E3 2021: Digital Edition, TGA's 2021 & other 2021 events

[Julius]

Not getting a Series X anytime soon but that Mini Fridge has me intrigued 

[Hero-of-Time]

Once again, a rough showing from Microsoft for me. I’ve spoken before about the Xbox ecosystem lacking Japanese support/exclusives, which is what I want from them, and this conference done nothing to address that. It’s a good showing for people who like shooters, Western developed games and Game Pass but none of those things appeal to me. The company has fallen so hard since the 360 days, in my eyes. 

[drahkon]

1 minute ago, Hero-of-Time said:

The company has fallen so hard since the 360 days, in my eyes. 

Completely agree. Had soooo much fun with the 360 back in the days but there's been nothing in Microsoft's exclusive offering that would get me back into their ecosystem since then.

 

[Kaepora_Gaebora]

Most of that was generic "look we have games and sequels for me", especially RedFall...can we not end on a game that is just a cutscene that has no gameplay at all? 🤷‍♂️

Having said that, it does make me happy to be in the Xbox ecosystem to see so many "day 1 Gamepass" games, which means I'll likely try some I wouldn't have before.

Being a big Sea of Thieves fan, I was abit taken aback by the Pirates stuff, wasn't sure I liked it at first! Re watched that trailer though, and it's tall tales mainly (their take on a story mode) so I'll be really intrigued to see what they do with it. By the looks of the trailer, they've been testing different elements in the "Insider" version of the game individually as new enemies or weapons, without giving the game away as to what it was all coming together for! 

Overall I mean it's a good showing in generic gaming terms with a few touches here and there, should at least keep existing Xbox gamers happy. And my 75 year old dad who's been asking me about Flight Simulator for the last year, at this rate he'll be getting a Series X before me 😂

[Aneres11]

Some pretty good games there. 

A lot coming to GamePass that I never expected too, like Back 4 Blood which I am SO excited for! 

Forza 5 looks amazing, as expected. I love that they've added Achievements to Grounded at last, so will probably give that a go now. 

Plague 2 also a surprise, got the first downloaded so will get onto that soon. 

Replaced look great. 

Really, it's exactly what I expected from MS. A lot of Multiplatform games I will play on my Series X, and just enjoy the better exclusives on the PS5, when they get some games that are actually exclusive and not spread across PS4 and 5. 

That's how I've rolled now since the last gen. 

 

[Hero-of-Time]

1 minute ago, Aneres11 said:

Plague 2 also a surprise, got the first downloaded so will get onto that soon. 

First game is great. It’s definitely one of the most unique games that arrived last gen. More people need to give it a go. 

[Happenstance]

Looking forward to Square Enid’s show next. The games don’t always turn out amazing but I feel like they are one of the companies that just so much of their stuff speaks to my current gaming tastes.

[Julius]

Genuine question for those who feel this didn't move the needle for them in terms of getting a next-gen Xbox: what could Xbox's first party show that would get you onboard? I've been racking my brain the last 10 minutes and I'm drawing a blank, and I mean that as no disrespect to Xbox, but I just don't see them taking the risks I feel they should be at this point in terms of new IP. I think @Hero-of-Time is right when he points to the lack of Japanese games in the console as being a gap they've failed to address consistently, particularly in terms of exclusives. Nothing has really struck me as looking next-gen either, other than maybe Horizon 5, but even that is an open world racing game. There's nothing else that they have that comes remotely close to some of Sony's first party stuff visually, it all looks a little flat? 

Anyways, I thought Xbox & Bethesda had a really good show, but like others here, nothing really reaching out and grabbing me to the point where I'd buy a Series X right now. Of the games that I did find myself interested in, a lot of them are multiplatform or indie games, and not worth picking up a new console for in my eyes. 

That Starfield trailer was very disappointing. I understand that they might be going into alpha this summer (according to Schreier), but you absolutely could have put together a great CGI trailer for this game and shown off some mechanics that way. I came away from this not knowing anything more than the release date, and having a specific release date of 11th November 2022 seems very naive in these difficult times. 

I think the indie games were the strongest part of this show. Twelve Minutes still looks great, Party Animals looks like a whole lot of fun (I need to look it up, but probably by the Gang Beasts team? Seems to have the exact same mechanics at least), Somerville really grabbed my attention (though seemed desperate to draw INSIDE as a point of comparison), and I loved how Replaced looked with its pixel art against 3D backdrops, when that's pulled off well it looks fantastic.

