E3 - easily the most important game conference held. E3 always has ridiculously amounts of hype behind it, for good reasons too. This is where all the big releases are revealed and shown. This year's conference is especially important due to the impending release of the next-gen consoles (Xbox One and PS4). I know every single soul on the planet is staring at the new consoles, but that, as hard as it is to believe, wasn't my main interest. I was keenly watching Nintendo's E3 presentation, where they announced a heap of games and showed a load of trailers. People can say all they want, but I think Nintendo have finally got their act together and the Wii U has an impressive line-up releasing in the near future, and not to forget the overload of great software releasing on the 3DS. I am going to round-up my favourite E3 reveals/content, but just to warn you, this will be a Nintendo focused article. Let's begin.
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| All aboard the hype train! |
The sequel to the incredible Xenoblade Chronicles, a JRPG on the Wii. Minds were definitely blown when Nintendo showed the new trailer. The world looks huge, and the trailer shows a variety of environments, from a futuristic city, to a desert with a large lake, to the large grassy expanses that Xenoblade Chronicles is known for. Not only this - but mechs. Not only does flying around and fighting in a mech sound awesome, but the devs used the mechs in thqe trailer to show off the incredible landscapes. It seems like the mechs will not have restrictions to where they can fly and land, so it will be really exciting to explore the world from the skies. Along with a much bigger scale than its predecessor (think enemies 500 times the size), glorious 1080p graphics and many other features to be excited for, this new title from Monolith Soft looks superb.
Super Smash Bros:
Everyone knew this was coming, but I don't really care. This new title, developed by Namco (for some weird reason) looks awesome. Not only is it both on Wii U and 3DS, but the graphics in both versions look pretty darn awesome, with the 3DS version taking a more cartoon style cel-shaded look. Namco developing the game is probably a good thing, however, as Namco have a bit more experience with the genre. This game will definitely move some consoles as well. Three new characters have been shown - Megaman, the Animal Crossing villager, and the... Wii Fit trainer? I don't know what was going through Nintendo's mind when they thought that up, but we'll take it.
Metal Gear Solid V:
This article isn't completely Nintendo focused. There's a non Nintendo game I want to mention - being Metal Gear Solid V. It was weird to see such a Japanese trailer kick off Microsoft's E3 conference (you know, the cheesy music and how every feature is pointed out to you). Alas, the rest of the conference paled compared to it, as this game looks phenomenal. I've always been a fan of the MGS franchise, but this knocked my socks off. The incredible graphics, the massive open-world environments and everything else about this trailer looks fantastic. This game will be the last Metal Gear Solid game, and will show how Big Boss becomes the villain he was in the original two metal gear games. The cast of characters also look quite interesting, and I am curious to find out who "skull face" is. If you think this will be a more linear stealth game, you are thinking wrong. This game will be more like Peace Walker (on the psp) - with base building and all that good stuff. The missions will be very open and there will be a variety of ways to approach them. You will also be able to do missions in any order without it messing up the plot. This could be the greatest Metal Gear Solid game yet.
Bayonetta 2:
Oh, the outcry of the fans when this game was announced as a Wii U exclusive. Why? Sega weren't going to fund the next Bayonetta, so Nintendo picked it up. People are still complaining for some reason, but its either Bayonetta 2 on Wii U or no Bayonetta 2. Anyway, to the game - it looks as over the top as ever, like the original Bayonetta (if you want to know how insane that game was - think going inside of the sun to kill a giant demon). We also saw some returning characters such as Rodin. The trailer shows Bayonetta riding on a jet through a city, fighting off demons, and then killing a boss with another character, who is most likely Jeanne on a flying piece of railway tracks, and then the sky turns red and they are fighting a giant dragon who is tearing apart buildings. This game looks amazing. Also, Bayonetta got a haircut.
LOZ: A Link Between Worlds:
I would talk about Wind Waker HD (which looks fantastic by the way), but I've never played the original game so I don't think I should. However, a Zelda game which did catch my attention was A Link between Worlds on the 3DS. I've always liked the more retro-style, birds-eye view Zelda games, and this is one of them. Not only this, but it also uses the 3D effect in a fantastic way - but how? From the trailer, we can see Link jumping and travelling between different levels of height, which would be harder to distinguish when playing in 2D, but not impossible. The new painting ability in which you can, well, obviously, turn into a painting and walk along walls, looks interesting as well. The game is also confirmed to run at 60fps in 3D as well, which is always a plus. I am quite excited for this new title.
Shin Megami Tensei IV:
Atlus aren't doing a lazy job with this 3DS RPG - no way. This is a "premier" JRPG on your portable console - 60+ hours of gameplay, an in depth storyline, fully 3D graphics, and not to mention that every single line of dialogue is voiced. In English or Japanese. Atlus are faithful to their fans in the west - at least the ones in the United States. We still don't have a European release date confirmed, but at least we know its coming. I am really excited to get my hands on this game. Like other games in the series, you fight demons, but you can also convince them to join your side and fight for you, in some cases. The developers put their heart and soul into this game, and it shows. I am really fond of their attitude about social gaming, and how SMT IV combats those terrible social games. Just be warned though - apparently, even on normal, this game is incredibly punishing.
Super Mario 3D World:
There isn't really much I can say about Mario Kart 8, apart from that it looks awesome, but what I can talk about is this new Mario game. There are mixed feelings going around with this one - it certainly did not have the effect that Super Mario Galaxy had when it was first announced. This game seems more like an HD version of Super Mario 3D Land (on the 3DS) with different levels. That isn't a bad thing, as 3D Land was a fantastic game, but I can't deny I expected a bit more. However, what I am excited for is 4 player co-op. This sounds like heaps of fun, and coming from Nintendo EAD, who have a pretty great track record, this is a very low chance of this being a bad game.
So anyway, those are my E3 picks! I would talk about many more games, but I didn't want this article to go on forever. I thought this year was a high quality show (apart from Microsoft). What was your favourite game of the show?
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