E3: the Xbox show

I’ll start by reconfirming that I don’t own an Xbox and I’m a Sony/Nintendo boy… So a good conference would have been one that made me look in envy at all the games I’ll not be able to play unless I buy a new Microsoft box of tricks. This conference did not do that at all.

However… It was a decent conference. Contradiction? Nope. It was a strong showcase for upcoming games and there was plenty that I want to play but the problem for Microsoft is that I’ll able to do so on my PS4. The marketing approach here was that the shiny new Xbox One X will be the best place to play these games, with everything looking even prettier than smoother. As geeky as I may be I’m not the sort to be impressed about more pixels or frames. Probably a side-effect of being a Nintendo fanboy. Still, that new box will have an audience and it does sound like impressive tech.

Games then! Exclusives first… Crackdown 3 looked like a lot of fun. I liked the comic style visuals and the whole super-powered cop gameplay. I did not like Terry Crewes introducing it but then I just want to see the fricking games and would be happier if there were no humans during these shows. Blooming people. Sea of Thieves is one I want to like as I have fond memories of Rare from their Nintendo days but this game does nothing for me. Parts of it looked fun but I’d rather it was a 3^rd person solo adventure as opposed to an online teamwork shenanigan. Forza 7 is more Forza so that’s that. State of Decay 2 is more zombies and survival but despite coming out in an over-saturated genre it didn’t look like it was the best at anything. 

Third party multi-plats made up the bulk of the show and there was plenty shown. The new Assassins Creed got demoed but got to admit that I found it slightly disappointing. Two years since the last entry and all pre-reveal talk was of how the series would be revamped. Origins looked decent but I didn’t see anything really new or unique to the franchise. Metro Exodus was a stunning trailer visually but as it went on it became more obvious that it was scripted as opposed to being gameplay. I get why developers do it but don’t most of us viewers just want to see real gameplay? 

The new Mordor title had one of the longest sections but filled it well. Looks like more of the first game but expanded and improved upon. Luckily the last game was pretty good and when playing it I kept thinking ‘a sequel will be nice, that they can expand and improve upon…’ Well here we are. The nemesis system returns and even produced some laughs in this demo. How that whole concept hasn’t been copied is beyond me but I look forward to more of it in this world. Going to be an entertaining game.

Other stuff…Ori looks beautiful. PlayerUnknowns was a good announcement and a well-timed get for the console considering its popularity on Steam currently. Backwards compatibility felt like a big deal and I’m sure Xbox fans will be loving it. There’s that problem again though, everything shown here would please folk who already own an Xbox One. There was nothing that would convince the majority of PS4 owners to change their console of choice and that’s the task Microsoft have ahead of them.

The last game shown was Anthem, Biowares new sci-fi franchise. It looked superb. Visually the best title of the show and the player’s jetpack aided movement through the world came across as a lot of fun to play. Looking forward to giving it a go when it releases on the PS4 as well…. So that’s the first big conference done and it wasn’t bad at all by Microsoft. Next up are Bethesda and Ubisoft but for me they’re just filling the day out until we get to Sony’s show. Hurrah!