[Aptorian]

Running commentary as we go:

Spoiler

Still don't care about Madden but I got to admit those story campaigns they've added to their sports games keep on improving.

EA's CEO still looks like a bond villain.

Wow, 30 minutes of Battlefront 2? I assume that is broken up. Can't imagine they're showing a shortfilm of content.

Battlefield content? I guess they need to keep people aware of the series. Aaand of course it's all social media/live stream compilations.

Maybe I'm just old but I just don't see how marketing is ever going to make e-sports players look cool in marketing content. Listening to them talking up a bunch of guys sitting in a chair playing a game against each other just seems so silly. I could understand it if it was VR or something but come on...

More sports. Considering how big a franchise FIFA is you can't blame them but dear lord, I wish they'd have a seperate conference for just sports and e-sports stuff.

Chat is talking about Project Dylan, that new Bioware IP. Might be shown tonight.

Oh god that intro for Need for Speed was so cringe worthy! My toes curled up behind my knee's. It's cool to see people who work on the games presenting their work but when they're not comfortable in front of a camera or a crowd, just don't do it.

I like this Need for Speed gameplay. It seems highly scripted but I think I prefer story driven NFS over Race focused gameplay.

Whoah, whoah, what is this? A Way Out? New IP from the Brother's creator? A Prison Break like game? It's co-op focused? Okay, EA actually managed to surprise the shit out of me here. It's like they made a mature Tale of two Sons for Adults.

Consider me hyped. I'm less sure of this "only co-op" design choice but this is pretty unique.

Interesting talk about the future of gaming. They talk a good game but I haven't seen any VR or Augmented Reality projects from EA yet.

Ohh new Bioware IP called Anthem... Aaannd, then they switch to some sports nonsense.

Star Wars lady is intense.

Three times the content of the first Battlefront. I am coming for the campaign, the rest is just filling. Some X-wing vs Tie Fighter combat would be cool though.

Ah yes, more studio footage of people nobody knows, talking about working on a game we just want to see more footage of.

Ohh Drone mobs to fight alongside the players? Yes please. Considering how poor I am at MP I enjoy AI fodder for me to shoot at. They seem to mix Singleplayer with multiplayer but it all looks cool.

Free content/DLC? Split screen co-op? They're doing a lot to make this the go to multiplayer this fall. I guess they have to since they're launching in between Destiny and COD.

Dear god, an extra long multiplayer match followed by people I don't know talking about a Star Wars mobile game. It's 22.30. My eyelids are getting heavy. I had to sit up on the couch before I nodded out.

Turns out they ended the whole thing with that Star Wars mobile game.

Okay Conference. Awkward presenters and a lot of fluff. I didn't really care about most of EA's line-up so it's hard to be excited. Looking at what they actually showed, they don't have a ton of products lined up for the next year.

This post has been edited by Seduce Goose: 11 June 2017 - 05:11 AM

[Aptorian]

Looks like a mix between Avatar and Attack on Titan. From what I hear, Anthem may be EA's shot at competing with Activision's Destiny and Ubisoft's The Division.

Large picture:

Spoiler

More Need for Speed gameplay. Looks super scripted but I like the "Fast and Furious" inspiration:

This post has been edited by Seduce Goose: 11 June 2017 - 04:56 AM

[Aptorian]

Two "A Way Out" trailers. I think this was the hit of the EA conference. Really ambitious, really special. Hopefully I can convince my buddy to play it with me on his PS4.

[Aptorian]

Old and new Battlefront 2 content:





Looks really, really pretty.

When I saw those droids during the conference last night I thought they might be AI fodder for the players to shoot. Now I am less certain. I think you just play as a Prequel droid on some of the maps.

[Khellendros]

A Way Out was definitely the most interesting thing for me at EA's presentation.

I'm already wary of Anthem. Apparently it's a "live service" meaning yes, it's Destiny by Bioware. And even in that brief 20 second video, I thought, "reminds me of Destiny."

