, that’s what it is. The game is titled “Death Stranding.” Can’t wait. Take all the time you need, Kojima.

The last announcement was a Spider-Man game done by Insomniac! You know, the guys who did Ratchet and Clank. The guys who did Sunset Overdrive. Wow, we are going to get a quality Spider-Man game for the first time in a long while. I’m excited for this now. Looks like it’ll be a PS4 exclusive as well. I’m so impressed by this.

Reviewing My Predictions

Here’s how I score my predictions. Incorrect is zero, Correct is one point, Half-correct is half a point. I can get a possible total of 19 here. I don’t think I did well.

- Rumors have been around for a long while about a new God of War based around Norse gods. So that’s what will happen. Kratos will be the protagonist. I’m sure Kratos is iconic in terms of Playstation for some, but I always thought he was awful, in terms of being an interesting character. The gameplay is what’s great about God of War.

Absolutely. Don’t know if it’s about Norse gods, though. Highly likely based on the setting, but it’s half a point for now. (0.5/19)

- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare gets mentioned here. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that. Crowd should boo the trailer, representing the YouTube dislikes and the lackluster pre-orders.

Yes, absolutely. I think silence is better than boos, though. (1.5/19)

- A new Destiny expansion will be announced. This is a sure-fire bet, I’d say. It’s been rumored for a while.

Surprisingly no. (1.5/19)

- Final Fantasy 15 will be shown off again. It will be dated at this conference, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that date gets pushed back.

Even though it got a spot at Xbox’s conference, Sony showed it off too with a short trailer. As well as VR support! (2.5/19)

- Another indie showreel… typical of these conferences.

No, actually. Thought I had that at least. (2.5/19)

- The Last Guardian will be shown, dated for 2027. Just kidding. Later this year.

Nailed it. (3.5/19)

- Final Fantasy 7 Remake, however… Don’t hate me, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Sony just brushed that one under the rug. Don’t be shocked if it isn’t shown.

Told you so. (4.5/19)

- You won’t see any DLC for Uncharted 4 yet. Too soon. I bet they don’t even know what it is yet.

Told you again. (5.5/19)

- Sucker Punch’s new game will be shown. There’s been rumors about it being a Spider-Man game, actually… Yes, please. Please make that happen.

A Spider-Man game was shown, but it seems like the rumors were incorrect, and Insomniac is the one making it. So what is Sucker Punch working on? Interesting. Half-correct. (6/19)

- Sony Bend’s game will be shown. It’s about time.

It is absolutely time. It looks awesome. (7/19)

- A new Resident Evil will be there. I’m like 99% sure Resident Evil will be at Sony’s conference. The question is - what will be the name of it? Resident Evil 7? Resident Evil colon something? I think you go with RE7 or just RE as the title. I’m predicting this will be a soft reboot, and the title will go back to it’s horror roots.

I called it, but the reveal was surprising. Loved the return to horror. (8/19)

- Playstation Neo will be announced, dated for this Fall. As Colin Moriarty brought up, controversy may arise over which games are running on Neo or the original Playstation during the conference. Be prepared for that storm. It’s quite possible that can happen.

See, what happened was… The same day I wrote these predictions, it was confirmed later in the day that Neo would NOT appear at E3. Oh well. (8/19)

- Playstation VR will get a showing here as well.

Yep. With big franchises too. (9/19)

- A Shenmue collection is a possibility, but I wouldn’t count on it.

Sorry, no Shenmue. (10/19)

- Horizon: Zero Dawn will be given significant time, despite a delay. Sony will show a lot of confidence in this game. I have confidence too.

I want this game so bad. (11/19)

- That “Detroit” game would be nice to show off here as well.

This game looks pretty good too. (12/19)

- Hideo Kojima will come on stage and talk about why he chose Playstation, as well as his upcoming game. Perhaps a teaser for his new game.

Called it! (13/19)

- I think a sequel to The Order: 1886 is quite possible despite how the original did.

No more steampunk for you, Crystar. (13/19)

- Lastly, I think a great end to this conference would be a teaser for Bloodborne 2. That’d be awesome.

I wish. (13/19)

Hey, not as bad as I thought! I think I did pretty well.

Overall, Sony’s conference gets a 9/10. It was stunning. Everything was a quality game. Talks didn’t drag on too long, even when speaking on VR. They brought trailers for games out consistently, like one after another with minimal talks in between. I like that. It escapes being a 10 because there was no Playstation Neo. I would’ve liked to see that there considering Scorpio was announced earlier in the day. That doesn’t detriment it too much, though. I really loved what they did here. That’s not to say Xbox didn’t do well, but Sony just did better.

So what do you think? Tell me below!

#E32016

RandomReview: Ubisoft's E3 2016 Press Conference

#E32016 Ubisoft Conference Recap/Predictions Review

Gosh, Ubisoft had such a boring conference. They were good in the beginning, but it fell apart quickly.

Ghost Recon: Wildlands led off the show. Sounds like a name from a random generator. “Wildlands.” In this game, the Santa Blanca Cartel completely controls Bolivia, and the team of ghosts have to take them down. It’s an open-world game, with 4 player co-op optional. They did some gameplay of these guys sort of roleplaying as the characters, I guess? I doubt real co-op gamers are as coordinated in lines as they were, so it feels somewhat unauthentic. Regardless, the game looks interesting. I might give it a try. The game releases March 7, 2017.

The new South Park looks great. Your character was King, but now they have resorted down to nothing, since the kids are out playing an entirely new game. Instead of fantasy, it’s now superheroes. Lovely. There’s plenty of classes available this time around, each with their own set of powers. You can mix and match these powers to create a hero more suited to you. The combat system has also been redone, with more spaces on the field to go through, along with the ability to hide behind cover. Looks like there’s more companions available too, like Craig and Tweek. South Park: The Fractured But Whole will release on December 6, 2016. If you pre-order now, you’ll be able to play The Stick of Truth, the previous South Park, on Xbox One and PS4. Best part of the show.

