It’s the start of May so that means one thing in the gaming news cycle, E3 is right around the corner. The world’s largest gaming expo is a mere 6 weeks away which has gamers and journalists alike salivating at the avalanche of new information that will be released to us. At Throwing digital sheep we have compiled a list of what we believe to be the games and news that gamers are looking forward to the most, we will also let you know what each of us here are looking forward to personally.
Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo
Lets first look at what is likely to be shown at this E3 from the developers then we can go on to our hopes of what we want to see. Firstly to start of the expo’s we will have the Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo conferences giving us all the major news to do with our next gen consoles. Here we are likely to get news from Sony on project Morpheus, their virtual reality head set coming to the PS4 next year, Microsoft are likely to show off story content related to Halo 5 as well as some footage from Forza 6. Microsoft’s Phil Spencer has also said he wants this E3 to be about 1st party content over 3rd party teasing that they are going to announce at least one brand new IP to their line up.
Nintendo will probably leave their conference to the second day like they normally do and it’s doubtful there will be much about the Wii U to mention for them since The new Legend of Zelda game will no longer be a 2015 release and it’s doubtful a new Metroid game will be announced this year. Recently a Nintendo spokesperson said that The Legend of Zelda game for Wii U is no longer targeted as a 2015 release. Speaking to IGN he said “Rather than sticking to a specific schedule, the team wants to make this the most complete and the best game it can possibly be. The new launch timing has not yet been determined. Because we’d like to focus on developing the game, we aren’t planning on showing it at this year’s E3, where we will be highlighting games launching in 2015. We will let you know when we’re ready to share more specifics.” Due to this Nintendo are likely to focus on content for their handheld consoles which have been selling well as of late.
Bethesda
Onto the 3rd party conferences and the big one to look out for is Bethesda, this will be the first year they will hold their own press conference and that has many people excited for one reason, Fallout 4. This could be the year we get an announcement of the next game in Bethesda’s long running apocalyptic RPG series, the first title that will be on the next gen of consoles and a game fans of the series have been screaming out for.
The final DLC pack for Elder Scrolls Skyrim was released in early 2014 so even IF Bethesda has been working on a new Elder Scrolls game we won’t hear anything about it for a while. Throwing a hail Mary into the works though I wouldn’t mind Bethesda announcing a next gen Skyrim edition complete with all DLC’s being made, doubtful but we can hope.
One thing they will talk about though is the Elder Scrolls Online for consoles which was delayed last year just before it was released for PC. We are likely to get an update on what we can expect in terms of rollout and features we are going to see on our PS4’s and Xbox One’s.
Ubisoft
Ubisoft are 99% likely to give us details on the next Assassins Creed game rumoured to be named Assassins Creed: Victory. Its apparently set in London and may be set during Victorian times. Now there’s not much we know about this new entry into the franchise apart from its being developed by Ubisoft Quebec which in the past have only developed the series DLC packs.
The ace Ubisoft has at the moment is Rainbow Six: Siege which is looking more and more like the multiplayer shooter of the future with short, intense and tactical battles in multiple modes and across multiple maps. What Ubisoft needs to do is show off more maps since at the moment we only have two which have been played and shown off to death.
EA
Electronic Arts have alot to live up to this year in terms of what we want to see. First of all we have the recent leaked survey from Mass Effect 4 which may have given away some major spoilers to the game which up to now has been shrouded in secrecy. Personally id like to see a full length trailer and an approximate release date
Then we have Mirrors Edge 2 which we had a brief glimpse of last year as well as a short developers diary. It looks as though we are going back to Faiths past and her beginnings as a free running courier in our near future dystopia. Like the first Mirrors Edge you will be free running in first person in the highly stylised and colourful world. We will more than likely get a release date if not a new trailer as well.
Star Wars. Do we have to say anything more? Recently EA have released a trailer of the new Battlefront game so apart from an exact release date the thing I want to see more than anything is a multiplayer game show off which up to now has only been behind closed doors. I’d like them to throw us a wild card as well maybe announcing another Star Wars game they are developing, yes Battlefront is what we all want and I’m glad they are making it but the Star Wars universe has so much to choose from and EA can really make their mark by giving us something unexpected.
Activision
Activision doesn’t have its own press conference and usually partners with Microsoft but I’m including them here since this year they have two very big and very different games to show off. Guitar Hero live the newest entry in the series boasts a brand new plastic guitar that is meant to feel as close to the real thing as you can get. Activison only recently announced the game and has promised more information at E3.
We also have Black Ops 3 which was just given a very Deus Ex looking trailer and will be released this year. It’s a very safe bet that we will see story mode gameplay shown off and Id put money on some multiplayer footage being thrown in for good measure.
Square Enix
This year Square Enix will hold their own press conference since 2012 and so they should. This year Square Enix has alot to show off. Just Cause 3 has recently gotten a new trailer and damn it looks good, they also have the Kingdom Hearts 3 card to play and the potential to drop a huge bomb by releasing information on Final Fantasy XV.
