E3 2013: A Rundown

E3 2013: A Rundown

June 14, 2013 0 By Marc

E3 2013 was in full force and there is so much fun stuff!

Today is the final day of E3 2013 and we have seen so so so much. There have been many ups and downs at this Expo, notably the Xbox One disaster, and the rise of the PS4. There has also been dozens of new games shown for release on existing and next gen, and how we will be able to drain our wallets over the next year. Below we will go through all the cool which is E3.

Consoles:

Xbox One

The Xbox One is Microsoft’s latest next gen console and everyone including myself was extremely excited to see what it was all about. Once I found out about what Microsoft has planned for the console and the future of Xbox gaming, I am left disappointed and afraid. There is much to be liked about this console, but there is so much more that will drive so many once loyal Xbox players to Playstation.

The first aspect is that players cannot simply share games with their friends, or purchase used games at a local retailer. There will be specific licencing for the games that will only allow a certain number of Xbox profiles to play the game before the game licence becomes useless. The second downfall is that the console will have to connect to the internet every 24 hours or you risk not being able to play your games. This was news to developers as well, and I’m not sure how many dev’s will jump at the chance to deliver exclusives to Xbox after this. When questioned about any of this, the only thing they could say is that they have a console for those without internet connections, and that is the Xbox 360… YES that’s what we want Microsoft. The scariest thing about this entire console is Kinect and it’s ability to record everything you say and do in your living room at any notice.  Now Microsoft says that there is nothing to worry about, because it only records when you want it to, and will only respond to “Xbox One On”. But if it is listening to that one key phrase all the time, that means it has to scan everything else said in that room as well, and is it just being scanned and dumped or is there some warehouse out there filled with recordings of you crying over the end of the Notebook or how you just smoked all that pot? Regardless, Xbox needs to change, and change now because Playstation is kicking your butts.

Playstation 4

Glory be to our saviour Playstation 4! Now I am not just being a fanboy of Playstation since I have owned every version of this console, but I praise it simply because so far they have given the gamer everything they could have ever wanted. The system is PACKED with hardware that makes the PC I am on right now look as advanced as a toaster, there are a ton of amazing games coming to the system (Destiny to be one), gamers will be able to trade, sell, borrow any game they want on the day of release, and it will NOT be watching your every move like it’s 1984.  The new controller that they have released has a slightly new design but looks comfortable and fun to use, I have also seen some of the new 3rd party controllers as well, and if someone gives me a PS4 controller with a nice rubber grip I will love them forever. This is something I will be getting for sure, there is no way I will ever stray.

OUYA

Even though OUYA was not at E3, they still made their presence by renting the lot across the street from E3 and held their own little event to promote the indie console. E3’s response to that was to park transport trucks in front of the venue to obscure the view. OUYA then rented out the space in front of the trucks and put up some signage promoting OUYA. Then E3 closed the deal by calling the cops… I’m not too sure why all the hate for OUYA, but this seems a little childish.

Steambox

What the hell Gaben!? Where is the Steambox and why was it not at E3? I expect it to be released with Half-Life 3 now I hope you know.

Enough about the consoles that did or DID NOT come out this year at E3, lets take a look at the games that were premièred at the expo.

Final Fantasy 15

From the gameplay footage released this year, it looks like SquareEnix have thrown away the turn based battle system that has made the game so successful in the past. This time around it looks as if the game has an open world feel, with a battle system similar to Kingdom Hearts meets Devil May Cry. I have always love the FF series and I hope this breathes new life into the series.

Kingdom Hearts 3

I almost passed out when I saw the trailer for this, and then it got me thinking. Disney now owns Marvel and Star wars… WOLVERINE AND SORA WITH LIGHTSABER CLAWS! Now that will probably not happen, but this game will be amazing and it is due time to have this come out, and what better time than the release of a new console.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The next game in The Witcher series has taken a step… no a giant leap forward with their newest game. They have improved the fantasy rpg to include a massive open world, much larger than Skyrim was. Also they have improved the graphics, combat and the non-player AI to make you loose yourself in this game, and believe you are actually there, and it is a real place. This game is something to get your hands on as soon as possible.

Super Smash Bros.

Our favourite beat em up player vs player game is back for the next gen Wii U. This game looks very polished with very nice textures and animations, also the new environments are beautiful to look at as you smash your friends across the screen. There have been some new challengers added to the mix as well, we get Mega Man, Animal Crossing Villager(and his dead eyes) and the Wii Fit Trainer. This looks like a lot of fun, and a lot of broken controllers.

Dragon Age: Inquisition

If you are like me, you have sunk many hours in to Dragon Age: Origins, and loved every minute of it. You then picked up Dragon Age 2, and threw it out. With this 3rd addition to the Dragon Age series from Bioware, we can hope for the best. Bioware has promised that it will be a fuse of the two games play styles and will work very well together. Personally if they can give me the first games play style, with better graphics, a new story and a few added features I would be more than happy. The game is set to come out Fall of 2014, as soon as info comes, we will get it.

Mirrors Edge 2

Gamers have been waiting a long time for the new Mirrors Edge game, and looking at it on next gen, I am glad DICE waited. This game on the Frostbite engine looks smooth, polished, and brutal all at the same time. The trailer that EA released for this is simply amazing and gets me hyped for the release of this first person masterpiece.

Now this was only rundown of what happened at E3, stay tuned for more info regarding all the upcoming releases.