E3 2019 is coming soon and I can already feel the excitement. This is the time when potentially awesome games are revealed to the public, promising new footage is shown, and huge disappointments or comical mishaps happen on stage. Even the pettiest video game player will surely find something to enjoy.
Some great games are already confirmed on stage, with many more still shrouded in secrecy. No matter what, I’m positively sure that minds will be blown, and jaws will drop to the floor. Here are some of the games that I hope to see during E3 2019:
CYBERPUNK 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 is easily one of the most anticipated video games ever. Coming from the makers of The Witcher series, CD Projekt RED, this game turned quite a few heads last year when a lengthy gameplay demo was revealed.
Cyberpunk 2077 is a futuristic open world first-person RPG where you shape your path by means of different dialogue options. The game world seems incredibly busy, mature and brimming with detail and depth, just as we have become accustomed from CD Projekt RED. This year it is likely that we’ll get to see new gameplay footage and hopefully get the much-coveted release date.
BORDERLANDS 3
Gearbox had a few misses during its course – Duke Nukem Forever says hi – but no one can deny the quality of the Borderlands games. The humor, the bazillions of guns and the cool characters that you get to meet and blast away are a staple of the series and made millions of fans over the world.
Fun fact: there was a Borderlands Online game released as a China-exclusive that eventually was canceled in 2015.
As for Borderlands 3, with a release penned for September 2019, there is no way that Gearbox won’t take it to the stage. With over a billion guns, returning characters, online or split-screen co-op, and a gun with legs that spews profanities while chasing its enemies, there is no way that this game will disappoint.
CONTROL
Remedy Entertainment’s next game is once again shockful of style, something that is a trademark of the Max Payne and Alan Wake developer. However, Control feels closer to its latest outing, Quantum Break, as it includes supernatural elements such as flying and impressive gravity bending, something that feels very Half-Life 2 to me, and it also reminds me of the underrated Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy.
Control feels like a greatest hits album from Remedy. It shares the best aspects from Max Payne and Quantum Break, sprinkling it with a bit of surreality and insanity from Alan Wake to create an impressive package.
Control releases on August 2019, so it’s highly likely that it will make an appearance at E3 2019.
STAR WARS JEDI: FALLEN ORDER
Despite the unexpected success of Apex Legends – which is fast declining –, Electronic Arts needs another hit to turn the tide after the lacklustre performances of Star Wars: Battlefront 2 and Anthem. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order may be that game, if lessons were learned.
Respawn Entertainment, of Titanfall and Apex Legends fame is responsible for this new single-player action adventure game. After a few controversies with single-player Star Wars games such as the canceled Visceral and Amy Henning project, perhaps this will be the one to hit the nail on the head. Well, at least Respawn dropped the troublesome Frostbite engine and is working with the friendlier Unreal Engine 4, so that’s already a plus.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order releases on November 2019, so you can bet that Electronic Arts will show us something during its pre-E3 EA Play event.
BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL 2
Ubisoft’s Beyond Good and Evil sequel went through development hell and back a few times already. The result of over a decade of planning seems to have very little in common with the original cult classic, but nonetheless it remains as one of the most ambitious games of recent years.
Gone is the cartoon style of the first game, replaced by a grittier look that surely came as a shock to many fans. Initially billed as a sequel but ultimately redesigned as a prequel, most of the subtilities from the original are lost in an open world that feels different, obviously with no Jade or Pey’j in sight anymore. This will be a much more cinematographic game, for better and for worse, and I have high expectations for it. What bothers me is the connection to the original game, or lack thereof – in theory, it feels wafer-thin and almost unnecessary, but I’ll wait for the game to be finished before drawing any conclusions.
Beyond Good and Evil 2 still lacks a release date, but it’s likely that we’ll get an updated look at it during E3 2019.
THE OUTER WORLDS
Fallout without being Fallout. That could describe The Outer Worlds, the new game from the original creators of the Fallout series. It looks deliciously zany and picturesque, almost like a match made in heaven between Bioshock Infinite and Borderlands.
