Jaggy's E3 Wrap Up Part 1

E3 Introductory Thoughts

This year's E3 had a lot of fun and interesting titles, facepalm moments, and it wouldn't be E3 without some technical issues. As with last year's E3 wrap up, I will split the conferences into two articles to get as many games listed as possible. In this first article I'm looking at games I'm excited for from the PC Gaming Show, Square Enix, Ubisoft, and Devolver Digital. I'm not going into detail about every title, just the ones I'm hyped for. The rest will be listed at the end of the article.

PC Gaming Show

As a PC player, this conference is often the most important one for me to watch. While there were a lot of games listed in their lineup, I'm excited for Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines 2 because, lets face it, people know I'm a fan of vampires. Next is a much anticipated new published game by Chucklefish called Starmancer and I definitely want it. This is a game where players can build up a colony in space and ConcernedApe's ability to do incredible pixel art has impressed me. I can see the drastic improvements from his work in Stardew Valley.

Now, I've always been a fan of games like Planet Coaster or some of the Tycoon games, so it should be no shock that I love the idea of Planet Zoo. Sometimes it's just fun to build up great spaces where nothing could possibly go wrong... Absolutely nothing... The animals won't try to eat each other or the patrons, will they?

Balders Gate had a relatively short trailer at E3 this year and it does not have a release date, but fans of the series are excited to get their hands on this title. We don't yet have much information about the style of gameplay since the previous two titles were top down 2D strategy games. It'll be fun to see what direction the newest installment will take.

Alright, now to talk briefly about a game that I most likely won't play, but I love the premise behind it. Midnight Ghost Hunt is a hide and seek multiplayer game where players are either ghosts or ghost hunters. The hunters have to find the ghosts before midnight. The ghosts can pose as any inanimate object in the place. There aren't many games where players get to be evil ghosts that try to murder others, so that is why I find it an intriguing premise, but that's just me.

Next on the list is Age of Wonders: Planetfall, a 4x game that releases in August of this year. It's no surprise that I love just about anything Paradox Interactive publishes, so to have this on my list of must have games should not shock anyone. It's a science-fiction strategy game that looks like a lot of fun by combining turn-based combat with the studio that brought us the Age of Wonders series. Yes. I need this in my life!

This year, fans of the Shenmue series will get the third installment in November. It is an open world action/adventure game where players take control of Ryo Hazuki, a martial artist who seeks revenge on his father's killer. I know plenty of people that I stoked for it, so keep an eye out for Shenmue!

Earlier this year I reviewed a game called Whispers of a Machine that was published by Raw Fury. E3 presented another game releasing by the same publisher called Per Aspera and I'm excited for it. This title is a simulation game taking place on Mars and it reminds me of the aesthetic of Surviving Mars. Per Aspera has more than just base building it seems, because it contains a single player story that we can experience - which is different from Surviving Mars which doesn't have a single player narrative.

Finally, the makers of Her Story have developed a new title called Telling Lies. Unlike Her Story where players watch small portions of an interrogation to determine what happened, this title features multiple characters who are lying. Your job is to learn the truth and I believe it will be an intriguing game to play. It's set to come out later this year and I need to get my hands on it.

Square Enix

I'm not going to lie, the Square Enix conference was one of the ones I was extremely excited about because of the Final Fantasy VII remake that is coming out March 3rd of next year. I want to see more about the game and I'm still excited for it to release, despite what others may say.

They announced Life is Strange 2's next episode, which is a series I've enjoyed ever since I played the first one. It's a series that has some very interesting themes and amazing music, so I look forward to going through more of the story in it.

Another title they announced for the summer of next year is called Outriders and it is a new co-op based shooter that will release on Xbox One, Playstation 4, and PC. The game seems post apocalyptic and brutal, so I'm intrigued. We aren't told much about the game but I have hopes for it. We will find out when more information is released.

Square Enix is also releasing a new Avengers game that is said to be different from the events of the movie. It is releasing on May 15th of next year and looks like a good time. Also, it helps that the trailer had some amusing comments like: "Did Thor just make a joke?" Another bonus is that Travis Willingham and Laura Bailey are the voices of Thor and Black Widow respectively. Since I'm a fan of Critical Role (a D&D show streamed on Twitch with a group of famous voice actors), it makes perfect sense that I'd be immediately interested in this title for multiple reasons.

Finally, the biggest shock for me was the announcement of Final Fantasy VIII's remake which comes out this year. WHAT?! SERIOUSLY?! I'm still in shock! For those of you that aren't aware, my introduction to the series was Final Fantasy VII. I went on to play Final Fantasy VIII after that and both of these games are significant to me for personal reasons that I won't elaborate on. Suffice it to yes, this is a title I'm also going to nab as fast as possible. I loved this game and have zero issues playing it again!

Ubisoft Conference

For me, Ubisoft didn't have a lot of titles I was super excited about, but the two that really peaked my interest are Watch Dogs: Legion which is set to release on March 6th of next year and Roller Champions. The second one surprised me because I grew up watching a television show called "Blade Warriors" where players had to traverse an obstacle course on rollerblades, very similar to the TV show called "America's Ninja Warriors". Seeing this game made me smile and remember the television series and I'm excited for the game, even if it's chessy as hell. I want it.

Of course, it wouldn't be Ubisoft if they didn't announce another Just Dance game (now with Kpop!) and the launch of Uplay Plus that allows subscribers to get early access to new games. It will be available on Stadia and only costs $14.99/month.

Devolver Digital

As per normal, Devolver Digital enters the ring with interesting games like Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, Carrion - a reverse horror game where players are the evil creature chasing after those that imprisoned them, a new Enter the Gungeon DLC called House of the Gundead, and The Messenger's new DLC "Picnic Panic." While I always wonder about the legitimacy of the trailers they present, their conference is always just something to experience. Trust me.

Day 1 Final Thoughts

Now, there are a large number of titles that I didn't include in this list because there are a lot of games to cover. My objective was to simplify what E3 had to offer so here is the list of everything else for these four conferences:

PC

• Evil Geniuses 2
• Chivalry 2
• Mosaic
• Unexplored 2
• Mutant Year Zero: Seed of Evil
• Conan Unconquered
• Moons of Madness
• Conan Chop Chop
• Last Oasis
• Zombie Army Dead War 4
• Remnant: From the Ashes
• Griftlands
• Songs of Conquest
• Vermintide 2: Versus
• Cris Tales
• ValFaris
• Maneater
• Terraria: Journey's End
• Genesis Noir
• El Hijo
• Ancestors
• The Pathless
• Phantom Brigade
• Rune II
• What the Golf?
• The Sojourn

Square Enix

• Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles
• Octopath Traveler
• The Last Remnant Remastered
• Dragon Quest Builders 2
• DragonQuest XI
• Circuit Superstars
• Battallion 1944: Battlefront?
• Kingdom Hearts III: Re-mind
• Final Fantasy XIV: ShadowBringers
• Dying Light 2
• Romancing Salsa 3
• Final Fantasy Brave Exvius
• Final Fantasy Brave War of the Visions
• Oninaki

 Ubisoft

• Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet
• Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Phantom Sight
• Adventure Time in Brawlhalla
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint
• Ghost Recon: Delta Company
• Tom Clancy's Elite Squad
• For Honor: Shadows of the Hitokiri
• Rainbow Six Quarantine
• The Division 2: Episode 3
• The Division 2 - The Movie 
• Gods & Monsters

Stay tuned tomorrow when I cover the rest of the conferences from E3 2019. In the meantime, let us know what you are excited for in the comments below!

Until next time.


Article by Susan N.