After a day full of big announcements and exciting reveals, it all comes to an end with Sony’s big annual press event. We’re used to Sony having something big up their sleeve to excite gamers but no one’s positive what that might be. Unlike what I expected from the Microsoft press conference, could third-party titles and exclusives be Sony’s big coup this year?
Video Games
E3 2015: EA Expected to Bring the Franchises in their Keynote
While we’re all still digesting what went down at the Microsoft press conference (at least I assume something went down and I don’t have to completely overhaul this preview), we quickly move on to Electronic Arts conference. As you would expect from EA, they’ll have a lot of sequels and franchises on display. Still, they could have a surprise or two up their sleeve.
E3 2015: Rumours, Predictions and a Preview of Microsoft’s Presser
With Bethesda’s E3 opening press conference out of the way, it’s time for the big boys to play with the four Monday press conferences that we typically see on the Monday before E3 officially begins. The first of the four Monday pressers is Microsoft. While Microsoft bounced back from the Xbox One launch E3 presser last year, this year looks to be an even bigger year for Microsoft at E3. This could be their big chance to move ahead of Sony in the 8th-Gen console wars.
E3 2015: What to Expect from Bethesda’s First E3 Press Conference
While E3 officially starts on Tuesday and the real news at E3 happens with the Big Four pressers on Monday, the 2015 edition of the Electronic Entertainment Expo will kick off on Sunday when Bethesda has their first E3 press conference.
As part of our week-long E3 coverage on et geekera, we start with a preview of the first of the week’s seven major press conferences and tell you what to expect from Bethesda and what rumours suggest they have up their sleeve.
A New Players’ Guide to Heroes of the Storm
So while I should be spending a lot more time writing, I’ve spent way too much time playing Heroes of the Storm. According to Raptr, I’ve put in some 50 hours since closed beta started and have played near 400 games logged on my in-game profile. Suffice to say, I’ve seen a lot in my time playing HOTS.
Now, I’m not a very good gamer. HOTSlogs says that I’m a gold level player which allegedly means that I’m in the upper half of gamers. However, I have learned a bunch of things that new players should be mindful of before they get too far into the latest entry into the MOBA genre.
Ride Review: Two Wheels Are as Good as Four
I have a mixed history with games from Italian developer and publisher Milestone. While I liked their kart-racing take on the World Rally Championship, WRC Powerslide, the more simulation-focused main WRC series has been a bit of a disappointment. On the whole, their four-wheel racing offerings have gotten mixed reviews at best.
On two-wheels, though, Milestone has a much stronger track record. While Metacritic shows a pattern of review scores in the 60s for the WRC games (I think I gave WRC Powerslide the best PC score on the internet), their MotoGP games have ratings in the 70s. Ride might not be backed by a big license but the motorcycle racing game does feel like Milestone’s attempt to create the first Gran Turismo-style bike game since Tourist Trophy.
So does Milestone’s first venture away from a licensed racing product in eight years live up to its two-wheel reputation?
The Evolution of the PlayStation Controller
Don’t look now but we’re less than two weeks from E3. As per usual, there is going to be quite a bit of E3 coverage on the blog. Rough plans include rumour roundups, keynote summaries, trailer posts and breaking news.
For now, let’s get you warmed up for E3 with a little infographic. Sure, it’s not E3-related but it’s still video game-related. It’s a look at the history of the PlayStation’s various controllers over the years. Any infographic that name checks Ape Escape is alright by me.
Game of Thrones – Episode Three Review: Words are Wind
One criticism that Telltale has faced since their renaissance with The Walking Dead is that their games have become quite formulaic. There’s a lot of talking, some needless quick-time events and a helix story structure that only diverges based on your choices for a short period before following the intended plot. But even with those complaints, Telltale is very good at telling their story.
The problem is that when you release games episodically, there’s an expectation for the climax inside the episode and to build the “season”-long story at the same time. The first two episodes of Telltale’s Game of Thrones have been serviceable as their own episodes but they haven’t rushed to build a story going forward. With Episode Three: The Sword in the Darkness, Game of Thrones properly drives us forward in the season-long narrative.
Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta Impressions: Enter the Storm
Apart from free-to-play mobile tower defence games, I’m not sure there’s a more crowded genre in gaming than MOBA. At the top of the pile, you have League of Legends and Dota 2. Smite is probably the #3 MOBA though Heroes of Newerth would probably give it a run for its money. You’ve also got the like of Strife and Infinite Crisis too. There are probably plenty of other that I can throw in there but I don’t want a 1,000 word intro.
The problem is that while each game has its little intricacies, they all feel fairly similar at the end of the day. You play one member of a five-player team on a three-lane map with towers that you must power through in order to destroy the central structure of the enemy base.
Heroes of the Storm doesn’t completely revolutionize the basics of a MOBA. It’s still a five-on-five match to destroy the enemy team’s core. However, Blizzard has taken the standard Point A to Point B approach to MOBAs and turned it on its head. What results is the most unique MOBA on the market right now.
From Failure to Record-Breaker: Tomb Raider Racks Up Franchise Record 8.5 Million Copies Sold
I want you to flashback to March 2013. I know it seems like forever ago. I didn’t have any grey hair then so it’s longer for me.
In an investor call at the end of the month, Square Enix effectively called the Tomb Raider reboot that had been out for all of three weeks a failure. They said that they had expected the game to ship between five and six million copies and only it moved 3.4 million. Square Enix made it sound like the Tomb Raider franchise was dead on re-arrival.
Over the following 24 months, Tomb Raider and the current-gen (PS4 and XB1) Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition sold another 5.1 million copies to bring the total units sold to a franchise record of 8.5 million copies sold. They’re touting the success of the Tomb Raider reboot in the run up to this fall’s release of The Rise of the Tomb Raider (a timed exclusive on Xbox One and Xbox 360).
So what happened for Square Enix to change their tune?
The Lowdown 