Oh man, we are just about there to E3 season, with the annual video game expo beginning in just over three weeks. This is about the time of the year where I get the most excited for new gaming news, rivaled only by the Tokyo Game Show later in the year. E3 is where most video game companies, game peripheral designers, and press companies head out and reveal the latest in developments for their respective companies. New game reveals, updated announcements, new peripheral hardware reveals, and often times new consoles have all been revealed at the show to much anticipated fanfare – and the 2018 edition of E3 is no different.
While I don’t expect there to be any new consoles announcements made at E3 2018 (I suspect that Sony and Microsoft will both be making new console announcements at the 2019 edition of E3 with 2020 release dates), I do believe that we will see a slew of new reveal trailers, gameplay trailers, update trailers, and more at the 2018 show. I know I have a few personal favorite game series that I would like to see at E3 2018, and I would like to see some updates for games that have already been announced, I thought that I would share with you some of these as I am pretty sure that there are others out there who share some of my taste and would like to see some of this at E3 this year as well.
Game: Assassin’s Creed
News: New Game Announcement
I really do have a love/hate relationship with the Assassin’s Creed series of games. On the one hand, I love the gameplay and the premise for most of the series, especially those for the Ezio Auditore series of Assassin’s Creed games, and I love the open-world setting for the games – however, I am troubled by the release issues that have plagued some of the latter games in the series that needed to be fixed by day 1 patches and fixes. I’m of the old school belief that a game should be complete before being released, minus any DLC that developers have planned (and that is a conversation for another day). Even still, I am always looking forward to another game in the series being released and seeing what new locale the game is willing to explore. I’m still holding out hope for an Assassin’s Creed game to take place in feudal China or Japan for players to explore.
Game: The Avengers
News: Announcement / Reveal Trailer
In late January 2017, it was announced that Marvel and Square Enix had partnered up for a multi-game venture based on the super hero team The Avengers; but since then we have heard very little else on the subject. E3 will fall on the heels of one of the most successful films of all time – Avengers: Infinity War – and I think it would benefit both Marvel and Square Enix to take advantage of this timing and make some much anticipated announcements concerning this partnership, especially concerning the first game of this collaboration. Maybe even have something as special as a reveal trailer for fans to marvel at – pun intended.
Game: Battlefield 5
News: Gameplay Trailer / Game Modes Announcement
It’s been almost two years since Battlefield 1 was released and I believe it is time for EA to announce a new game in the series – And we got that recently with the reveal of Battlefield 5. I would like to know more about the game, the story, and what kind of modes will be implemented in the game. (Hopefully they will not be copying everyone else and adding a Battle Royale mode, but I think that is a quick cash grab that everyone will be utilizing for the foreseeable future.) Still, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that my confidence in EA and DICE has been shaken as of late. Of course, they could also surprise everyone and announce a sequel to one of my favorite games of all time – Battlefield: Bad Company 2 – but I think that they have pretty much abandoned this property to the past.
Game: Cyberpunk 2077
News: Update / Gameplay Trailer
Oh man, I have been waiting for this game, like forever. It was announced back in May of 2012 and a teaser trailer was released back in January 2013 – but since then very little about the game has been revealed to the public. But now that CD Projekt Red is done with The Witcher series and has even opened a new studio to help with the development of the game, I am hopeful that we will hear some new news regarding the game and hopefully a new trailer for the game. As it was, the first trailer for the game was pretty awesome and that was just a teaser. I can’t wait to see what a new trailer or even some gameplay trailer will look like. Hell, at this point I would even settle on just some news as to what kind of game this will be (action, adventure, RPG, etc.) and if it will release on the current generation of consoles, wait until the next gen, or be released on both.
Game: Death Stranding
News: Gameplay Trailer
Jeez, ever since before this game formulated as Death Stranding and its inception was being worked on at Konami as PT and Silent Hills, I have been curious to see what Hideo Kojima, Guillermo del Toro, and Norman Reedus would finally put out for gamers to be enthralled at. Then that whole crap with Konami went down and Kojima and company had to take their ideas elsewhere and this game was born from that. But aside from some very cryptic trailers here and there and a few details being slipped, we still haven’t heard much about the gameplay. Which is why I am hoping that E3 we may finally get to see some gameplay footage and we all could get a grasp as to what kind of nightmare these guys are walking us into.