Highlights on the indie side of things for me were absolutely the new trailer for Eiyuden Chronicle (which we already knew about and which I'd already backed for a PlayStation copy of) and the spin-off side-scrolling game Eiyuden Chronicle: Uprising (which is the first time we've seen it). I love that art style, I love Suikoden and Suikoden II, and I trust that Murayama and the folks over at Rabbit & Bear will deliver. 

Forza Horizon 5 does look great, the Forza games are the biggest reason currently that I have to be interested in getting an Xbox (and it's not enough). And I forgot to mention it before, but A Pirate's Life, that Pirates of the Caribbean DLC for Sea of Thieves, looks like good fun too. Imagine it cost them a pretty penny, but absolutely worth it, glad that game has got the support it needed and those who stuck with it are being rewarded for it. 

Halo Infinite not having a demo drop here seems like missed potential, but not having a solid release date for Holiday 2021, when we have one for Starfield which is just under a year and a half away, is definitely cause for concern. The pessimistic take is that it needed major rework after its previous gameplay fallout and they're going to be grinding away until we get a release date a couple of months out, but what does it say that my optimistic take is that they're waiting to see what the plans of other developers are this Holiday before committing to a date? 

Still, it's by far the best overall show we've had at E3 from these last few days, better than many of their more recent E3 showings, but boy do they need to stop coming out and saying how great the show is going to be, how many games they're showing, how many of those are exclusive, etc. It's great for investors, but we don't care: nothing is going to sell us players on a game more than cutting to the chase and showing it to us. There's a reason that PlayStation and Nintendo have knocked it out of the park these last few years at events like these, and it's because they shut up and let the quality of their games do the talking. 

My Totally Official Score: 8.0/10

Edited June 13, 2021 by Julius

[Happenstance]

2 minutes ago, Julius said:

Genuine question for those who feel this didn't move the needle for them in terms of getting a next-gen Xbox: what could Xbox's first party show that would get you onboard? I've been racking my brain the last 10 minutes and I'm drawing a blank, and I mean that as no disrespect to Xbox, but I just don't see them taking the risks I feel they should be at this point in terms of new IP. I think @Hero-of-Time is right when he points to the lack of Japanese games in the console as being a gap they've failed to address consistently, particularly in terms of exclusives. Nothing has really struck me as looking next-gen either, other than maybe Horizon 5, but even that is an open world racing game. There's nothing else that they have that comes remotely close to some of Sony's first party stuff visually, it all looks a little flat? 

For me it’s got to be a load of new ip's because nothing they currently have interests me anymore. It really is the Western focus over the years that has just drained the “uniqueness” from the consoles.

[Ganepark32]

I thought it was actually a pretty good showing but wasn't expecting it to light up most people here. Kept the speaking to a minimum throughout (though they could've tightened up the Forza Horizon 5 bit) and just focused on the games, and there was a steady stream of those.

Sure, there's a lack of Japanese developers present but they've done a lot to get them already invested in the system with the Final Fantasy titles on/coming to Gamepass, DQ XI being on Gamepass and all of the Yakuza titles to name a few. Sure they could do more to get new games there day and night from Japanese devs but its a damn sight better than it was.

Odd they showed so little of Halo Infinite campaign wise. Unless they're setting up for a specific showcase of it down the line, they could've done with revealing it again to prove they've put the work in to improve how it looks. The multiplayer looks great though and it being free to play is a great initiative to bring more people in.

A new Forza Horizon is always a plus point and 5 looks fantastic. Cant wait to jump in on November 9th.

That leak doing the rounds a couple of days ago was dead on with the games that would be at E3. Seeing Somerville was nice, looks great and definitely in keeping with what they've done with Inside previously but taking it a bit further. Replaced also looked phenomenal.

Loved the look of Stalker 2. The little details like the floorboard moving when the character waltzed over it was a nice touch.

Knew that we'd see A Plague Tale: Requiem and liked what I saw. Can't wait to play it as I loved the first one. Surprised they didn't announce that they'd acquired Asobo but that may come down the line.