Those 'game changers' [vomit] were so cringeworthy, especially the one who initially introduced Need for Speed and looked like he was going to faint in front of the camera. Just because you can post an edited video on YouTube doesn't mean you can present live. Just get the developers and other people who worked on the game, they'll give you genuine passion about their project, not paid for enthusiasm. Like the A Way Out developer, or the woman who is the lead in Battlefront's story mode, she did a good job (although in fairness I suppose she is a professional actor too!).

"Finn and Captain Phasma will be DLC - for free!" Erm, sorry, why are they announcing that like it's a big deal which makes them really generous? Should these characters not already be integral parts of the game and, you know, part of the content I'd expect anyway?


I thought it was a poor conference overall from EA, not much new to announce and poor choices for presentation. That last 20 minutes of Battlefront multiplayer was so dull, partly because it was being played live rather than staged to be fair, meaning it would have been difficult for them to know whose screen to show at any given moment. The sports stuff seemed to indicate a year of small upgrades, rather than any significant innovation (Alex Hunter is faced with the agonising choice of...choosing which huge club he will transfer to!! Uh huh).


Edit: Also massively cringing: The Men in Blazers, just...no; and the fact that EA got Pep Guardiola to talk about a fictional computer game character like he's real. Oh Pep.

This post has been edited by Khellendros: 11 June 2017 - 07:24 AM

[Aptorian]

They said they would show more of Anthem tomorrow. I imagine they have a gameplay video planned for the Microsoft conference, since nothing else is really going on in E3 before monday.

It would make sense if EA have partnered with Microsoft to give the X-box some timed exclusives, since Activision/Bungie have a deal with Sony.

[Primateus]

Seduce Goose, on 08 June 2017 - 02:53 PM, said:

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=oQ7aLU6rHLk

I liked this trailer, it did a better job of getting my interest than the gameplay has so far.

This looks like they're throwing any pretence of being canonical out the window.

I'm pretty sure they did that with the first one too. I'm not the most knowledgeable person about LOTR, but nothing in Shadow of Mordor struck me as particularly canonical.

[Aptorian]

Primateus, on 11 June 2017 - 12:41 PM, said:

Seduce Goose, on 08 June 2017 - 02:53 PM, said:

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=oQ7aLU6rHLk

I liked this trailer, it did a better job of getting my interest than the gameplay has so far.

This looks like they're throwing any pretence of being canonical out the window.

I'm pretty sure they did that with the first one too. I'm not the most knowledgeable person about LOTR, but nothing in Shadow of Mordor struck me as particularly canonical.

I don't know much about LOTR lore but when the first game came out, I remember somebody referencing some kind figure that is mentioned in the books that could be this "Death walker" character we play as. Don't know if it's mentioned in the trilogy or some of the accompanying books.

A kind of resistance going on inside Mordor between The Hobit and LOTR isn't impossible. How would anybody learn about what went on behind the walls of Mordor after all.

This post has been edited by Seduce Goose: 11 June 2017 - 02:40 PM

[Primateus]

Seduce Goose, on 11 June 2017 - 01:17 PM, said:

Primateus, on 11 June 2017 - 12:41 PM, said:

Seduce Goose, on 08 June 2017 - 02:53 PM, said:

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=oQ7aLU6rHLk

I liked this trailer, it did a better job of getting my interest than the gameplay has so far.

This looks like they're throwing any pretence of being canonical out the window.

I'm pretty sure they did that with the first one too. I'm not the most knowledgeable person about LOTR, but nothing in Shadow of Mordor struck me as particularly canonical.

I don't know much about LOTR lore but when the first game came out, I remember somebody referencing some kind figure that is mentioned in the books that could be this "Death walker" character we play as. Don't know if it's mentioned in the trilogy or some of the accompanying books.

A kind of resistance going on inside Mordor between The Hobit and LOTR isn't impossible. How would anybody learn about what went on behind the walls of Mordor after all.
I remember there being some kind

Valid point.

[Aptorian]

I feel like this is the T-shirt equivalent of the "Beware of dog" sign.

[Mentalist]

Ok, just finished watching the M$oft conference (I fell asleep yesterday night watching Battlefront 2 footage. IN my defense, I was very tipsy when I got home)

A few cool things there. Anthem is a big "meh" from me, since I don't care for multi-focused games.

