Another year has rolled around, groundbreaking games have been announced and gamers are hungry to get their hands on them early. For all the Australian fans the EB Expo 2016 has you covered. Arriving in Sydney from the 30th of September to the 2nd of October at Sydney Olympic Park, the EB Expo is guaranteed to have something for everyone.
GAMES
While we almost certainly do not have knowledge of the entire lineup of video games that will be playable at Eb Expo, there have been a fair few big hitting titles released.
Dragonball Xenoverse 2
The long awaited sequel to Xenoverse, this new iteration in the Dragonball franchise showcases a story wherein iconic (and mysterious) villains from alternate timelines have been brought to the present of our Goku and his friends. The battles are more intense and a spree of new abilities are evident. On top of this the colouring of the environments has gotten a bit brighter and more vivid while not taking away too much in terms of visuals. There is also a hub city, much larger than the city within Xenoverse 1, which increases the social impact of Xenoverse 2. Dragonball Xenoverse 2 will be available at the Bandai Namco exhibit when the Expo arrives in September.
Final Fantasy XV
The 15th main instalment in the Final Fantasy series is sure to be a momentous addition to the franchise as it is set on a planet that is similar to Earth, known as Eos. Almost all of the kingdoms of this planet are under the dominion of the Niflheim Empire besides Lucis which is invaded on the eve of peace negotiations between the former governments. The player is thrust into the midst of a cold war turned hot as they must fight against the Niflheim Empire to retake their kingdom of Lucis as well as the magical crystal that developed their civilisation into one of power. FFXV has a vast new open world, new and improved deadly creatures trying to murder you and amazing and wondrous cultures to explore and learn about. Final Fantasy XV is scheduled to release 30th September 2016 so it would be a fantastic opportunity to pick up a ticket for the Expo to try it before picking it up yourself. One thing is for sure and that is if its anything like previous games in the franchise, it will definitely be worth playing.
Gears of War 4
The title really says it all to be honest. But seriously, Gears of War 4, follows the story of JD Fenix (the white guy holding the big gun) and his friends, Kait (the cool looking chick on the left) and Del (the guy with the chainsaw-minigun-thing) as they narrowly escape an attack on their village. They must fight together against a monstrous new enemy and rescue the ones they love – a true love story. Gears of War 4 will feature new weapons, close over combat moves and knife executions which can turn each and every hostile encounter into a tactical advantage. It will also feature, local split screen campaigning for two (can I get a hallelujah?) as well as online capabilities. On top of this, there will be a new mode where you will team up with four others and battle against a spree of increasingly difficult enemies all the while levelling up your combat class. Gears of War 4 releases October 11th 2016.
Call of Duty : Infinite Warfare
We’ve had Black Ops, Modern Warfare and now we are getting Infinite Warfare. Fans of the long standing Call of Duty franchise will be pumped to get to try out the new rendition of the series by Activision and Infinity Ward. It will be the very first time to play any mode of Infinite Warfare in Australia and we will gain access to a multiplayer map to play with a bunch of other excited Call of Duty fans. What environments and crazy technology we will gain access to is unknown but I really just want it to be set in space this time.
Playstation VR
Now the moment everyone has been waiting for – Playstation VR will be at EB Expo at (surprise, surprise) the Sony booth. This will be one of the first opportunities for Aussie gamers to get their hands and eyes on the next step in video game hardware. It has not been announced if we will get a particular AAA demo to test out (looking at you Fallout 4) or if it will just be a basic smaller game in order to get a feel for virtual reality. Either way, this is going to be an action packed booth with a heap of gamers all lining up to get a glimpse at virtual reality.
Other games that will be available to be tried out by gamers of all scopes will include;
-Tekken 7
-Forza Horizon 3
-Resident Evil VII : Biohazard
-Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue
ATTRACTIONS
You didn’t think I was done did you? The EB Games Expo may have a massive lineup of top notch games and developers but thats not all there is to enjoy.
Cosplay
Of course there is cosplay. Good cosplay, bad cosplay. Hopefully some realistic Deadpools. Cosplay is rampant at EB Expo with fans exploring their favourite characters with a wearable arts and crafts project that can go from ultra detailed and well done to those wearing onesies and slippers and even those that are obviously too hot and design their costumes with a lot of exposure in mind. Regardless it is all cosplay and it makes the EB Expo ever more vibrant.
You cannot talk about gaming without having Pokemon burst into the room and the EB Expo is no exception. Nintendo is providing an entire Pokemon Zone for fans of the 20 year old franchise where we will be gifted with a Pokemon themed store (of course), a Pokken tournament where you can compete against your friends for some apparently sweet prizes (if it isn’t a real life Charmander I might not be interested) and you can bring your 3DS to the expo for a Battle Royale at a Gym Battle Arena. Definitely bring your DS if you are a fan of Pokemon as they occasionally give out special Event Pokemon. I also heard there might be beanbags. I am 100% sure that there will a 90% chance of beanbags.
EB Games Megastore
There will be the largest Eb Games store anywhere in Australia, at this years Expo featuring all the merchandise for your nerdy little hearts content. There will be plush figures, games, replicas of weapons and tools from your favourite franchises. Oh and did I mention that it will all be on sale too!