Psychonauts 2 looks great. Was wondering about Arkane Austin but not sure Redfall did it for me. We're getting a lot of Left 4 Dead style co-op titles at the moment, very odd.

The lack of an [email protected] trailer was a weird omission this time around as things like Tunic are still without a release date. Hopefully there's one coming. We did get an announcement of Hades coming to Xbox (and Playstation) so I can't wait to finally play it on the big screen (I had a Switch Lite when playing it).

But yeah, I thought it was a good showing. I can take a heavier focus on Western releases what with having a PS5 as I'll get more of a Japanese showing there. Didnt expect it to turn the needle for those who aren't invested in the system here though but for those that are and for those who have Gamepass its a good show.

[Hero-of-Time]

@Julius In their current form I don’t think they can win me back. If you look at the 360 days they had things like Blue Dragon, Tales of Vesperia, Eternal Sonata, Lost Odyssey, Infinite Undiscovery etc. You also had their own studios making a variety of games with different styles. Things like Viva Piñata, Kameo, Nuts N Bolts, Crackdown and Fable offered a nice contrast to Halo and Gears.

Now? A lot, but not all, of their stuff seems samey to me and it doesn’t help that the 3rd parties they are teaming up with don’t really offer any more variety. When they do get Japanese support it seems to be months later than other consoles. They still have MASSIVE strides to make in this regard but maybe they aren’t bothered? MS know what their audience wants and likes and it makes sense to cater towards those.

Also, I’m not keen on the GP push. I get it, it’s great for people wanting to game on a budget or don’t want ownership but I still have concerns about what the end game is for the service and what it means for the industry as a whole. 

[Happenstance]

I’m much more interested in game pass as a retro game service 

[Julius]

I absolutely will get back to this talk about Xbox, and I agree with a lot of what's been said, but I'm struggling to not have Square Enix on the mind right now, walked myself into a bit of a corner by asking that question but then needing to ravage some food before S-E 

Just one of XVI, that rumoured other Final Fantasy game you have in the works, or, the mainstay, a Final Fantasy I - VI Collection, will do for me here. Have me seriously concerned with XVI not being in the rundown for this, all fingers crossed! 

[Julius]

Wow, starting with Eidos Montréal. This Guardians game better be single player...

Also hell yeah, Matt Mercer as VO all day long 

[Happenstance]

Apparently this Guardians game was supposed to be announced last year but after the Avengers issues it was pushed back

[Sheikah]

I think a big problem for me with Microsoft is that their exclusives don't look particularly great or exciting. So much of Microsoft's angle is to emphasise the value of Game Pass. This is a big issue in my opinion as value only gets you so far.

 

You can make something as cheap as you like but if they don't have the exclusives then it doesn't matter a thing.

[Julius]

1 minute ago, Happenstance said:

Apparently this Guardians game was supposed to be announced last year but after the Avengers issues it was pushed back

Makes sense with that release date, damn that's pretty soon, nice stuff! 

No pressure on whoever is curating the tracks for this game, but hoo boy, this game could be a licensing nightmare in the future 

[Hero-of-Time]

Single player and story driven. That’s more like it. Avengers really took its toll.  

[Map]

1 minute ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Single player and story driven.

[Julius]

Oh wow we're getting a look at gameplay for it too, good stuff.

I've managed to convince myself that opening with this means we're ending on something Final Fantasy. Someone please talk me down from this ledge 

[drahkon]

@Julius Can you please just SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT FINAL FANTASY

Nah, I'm in it with you...Screw this Marvel game, GIMME FINAL FANTASY!

[Happenstance]

Liking the look of this, I’ll get it at launch. I also have the first Dan Abnett Guardians of the Galaxy book and I enjoyed that so it bodes well.

[Julius]

1 minute ago, drahkon said:

@Julius Can you please just SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT FINAL FANTASY

Nah, I'm in it with you...Screw this Marvel game, GIMME FINAL FANTASY!

Denial, anger, and bargaining. 

Nice to know I'm not the only one going through the stages of grief over Final Fantasy right now 

[Hero-of-Time]

1 minute ago, Julius said:

Someone please talk me down from this ledge 

Never!

EMBRACE YOUR DREAMS!

 

[drahkon]

So...is this a Guardian of the Galaxy stream or am I way behind?