Sony Conference – E3 2017
Sony has a reputation for putting on the best shows at E3 but this year it wasn’t quite at the level of the past few years. It was a good show, but there was little in the way of surprises. It was nice to get a better look at a whole bunch of games coming soon-ish though and some of those titles really impressed.
– The show kicked off with some lovely sitar music to introduce Uncharted: Lost Legacy. Coming in August, this stand-alone expansion promises more Uncharted….. which is ok by me. The cool thing is taking control of Chole and Nadine, so hopefully, it will be more sass and fewer wisecracks from the lead characters. Everyone with any love for adventure is excited for this one.
– Horizon DLC was announced. The Frozen Wilds. Not much gameplay on show but hey I was sold as soon as they showed it. It is coming in 2017 too so not a massive wait.
https://youtu.be/J5xsS1WZA54
– Days Gone was back again this year and I must say it was a much more impressive showing. This trailer had more in common with The Last of Us than it did with the zombie shootfest that was shown off last year. It really surprised me because I was ready to hate on this game. Well worth checking out the trailer.
https://youtu.be/6uED22JERB8
– Monster Hunter Worlds was announced to much applause. This latest entry in the well-loved franchise (also coming to Xbox One) looks stunning. I have never played a MH game but this trailer sure has me interested in rectifying that.
– Perhaps the biggest surprise of the Sony show was the announcement of a Shadow of the Colossus remake. This is actually a really good choice for a remake because while it is a fondly remembered cult hit, it never became a mainstream success. Hopefully, the remake will gain it the love it so richly deserves.
– Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite took the stage to show off some of the story mode. I can only hope that Marvel’s writers were in charge of this after the abomination of the Street Fighter V story. I think people already know if this is a game for them, but it was nice to see some new footage anyway.
– Call of Duty: WWII had a new trailer on show, with some gameplay footage to boot. To be honest it looks like more Call of Duty but I hope the team behind it have some tricks up their sleeves. There is no doubt the CoD formula is feeling a little stale and I am not sure a trip back in time is enough to freshen it up.
– We then had a VR show reel. Skyrim VR was announced along with a couple of interesting looking titles. Star Child which appears to be a VR platformer. Inpatient, a thriller set in a creepy asylum. Bravo Team a military based shooter. Finally Moss a cartoony adventure title. There was also an FFXV fishing game announced but no one really cared.
– God of War hit the stage in a big way with a huge chunk of gameplay. Combat looks more intense and less showy, with an axe being Kratos’ weapon of choice. There seemed to also be a lot more in the way of a story, with some introspective adventuring to be done with Kratos Jnr. In all God of War was probably my favourite game of the Sony show.
– We then got another cinematic look at Detroit: Becoming Human. David Cage games are really hard to judge from trailers but this looks like a very cool and ambitious idea so I hope it pays off. Regardless of how the game actually turns out, there is no doubt it will give us plenty to talk about.
– Destiny 2 got a quick highlight reel, not too much on show but enough for fans to get excited. Sony announced more exclusive strikes and gear for the Playstation version of the game so if you have multiple systems, it is probably best to grab it on the PS4.
– Finally a big showing from your friendly neighborhood Spiderman. Insomniac’s latest game looks pretty darn cool. It takes more than a few cues from the Arkham games but that is in no way a bad thing. Web swinging looks tight and combat looks like it will be a lot of fun. The only worry I have is the abundance of QTE’s on show, something I am always cautious about.
So there you have it, Sony done and dusted for another year. Like Microsoft, I worry that there isn’t much in the back end of 2017 coming out. That likely matters a lot less for Sony after their killer start to the year. 2018 is looking rock solid though and despite there being a lack of new surprises it was still a very solid showing from Sony.