Game: Final Fantasy VII Remake
News: Episode 1 Trailer / Gameplay Trailer
While I am not huge on the idea of the Final Fantasy VII Remake project being an episodic video game experience – I mean, how much is the entire game going to end up costing once the completed project is finally released – I am still excited for this game because this is Final Fantasy VII after all; a watermark in the history of gaming and one of my favorite games of the original PlayStation era. I want to see what Square Enix is going to do with this game. I want to see how they plan on expanding on what many people consider a near perfect, legendary game. I want to see what this new game is going to add to the mythos of FVII. And I am hoping that they just aren’t doing this as a cash grab and manage to totally screw up everything that people love about this game.
Game: Fortnite
News: New Announcements
I make it pretty well known that out of all the battle royale type games out there right now – and that genre is starting to get pretty crowded really quick now, isn’t it – that my favorite has to be Fortnite. Without a doubt, I have been playing Fortnite pretty consistently over the past several months since its release. I am pretty well invested in the game, even though I really suck at it. Hell, I only have three Victory Royale wins total in the game. Still, I like how the game is presented, the updates and additions they have made to the game, and even all the extra perks they have presented players. (Come on, tell me that Thanos/Infinity Gauntlet mode wasn’t bloody entertaining to play.) And I suspect that with its popularity among players that Epic is sure to have some amazing surprise announcements regarding Fortnite when E3 comes around. Maybe some more Marvel crossovers? Maybe some cross platform play between Sony and Microsoft? Maybe even a Switch version? All those would be awesome announcements and will definitely peak my interest in the game even further.
Game: Halo 6
News: Announcement / Reveal Trailer
343 and Microsoft have been pretty quiet on the Halo front, at least in regards to a continuation of the main series since the release of Halo 5: Guardians back in 2015 – and I feel that it is time to finally start talks about what Halo 6 could possibly be. I am hoping that 343 and Microsoft have something to present to gamers at this year’s E3 to spark some interest in the series again, especially since Halo 5 wasn’t nearly the game that fans deserved – not with the complete story being spread out over the game and a book series. Halo fans deserve better than that and I am hoping that they can correct that with a new game for the main series. It would be a shame for the legacy of this series to continue to be marred by the ills of the last game in the series.
Game: Kingdom Hearts III
News: Marvel Characters Announcement
To say that I have waiting with anticipated breath for Kingdom Hearts III to be released is a bit of an understatement. I am a huge fan of the series and have been dying a little inside every year that the game isn’t released. So, now that we are on the cusp of the game’s release, and more and more trailers and details have been released regarding the game, I am anxious to see what new, if any, Square Enix will announce at E3. And this may be just the fanboy in me, but I am hoping that since Disney owns Marvel that some characters may be included into the game – either as part of the main quest or some DLC quests down the line. I know, like I said, this is me being a fanboy – but tell me that you other fanboys out there don’t want to see some Marvel heroes like Captain America, Iron Man or Spider-Man team up with Sora and company in KHIII.
Game: The Last of Us 2
News: Gameplay Trailer
There is no denying that The Last of Us was a phenomenal game; anyone who tries to tell you otherwise is simply a hater. Hell, it isn’t my favorite game out there but even I cannot deny that the game is infinitely over with the player base. Even I have enjoyed my time with the game, but not as much as others certainly have. Still, I am immensely excited to see that the game is getting a sequel and I was definitely enthralled by the initial teaser for it back in December 2016 and was thrown aback by the second trailer and the reveal of four new characters. But I think it is finally time for Naughty Dog and Sony to reveal some gameplay footage of the game to whet the appetites of the fans and maybe even tease game’s release date to keep fans eagerly anticipating this upcoming masterpiece.
