It made us laugh, it made some of us cry, it made us seethe with anger, it made us facepalm and occassionally it astounded us. After one rollercoaster ride the doors of E3 have closed again for this year. We expected this year to be big with Sony and Microsoft unloading their salvos of titles to herald in the next-generation, but I don't think any of us were expecting just how big some of the announcements were to be.
So what's this E3 thing you ask? Well what better way to explain in that through the eyes of an E3 Newbie!
Day One was press conference day. Eyes on Final Fantasy had you covered with live blogs (well, as live as editting a forum post allows!) of each conference. If you want to see thoughts and reactions as they happened then look no further:
Microsoft kicked us off with what they promised they'd show us. ALL THE GAMES. With the video game community relatively split, mostly for the worse, following the XBOX ONE announcement this was Microsoft's chance to alleviate those concerns. They hit us hard and fast with the likes of Metal Gear Solid V, Dead Rising 3, Forza 5 and new IPs such as Quantum Break and TitanFall. Our forum goers certainly seemed happy with the gaming offerings but the whole conference felt a bit clinical and whilst everything they showed certainly looked great the conference as a whole fell short of the mark. The XBOX ONE price tag - $499/€499/Ł429 didn't land very well either.
Microsoft didn't do near enough to make up for it's trout prior, even if their conference was better then I thought it would be.
EA were up next and also had some gamer faith to win back after a year of lack luster titles and a notable drop in quality. EA definately went for the full on celebrity endorsement route. Coupled with awkward rap scenes and sports starts giving us pearls of wisdom such as:
This conference filled the yearly E3 quota for awkward celebrity endorsement. Whilst everything we saw was pretty much "by the numbers" they did surprise us with the amazing looking Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare and:
Originally Posted by Pike
MIRRORS EDGE 2 MIRRORS EDGE 2 MIRRORS EDGE 2!
Mirror's Edge 2 was quite a popular reveal:
Originally Posted by Mister Adequate
I wasn't expecting to see Mirror's Edge 2 at all, I assumed we never would, so that sent me into a frenzy.
Though some of our members remain cautiously hopeful:
Originally Posted by Vivi22
Mirror's Edge 2. I consider the original one of the standout titles of this generation, so I was hoping to see more of what it changing with the new title. Comments from EA at various times in the last several years leave me a little concerned about where they may take it, and the focus on combat in the trailer didn't assuage my concerns at all.
Ubisoft were the 3rd stop for Aisha's straight talking, no holds barred, style of presenting where she should win the award for best line of the show. If there isn't such an award one should be made purely for this gem:
I changed my mic because the other one kept dropping out. If this one doesn't work I'll just start screaming at you. Nothing better than a giant black woman screaming at you. *pause* Especially in bed!
Ubisoft's attempts to woo us included new instalments in all their staple franchises. But they also hit the ball for six with the surprise reveals of The Crew, an online racing game featuring seamless drop-in/drop-out play and the absolutely spectacular looking Tom Clancy's: The Division. Set in New York City shortly after a pandemic breaks out in the US The Division sees you playing a secret group of soldiers attempting to bring order back into a world of anarchy. The graphical detail and potential of this game is astounding.
The Division - One of the big surprises
So with much anticipation this brought us to Sony's conference. Whilst Microsoft hadn't put on a particularly bad show by any means, the amount of anti-XBOX ONE feelings around and the high price point meant the ball was well and truly in Sony's court.
It started off rather slowly with attempts to save the fledging Vita and then a round-up of sweet stuff coming to the Playstation 3 but lets be honest, at this point no-one really cared. We wanted the goods. Then they came in the form of The Order 1886 which looks like an interesting steampunk style shooter/horror game.
Originally Posted by NeoCracker
Though I was taken a bit more back by 'The Order'. No gameplay footage, but it has this amazing visual flair to it, and god I want more.
Rumors had been circulating for months that Final Fantasy Versus XIII had been rebranded to Final Fantasy XV and even more optimistic rumors were abound that Kingdom Hearts III was imminent. Heck, we'd even got in on this with our community wide April Fools joke - Kingdom Hearts Project <3. Skeptics brushed this off due to Nomura earlier stating that Kingdom Hearts III wouldn't happen until Versus XIII was done - but it seems Square Enix still had some tricks up their sleeves! Just like that, both rumors were infact true.
Final Fantasy XV - I like what they showed off for the most part in the earlier Versus gameplay videos, and it does make me happy to hear the talk of a large, fairly open world, towns, etc. They're hitting the important check boxes for making me forget that FFXIII happened. Now that they've announced the move to PS4, hopefully we'll see more news a lot sooner. It'll also be nice to see if they've finally got a bit of direction with this title because I don't want to see it languish in development hell much longer.
Originally Posted by Bolivar
About damn time! Final Fantasy used to be an annual franchise powerhouse from 1997-2001 but ever since it feels like an eternity between FF games! Of course, it's a day one purchase for me and I'm optimistic it will have been worth the wait.
We were also treated to a new Mad Max , The Elder Scrolls Online and the first gameplay footage from Destiny. Sony then sealed the deal by announcing no used-game restrictions on discs and a price point of $399/€399/Ł349.
This seems to have been the decision maker for a few people here when asked which console they are likely to pick-up first:
Originally Posted by Mister Adequate
Oh the PS4 by a mile, the only thing on XBone I care about is Dead Rising 3 and sooner or later it's gonna get ported I'm sure.
Originally Posted by NeoCracker
I think that is obvious, but PS4.
Originally Posted by Bolivar
Based off of E3, Sony seems to have the more complete ecosystem, and they've already hooked me on all their first party studios this generation .
