The stunning visuals, the period authenticity – did I mention the stunning visuals? Ghost of Tsushima’s medieval Japan is a bleak place, but a sublimely beautiful one as well. The use of lighting, texture and contrast make this a game that is shaping up to be incredibly atmospheric. I imagine myself spending a lot of my playtime just gazing into the horizon as those billowing clouds roll overhead. The combat looks challenging, but if I have to get my ass kicked, at least I’ll leave a beautiful corpse.
– Patrick Anderson
Even after all was said and done, The Last of Us II turned out not to be my favorite reveal. I think my favorite reveal was definitely Cyberpunk 2077 because the game still remains at the forefront of my mind days later. The announcement took me by complete surprise, especially since I felt certain Microsoft’s conference was over. Then the trailer came, and I just wanted to be a part of that world. Every second leading up to the footage, I was shaking in my socks. And by the time I was done, I just wanted to know more. I want a taste of gunplay, customization, and more driving. I live for that Cyberpunk shit, and I can’t wait for this game. But I’m willing to if it means a much better final product. The wait remains bitter-sweet.
– Mario Brash
Being a big fan of both Nioh and From Software, this one seemed right up my alley. I’ve played Dark Souls 1 through 3 to death, so I was glad to hear that they’re taking a different approach with Sekiro; making it more of a single-player, adventure game instead of another ‘souls-like’ RPG with classes, stats, and scaling weapons/armour.
– Louis Stowe
My favorite E3 2018 announcement took place during the Xbox Briefing where they announced the return of Battletoads. For those uninitiated, Battletoads was a side-scrolling classic developed by Rare back in 1991. This two-player co-op game followed the story of three brothers; Rash, Zitz, and Pimple as they squared off against the sexy yet deadly Dark Queen. We don’t know a lot about the upcoming Battletoads game, except that it’ll feature a 2.5D perspective and three player co-op. The game is currently being developed by DLaLa Studios – who have only developed a few small titles, however, when I asked the Head of Microsoft Studios, Matt Booty, about Battletoads, he said that Rare will be guiding the development along to ensure the franchise gets the game it deserves. When Battletoads was first released, it was a brutally tough game (thank the gaming gods we had Game Genie!), but I imagine a new Battletoads will offer some more modern options to make it more accommodating and accessible to the largest audience possible. It’s also worth mentioning that if Battletoads is successful, it opens the door wide open for other Rare franchises to re-enter the spotlight such as Conker, Banjo Kazooie, and Perfect Dark.
– Alex Everett
I was convinced that Bethesda would be my favorite press conference. That is until Sony came ’round. When the conference began, I was incredibly intrigued by the stage and the wood room adorned with red. I wondered, “What on Earth could this be?”. As soon as the man emerged on stage and began playing the first few notes of that familiar haunting tune, I knew I would not be disappointed — and I certainly was not. The new trailer for the Last of Us Part 2 was absolutely everything to me. I was excited, scared and sad while watching this trailer as many of us who have played The Last of Us will know that this will not be an easy ride. Naughty Dog’s production on this game is absolutely wonderful and can we talk about how nicely animated that kiss was? It had so much weight and depth, much like the rest of the trailer, but it just held so much more for me. Was it a kiss symbolizing love or would it be a kiss symbolizing loss and goodbye? And the gameplay that was shown was absolutely phenomenal, fast-paced and incredibly gruesome. Of all the games that I said would be a Day 1 purchase, The Last of Us Part 2 will be the only one being preordered as soon as it’s available!
– Thi Chao