The new expansion for The Division, titled “Underground Expansion” is coming June 28 to Xbox One and PC. The PS4 releases on August 2. My birthday, actually! Ghost Recon, Splinter Cell, and Rainbow Six outfits are coming to The Division as well. They announced another expansion titled “Survival”, but nothing interesting really was shown. Merely a C.G. teaser. I noticed some names for future DLC in the background of the image on screen, though. Two expansions named “Last Stand” and “Conflict” were in the background. No word on those yet. We’ll have to see in the future.

Eagleflight is a VR game that they play on stage. You sort of dogfight using the eagles and play Capture The Flag. After this, the conference started going downhill. What do the eagles shoot, though? Lasers?

Star Trek: Bridge Crew. Basically a VR game where you work together with people like you’re on the Enterprise. The captain shouts out orders for thrusters and things like that. They used Levar Burton to help advertise it. I don’t know why, though. One thing - graphics look like a PS2 game, as the Twitch chat so eloquently described.

So For Honor got shown off. They described that you can either choose a Knight, Samurai, or Viking for the campaign. Reminds me of Deadliest Warrior a bit. They didn’t describe the Knight campaign at all. The Samurai campaign involves your empire falling, and the need to start a Civil War in order to take it back and restore it to it’s former glory. They showed a live demo for the Viking campaign. I don’t think the guy playing was that good. He took a lot of hits during the gameplay, and wasn’t really blocking often, even though there was a block button - evidenced by the few times he did so. Anyway, the Vikings invaded the Samurai, to pillage them mainly. Then a boss fight occurred at the end with the leader Samurai. It looks nice, but the combat is sort of stiff. Maybe that’s just the Viking, but we’ll see. The game releases on Valentine’s Day in 2017. Same day as Persona 5, by the way. Persona will kill it in sales, surely, despite such vastly different audiences.

Grow Up. This didn’t need to be here. They said it’s a sequel to a previous game. I never heard of it then. It’s a little cartoon robot named Bud that jumps around in this open playground. Cute and quirky, but not for me. Releases in August.

Trials: Blood Dragon. The presentation for this was arbitrary. Just show the trailer and have Aisha Tyler say “It’s out now!” Two much. It’s basically a merging of Trials: Fusion and Far Cry: Blood Dragon. Cool, then. Might give it a look. It’s out now, so if you’re interesting, go take a look yourself.

They talked Assassin’s Creed… the movie. A bit too much, actually. So boring. I literally wrote in my notes, “Who gives a f*ck”. That about sums it up.

Watch Dogs 2 got some significant time. I like the protagonist this time around, and I like the music choices. The gameplay, though… Not that intriguing to me. Not sure if I can recommend it at launch. The hacking things seem too similar to the first game, in my opinion. Watch Dogs 2 comes November 15, 2016.

Steep is a game revolving around action sports like paragliding and snowboarding. Cool, I’m sure there’s an audience for that sort of game. Seems sort of like a tech demo, just something to explore and mess around in. Like a snow sandbox. It looks beautiful, though. I just wouldn’t end the show with it. It’s cool and all, but if I was Ubisoft, I would’ve ended with Watch Dogs 2.

Reviewing My Predictions

Here’s how I grade my predictions. Zero for incorrect, half a point for half-correct, one point for correct. 13 points possible here at most.

- Watch Dogs 2 obviously. It’ll get a big showing. I’m optimistic for it, honestly. Hopefully it’s better than the first one.

Yep, totally right. (1/13)

- New Rabbids maybe? Could be.

No, it couldn’t. (1/13)

- How about a new Rayman? Shoutout to Raymanhill by the way, lovely curator over on PKA. New Rayman game would be nice. I think the last one did pretty well, so I wouldn't be surprised if another comes out.

Sorry Ray. (1/13)

- Some more content for The Division. Once I can go to my hometown of Brooklyn, I’ll pick the game up. Probably will be disappointed, but whatever. I’m sure people who like The Division will be happy to see it here.

Yes, more content. (2/13)

- Wishful thinking here, but a new Valiant Hearts would be great. Maybe they can focus on WWII this time around. Although, that game is fine with just one entry as a series.

Nope. (2/13)

- Some more dance or workout games. Stuff like that. I don’t care.

Yes, very early on. I missed it, though. (3/13)

- Some DLC for Far Cry: Primal would make sense too. Wouldn’t be surprised to see that.

Nope. (3/13)

- I don’t think Ubisoft realizes how good South Park: The Stick of Truth was. That’s why I am super excited for them to show South Park: The Fractured But Whole. Lovely and clever name. Classic Matt and Trey. Please be released this year. Again, this might actually be the best game in Ubisoft’s lineup. If I were them, I’d give it more time. Show some gameplay even. Ubisoft confirmed on Twitter that it will definitely be shown.

Absolutely! (4/13)

- No more cringy attempts at jokes, please. Although against that, I still think they’re going to try making jokes. Ugh. Just have Aisha Tyler say the f-bomb a few times. That’s fine enough.

Well, she did say the f-bomb, but there was also cringy stuff. Half a point. (4.5/13)

- Racing game probably. Sequel to The Crew or something else. That’s what I predict. I’m not really into racing games, but go ahead and enjoy. I was in the closed beta for The Crew a while back, and I wasn’t impressed at all - enough that made me decide not to purchase it. Hopefully a sequel is more appealing. I don’t think it’ll be called “The Crew 2” if there’s a sequel, by the way. Probably “The Crew: [Insert Name]”.

