E3 2016 – Sony Press Conference
Sony’s Press Conference, held in the Shrine Auditorium, opened to a rousing orchestra, directed by none other than Bear McCreary, famous for working on the Battlestar Galactica and The Walking Dead TV series, which would continue to play throughout the entire show. Sony’s passion for serious games was apparent as an impressive cavalcade of both exclusive and multi-platform games were put on display, as well as an expected release date on the Playstation VR Headset.
Shawn Leyden of Sony Interactive Entertainment introduced the show, and before starting into the main body of the event, addressed the Orlando tragedy with reverence, offering thoughts and prayers to those involved.
God of War
As the curtains drew back to reveal the screen amidst the orchestra playing, the show got underway as the auditorium were treated to ten minutes of gameplay trailer for the new God of War – Kratos returns, aged, fully bearded, and with a son in tow. The game looks to be delving into Norse mythology, as several instances of runes appear throughout the trailer, including a mention of Valhalla from a huge troll.
God of War is still in development.
Days Gone
Bend Studios zombie-apocalypse-based title Days Gone, is an action adventure game set in the harsh wilderness in the aftermath of a devastating global pandemic, so fans of the Last of Us will be looking towards this with great interest. Deacon St. John, a Drifter and bounty hunter who rides the broken road, fights to survive while searching for a reason to live.
At its core, Days Gone is about survivors and what makes them human: desperation, loss, madness, betrayal, friendship, brotherhood, regret, love – and hope. It’s about how even when confronted with such enormous tragedy they find a reason to live.
Still in Development for PS4, no release date has been given yet.
The Last Guardian
Previewed at E3 Last year, this gem once known as Project Trico that captured the hearts and minds of all who watched it, has finally been given a release date, much to rapturous applause of the auditorium. Developed by genDESIGN, an action-adventure game, it is filled with the ruins and remnants of civilisations long past, that has been taken over by nature, filled with fantastic creatures. The story focuses on a young boy and his rather large feathery friend navigating their way through the vast world.
Release is expected October 25, 2016.
Horizon: Zero Dawn
Guerilla Games much anticipated new title was also showcased at E3 last year, and it tells the story of a young woman named Aloy, who must leave her tribe on a journey to find out the secrets of the earth, in a world where machines rule. A gameplay trailer revealed more about the world and the machines that roam it, including interactions with them – as well as some of the weapons that the main protagonist uses. Mounted combat is also evident in the trailer, as Aloy is on the trail of a corrupted machine terrorizing a village, and finds it to be ancient in its construction, making her question from where – or when – it came from.
Release date is set for February 28, 2017.
Detroit: Become Human
Quantic Dream, a French Indie studio who are the makers of Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls, have unveiled an intense premier trailer for their newest title, Detroit: Become Human, that is set in a world where androids have been invented, and appear to be sentient. A huge scenario-based game with multiple outcomes, every decision you make will have a consequence. Two confirmed playable characters are to be made available in the game; Connor, the android seen in the trailer, and Kara, seen briefly in a tech demo from 2012.
The developers say they are still some ways away from releasing the game, but things are shaping up well, judging by the trailer.
Resident Evil 7: Biohazard
From the makers of Kitchen, a new Resi is on the cards! The gameplay trailer started out with the player answering a phone call:
“If you don’t get out of there now, they will kill you. Get out now.”
A slow walk through a desolate looking house that gets more and more sinister as time passes, several audience members screamed at various points in the trailer, prompting raucous, albeit nervous, laughter.
Expected to be released January 24 2017, E3 attendees and Playstation Plus players get the chance of playing the demo the same day the trailer dropped. A full VR experience will be available, best played via remote control play on the toilet to avoid making a mess of yourself.
Project Morpheus/PS VR
Playstation VR, formerly known under the mysterious title of Project Morpheus last year, will be available on October 13 2016 for $399 USD, Resident Evil 7 being one of 50 games to be playable through PS VR, as well as some Playstation Exclusives.
Farpoint
A new VR title, players can expect to be thrown to the edge of the universe into unknown territory; stunning vistas and gripping action from the trailer looks set to make Farpoint into an eagerly anticipated title. Farpoint is an unnerving VR space adventure set on a hostile alien planet. On a mission to pick up scientists studying an anomaly near Jupiter, a rupture from the anomaly transports the player and scientists to an unknown alien world.
Star Wars Battlefront: X-Wing VR Mission
EA DICE sprung the dreams of all Star Wars fans on screen, with a new VR mission that involves the player flying an X-Wing, coming to PS VR on the headsets release.
Batman: Arkham VR
October 2016 will mark the date when Batman fans can wear the infamous cowl of the Caped Crusader. Rocksteady Games are in development with the title, which will be released either alongside the headset, or soon after.
Final Fantasy XV
Finally, the wait is over for long time FF fans; as was shown in the Microsoft conference, so too was it shown here; Final Fantasy XV will be available on both PS4 and Xbox One. Release date is the 30th of September 2016. An added surprise at the end of the trailer will see Final Fantasy XV with VR support, featuring the VR Experience, with gameplay coverage: players can play as Prompto in VR.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
Despite the backlash it received on the internet with the announcement of its release, Infinite Warfare brought the auditorium through a gameplay trailer overflowing with very fast paced action and heated battles – dogfights between Jackal ships, and close quarter combat in zero gravity will bring new challenges to the table in the COD franchise. Expected to be released November 4th 2016.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare – Remastered
Despite the announcement being released alongside the new COD: Infinite Warfare, MW Remastered was clearly the favourite among the fans the world over, available for pre-purchase bundled alongside Infinite Warfare – Playstation 4 players will be able to play the Remastered Modern Warfare 30 days early, in early October.
Crash Bandicoot 1, 2 & 3: Warped Remastered
A childhood favourite of millions, Activision will be in the works to remaster all 3 of the original Crash Bandicoot games from the ground up for PS4. He will appear first on PS4 this October in Skylanders: Imaginators.
Skylanders: Imaginators
Along with the announcement of Crash Bandicoot being remastered, Skylanders: Imaginators releases in October this year.
Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Demo for Lego Star Wars is available now, whereas the whole game will be available at the end of June.
Death Stranding
Running all in real time, Hideo Kojima’s latest project features Norman Reedus from Walking Dead fame in an eerie trailer – a man unconscious on the sand wakes up in a dreary ocean environment, surrounded by dead marine creatures everywhere; a baby with an umbilical cord appears alongside, crying. It sounds as weird as it does to watch it, but I’m sure it has meaning of some kind attached to it. I hope.
Spiderman
Our friendly neighbourhood Spidey gets a new costume, some new moves and a new villain to defeat, in Spiderman for PS4.
Spiderman is still in development.
To close the show, a live gameplay demo of Days Gone by Bend Studios was played, the drama enhanced hugely by the orchestra playing alongside. Shawn Leyden thanked the auditorium and the PS4 community, as well as the developers and partners of Sony and Playstation for all their hard work, before a sizzle reel of all the upcoming games (and even more that weren’t shown on the big screen during the show) for Playstation’s already vast library.
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