Gamescom is running right now over in Germany and some big news is rushing out of Europe’s largest games convention. Check out what Microsoft had to say in their big press conference as our Editor Matt takes you through all the big announcements.
Gamescom 2015 – Microsoft Briefing.
– Quantum Break recieved a sexy new trailer. The game is chock full of famous faces including Shawn Ashmore (Iceman from X-men) and Dominic Monaghan (Lord of the Rings) and they all look incredibly realistic. The gameplay its self could be best described as Max Payne with superpowers and to be honest I am more than OK with that. It also looks that that slower story exposition parts from Alan Wake have made it into the game. In all this appears like one to keep a close eye on. Coming 2016
– Quantum Break TV show is still in production and a trailer was shown. According to Remedy the Game is told from the perspective of the good guys and the TV show from the bad guys. An interesting experiment that I hope manages to be entertaining at the very least.
– Next on the list was Crackdown 3. Crackdown 3 will feature a brand new city and four player co-op and also be available in 2016. The game keeps that cel shaded graphical style of the first game. A new multiplayer mode will also be included that allows players to completely destroy the city. In all it looks like a nice update to the original formula
– Another 2016 game, this time Scalebound. Platinum games stated that Scalebound is an action rpg and is the biggest game they have every created. The gameplay certainly looks like a Platinum game and adding that over the top action to the RPG genre should make for a good game. The game is throwing four player co-op into the mix as well so that should only add to the fun. It also looks stunning and exceptionally detailed. I was a little on the fence as to how this one would turn out but colour me excited now.
– Xbox also announced that the Xbox One will be adding full featured DVR capability to its growing list of features. How this will work in Australia is unclear but considering the quality of free-to-air options here recording TV usually isn’t a priority for Xbox owners.
– Big news also for free games fans, all Xbox 360 games with gold games will be backwards compatible. Also the backwards compatibility and Windows 10 will be released for the Xbox One in November.
– In surprising news Killer Instinct Season 3 was announced with the first character being Rash from Battletoads. An interesting entry in the hardcore fighting series and I am not convinced that it fits.
– Next up was a presentation about the Kickstarted success story Bloodstained. The game will be crossplay enabled allowing both Windows and Xbox gamers to play with each other. They also announced a new character for the game, a dual sword wielding demon hunter.
– City Skylines and Train Simulator will be hitting the Xbox One first. It will be interesting to see how these games control on a console. Apart from Tropico most of these games struggled with a controller as opposed to a mouse.
– Ron Gilbert then popped up on stage to announce his Kickstarted point and click adventure game Thimbleweed Park was coming to Windows 10 and Xbox. The game its self looks like it could have come out in the early 90’s during the Lucasarts heyday and for old guys like me that certainly ins’t a bad thing. I do wonder if the gameplay will hold up in this modern era though.
– We Happy Few was shown as apart of the Xbox Preview Program and boy does it look like a creepy experience. Imagine Stephen King crossed with Bioshock and you get a fair idea of what to expect. No idea what the game actually plays like but it has sure nailed the aesthetic.
– Mojang hit the stage to talk about their new game Cobalt, an Xbox Exclusive title that seems to be a fast paced shooter with rpg elements. The game also features couch co-op and is coming in October 2015.
– Dark Souls 3 also got it’s first gameplay trailer during the Microsoft show. Now I am no Dark Souls fan (and yes I am ridiculed for that daily) bu this certainly looks impressive. Graphically it looks stunning and to my untrained eye it looks like the combat is faster. Feel free to tell me I am wrong of course.
– Next on show was the first trailer for Homefront: The Revolution. A fairly confronting trailer with some stunning graphics thanks to the Crytek engine. The game is set after a Korean victory in the US and it is safe to say that players will be taking the role of a guerrilla soldier fighting back against the oppression. A second gameplay trailer was also shown that certainly gave me the feeling of a brutal world such as Far Cry 2. The fact this is an open world game only cements that feeling. The game impressed me, I didn’t think I would be looking forward to this title but every time I see something it excites me a little more. A beta will be coming to the Xbox at the end of this year/early next year for people that want to check out more.
– Halo time. A new trailer was shown for Halo 5, this time focusing on multiplayer and eSports components. There was the traditional bad shout-casting as two eSport teams when head to head on the new game. Gameplay looks well a lot like Halo which is sure to please fans. As seems the norm these days, a new Xbox special edition Halo themed console will also be available.
– Explosions, explosions, explosions. Yes it is Just Cause 3 time and boy and I excited for this game. The trailer on show was stunning and just further increased my desire to have this game right now. The new wing suit looks like a pretty handy addition to Rico’s bag of tricks and it allowed for some impressive moments. Also riding flaming gas canisters is the greatest thing ever. Just Cause 3 will come with a backwards compatible version of Just Cause 2 on Xbox One.
– Fast car time with Forza. 15 September is the date set for the latest version in Microsoft’s premium racing franchise. There is no doubting this looks great and is sure to be a priority purchased for virtual rev heads everywhere. How they will top Forza Horizon 2 is beyond me though and I am not sure I am as excited to go back to this more serious style.
– A gameplay demo for Lara’s latest adventure was also on offer. To my eyes it looks to be a natural progression from what was on offer in the Tomb Raider reboot which is by no means a bad thing. Stealth seems to take an even more important role in the sequel with Lara creeping through an enemy camp to take down a host of bad guys without being spotted. I have little doubt that is is going to be a great game and I am excited to once again raid some tombs.
– Big surprise at the end of the show with the announcement of Halo Wars 2. Coming in 2016 on both Xbox One and Windows 10 (yay mouse!) the game is being developed by 343 Industries and Creative Assembly so there is a solid RTS background there, hopefully some of the fine folk from Ensemble are still around to help. Nothing else is known at this stage but I am certainly in the mood for a new RTS, hopefully this fits the bill.
So that is it for the Microsoft showing. I think it is a fairly strong one again with some super interesting titles on show for 2016. What do you think? Let us know in the comments or on social media.