God, I’m doing awful. (4.5/13)

- For Honor will be shown. It reminds me of Chivalry: Deadliest Warrior a little bit. You have warriors from different eras and time periods fighting to the death (like knights and samurai). It’s intriguing. I want to see more from it, for sure. Hopefully there’s a singleplayer mode, though. Seems like it’s a multiplayer-centric game at the moment.

Yes. With campaign! (5.5/13)

- Ending the show with a teaser for Assassin’s Creed, dated for 2017, would be a great way to close it. I always like the settings of Assassin’s Creed, and I think they’re great for a video game world - but I never liked the gameplay. If they can work on that aspect, this soft reboot they’ll be doing will be phenomenal.

Would’ve been cool, but no. (5.5/13)

I didn’t do well on that one. Oh well. Let’s see how I do with Sony. I know a few of my Sony predictions are already disproven, so hopefully I do well.

So overall, Ubisoft’s press conference started out strong, but got stale quickly. Overall, I’d give it a 4/10. It wasn’t good at all. I did like Aisha Tyler’s hosting, and they had plenty to show, but it wasn’t really engaging whatsoever. They really dragged a bunch of segments longer than they should have.

What do you think? How did they do?

#E32016

RandomReview: Xbox's E3 2016 Press Conference

#E32016 Xbox Press Conference Recap/Predictions Review

Xbox! Let’s see how they did.

Xbox One S led the show. Not Scorpio, but Slim. It’s a slimmer Xbox One that’s white, and is capable of being placed horizontally and vertically. The console has an integrated power supply, and is capable of HDR Gaming. It also is capable of playing BlueRay in 4K. It comes with a new controller, with texture grip and increased range. The best part, which the crowd loved, was the fact that the console is $299, starting in August. Great! I might get one then if that’s the case and give my current Xbox One to my younger sibling.

Gears of War 4 came on the screen, but prior to that, Xbox talked briefly about “Xbox Play Anywhere.” Basically, after purchasing a game on Xbox, you can play that game both on Xbox One and Windows 10. And it’s all free! Awesome news for PC Gamers. I think this applies to a majority of games, but I only saw them specifically say so for Gears of War 4, Ark: Combat Evolved, and Scalebound. This includes another game, but I’ll get to that later.

Gears of War 4 looks beautiful, though. The gameplay is familiar as always. The lines for one of the soldiers was a bit corny, but I guess you can look past that when there’s a freaking gun that shoots saw blades. I mean, are you kidding me? This game is awesome! Gears is on the upswing right about now, while Halo feels like it’s on the downswing. The Co-Op modes will feature cross-play with PC. Horde Mode will return, deemed here as Horde 3.0. A special Gears of War Xbox One Elite Controller will be available as well. Maybe in a bundle? They didn’t say how you can get it. The game will be available on October 11, 2016.

Killer Instinct got a minute or two of time. People really love this game. I didn’t know there was so much love for it before I heard the crowd cheer about it. They showed a little clip that presented General Raam from Gears of War, where he stabs Jago in the chest a few times. So you’ll be able to play as Raam in Killer Instinct. Cool feature for those who play it. Raam is free this week to play as.

Forza Horizon 3 was next. The game will take place in Australia this time. The landscape looks beautiful, with deserts, and lavish forests. Kangaroos too. Gotta love the kangaroos. We saw Dune Buggys, Sports Cars, and Offroad Vehicles in the gameplay. This game features PC-Xbox cross-play as well. The game is also co-op, and people’s game worlds will synchronize upon joining a friend’s session. They described this as seamless. The game releases on September 27, 2016.

I missed part of Recore. Looks like a third-person action-adventure title. Love the landscape too. We could use more of these type of games nowadays. The different bots available are used to help traverse the landscape, and they’re all capable of different things. There’s one that helps the protagonist latch onto surfaces or reach higher places. Cool, can’t wait to see more.

Probably the biggest surprise of the show was… Final Fantasy 15. Why is this at Xbox? Just felt strange. Anyway, the game looked alright. Looked like a cluster of chaos in the boss fight they showed. Maybe the guy playing wasn’t that great at the game. Didn’t hear the exact date because of the guy’s heavy accent, but what I heard was September 2, 2016. Turns out it’s actually September 30, 2016. Oh well. I still think it’s possible for this game to get delayed.

A new expansion for The Division was shown off, titled “Underground Expansion.” Exploring the subways then? I would like that a lot. The subways are a big part of New York City. They also mentioned randomly generated missions, and urban dungeons.

EA showed off Battlefield 1 again, but it’s the same freaking trailer as yesterday. Well… it comes out on EA Access on October 13th. That’s new news, I guess?

They talked about new features coming to Xbox One this summer as well. You can now play music in the background while gaming. Awesome feature. I did that a lot on PS3, especially with Red Dead. Minor, but useful feature - you can now use any language you’d like, regardless of location. Cortana will be added to Xbox soon. Not really gonna use Cortana, but cool, I guess. They talked about “Clubs” for Xbox Live, where you can make communities sort of like Forums where people can gather around specific topics. Some of the examples were “Minecraft Builders” or “Division Agents in LA.” Things like that. I’m starting a “No-Mics Multiplayer” club. They went into “Looking for Group” which is basically an ad you put out looking for people to play Multiplayer games with. Lastly, you have Arena - which allows you to set up tournaments to play games in, whether it be solo or with friends. EA games will be featured in Arena, like FIFA. Can’t wait for background music and clubs.

They did a bit of Minecraft too. They have Cross-Play via Xbox Live now, on multiple devices like Windows 10, Mobile, and Gear VR. They now have dedicated servers titled “Minecraft Realms” that you can invite friends to. This entire section felt very corny, and wasn’t scripted very well. More announcements will be made at MineCon, they stated at the end.