Originally Posted by Vivi22
as far as buying a new console, I wasn't interested at all before. Now Sony has managed to pique my interest in the PS4. I won't be lining up at launch, but I will be keeping my eye on it. FFXV has certainly caught my eye, so we'll see what exclusives shake out and how fast a price drop comes.
On Day Two Nintendo aired their Nintendo Direct stream unveiling the expected host of first-party sequels and continuations of their major franchises along with peeks at Bayonetta 2. Even after all of these years these games still look polished and solid. Whether you're stoked about the Mario Kart 8 or can't get enough of the Fairy Pokémon in Pokémon X and Y - Nintendo, as always, have something for everyone. So much so, infact, that even following the gargantuan announcements from Sony on Day One they still managed to stir up some interest.
Originally Posted by Shauna
The WiiU has become a likelihood in my future now.
Originally Posted by Locky
Fairy Pokemon. FAIRY POKEMON.
Originally Posted by Del Murder
Man, I want to play like half those games. I guess a WiiU is also in my future.
That A Link Between Worlds looks amazing and I fully expect it to become one of the best Zelda's of all time.
Also, lest we not forget: MEGAMAN IN SUPER SMASH BROS.!
Now this is all well and good - but we are, after all, a Final Fantasy (and by extension: Square Enix) fansite. So where's the real meat and potatoes? Don't worry, the rest of the expo had you covered. Check out our full list of coverage below:
Our Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy XV forums have been buzzing with activity since the big announcement. Obviously this news was what we've all been waiting, often rather impatiently, for years for. However it hasn't been all trumpets and parades. Some people are concerned about the level of realism in XV whereas others feel short changed that they purchased a PlayStation 3 for a game that's now coming out on the PlayStation 4. Others are just more interested in what's with the red shoes?
Nomura also told fans that they can expect a very special message from him in Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD ReMIX. We've also been informed that the original voice cast of Final Fantasy X have reunited to re-record a certain scene. Square Enix are remaining quiet on this front but the popular money seems to be on that notorious laughing scene being reworked.
Murdered: Soul Suspect got it's first proper time in the limelight and looks to be a very interesting take on the thriller genre. Rather than focus on guns and action you are instead a ghost trying to solve the mystery of your own murder. Sounds simple right? But you're a ghost! So you can't physically interact with objects or people and you also have the prospect of other ghosts, not all of whome are friendly, to deal with. It's shaping up to be a rather interesting and unique title so it's definitely one to look out for.
There was some great new A Realm Reborn details as we gear up for the official launch on August 27th and with Phase 3 of the Beta now ongoing and under a lighter NDA you can expect more coverage from us regarding it.
So, no matter your gaming tastes it seems that Square Enix have something for you. You can expect tonnes more coverage in the coming weeks and months on all of these games along with other titles Square Enix announced such as Deus Ex: The Fall and Bloodmasque.
Final Fantasy XV really was the talk of the Square Enix booth though and just incase you've forgotten about those 3 minutes and 42 seconds where Final Fantasy fans around the internet collectively wet their pants... then prepare to wet your pants all over again:
This fantasy is finally a reality for us
All in all, not a bad 4 days! The popular consensus right now is that Sony won E3 but the question now is: will they win the war? Microsoft have a hard road ahead and Sony have said that third-party publishers are able to enforce DRM options on PlayStation 4 if they want too. So the topic of DRM and connectivity is likely to be a continually raging debate throughout the next generation. But we also have fantastic titles such as The Division, Watch_Dogs, Murdered and of course Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III to look forward to o.
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the editorial team for all their hard work during the past week. This E3 was far bigger than we were expecting and sadly even though none of us were able to attend in person we made every effort to get the news to you as it happened. It was a huge undertaking and this author was functioning on only 3 hours sleep for most of the event! But hey, it was worth it - and I fully confess to nearly spilling coffee all over my keyboard in excitement when Nomura appeared in the Sony press conference to make that announcement. This was a huge team effort and it wouldn't have been possible without them.
Well, that's it. Done and dusted for another year. Thanks for sticking with us and be sure to keep your eyes glued to Eyes on Final Fantasy for all the Square Enix news as it happens - word is we can expect major details regarding both Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III at the Tokyo Game Show later this year.
What did you think of our coverage overall - and more importantly what did you think of E3 as whole? Let us know in the comments below!
Great coverage all over - I found myself spending more time reading EoFF threads than I did IGN, which is always a good thing.
Pumped for a lot of the games, although I need to read a lot more about them at some point. FFXIV and FFXV are my big favourites, naturally, but there are a few others that have caught my attention and I'll hopefully get some time to peek into what they're all about over the coming month.
As for "who won" E3, no matter where I go it seems overwhelmingly in Sony's favour at the moment. Notably the feelings are very clear over at Gamasutra, where game developers tend to be more involved. If Gamasutra is slagging off the Xbone at every turn, every comment... while pushing the PS4 simultaneously in those comments... well, I think the knife is already in the chest and now it's just a case of whether or not it'll take a twist and leave the Xbone for dead. I've yet to see any Xbone exclusive I've been hugely interested in, and that for me is pretty much it.
E3 2013 Round-Up
Originally Posted by NeoCracker
.
On Day Two Nintendo aired their Nintendo Direct stream unveiling the expected host of first-party sequels and continuations of their major franchises along with peeks at Bayonetta 2. Even after all of these years these games still look polished and solid. Whether you're stoked about the Mario Kart 8 or can't get enough of the Fairy Pokémon in Pokémon X and Y - Nintendo, as always, have something for everyone. So much so, infact, that even following the gargantuan announcements from Sony on Day One they still managed to stir up some interest.
ballistic!
Reply With Quote
!