Shadow of War looks awesome. I really need to slot in a Tolkien re-read so that I can play the original finally.

that Japanese game with 2 chars that looked Nier-ish. that's kinda interesting. (Code Vein)


I think that's about it. AssCreed Origins looks to be using the Far Cry Primal animal scouting powers. Ubi Singularity is a thing, confirmed.

EDIT: Also, that 3-d platformer about the fox. That looks pretty neat in an old-school kind of way.

and I lol'd about Metro being originating as an xbox franchise.... but Exodus didn't really impress. I really need to play the previous games....

This post has been edited by Mentalist: 13 June 2017 - 05:20 AM

[Malankazooie]

The Microsoft conference gets a big meh from me. Xbox One X is a stupid name and boy are they sure laying it on thick on how advanced the console is.

Anyway, the games that caught my eye are the new Metro game, the new Assassin's Creed game and that pirate game. Also Anthem seemed to be introduced and positioned as their overwhelming crowd pleaser / grand finale. I thought it looked good, but I just can't abide the corny player acting anymore (it's 2017, time to move on from that).

[Stalker]

I liked the format of the conference, they didn't really waste time with talking or with the One X. Just a quick reveal followed by tons of games. A lot of "exclusives" - which I imagine are mainly timed exclusives - including some that I'm definitely interested in. Plus the original Xbox backwards compatibility is great! I still have all my games so this could be a nice chance to replay some favorites without having to plug in the old box.

Shadow of War looks great, and reminds me that I need to finish the first.

Sea of Thieves looks like it would be a ton of fun with friends.

Anthem looks impressive and the world seems massive. Plus it's Bioware. Reminds me of the initial Destiny unveiling, though that game turned out to be a disappointment to me. Promised a ton of content but got nothing but grinding at launch (and a bad loot system), though I heard it improved with updates post launch. I'll definitely keep an eye on Anthem though.

Some of the other games looked interested. Nothing that I'd buy on release but definitely stuff to find on sale. Overall, I liked what I saw. Now to decide if I buy the One X on launch.

This post has been edited by Stalker: 12 June 2017 - 12:47 AM

[Malankazooie]

I just don't know why they didn't stick with scorpio (or come up with something better). The name they gave it makes me think of this.


Uh, Microsoft? You do realize it's 2017 and not early 2000s right? Your new console is so nu-metal, to the xtreme! smh

[Malankazooie]

Well, the Bethesda presentation was a yawn fest. I tuned in 15 min late (they were showing Skyrim for Nintendo Switch when I joined) so not sure what I missed, but yeah, the rest was pretty stale (DLC for Dishonored, a survival horror game). Looks like they saved their money shot for Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus. Oh, and that "Bethesda Land" concept they used to string their presentation together was cheesy as hell. dumb. smh.

[Mentalist]

ruuning thoughts. on BEth:

Beth is actually investing into VR. I'm not interested, but impressed.

More MMO stuff.. yawn


Hey, they're trying to monetize mods again! (unless you can grind for these "credits")

Card game... come on, we all want to know what Arkane is working on now....

MOre Dishonored 2. This is good.

Quake Champions... obligatory E-sports segment

this new thing feels... Alan Wake-ish? Is that Linkin Park in the background?
Ok, the Evil WIthin 2.I didn't play the 1st, but this actually looks interesting.

And the grand finale is... More Wolvenstein. that;s some decently fancy shootin'

Overall, nothing jaw-dropping, but solid. "showcase"

[Malankazooie]

Wow, this Devolver Digital presentation is really terrible. I think it may be intentional and they are trolling E3 or something. I guess I don't really care to watch any more.

[Aptorian]

I slept while Microsoft and Bethesda's conference went on.

Did a running commentary during Microsoft's conference.

Spoiler

Starting out with the console reveal.

X-box One X is an over elaborate title but I guess if they only refer to it as One X or X1X it might sound better.

November 7 sounds like the expected window. I was wondering if they would release it earlier to convince people to buy it along with some of the fall releases that might come out already in October or even September. After all Destiny 2 will probably sell some consoles.

That’s a lot of technical mumbo jumbo but it certainly sounds impressive. I wonder if they are talking it up to make an exorbitant price point more sensible.

A tech demo? No just Forza 7.