There’s now custom Xbox One controllers you can get, which custom colors for the controller, along with custom colored buttons. You can also get a custom engraving. Really cool. Hope it’s not too expensive.

Inside, the new game from the developers of Limbo got a teaser. It looks gray and depressing. I love it! They gave Inside a lot of praise for the game, putting it on a high pedestal. Has me intrigued, since I like the setting for it already. Limbo is also free on Xbox One starting this week!

They did a little showreel of Indie games. Stardew Valley and Cuphead are the highlights here.

A game called “We Happy Few” was shown off. The game looks like it takes place in an office where everyone is supposed to have enough “Joy.” They have to take pills in order to have joy, or else they get considered a “Downer”, which comes with serious consequences. It has a creepy atmosphere to it, which is interesting. You see in the live demo that some of the employees are beating up a pinata, but since you didn’t take your Joy pills, your vision reveals it as a dead mouse once you hit it, instead of a harmless pinata. The employees are seen eating it. So… which was the hallucination? The mouse or the pinata? It’s an intriguing game concept, and I want to see more. You also see through a window, a fellow employee getting a needle in the neck from this creepy clown guy. The clown guy then walks to the window, looks you in the eyes, then closes the blinds. Creepy, I love it. The game will be available on Xbox Preview.

Remember Gwent from The Witcher? It’s a full game now. You build your deck over time, selecting cards based from four different factions. It has a full multiplayer experience, and cross-play functionality. A closed beta is coming this September.

Tekken 7 was given a live demo. The transitions from cinematics to gameplay is very seamless, and the fighting looks good. I’m not really a fighting game fan, personally, but it does look nice. Love the guy who presented it, by the way, with his traditional robes and dark shades. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 will also be available on Xbox One for Gold members, via Backwards Compatibility. The game is coming in Early 2017.

DeadRising 4 got a teaser with a bit of gameplay. Loved the Christmas theme they did during the conference, with fake snow falling above the audience, and “Jingle Bells” playing. Lovely.

Scalebound got a live demo, with a huge boss fight. They even said it was the biggest boss fight they ever made. It looks action-packed and chaotic, which could be fun. You can also play Co-Op, but it looks like the protagonists aren’t distinguished enough in Co-Op. Also, when the protagonist put his headphones on, everybody in the chat started quoting Lucio from Overwatch. Lots of Overwatch love in the chat. “Drop the beat!”

They showed off Rare’s Sea of Thieves. It was pre-recorded footage of people who got to play the game early. It’s multiplayer-centric, and people have to work together in order to get their ship sailing. There’s other small interactions, like one player’s character getting drunk. The people in the footage initiated boat combat, which is very similar to Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, except a much different art style. The lower sections of the boat need repairing if your boat is damaged, or else it’ll sink.

State of Decay 2 got a teaser. Looks like it’ll be in a rural setting based on the landscape and area they showed off. Also looks like you can settle down places and build it up slowly over time. We can only speculate at this point, but I think it’ll have multiplayer based on how it was presented.

Halo Wars 2 only got a teaser with a few bits of gameplay, but a multiplayer beta will be starting this week, stretching from June 13 - June 20. The game releases on February 21, 2017.

Xbox Scorpio was what they ended the show with, titled Project Scorpio. The Scorpio has 6 teraflops worth of GPU power, allowing it to be capable of 4K Gaming and VR. Phil Spencer says “nobody gets left behind” with Scorpio. All accessories will work in the “Xbox Family.” It will release Holiday 2017. Many developers also backed it via a recorded video, with people like Todd Howard.

Reviewing My Predictions

Here’s how I score my predictions. Incorrect is zero points, half-correct is half a point, and correct is a full point. I can get a possible of 19 with this one.

- We’re going to see a lot on Recore hopefully. Gameplay and a release window. Probably 2017. I’m optimistic for this game, so I want to see what it is.

Correct! Recore is confirmed for September 13, 2016. (1/19)

- I think EA will show up at this conference. Probably will show some Battlefield 1 footage. Maybe Titanfall 2 as well.

Yes indeed they did. Only briefly, yet it was footage we already saw. (2/19)

- Godd Howard comes and talks about Fallout 4 Mods or whatever. Maybe he talks about the upcoming DLC.

Todd did appear, but not on stage, and not in regards to Fallout. (2.5/19)

- I feel like something big will be announced for Backwards Compatibility. Maybe something like Red Dead Redemption will be backwards compatible. Modern Warfare 2 maybe? Something that will get the crowd going.

Does Tekken count? Well, Backwards Compatibility was mentioned, so let’s go with half a point. (3/19)

- Gears of War 4 gets a big showing. People will love it. Gears is on the upswing. This will be a really big game for Microsoft this year.

Yes, it is. Saw blade gun hype. (4/19)

- Scalebound gets some gameplay. Looks interesting enough, so some more gameplay will be nice. Will it come out this year? I don’t think they need it as an exclusive release this year, so I would say that it’s slated for 2017.

I was right. 2017, and gameplay. (5/19)

- Halo Wars 2. Really excited for this. Loved the first one. They finally made an RTS work on a console, so it’d be nice to have another one.

Yes, they did do a segment on Halo Wars 2. (6/19)

- Sea of Thieves. I would say that a beta will be announced later this year for it. Maybe over the summer.

It was shown, but no beta was announced. (6.5/19)

- Bioshock Trilogy. I know the 4th entry in the series is in development, so the trilogy would be nice to have. I love Bioshock, especially Infinite. “Booker, Catch!”

I wish. (6.5/19)

- Xbox Scorpio gets announced. The possible controversy surrounding Neo applies here as well. It will be more powerful than the Neo, I predict, and will release later than the Neo as well.

