The yearly appearance of E3 in the gamer’s calendar is a joyous occasion and this year there’s no shortage of exciting new titles. Here’s a rundown of some of the best offerings from this year’s show.
Portal 2
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: Valve
Release Date: 2011
Valve’s sequel to one of the most fondly loved pieces of gaming on the planet is set to offer even more mind bending puzzles. The mechanic of portal firing remains in all its brain confusing brilliance, but the addition of mirrors, vacuum tubes, and excursion funnels promise to make things much more varied and downright tricky. Valve have assured us that the difficulty levels won’t be ramped up too much higher than last time. Bully for us who struggled last time out.
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An early look at what’s set to be on offer proves that Portal 2 won’t lose any of that cheeky humour we all remember. Set hundreds of years after the first game in a decay ridden Aperture Science lab, we still get to control Chell, the protagonist from the first game. GLaDOS, of course, still seems to be alive and kicking, despite the events at the end of the first game. A vastly improved physics model, coupled with a huge boost in graphical tech help culminate in one of the most universally anticipated titles of 2011.
Warhammer 40,000: Dark Millennium Online
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: THQ
Release Date: TBC
The latest in a long line of hopeful World of Warcraft beating MMOs, THQ’s tongue twisting Warhammer 40,000: Dark Millennium Online looks to have as much a chance at taking over than any. Developers Vigil Games, the folks behind the criminally under rated Darksiders have promised that not a single non-combat character will be available for gamers to choose from, in keeping with the game’s brutal 40K background.
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Promising to offer the “most intimate and visceral experience possible of the 41st Millennium,” fans can expect constant action for their (as yet unconfirmed) monthly fees. Utilising a heavily modded form of the Darksiders engine at its core, early peeks of Dark Millennium seem to point towards a wickedly gorgeous title. Promising to offer combat both on foot and within a variety of vehicles, it seems like Dark Millenium may be the MMO to go for for gamers suffering from a little bit of bloodlust.
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3, Wii
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release Date: November 2010
Not only is the latest Need For Speed a remake of the best game in the long running series, it’s also being developed by Criterion, the makers of Burnout. At the heart of the latest game is the snappily named Need for Speed Autolog which promises to enable gamers to “connect, compare, and compete with [your] friends effortlessly.” All of which sounds like a fancy name for lots of different types of online action really.
Breakin’ the law, breakin’ the law…
A lengthy single player experience is also on offer, including a new twist with the addition of weapons and evasive equipment to keep the action fast paced and brutally hectic. How close all this will end up in comparison to the old style gameplay of cops and robbers remains to be seen. Lots of sexy sports cars (including a Bugatti Veyron in police colours), with players taking sides trying to outrun, and then trying to stop said vehicles, are promised. Given Criterion’s history, you’d be shocked if this wasn’t a triple A, award winning title.
Fallout: New Vegas
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: Bethesda
Release Date: Autumn 2010
After Fallout 3 brought the series bang up to date, developers Obsidian are all set to bring us a brand new tale from Fallout’s post apocalyptic nightmare. Not a direct sequel to the last title, but simply a different tale created using the same base, New Vegas is set in post-apocalyptic Nevada, an area not struck directly by nuclear attack. Hence this time around we’ll get the chance to explore buildings that remain standing fully formed, and converse with NPC’s that aren’t suffering from horrific mutation.
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The much praised V.A.T.S. system remains with little seen thus far changed too wildly from last time out, although certain weapons will introduce unique attack animations. Not a bad thing considering the multitude of awards Fallout 3 was gifted. Newly introduced is the ‘Hardcore Mode’ which ramps up the difficulty and adds all kinds of inventory management to proceedings. You even need to make sure your character has frequent hearty meals and a good kip every evening.