And then they have a car unveil? You’ve got to love how silly these Forza segments are. One day I suspect a car will just come crashing through a wall.

Well, the gameplay certainly is beautiful.

Oh and it’s coming to Windows?

I find it clever but also a bit cheap that they continue to hammer home that One X Is “the most powerful console ever”

42 games on show? 22 games with console exclusivity? Half of those has to be in some video compilation like other years.

I love the whole “WORLD PREMIER” sound bite they use.

Oh shit is that Metro? Sure as hell looks like a next Gen Metro game. Ohh is this an open world Metro game? No wonder they’ve been working so long on this?

Curious about the guy removing the camera only WHEN he walks out of the metro/sewer systems he’s in. In the other games, it’s the surface that is so toxic that you need the gas mask.

Man these monsters look pretty as hell.

I guess “Metro: Exodus” means that the Moscow survivors, or some other group, are leaving for or searching for a safer place to live.

Assassin’s Creed?

Whoah holy shit that Snake monster?! This looks really pretty.

Ohh, they are taking a chance on a new brown character. That should spawn a thousand blog posts.

Nice drone eagle.

Hmm, looks like there is item collecting/loot gathering.

There’s no mini-map just a Skyrim compas.

Combat looks good.

They’re making BATTLEGROUNDS launch exclusive? I assume that means a timed exclusive? Can’t imagine it’s only Windows 10 on PC.

Lots of new environments I haven’t seen before. I guess I have to get around to playing this sooner than later, but now I don’t mind waiting for the fall.

That Deep Rock game looks fun. Shooting always means you have my interest.

State of Decay 2 is looking great. In terms of visuals and animations it looks like the game has gone full AAA. It’s strange, I remember they were talking about turning State of Decay into an MMO at one point but I guess that never happened despite the first game’s popularity.

It’s funny how Zombie games today all have a set roster of zombie types. Zombies that spit posion, zombies that explode, tank zombies, etc.

What the hell is that commentary? Is this a new MOBA or just competitive multiplayer? Well, the Darwin Project is certainly an inspired title for survival multiplayer.

New Minecraft content. That visual overhaul is nice I guess but I wish they’d make a Minecraft 2 with better more detailer textures and smaller blocks for more detailed world crafting.

Is that Dragonball FIghter Z or Dragonball Z FIghter?

Black Desert looks great. I’m surprised by the combat. Normally the combat in MMO’s is pretty bland but this looked very dynamic.

The Last Night looks like a really atmospheric “Another World” type of game. If it has a good story I might be interested.

The Artful Escape looks meh,

Code Vein. This was revealed some months ago I think. It’s weird that they have this dark, gritty game design and then they add cartoon visuals for the characters.

I want to like Sea of Thieves but the whole co-op team based gameplay just doesn’t interest me. I’m curious if this will actually be a hit. I imagine it will be popular among the Twitch crowd.

Clever that they make the characters carry the trasure chests back to the ship but none of those skeletons actually look dangerous to the player.

Quick Little teaser for Tacoma. Still not sure about that game but I like developers behind it.

Super Lucky’s Tale looks cute. Consoles lack games made specifically for kids nowadays. Wonder if the VR game sold well?

Yes, Cuphead is back. With an actual release date.

Crackdown 3? Terry Crews was born to be an Agent. I wonder about the cartoon like visuals. It’s hard to get a good look during these clips but I don’t think I like the look.

Looks like it’s a launch release. Considering the spot they just gave it, I’m not sure how much fate Microsoft has in the game.

Game compilation: Raiders, Unruly heroes, Path of exile, Battlerite, Surviving Mars, Fable Fortune, Observer, Robocraft, Dunk lords, minion masters, brawlout, Ooblets, Dark Light, Strange Brigade, Riverbound, Hello Neighbour, Shift, Conan Exiles.

Ashen looks like somebody made Swords and Sworcery into a 3D minimal art game and threw a bit of Souls in there.

Ooohhh, Life is strange pre-quel. About the Zoe’s life before the first game? Well, we all know that game ends in tears.