Good end to the show. Crowd seemed to like it. Not sure yet if it will be more powerful than Neo, but I’ll take the point for now. It seems very powerful, though. (7.5/19)

- DeadRising 4 gets shown off here. It gets a release window and gameplay.

Yes indeed, although not much gameplay in the trailer. (8.5/19)

- HoloLens will get a segment as well.

Nope. (8.5/19)

- Some new IP would be nice.

The Indie games don’t count, I feel, so no. (8.5/19)

- CUPHEAD FTW

FTW (9.5/19)

- Crackdown 3 will be given gameplay and a beta will be dated. This is another big Xbox game that I hope does well for them.

They showed the logo at the end, but it wasn’t in the show. Surprising. They did show the logo, so it’s still alive I guess. Still shocked it didn’t get shown off. (9.5/19)

- A sequel to Sunset Overdrive is possible, but I don't think it'll happen yet. Maybe a teaser now, and then gameplay next year.

Nope. (9.5/19)

- A really bold prediction, but I would love it if I could play Steam games on my Xbox One. If they could figure that out, I’d be really happy. There were rumors about an "Xbox Steam Powered" domain that surfaced, but I haven't heard anything since.

Keep dreaming. It’s vice versa, though, with Xbox games on Windows 10. (9.5/19)

- A slim Xbox One has been rumored as well. Unless it’s as powerful as the Scorpio, I don’t see the point of buying one.

Yes indeed. They led the show off with it. (10.5/19)

- The rest of the conference should be things from third-parties. Maybe Watch Dogs gets some time. Which is why I want Xbox to show off new IP.

Yes, some third party games were shown - like The Division. (11.5/19)

Not bad with predictions. Could be better.

I think Microsoft did a good conference. It didn’t blow me away at all, but I would say it’s like a 7/10. It was solid, good all-around, but nothing that really shocks you. Well, besides Final Fantasy 15.

What did you think? Let me know below! Ubisoft is next!

#E32016s

RandomReview: Bethesda's E3 2016 Press Conference

#E32016 Bethesda Press Conference Recap/Predictions Review

Let’s get right into it!

I got things a bit out of order in my notes, so bear with me. It’s mostly in order, though. Unlike EA, Bethesda didn’t announce any initiatives or programs. It was all about games.

Excuse me with names as well. Might have spelled some wrong, like “Corvo” in Dishonored.

Elder Scrolls: Legends, the Elder Scrolls strategy card game was talked about. It will be given a campaign, told from the perspective of Moth Priest Kellen. It looks like Hearthstone. It’s an Elder Scrolls Hearthstone. The playing field looks almost identical. Just what I take from it. It is a good way for Elder Scrolls fans to get into that genre, though.

Quake Champions! They led off with this game. I’m not as excited about Quake as I was for Doom or Wolfenstein, but it was only natural for this game to arrive after the two previous ones. Bethesda really have nailed FPS games as of late. Back to Quake, though. ID Software is making Quake for the PC. No word of a console version, interestingly enough. They said the game is fast-paced and made for all skill levels, and has an unlocked framerate. They drew a few surprised “Oohs” from the crowd with the framerate comment. They mentioned a diverse cast of warriors… makes me think that it might be Overwatch-like in some sense? Where you have heroes with different abilities? We’ll have to see more on that. At QuakeCon in August, Bethesda will present more on the game, so we’ll be sure to see more info then.

Our sweet Bethesda lord, Todd “Godd” Howard came on via a recorded video to talk about what the studio has been working on. Fallout 4 DLC came first, though. They announced three new DLCs.

The first DLC is titled “Contraptions Workshop” and is coming next week! It adds things like elevators, conveyor belts, and sorting machines to the workshop. Cool, I guess? Clever designs, but I don’t see the point. The amount of people who figure out how to make these work will probably be far and few between. We’ll have to see, though. Maybe it’s fun. Can’t judge it too early.

The second DLC is titled “Vault-Tec” it seems, and will allow players to build their own vault. Funnily enough, there’s a popular mod out right now on PC and Xbox One that allows players to do just that. Still, it’d be interesting to see it done from the company itself, with some context behind it even. Seems like the vault counts as a settlement as well. Players will be allowed to experiment on their Vault Dwellers too. Overall, it looks like Fallout Shelter in Fallout 4, which should be fun. Looks a lot more fleshed out than the mod. The DLC is slated for July.

Lastly, is Nuka World. This seems to be the story-driven DLC in this bunch. I’m starting to see a pattern in these Fallout 4 DLCs. One Workshop, one for building/slight bit of story, and one for plain story. The fact that this was only teased, with merely the front of an amusement park titled “Nuka World” shown off with a bunch of Wastelanders mingling, interests me greatly, and confirms to me that this is the story one - the one people will probably enjoy the most, like Far Harbor. Nuka World comes in August.

Interested to see if they do another three DLCs for September, October, and November. I can dream.

Todd Howard also talked about a big new update for Fallout Shelter. New locations, enemies, and quests will be added into the game, along with some new characters. The combat system has been overhauled as well. Finally, Fallout Shelter will be given a PC Release. Free, of course.

Then Todd Howard dropped a bombshell. Elder Scrolls: Skyrim Remastered is happening. And it looks freaking beautiful. It’s absolutely gorgeous. There’s a more dynamic depth of field, plus plenty of shaders to help the game’s lighting more. It also has console mod support! I love Bethesda! MachoMan Dragons are coming your way! The game will be given the suffix of “Special Edition” instead of “Remastered” and will be released on Xbox One, PS4, and PC. It's dated for October 28th, same day as Titanfall 2.