Game: Metroid Prime 4
News: Gameplay Trailer
Since the game was announced last June and that it was going to be for the Nintendo Switch, I have eagerly been waiting for more news regarding Metroid Prime 4. But for almost a year I have heard very little regarding the game, gameplay or anything really – the game was announced and that seems to have been it. A year later, and I am hoping that Nintendo will have some further developments to the game to share with fans. At the very least an anticipated release date. At the most, some kind of full trailer or even a teaser gameplay trailer just to show fans that work on the game has been progressing enough so that a full release would be somewhere in the near future. I know a year’s time in the gaming world is a bit quick, but I figure Nintendo would want to come into E3 strong and carry that momentum they have had since the release of the Switch.
Game: Pokémon for Nintendo Switch
News: New Game Announcement
For years, I have wanted to see a proper console Pokémon game released by Nintendo for a number of years now. A Pokémon game that would rival and better that of any game released for Nintendo’s family of handheld devices. I think that a full-blown Pokémon RPG would be one of those franchise/genre defining games to ever see release, and if Nintendo doesn’t take advantage of what the Switch can do as it is a fully portable and functional console, then they have pretty much squandered one of the clearest and best ideas they could have ever had. But Nintendo is too smart to let an opportunity like this pass them up, and I have heard rumors regarding a Pokémon game for the Switch; I would just like it to be confirmed in some way or another for fans at E3 so we can start getting giddy with excitement for it already.
Game: Star Wars
News: New Game Announcement
Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn… I hate the fact that EA still has a deal with Disney/Lucasfilm to develop and produce games based on the Star Wars franchise. What EA has done to sully the name of Star Wars in the eyes of so many gamers with the mess that was Star Wars Battlefront II can never be forgiven. Microtransactions, loot boxes, pay-to-win strategies… it was bloody ridiculous what they did with the game and expected fans, still expect fans, to just suck it up and play the game. It’s utterly ridiculous what they have done and what they will probably continue to do with the franchise, as well as other games they make. Still, I am holding out some kind of hope that the next game that EA develops under the Star Wars banner at least tosses out some of these controversial practices so that gamers and fans can appreciate a truly good Star Wars game. If not, as excited as I am to hear some news about a new game in the franchise, I will just have to skip this next game as well.
Game: Soul Calibur VI
News: New Characters Announcement
I love the Soul Calibur series – hell, I have loved the series since it was first known as Soul Edge back in arcades in 1996. The fighting mechanics of the game have always been some of my favorite, even more so than that of Street Fighter and Dead or Alive. So, when Soul Calibur VI was announced back in December 2017, I was excited to hear about the game and even more excited to hear what characters would be announced as part of the cast for the game. So far, Geralt of Rivia from The Witcher series has been announced as a playable character for the game, but I am curious to find out what other third-party characters would be lined up to appear in the game. Maybe Namco could use some more Capcom characters. Maybe they could strike a deal with NetherRealm to use some Mortal Kombat characters in the game. Hey, with Square Enix making a big push for the Final Fantasy VII Remake, maybe we can see some of those characters like Cloud, Tifa, or Sephiroth appear in the game the way they did in a previous game, Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring. Any new character announcement at E3 would be some welcome news for fans of the series.
Game: Super Smash Bros for Nintendo Switch
News: New Characters Announcement
I’ll be honest, I am pretty sure that at E3 we will be seeing some gameplay footage for Super Smash Bros for the Nintendo Switch in some way or another. Whether it be at E3’s Nintendo Direct presentation or on the show floor itself, I have no doubt that we will see a trailer at the expo. But what I really want to see from Nintendo at E3 with regards to Super Smash Bros is the announcement of what characters will be playable in the new game. I am pretty sure that all the regular SSB characters will be in the game, and I know that Miis and Inklings will be in the game as well – but what surprise characters will Nintendo have in store for fans at the show? Will we see some lesser known/less popular Nintendo characters announced for the game? Will we see more third-party characters announced for the game as we have in the past several iterations of the series? I am genuinely curious to see what surprise characters Nintendo has in store and maybe even find out what possible release date they have planned.