Star Wars The Old Republic
Platform: PC
Publisher: Bioware
Release Date: TBC
Another big name MMO looking to take on World of Warcraft, The Old Republic has plenty of features to be explored. Though eight classes have been made known, developer BioWare (the folks behind pretty much every RPG you’ve loved the past decade) has been eager to point out that any basic class will be able to be customised at a moment’s notice in order to prevent any party from stumbling into the trap of being unable to progress.
It’s George Lucas, get ‘im!
The big announcement is the inclusion of starships. Every player will come packing their own little flying machine which acts as not only a swift way to travel the dozens of planets, but also a lovely little social hub, a la the Normandy in Mass Effect. Only one Jedi, and one Sith ship have been shown so far, but you can expect a few more offerings by game launch.
A dialogue system similar to the one used in the Mass Effect series sounds intriguing, as does the fully fledged voice acting for every single in game character. And like the aforementioned series, you can choose from a variety of NPC’s to stick close to with the promise of extra story content, and even a potential love interest can appear if you stick a little too closely to your NPC.
Metal Gear Solid: Rising
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: Konami
Release Date: TBC
Starring the much loathed Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 2, this looks to be by far the most brutal Metal Gear Solid title yet. As well as Raiden’s comeback, it also sees the series return to the PC.
The big thing for this one is your sword, and the ability to cut pretty much everything. Obviously you can slice and dice your enemies down to next to nothing (as well as the odd piece of melon too) but you can slice up trucks, metal, and even buildings in order to help you proceed. Early clips show Raiden slicing through brick in order to cause a section of a building to collapse slap bang on the heads of a few enemies.
That looks like a Fatality
The aim, according to the developers, is to attain some form of “hunting stealth.” Raiden’s speed and acrobatic ability allows him to not only do the traditional Metal Gear Solid sneaky sneaky gameplay style, but also to swiftly leap upwards out of the enemies viewpoint and avoid suspicion. A bit like Batman: Arkham Asylum. Not much has let slip story wise, but it’s safe to assume that you’ll be watching a good few hours of well produced cut scenes in addition to the slice ‘em up sword swishing.
Dead Space 2
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release Date: January 2011
The sequel to the downright terrifying survival horror title from the aptly named Visceral Games, Dead Space 2 seems all set to offer more of the brutal scares this time around. Once again staring the suited Isaac Clarke, early clips seem to show a more BioShock design over the basic greys and browns of the first title. The Unitology cult seemingly having a much larger effect on surroundings this time around.
Among the new enemies are the skutters from Red Dwarf (right)
Fears that Visceral Games would be tempted to focus on the gruesome action and offer a more fast paced title this time around have been dismissed with assurances that the atmospheric slow paced moments remain. New weapons are set to appear, with the javelin gun, which fires a spiked projectile at your target, pinningthem to the wall, the most alluring so far. New enemy abominations will undoubtedly appear, though expect news of those to come later in order to avoid any story spoilers.
If the E3 demo was anything to go by, the boss battles will be just as big and brutal as ever, as the hulking beast obliterates anything to get its mitts on Isaac.
Crysis 2
Platform: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release Date: Q4 2010
All set to bring the same sandbox style of gameplay that the last game offered up, Crysis 2 is shaping up to be much much more than just an even prettier version of the last game. While the nanosuit based gameplay of old, allowing gamers to take on situations as they see fit, remains, the big promise this time are the introduction of the “most intelligent enemies ever.”
If you’ve seen Ghost In The Shell, the scene on the right might look familiar
Of course all looks gorgeous (the CryEngine 3 looking just as good as promised), and the demo at E3 showed off a huge hulking enemy that only added to the visual splendour. Set in New York, gone are the jungle landscapes of the last title, and instead we have the “urban jungle.” Height promises to play a large part in proceedings, with plenty of buildings to be explored. The new Nanosuit 2 is set to offer multiple power modes running simultaneously, allowing even more experimentation when it comes to taking on your enemies. And all this with lower system requirements than the first game.
For more, check out our in-depth preview of Crysis 2.
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