The sure bet for the conference though is Deus ex: Mankind Divided which was announced a couple of weeks ago. Square Enix will surely devote most of the conference to the next entry in the series and so they should.
What We Are Looking forward too
Daniel Boffey
This E3 as a whole looks like we will be spoiled with information from all three consoles so it’s very hard to choose just one or two but for me there is a clear winner and that’s Mass effect 4. Last year was such a disappointment only getting a worthless developer diary and no real details about story or setting and not getting any in game footage.
Thankfully with the recent leak id bet that Bioware will want to show something off about the new entry weather that means confirming or denying the leak they need to respond, I want ingame footage and a release window, I don’t think that’s to much to ask is it?. Other than that I’m most looking forward to seeing in game footage from the new Deus ex game.
Rhys Thomas Elliott
So what I’m really excited to see this year is Fallout 4. I know, I know – it’s the safe and boring answer, but Bethesda has the whole industry on the edge of our sweaty little seats. I’m ecstatic to see what they have in store for us with Fallout 4, and I have a loaded gun by my bed ready to end it all if they don’t end up announcing it. Apparently, The Last Guardian is still in development too. Would be lovely to finally hear more about that and perhaps get a release date, but I’ve been saying that for like five years now…
In a less palpable vein, I’m really excited to see what Nintendo has in store for us. I’m not talking about Amiibo and all that drivel, I want to see some games. Sure, they announced that we won’t be seeing any Zelda at this year’s E3, but it’d be blinkin’ lovely to hear some new trickles of information about the clandestine ‘NX’ platform. I’m also lusting to hear more from Intelligent Systems and Retro Studios. Please, please, please let there be a new proper Paper Mario (screw youm Sticker Star) or a Metroid Prime…
Matthew Redmond
Ah, the days have gone when I can say ‘Kingdom Hearts 3′ with a cheeky grin and heart full of hope… So I’ll probably just say ‘Beyond: Good and Evil 2 .I suppose… Jokes aside, while I’m looking forward to Mirror’s Edge, Just Cause 3 and Persona 5 (Sorry Battlefront), I’m really hoping to see Fallout 4, Elder Scrolls VI and Mass Effect 4 announced this year. I have a good feeling about this.
Turner Hodsoll
At this year’s E3, I am hoping to see some gameplay footage from the new Crackdown game. It was teased with a bombastic trailer at last year’s Microsoft Press Conference and very little has been seen of the game since. I’m curious to find out whether the title will feature destructible environments, as teased in the trailer, and to what extent that feature will be implemented in-game. Microsoft has also made it known that they plan to bring back the Real-Time Strategy genre with a known IP, I might be getting my hopes up here but I’d love to see a follow up to Halo Wars, as that was the best RTS experience on a gaming console.
What really has me intrigued is the fact that Bethesda has their own press conference this year. It’s unlikely that the company would have their own show, just to unveil Fallout 4 or any single game. It’s most likely that they have a myriad of different titles to wow us with. We will probably get a new Fallout game announced, but I’d really be excited to see if anything Elder Scrolls related makes a show; possibly a Skyrim remake for the new consoles, or maybe even a full sequel (preferably not an MMO, given the reception of their most recent effort). Bethesda will also show off their re-imagining of the Doom series, but that’s to be expected since invitations for it’s planned Beta were given away with copies of Wolfenstein. Even if all those make appearances, is a Fallout, an Elder Scrolls and a Doom game enough to warrant a press conference? They must have something more to share!
David Rushe
Looking forward to the Bethesda conference with new footage of Doom and hopefully long awaited the reveal of Fallout 4. Hoping that the Sony conference will finally let us see what their studios have been up to with new footage of Uncharted 4, a glimpse into of whatever Guerilla Games have been up to and a rebooted Syphon Filter. Is that too much to ask?
Jack Hamnett
Bethesda have told us to save the date for June 14th, which happens to be my birthday. Therefore it is written in the stars that on this sacred day they will announce the next instalment of my favourite RPG series, Fallout 4. We have been teased and hoaxed for far too long now, even in the past few days more clues have leaked over a possible announcement. Stop this cruelty!
Will also be interesting to see what Xbox’s presentation brings, with the promise of focus on 1st party games. So let’s hope for some Gears of War news!
Nate
I cannot wait for E3 2015 this year because there is going to be an explosion of announcements. This time around, we have no clue what Sony is going to announce. What I am most looking forward to from Sony are Guerilla’s new role-playing game, new Uncharted 4 gameplay, a God of War 4 announcement, and an Uncharted HD Collection. There are a bunch of RPGs that I want more information on – Final Fantasy XV, Star Ocean 5, new Fallout or Elder Scrolls game, and any new announcements. Also, I want to see new information for Hellblade (the game that looks very similar to Heavenly Sword). Finally, there must be surprises. There is a whole month before E3 ’15 goes live, but Sony and Microsoft need to keep all surprise announcements under wraps.
Let us know what you would like to see at this years E3 in the comments below, on our Twitter feed or on our Facebook page.