E3 2012 - The Good

This time around, I'd like to take a look at a few of the good things that I saw at E3 this year. I would first like to describe what it is that makes something from E3 good. E3 stands for Electronic Entertainment Expo, so ultimately the mission here is to be entertaining and electronic. Since everything there is electronic, I am looking at only what I can see as entertaining.

I will be posting the videos of the mentioned games so that you, can see what I've seen for yourself.

As an aside, comment below if you saw something at E3 that caught your eye but I didn't mention it, as I may not have seen it and would love to check it out.

Beyond: Two Souls (PS3 Exclusive)

I love how we have finally reached the point in our gaming technology that we cast real actors in our games. This particular piece of art is 'starring' Atlantic Canada's very own Ellen Page is coming to us from Quantic Dream, who most will know for bringing us the gem, Heavy Rain. As of right now, we don't know much about how it will play but it seems like it is aiming for the emotional attachment that is rare these days in cinema and gaming alike. David Cage the game director says that it will be more action oriented, so that should prove to be pretty interesting. Be sure to check out the video, in which David Cage puts his money where his mouth is as to how much better a full body performance capture is than a face only performance capture, ala L.A. Noire. 





Watch_Dogs (PS3/Xbox360/Windows)

If you ask anyone what the biggest surprise was of E3, this was it. Seriously, none of us had heard of it before, and for that alone, I have to give Ubisoft some massive credit. Ubisoft has done very well at making hugely accessible games that still maintain a high level of intelligence, and this seems to be no exception from Ubisoft Montreal. Check out the attached trailer to see what looks like it could be a clever sci fi masterpiece.





The Last of Us (PS3 Exclusive)

Now, where the previous two titles that were mentioned weren't really discussed before the show, we all knew that this game was gonna show up at Sony's press conference. We saw the haunting visuals of a post apocalyptic world with plants overgrown across the city streets and buildings, and we saw the main characters Joel and Ellie struggling to survive in this brutal world. Not to mention the horrific zombie like plant infected people who seem eager to eat your brains, this seems like it is potentially the reinvention of the true survival horror game, and with Naughty Dog, the makers of Uncharted, behind it, I know it is in great hands!




Assassin's Creed III (PS3/Xbox360/Wii U)

Every place that you looked at E3, people were talking about he juggernaut that is Assassin's Creed III. This game is huge and it's pretty cool to see a small series grow into such a big deal so fast. After Ubisoft wasted our time with Assassin's Creed Brotherhood and Revelations, it's back on track with, what looks to be one of the most fun games ever. I pre-ordered it months ago...duh.





Gears of War Judgement (Xbox360 Exclusive)

During the 15 or so minutes that Microsoft talked about actual games this year, they quickly mentioned Gears of War Judgement, a prequel to the excellent trilogy, except this time, you play as my personal favorite of the cast, Baird (the blonde guy who always seems miserable and makes a lot of wisecracks...it's like looking in a mirror). They gave us no gameplay really, but at very least, I know it's gonna be a fun game and it's gonna be our chance to finally see what's up with Baird, who has always felt like the only undeveloped character of the main 4 characters of Gears.




God of War: Ascension (PS3 Exclusive)

Up until now, Sony only talked about it's unwanted multiplayer features for the game. Here, they still didn't bother talking about the story, which is to me, a huge selling point of the series. What they did show us, however, was that this is another God of War game, with excellent combat and gigantic monsters at all turns. God of War may not change much in it's gameplay or setting, but what it does change in, is the new faces and monsters you see and just the sheer moments of unbelievable awesomeness.




Halo 4 (Xbox360 Exclusive)

For those who know me, you're wondering why I'm mentioning Halo 4, and to be honest, it's just because it looks like some stuff is finally different in this newest outing. Mind you, it's not different in a gameplay way (which I've always felt has been the only good thing about Halo), but it actually seems like it may be mixing it up a bit with the enemies and the weapons. I liked the first Halo, hated the second and thought the third was not too bad. Either way, the preview for the game was a high point, based on it having a greatly different feeling to it than any other Halo game (though it sorta felt like Metroid Prime).




Crysis 3 (PS3/Windows/Xbox360)

This one is another no brainer, and is also one of the worst kept secrets, leading in to E3. With Crysis, I've found that all you need to know is that it looks beautiful, it takes you to the most beautiful places possible and it is a smooth FPS like no other. As of right now I'm working on Crysis 2, but the first one on PSN or XBLA is something everyone should download and enjoy. Near the end the game really takes you on a wild ride, and this looks like a great end to the whole series.



Tomb Raider (PS3/Windows/Xbox360)

I find it to be pretty hilarious that everyone accused Uncharted of being a Tomb Raider knock off when it first came out, strictly because it was about a treasure hunter who went to ruins and had to solve some puzzles. The only difference was that Uncharted did so much more than that, and now Tomb Raider is taking some cues from the evolution of Uncharted. Please, don't misunderstand me though. I'm not saying Tomb Raider is copying Uncharted. What I'm saying is that Tomb Raider observed the great changes that Uncharted made to the formula and made them it's own. The result is what looks like one of the best games at E3 this year. Instead of the funny one liners you may expect from Nathan Drake, you get a girl who is fighting for her survival at all costs, and she's really taking a beating. Tomb Raider is the game that the Lara Croft series needs... hopefully, it will make me forget about Tomb Raider: Underworld.




South Park: The Stick of Truth (PS3/Xbox360)

A South Park styled JRPG that is actually developed with Matt Stone and Trey Parker... it's brilliant and it looks like so much fun. They even went so far as to make it look terrible, on purpose as South Park would. The idea is that you create yourself and join the South Park gang to save the town from a great evil force. It looks funny as hell and at least equally as fun. I can't wait for this PSN/XBLA title.



...and the best thing at E3 this year was....

Sony CEO Jack Tretton

Don't judge me...he's just so darn adorable!

Keep in mind there were several other games that I am pretty interested in. Many of which more so than the titles listed above, but I didn't see them have much of a presence in the press conferences so I didn't add them. Other ones to look out for are Metal Gear Rising, Darksiders II, Resident Evil 6 and many others.

Overall: E3 this year was pretty underwhelming, but the high points were very high. As I criticized it for beforehand, the big game companies have seriously gotta stop announcing everything 2 weeks before the show. As you may have noticed from my list, all of my selections for the best of E3 were games and none of them had anything to do with stupid gimmicks or dancers or Usher. Games are why we watch E3, and it breaks my heart to see that Nintendo is again coasting on nostalgia and not trying anything new. Still a part of me wants to see that Zelda game with a silent Link and HD graphics with orchestral music and a full voice cast for everyone else. I still love the Nintendo characters to a certain degree (minus Mario, who has really worn out his welcome for me at this point) and want to see them doing something exciting for a change.