E3 2015 Post-Mortem Part 3: The best of the rest

Further updates

• ·         XCOM 2

Much like Fallout 4, XCOM made its debut with an initial trailer before E3 this year, and at the show itself we were given a full demo showing off new gameplay scenarios, from procedurally generated maps to all-new abilities for your squad. Taking place in a more urban environment, the XCOM squad snuck up on the enemy, hacked hostile turrets before eventually finding themselves outmatched when heavy mechs and berserker units charged in. It all looks just as intense and frantic as it was in the 2012 reboot and the new additions to the gameplay all look to make XCOM 2 a significant step forward from its predecessor. Hopefully we’ll have more information on other details such as the mobile XCOM headquarters.

• ·         Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided debuted with a stunning CGI trailer that more than matched Deus Ex: Human Revolution in terms of scope; the E3 2015 demo continued that thread with several new abilities and of course, the player choice which has long defined the series. The game world looked much more detailed as well, putting across how the setting and the attitude towards human augmentation has changed, following the events that transpired in the previous game. From here it was all about improvement; Mankind Divided boasts a more refined combat system which allows Adam Jensen to make use of augmentations and firearms simultaneously as well as new methods to traverse the environment. Despite the demo being at the alpha stage of development, Mankind Divided is looking very promising and if all goes well, it could be the best entry in the series since the original game fifteen years ago.

• ·        Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain

If I gave out an award for the best set of trailers for a single game, I believe several of the Metal Gear Solid games would top the list. Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain has had three brilliant trailers over the past couple of years and at E3 this year we were given the final teaser before the game launches in September this year. This one is by far the darkest of the four, further highlighting the blood-soaked fall of Big Boss (Known in this game as Venom Snake) from hero to villain. As with other trailers before it, this one showed new characters, enemies and interactions, all wrapped with a pitch-perfect song accompaniment. Hideo Kojima has an incredible knack for choosing the best music to fit his games and this time around he chose “Elegia” by the British rock band New Order. It’s an atmospheric, ominous and foreboding piece of music that builds and builds with the ever-growing violence present in the latest Metal Gear Solid title. This trailer along with Sins of the father and Nuclear continue to send chills down my spine while also building massive anticipation for what could be the final main canon entry in the Metal Gear franchise.

The new information didn’t end at the new trailer. Konami put out a massive 40 minute gameplay demo which showed off just about every facet of the new open world gameplay. There was a lot to see in the demo, Snake snuck into a crumbling building to rescue a hostage before moving on to assault an enemy base with a trusty canine companion in tow. The new gameplay facets were numerous and many, including piloting a mech and other vehicles to assault the enemy and several dynamic AI patterns that change depending on your playstyle; these included fake cardboard enemies to trick the player, armoured opponents and even ground vehicles that provide back-up to enemy forces. It’s looking to be an incredibly dynamic system that will grant Metal Gear Solid 5 a place among the best open world games out there. My only concern at the moment is the menu system; there’s a lot of flicking through the interface be it choosing your load-outs and drop-off points, checking mission objectives or viewing the map. It could put a dampener on the pacing if you’re looking at menus too much.

New faces

• ·         Horizon: Zero Dawn

Outside of the The Last Guardian, Final Fantasy 7 HD and Shenmue 3, the most exciting new game to come out of Sony’s E3 conference this year was Horizon: Zero Dawn. The newest project from Guerilla Games and their first title since 2004 NOT to be a Killzone game, Horizon generated a surprising amount of excitement and I don’t blame them. The game is set in a future world where man has been dethroned as the dominant species and must survive a harsh land filled with massive mechanical dinosaurs and other beasts. In the game you’ll play as Aloy, a human hunter who must scavenge and collect the vital resources from these creatures for both crafting and survival. The game looks brilliant and it seems that Horizon will make full use of the Playstation 4 hardware just as Killzone did for the PlayStation 3 several years ago. It’s also fully open-world, with Guerilla claiming to have no loading times as well as a full day and night cycle. It’s still early days for this new project but people are already excited to learn more about the title before it is unleashed next year. Above all else though, the game is proof positive that Sony is willing to let its first party studios try out new ideas now that their previous franchise is wearing out. Perhaps Microsoft should think about doing the same with 343 Industries at some point in the future?

• ·         Mass Effect Andromeda

It was only a brief cinematic trailer, but we know for sure that a new Mass Effect is on the way. Mass Effect Andromeda (Not 4) is the next main entry in the franchise and takes place many years after Mass Effect 3. It’s safe to assume that with the Reaper threat dealt with, Andromeda looks towards more exploration-focused gameplay as the various races attempt to expand further beyond the Milky Way galaxy. The focus on exploring planets has so far been personified with the return of the Mako moon buggy (which will hopefully be much better to control in the original Mass Effect!) along with more familiar elements such as the galaxy map and the futuristic space suits that characterise the series. There’s no doubt that the fanbase (including myself) are really looking forward to the next Mass Effect game, especially with the added potential of the Frostbite 3 engine. It’s just too bad that we didn’t see more of it at EA’s conference.

• ·         Dark Souls 3

Hot on the heels of the fairly recent Bloodborne, Dark Souls 3 turned up at Microsoft’s E3 conference. The Souls franchise is extremely popular for its insane difficulty and rewarding RPG gameplay; despite these successes, the second game proved to be rather divisive with players voicing their concerns over graphical downgrades and a somewhat easier difficulty. Dark Souls 3 could be out to rectify these complaints and potentially avoid the number three curse in the process. Judging by the initial reveal trailer, the game looks every bit as sinister as the first two and the designs are as wildly creative as they’ve ever been. Hidetaka Miyazaki is also returning for the newest sequel so there’s a fairly solid chance that the game will be another great romp through the grim world the series has created.

• ·         Guitar Hero Live and Rock Band 4

After a long hiatus, the two rhythm gaming giants, Guitar Hero and Rock Band are finally making a comeback. Both franchises (published by Activision and EA respectively) had achieved wide popularity and massive sales, but the oversaturation of games released year after year lead to the downfall of the plastic peripherals that had once filled living rooms everywhere. After much consideration, both franchises are set to return this year and are both packing their own differing features and styles to win back music lovers. Rock Band is going for a full-on RPG style experience in which players choose their path to the top of music icons whilst Guitair Hero is going for a TV channel experience which connects players together in both single and multiplayer modes. Interestingly the soundtracks to both games are looking to be more diverse than ever, featuring not only classic rock riffs, but also mainstream music from the likes of American Authors, Bruno Mars and Calvin Harris. It’s sure to be a closely fought competition when the two titles both arrive later this year.

Keep an eye out for the final part of my E3 2015 Post-Mortem: “Final Thoughts”

(All YouTube videos are the copyright of their respective owners. I do not own any of the videos in this post and am using them under fair use for review)