Top 10 Amazing, Surprising, and Shocking Announcements of 2019 So Far
2019 has been an eventful year to say the least. With big announcements, huge surprises, and wild bombshells, this is an industry that is ready to entertain, excite, and titillate in more ways than one. E3 might be the stage in which most of these events are revealed, but let’s not forget that there has been a steady flow of surprises all year long, and it’s about time we put 2019 on pause and looked at what has happened so far. Here are the Top 10 surprising, amazing, and shocking events of 2019, regardless of whether or not they are good, bad, or somewhere in the middle.
#10. Team17 Announces Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair
We start this list with a rather tame entry. Originally launched back in 2017, Yooka-Laylee was developed by former key personnel of Rare – the team who had worked on Banjo-Kazooie – and had wanted to continue that legacy of 3D platformer. The game launched at a reduced price and was moderately well received but it wasn’t quite enough to stand out among the crowd. Fast forward to E3 this year and we suddenly have an announcement of not only a sequel, but one that looks to craft its own identity and not copy the studios previous work. No one was expecting Yooka-Laylee to make a return and to its credit the games appearance at E3 and PAX have only been met with positive responses. This cute little chameleon and fruit bat team-up could very well be the beginning of a fresh new franchise we didn’t know we wanted.
#9. Â Â Start a Revolution with Watch Dogs Legion
The Watch Dogs series seemingly fell by the wayside in Ubisoft’s arsenal of franchises. With the first game being considered a flop and the second one going in a completely different tonal direction, no one really expected to see a third entry in the series. We figured it would sit quietly in the corner and fade away in the shadows. We were hilariously wrong. Not only does Watch Dogs Legion up the ante with the intensity of gameplay and content, their new incredibly complex system of recruiting literally any NPC you can see to the cause as a playable character is absolutely groundbreaking. While there has been skepticism about the effectiveness of the system, those who have gone hands on with it were impressed to say the least. Its one thing to announce another entry in what was thought to be a dying series, but Watch Dogs Legion is coming out of the gate swinging hard and has elevated the franchise to new heights.
#8. Bungie Goes Their Own Way
It feels like ages ago, but at the start of 2019 Bungie and Activision parted ways which left a lot of questions for the future of Destiny 2. When the game first launched it was everywhere with new and returning fans excited to see what was in store for the guardians. Much like the previous game, Destiny 2 was met with a slew of updates, add ons, and the player base fluctuated rapidly. When the two companies separated, Bungie technically became the biggest indie developer there is, and with the reins hitting the floor they were left with free control to do as they pleased. I’m not saying Activision kept them on a tight leash, but ever since their separation Bungie has added new weapon types, completely changed the way loadouts work, and has huge plans for the future include new super moves, takedowns, transmogrifications, cross save, and a free-to-play model. We may not have all eyes focused on Bungie or Destiny 2 at the moment but if they keep this meteoric rise I wouldn’t be surprised if they shock us with some huge announcements in the near future.