Another game I was happy to see come up was Prey 2. This looks even better. Wow. M.Yu wakes up on a space station in 2032 that is overrun by aliens. It seems like a survival-horror game, with the player fighting their way off the ship. Excited to see more on this. It was just a teaser, with a few bits of gameplay. Unless that was completely gameplay, which they didn’t specify. If that was all gameplay, then it’s superb visually.

They talked about content for Doom that’s on the way as well. New things for SnapMap are on the way, such as Hell textures, new constructive modules, props, and logic options. Some features from SinglePlayer are being added so people can create their own SinglePlayer experiences. Two new modes are on the way as well via an update, named Exodus and Sector. Exodus is a one-flag capture mode, while Sector is a capture and hold mode. All updates are free, by the way. They also announced the first DLC pack, titled “Unto The Evil” which brings three new maps (Offering, Cataclysm, and Ritual), one new weapon, and a new demon to play as, named the Harvester. I love Doom. Not really a Multiplayer person, though. I’d love some SinglePlayer missions made in SnapMap.

Elder Scrolls: Online got some time. Minor detail came first. If you’re Japan, you’ll finally be able to play it. Just for any people in Japan who happen to be reading. The first DLC for the MMO will be on the way, titled “Dark Brotherhood.” It is indeed based on the Oblivion quest. It looks dark and brooding, which is intriguing. I like dark things in games. They said the DLC was coming this week. I may have heard wrong, but if so, good on them. Have fun. I don’t play it, but it looks interesting. Also, they’re bringing something called “One Tamriel.” Don’t worry about leveling to play with your friends! You will now be auto-leveled appropriately depending on the area you’re in now in Elder Scrolls: Online. No level restrictions. That’s really cool, and the crowd seemed to love it. 

They talked VR a bit, which surprised me. VR support is coming for Doom, eventually, but the big announcement was that Fallout 4 would be released on HTC Vive in 2017. That is really big news. Fallout VR sounds awesome.

They spent a lot of time on Dishonored 2. I could care less to be honest, with you. I do like the steampunk setting, though. I also like the different powers, which remind of the Vigors in Bioshock a little bit. The story focuses on unraveling a conspiracy. You can play as a male or female, either Emily Caldwin or Corvo Atano. The weather in environments can change randomly, which can alter your stealth sequences. The game also encourages rooftop exploration. I love the steampunk setting, since I just love steampunk in general. A Collector’s Edition was also shown off. Dishonored 2 got significant time to end the show, which I’m not surprised about. It’s coming out November 11, so now would be a good time to draw attention to it. The crowd didn’t seem that interested though, although they seemed “Wow’d” by some of the stealth kills.

Reviewing My Predictions

Here’s how I’m grading my predictions. Incorrect is zero, half-correct is half a point, correct is a point. I can get a possible 12 points for this one. Here we go.

- DLC for Fallout 4 is a given. Fallout 4 has a hardocre audience that just loves the game. Loves the mods and DLC. Some DLC leaked a while back, so maybe this is where we see “Nuka World” shown off. Just not another Wasteland Workshop, please. If you do, make it so there's another workbench like Automatron. Maybe let us build manually operated vehicles like dirt bikes? I don't know. I'd rather have a "Weapons Workshop." Some more manually operated guns like Pump Shotguns would be cool.

I was right! DLC for Fallout. 3, in fact. Nuka World was also shown. Point for me. (1/12)

- DLC for Doom is possible as well. God, Doom is amazing. Bethesda is hitting on all cylinders when it comes to first person shooters right now.

Definitely possible, since it was confirmed here. (2/12)

- It’s possible Prey 2 will get shown off. You need to fill this conference with something.

It was indeed shown off, and that helped fill the conference. (3/12)

- That Elder Scrolls: Legends game is quite possible to be shown. (Totally not a Hearthstone ripoff.)

Yes, it was shown. Totally not a Hearthstone ripoff. (4/12)

- It’s been rumored that Skyrim will get ported over for current gen. Blasphemous statement here, maybe…. But I don’t like Elder Scrolls. I just don’t like fantasy settings. I didn’t like the Witcher either. Not my kind of game. Although, give it console mod support and you’ll have my interest. I did play Skyrim a bit, so I'd be willing to put some hours into it again.

It did get announced! Why did I get so excited for it when I said the above? I will play it and try to get into this time, I promise. Maybe mods are what I need. (5/12)

- An Obsidian Fallout will NOT be shown. I don’t know where that Fallout: New Orleans thing came from. I mean, you guys really want more Mirelurks? Those things are vicious. Maybe next year. I think they should go outside America with Obsidian’s game. Maybe Canada? A cold area would be interesting. Just give me settlements in danger and mod support, though.

Muahaha, no Obsidian for you! (6/12)

- An Elder Scrolls version of Fallout Shelter where Godd Howard says “It’s coming out tonight” would be awesome. Maybe you control a village instead of a Vault. I’d play it. Fallout Shelter was fun for a while. It’s an example of how you do mobile games right.

Lol, nope. Does Legends count? No, right? I don’t think so, either. (6/12)

- A new Elder Scrolls main game won’t be announced, though. I mean, come on guys. Too soon. 2018 probably.

Yep, I was right. Way too soon. I say too soon because it’s too close to Fallout 4’s release. Maybe 2018 announcement, released in 2019. (7/12)

- BattleCry? Is that a MOBA? I can’t tell what it is, but it was given a slot last year. I think it’s going to bomb. It doesn’t look good, and I don’t even know what it exactly is. Terrible name too, just like “Battleborn.”

Good, I’m glad it didn’t show up… Looks awful. (7/12)

- With Doom and Wolfenstein already out, it’s quite possible that Quake can be on the way as well. Wouldn’t be Machine or iD making it though.

Totally Quake, but I was half-right. ID Software is making this game. How do you spell “ID” in regards to the company? The above spelling with a lowercase I or with both letters capital? Please let me know. (7.5/12)

- The biggest part of Bethesda’s conference should be Dishonored 2, which comes out this year. It will be shown, absolutely.

