This year’s E3 convention was the best entertainment I’ve watched all year. Summed up in three words? Creativity, freedom and nostalgia. It’s renewed my faith in the gaming industry’s direction by returning freedom and power to the heart of the gamer.
Several large studios will harness the creativity of the gamer and rightly so. Finally systems have been put in place to easily share and alter game realities rather than restrict them to mods on the PC, such as FallOut 4, Super Mario Maker and one game of particular interest, Dreams by Media.Molecule. A new creative palette has emerged where imagination is the paintbrush and everyone can collaborate to create something similar to that of a lucid dream.
Freedom, to go where you want and the choice to do what you want in your chosen gaming universe, was an overarching theme. This year’s hot topic and definitely one to watch is No Man’s Sky: a universe sized, randomly-spawning explorative sandbox — the vastness is almost incomprehensible. Bethesda’s first press conference inevitably was focused largely on FallOut 4 (release date the 10th of November) and delivered exactly what we’d expect from the successful game franchise. The demo featured extremely versatile character design, with ethnic minorities being convincingly represented at last without resembling a coffee-stained alien. There are also a ton of new amazing features like deconstructible everything, the ability to create settlements, a pip-boy app for your smartphone and they’ve even prerecorded thousands of names so characters can say <insert your name here>.
There were of course some games with a clear linear narrative with no need to question their worth. Uncharted 4, Tomb Raider but also several new contenders from talented established studios. Camposanto’s Firewatch looks like it’ll bring something new to the table, reminding me of the film Her. It involves a young man guided only by a friendly voice via walkie talkie through the wilderness who encounters unexpected events. Guerilla Games’ demo of their new game Horizon: Zero Dawn looks INSANE. It’s based in a post-apocalyptic world with robot dinosaurs, narrative during gameplay and a combat system that looks fulfilling, fun and downright impressive.
Remakes and sequels galore also grabbed the limelight. A kickstarter during the Sony conference for Shenmue 3 that is already $1.5 million over its goal target, another installment of DOOM that looks like Destiny and Evolve had a demon baby on a horrific acid trip and the long awaited promise of a Final Fantasy VII remake.
But then there was the bad. Star Wars has joined Disney Infinity. It reminded me of that episode of South Park where Steven Spielberg rapes Indiana Jones. My excitement for Kingdom Hearts 3 was quelled grudgingly with no release date in sight nor for Final Fantasy XV or the Final Fantasy VII remake. And Bungie will not stop plugging its BS expansion packs.
The graphics for basically everything at E3 = next gen sploosh. If you’re holding off upgrading your PC or buying that console, the time is now.
If you’re a passionate gamer who wants to give E3 a watch, I’ve barely scratched the surface. Project Morpheus, Hitman, technical hitches, costumes, the play floor and even COD looks like something I’d play, which I never thought I’d ever say. E3 is a showcase so everything looks shiny, but take it all with a pinch of caution – however, if it lives up to expectations we’re in for some golden years of gaming.