Obsidian is known for its amazing storytelling abilities and The Outer Worlds will hopefully prove that once again. As for the rest, this is an RPG with dialogue trees, narrative choices aplenty and, I’m willing to bet, an unhealthy dose of bugs. That is the other thing that Obsidian is also famed for.
The Outer Worlds releases in August 2019 and who knows if it won’t turn into a franchise to rival Fallout.
STARFIELD
Speaking of Fallout – let’s not mention the abomination that was Fallout 76 –, it’s highly unlikely that Bethesda will reveal anything about The Elder Scrolls 6 during this E3 2019. On the other hand, it has another RPG in the making that we know nothing about apart from a few leaks.
Starfield is a sci-fi RPG that many players are inevitably calling Skyrim in space, or comparing to Mass Effect. It’s not hard to see why, since EA’s franchise has all the natural ingredients for an amazing space epic. Leaks mention a few planets to visit, a weapons modification system, a stronger focus on role-playing aspects when compared to Fallout 4, and a crew management system.
Many doubts remain, however. Will Starfield focus on space travel and exploration such as No Man’s Sky and Star Citizen, or will it be more grounded, leaving spaceships as an afterthought?
But the biggest question is if Bethesda will even mention it during E3 2019. I don’t see it happening, but I surely wouldn’t mind it.
DOOM ETERNAL
One game that Bethesda will be showing for sure is Doom Eternal. The sequel to the 2016 reboot, Doom Eternal will ramp up the gore and once again pit the Doom Slayer against the forces of hell… on earth. Combat should feel as fast-paced and aggressive as ever, with more weapons, kicking demons in the face and blasting your way through some impressive creatures.
A new iteration of the id Tech engine is being used, and while I only trust Bethesda’s statements as far as I can throw them, I’m curious to see how Doom Eternal will feature “ten times the geometric detail and texture fidelity” of id Tech 6. The game surely looks the part and E3 2019 will be a great time to reveal the release date.
HALO INFINITE
Despite not being the groundbreaking shooter that it once was in the masterful hands of Bungie, the Halo series is still going strong, with critical and commercial acclaim. Microsoft is hoping that Halo Infinite, the third chapter into the Reclaimer saga, becomes another success for the Xbox One… and PC. Halo Infinite is being treated as a spiritual reboot and focuses on the Master Chief's story.
There is no question whatsoever that Microsoft will take advantage of the E3 2019 to make a big Halo Infinite reveal. Besides, with Sony choosing to forfeit the trade show for the first time ever, something like that can be used to drive more attention to potential blockbusters such as Halo Infinite.
GEARS 5
The Gears of War series is mostly comprised of hits, although Judgment felt like a redundant chapter in an otherwise brilliant franchise. 2019 is likely to see the release of Gears 5, another muscular third-person shooter developed by The Coalition, the same team responsible for the previous Gears of War 4.
While I don’t expect any groundbreaking changes to the successful cover and shooting gameplay, I’m curious to find out how main character Kait Diaz will unravel her origins and further details on the Locust story.
FINAL THOUGHTS
It goes without saying that I could add another ten or twenty games to this list. However, I’ll just mention a few others that I want to learn more about and that hopefully will make an appearance at the show.
The Square Enix’s Avengers Project remains a mystery for a few years now. Another year goes by without any sort of news or gameplay reveals, one more movie passes by and a great marketing opportunity is lost, and so on and so forth. Unless we are in for a surprise announcement, this game could be on its way to development hell.
BioWare needs a hit to return to its former glory. Dragon Age 4 may be that game, but it is already going through a troublesome development, with a reboot to make the game more “live service” friendly and based on Anthem’s code. That doesn’t sound good, does it? It’s highly unlikely that BioWare has anything to show us this year.
It’s about time that Square Enix makes a full Final Fantasy VII Remake reveal. Look at how long it took Capcom to announce and release the Resident Evil 2 remake, and now compare it to this one. It’s bonkers, right? The E3 2019 is the perfect stage for a full gameplay reveal, and I’m counting on it.
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