Of course. I saw that from a mile away. (8.5/12)

- A sequel to Wolfenstein would be optimal to end off the show. Keep building these franchises. The last Wolfenstein was great. So well done. A new one would be even better.

I am severely disappointed a new Wolfenstein wasn’t shown. Come on, Bethesda. (8.5/12)

Hey, I did pretty good with predictions this time around! I actually like Bethesda, compared to EA. I love Bethesda, actually. A majority of their games really appeal to me.

Overall, I thought they had a really good conference. They focused on the games, which is what we want to see. However… fifteen minutes late to start the show felt like they were stalling because they didn’t have a lot to show off here. They did indeed have a lot, but I wanted more Wolfenstein. And more Todd Howard. Wtf Bethesda. Give me more of Todd. I’m stuck between two numbers for this conference, so I’ll go down the middle and give it a 7.5/10. I thought it was really good. Nothing huge, but absolutely a good conference.

On a side note, after recent events in Florida, Bethesda honored those victims by coloring their Twitch logo in pride colors. Bethesda hosts and developers also wore pride ribbon pins during the conference. Good gesture on Bethesda's part to acknowledge it.

So what did you think? Disappointed in Wolfenstein? Excited for the DLCs? Excited for Dishonored? Tell me below! I have to get ready for Xbox’s conference tomorrow, which I’ll do a recap for as well!

#E32016

RandomReview: EA's E3 2016 Press Conference

#E32016 EA Press Conference Recap/Predictions Review

Let’s get right into it!

So, EA led the conference with Titanfall 2. I knew they’d show off something big at the beginning. They mentioned that six new Titans will be added into the game. Of course, it’ll be available on PS4 as well this time around. I still think it’ll be shown off again at Xbox’s conference, though. They mentioned it’ll have a deep progression system and more customization. Cool… but… The Multiplayer looks almost exactly the same, just the fact that it’s on new maps. There’s some new animations as well, like one where a guy slammed another guy on the ground and killed him. Then there was this Titan that shot out a chest laser. I’m not impressed. Looks like Titanfall 1 besides minor differences. The map does seem a lot bigger, though. Campaign looks sort of interesting. I saw some weird creatures in the trailer, which I hope we get a chance to fight. Would love a variety of enemies. Looks like it’ll be sort of a bond between Titan and pilot kind of thing. Doesn’t look too interesting, but I’ll give it a shot.

EA announced a bunch of new programs too, which may bore some people, so I’m putting those at the bottom of the recap.

Madden 17 was shown off a bit. I didn’t really see or hear anything new about it. The only fact I caught was an “all-new commentary team.” They didn’t mention who they were, but there you go. I’m not a football fan, but you might be. That’s all I caught them saying, but perhaps I wasn’t paying enough attention.

FIFA 17 was given significant time. The game now runs on the Frostbite engine. They also have a new campaign mode that focuses around a character named Alex Hunter. Just feels like a copy of NBA 2K’s storyline from 2K16, except it’s FIFA and not a custom character. 2K’s story wasn’t good in the first place anyway. Famous managers in the premier league now have models on the sideline, though, so that’s good! They also explained how the engine allows them to rework things. They mentioned that they overhauled physical play, redid the A.I., rewrote the setpieces, and added new ways to finish at the goal. There’s new ways to attack. I’m not a FIFA fan, but I liked how enthusiastic Peter Moore was about it, and the way he kept representing pride in Liverpool. Also like how he asked the manager that showed up, “Does your son spend money on Ultimate Team?” Lmao. Oh, EA… you never change.

Mass Effect was only given a tease, which I’m okay with. I either wanted a big blowout like Fallout 4 last year, or I wanted them to keep relatively quiet about it. They mentioned that the player will be traveling to Andromeda, which makes you the alien in this galaxy. They mentioned giving the player more freedom, with a brand new cast of characters. It runs entirely on the Frostbite engine. Something about Andromeda being a “new home for humanity” was talked as well. Maybe you’re a refugee from our galaxy? The game is beautiful, of course, with diverse planets full of alien life and civilization. Reminds me of No Man’s Sky a little bit, with the different planets to explore and such - but it’s Mass Effect, so it’s vast and enthralling. Best part of the conference probably.

Fe is this cute little indie game. They mentioned Unraveled here, and continuing with their initiative to support indie developers, they showed off this game. This game looks amazing! You’re this cute creature in a forest and everything is based around music. Beautiful music, in fact. Reminds me of Journey, actually, except this is a different atmosphere. Journey was depressing and sad, while this looks happy and adorable. Yet the music is so well done. There are enemies in this game, who are trying to kill off the forest by spreading silence. The forest lives off of music. I’d love to try it when it comes out.

They went into their variety of Star Wars titles. I hope they’re good, because Star Wars fans are in for a treat if they are. Let’s start with the new Battlefront, which will be released in 2017. “Building on the foundation” was what they mentioned first. Hopefully that includes a campaign. They did say it will contain content from the new films, and more eras will be included. They also gave a peek at Lando Calrissian, along with Cloud City. I guess Lando will be a hero in the new Battlefront? I just want SinglePlayer, please.

They gave a peek at Amy Hennig’s Star Wars game with Visceral. She talked about telling “an authentic story” in the Star Wars world. Not much was shown of the game itself besides one shot of a guy in the Tatooine market, with a Star Destroyer looming in the distance. Very hopeful for this one. The game is slated for 2018.

Respawn is making a Star Wars game as well. Jade Raymond said their game would take place in a “different era.” From the lightsaber mo-cap they showed off, it looks like it might be around Episode 3 maybe? I know. Can’t take anything from a mo-cap session, lol. The Clone Wars is what came to mind with the comment about a different era, though. They also said it’d be a third person game.