Shadow of Mordor gameplay. The Nemesis System remains cool. I find it sort of comical how much they’ve expanded the various Orc tribes appearances and personalities. They seem a bit too flavorful now for the dark world they are supposed to inhabit, but I guess that also makes them more fun.

I wonder where this series is going. One of the core tenants of LOTR is that power corrupts and darkness is always looking to find a way inside men’s hearts. Surely, this whole bright lord business is going to go south eventually, right?

Still can’t get over how shitty Talions face looks.

Ori and the Will of the Wisps looks stunning. Like the first one, the music in this game is incredibly evocative.

Ahh, they end the show with more Anthem footage. I was wondering how they would round this off.

Facial animations look great. Those mechs were a lot smaller than I thought. Hmm, I can’t tell if the player is able to fly or just glide pretty far.

This is really pretty. I’m surprised how open world it is. It puts destiny to shame. Now the question becomes how the combat and shooting feels. It certainly looks competent.

God that player banter is atrocious.

The end.

Not a bad conference at all but I don’t feel like Microsoft blew me out of the water. A conference full of games is great. But they’ve done that the past few years. I feel like they lacked that “Killer App” that would convince players this year that they should invest in X-box.

Didn't bother to jot down my thoughts on the Bethesda conference after I saw how short it was. This felt more like they just did the conference for the sake of continuing what they started last year. This could have been a tree house video like Nintendo does.

I'm curious to see reviews of how Fallout 4 feels and plays when converted to VR.

Lots of Elder Scolls garbage.

I am excited to play a Dishonored expansion where you try to take out the Outsider. Not sure how that's supposed to be believable but you never know.

The Evil Within 2 looked weird. All that white goo does not fit in with the aesthetics of the first game I played. But it certainly showed off a lot of content.

I played the first game but decided to stop after the first few levels. It was just too scary for me.

Very excited for Wolfenstein 2. I like that they moved the game to occupied America. I like that they seem to be picking the story up right after The New Order.

What I have a hard time believing is Blaskowitz surviving the ending of The New Order. They show him all scarred up but come on, he was stabbed to hell and they blew up the facility afterwards, with him lying on a platform bleeding out.

Unless they want to introduce some consistency to the universe and link his durability to the Black Sun incident in Wolfenstein 2009 I find it pretty silly.

Oddly enough, while Blaskowitz never seemed to lose any muscle mass and recovered almost instantly after his coma/brain damage in The New Order, Blaskowitz in this trailer looks smaller. Like he lost a lot of mass while he was bed ridden.

[Silencer]

Briar King, on 12 June 2017 - 01:54 AM, said:

Ah I think that looks pretty damn fun. Definitely going to be a competition for Destiny if it's also on PS4 and if it is going to have pvp. The explosions look sweet. I planned on getting the new X console this year. The booster rockets looked fun. Only thing I wasn't to excited over was the whole mech approach. I'm not a fan of this in general but it looked snug enough on the woman's suit. The other was a bit bulky for my taste. Hopefully we see others soon. The one with the cape was nice.

This looks like a must have so hopefully it's going to live up to the excitement it just gave me.

If they can deliver on the promise of the gameplay trailer, it will be a better Destiny 2 than Destiny 2. They've eschewed classes for suits - but if those suits actually play differently and fill different roles, I'm down with that 100%. Hopefully not all tank builds are quite as tank-sized, but, again, I'll take it if it means we can have role and play diversity. The weapons were a bit disappointing and the shooting didn't look as fluid as I'd like - but it IS Bioware, not Bungie, so that is to be expected, sadly.

I'd also like it if there was a first person option, but given it is Bioware that is also quite unlikely IMO. But the world looks decently sized and very pretty, so if they can sell the world (preferably as something more than Zero Dawn but with Mech Suits, lol) it should be outstanding. Especially as it looks like they've actually bothered to read the feedback Bungie has been getting and include more standard MMO features (though time will tell if there is LFG, haha).

But yeah, solid trailer. I am a bit skeptical of it being "pre-alpha" in that state. That was solid as hell. But if it means they've got the mechanics dialed in and are just working on content from now until release...

[Aptorian]

I just noticed. There was no COD:WW2 at the Microsoft conference. I think this is the first time in ages there haven't been COD footage at a Mircrosoft show.