Last of the game was Battlefield 1. It looks freaking beautiful. No mustard gas, don’t worry. Cooler stuff than that. They showed off the tanks, which looked awesome. Then the airplanes flying towards an airship which was great as well. They mentioned battles were going to be more dynamic, with more destruction altering the world and unpredictable weather patterns. They also mentioned “behemoth vehicles” that include airships or armored trains. I’m hoping these aren’t like the heroes in Battlefront, and anyone can get a chance to use them. Or maybe you can spawn on them? I don’t know, but the concept is intriguing, and I hope they don’t screw it up. The game releases worldwide on October 21st, and an open beta was announced for later this summer.

Now for the initiative stuff. You can skip over this if you’d like if you’re bored by this kind of thing.

ESports: EA seems to be very interested in this. They talked about this in regards to Madden, but I believe it applies to FIFA as well. They’re adding three new ESports types to their plans, called Challenger, Premier, and EA Major. Challenger is an ESports event hosted by someone in the community, basically. A glorified organized tournament, sort of. Premier is a large-scale live event for something like Twitch, and is hosted by EA. EA Major is for marquee global events. Like it’s literally on ESPN3. Those kind of events. They announced they’re doing five EA Major events this year, in different locations. We’ll see how it goes. I’m not that into ESports yet, personally, but I wouldn’t mind watching a stream or two if it’s presented well.

Play to Give: To sum this up, they’re giving special challenges in several EA games, which when completed, EA will donate money to charity. I’m not sure of the specific details, but that’s the gist I got. It’s for a good cause, so I’d like to see more of this.

EA Originals: This is basically their goal to help smaller indie developers realize their dreams. They’ve already started this via Fe and Unraveled, but now you have an official name for it. We’ll see how Fe does then. I’m all for helping out Indie developers. I’d like to hear about their experiences working with EA.

Reviewing My Predictions

So here’s how I’ll score my predictions. Incorrect is zero points. Half-correct is half a point. Fully correct is 1 point. I can get a possible ten points in this one.

- Star Wars: Battlefront DLC will be shown. Some kind of Rogue:One tie-in is possible. I don’t care. You screwed up Battlefront already, EA.

Battlefront DLC was not shown, but they did say the new Battlefront will have content from the new films. Half a point. (0.5/10)

- Titanfall 2 will be shown off and dated for this year. While some may be skeptical about it being in the same timeframe as Battlefield 1, I think EA can pull it off. I mean, they’re a juggernaut. They can market both.

Titanfall was shown and dated for this year. Score 1 for me. (1.5/10)

- Battlefield 1 is interesting to me. I didn’t play Hardline, but I kinda like Battlefield. I played some of the previous entries before. Mostly Battlefield 4. I want to see how this one is though. That WW1 setting is going to be really interesting and I'm excited for it.

They showed off Battlefield 1. This was a natural prediction. Everybody knew this would happen. (2.5/10)

- Some PvZ stuff and mobile stuff. Naturally.

No PvZ talk, actually. Does Galaxy of Heroes count as mobile? I think it does. They did mention mobile in passing, but it was never made a talking point. Half a point then. (3/10)

- Insert all of the sports stuff here. On a side note, the only sport I like is basketball. So I can predict something based on that. NBA Live might be pushed back to January, or perhaps even eliminated altogether. Live’s sales compared to 2K were downright atrocious. Just quit, EA. 2K won the basketball market. Just spend your money developing something else. You have every other sport wrapped up, so I don’t see why you insist on making basketball games that nobody buys.

Sports were mentioned, but NBA Live wasn’t mentioned at all. So… half a point or full point? I’d say half, since I did make a point that Live would be a topic. (3.5/10)

- Lo and behold! Praise the gods above! Command and Conquer gets risen from the dead and rebooted for PC! It’ll be Tiberium Dawn, but with beautiful graphics on a wonderful engine. I can dream, right?

Keep dreaming. Maybe at the PC conference? (3.5/10)

- A Sims 4 expansion will be announced. I don't see why not. The people watching go crazy because they love The Sims. Including me.

Nope. (3.5/10)

- Besides an expansion, a console port of Sims 4 will be announced as well. I’d love that. I loved the PS3 version of Sims 3, so a console version of this one will be nice as well. I’m sure it’ll run pretty well on this current gen console. The last gen version of Sims 3 didn’t run that well at times.

Oh well. (3.5/10)

- Unraveled 2 gets a teaser, possibly. Little Yarnie is likable. Yarnie > Sackboy.

Nope, but there’s another cute indie game! (3.5/10)

- Ending the show off with Mass Effect: Andromeda would be nice. I would give it the Fallout 4 treatment before going dark on it until a few months before release.

They didn’t give it the Fallout 4 treatment, and didn’t end with it, but it was shown. Half a point. (4/10)

God, I did awful with predictions for EA. I didn’t know the conference would be this short. I think they were reasonable guesses, though, besides Command and Conquer returning. Let’s see how I do with Bethesda!

Overall, I would rate EA’s conference a 5/10. It wasn’t bad, it was actually kinda good. I wanted them to be more fan-servicey this year, and it feels like they did that a little - with Mass Effect and Battlefield. Just a bit too short, though. Feels like they could’ve expanded on some of these topics more. They just didn't show anything. It suffered because they didn't show much! Not much gameplay was shown at all, but I wouldn't say it was bad. We got some good info on things, but this is E3. I want to see gameplay.

What did you think about the conference? Love it, hate it, meh? Any games you were expecting them to show? I saw people wanting Dead Space or Skate, but I knew those most likely weren’t going to be there. Let me know what you think!

#E32016