E3 2017 Top Announcements

E3 is back once again, and we get the usual press conferences from the big developers: EA, Bethesda, Microsoft, Ubisoft, Sony, and Nintendo. One key difference this year, was the opportunity for the public to enter the convention. Tickets were pricy, but the chance to see the new titles, tech, and upcoming news live was a treat. In the past E3 had been restricted to the media, and those involved in the gaming industry. Hopefully, E3 can stay public for next year.

EA

• Star Wars Battlefront II. Bigger and better than the first game, with more focus to the multiplayer elements, and with free DLC.

• Need For Speed: Payback. Looking similar to a Burnout game with really impressive visuals.

• map expansions to Battlefield 1.

• New Fifa and Madden games, both having story modes with good narratives.

Bethesda

• Doom and Fallout 4 has VR. Doom is going to be for PSVR and HTC Vive, while as of now Fallout will be for Vive and can be played through its entirety. 

• Dishonored gets a new chapter added to the game.

• The Evil Within 2 is finally announced, with Sebastian Castellanos in search of his daughter a surreal nightmare.

Microsoft

• Forza 7 has 700 cars, and runs at 60fps in 4K resolution. The racing game looks and plays impressively.

• Assassin's Creed Origins focuses in Egypt and includes RPG elements, along with the traditional combat of past games.

• Original Xbox games are coming to Xbox One through backwards compatibility. 

• Project Scorpio is now Xbox One X, offering more graphical power than PS4 Pro with native 4K. However the price is set for $499.

Ubisoft

• Beyond Good and Evil 2 is announced as a prequel to the classic game from 2003.

• The Crew 2 lets you race more than cars. From the trailer, you could race on bikes, planes, and even boats. While boasting in lifelike physics, the game's focus is racing as anything. 

• Far Cry 5, the popular open-world shooter from Ubisoft becomes more enticing with the story of the Resistance facing a murderous religious group. It also includes co-op and map editor.

• Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle combines the characters of Mario and the Rabbids in a tactical RPG game. Very strange, but interesting to both fans of the series.

Sony

• Detroit: Become Human, the interactive story game, shows more of riots between Androids and Human.

• The original Shadow of the Colossus is getting a PS4 remake. The gameplay and visuals look ever so amazing.

• Insomniac's new Spider-Man game shows more of the web-slinger and features an original story and possibly have Miles Morales as the new Spider-Man.

• God of War Reboot which shows more of Kratos with his son, Atreus, in more of a Norse mythology setting.

Nintendo

• Super Mario Odyssey features a sandbox style gameplay that has Mario in many different locations. Gameplay has a lot of variety and even his hat is its own character. 

• Metroid Prime 4 is announced and in development.

• Game Freak is making a proper Pokémon game, going back to the familiar RPG style.

• Rocket League is coming to the Switch, with some Nintendo-themed content, and is going to feature cross network play.

Like last year, E3's reveals were good, but not amazing. While there were some quirky moments for the press conferences, it felt about the same as before. Nonetheless, there are some good games, coming along the way this year and early 2018. Also, the introduction of having public access to E3 may open the door to more opportunities. There could be changes for future E3.

PlayStation VR

I had gotten my PlayStation VR headset over the holiday break and I must say, I'm surprised. Sony's new attempt to cater gamers to an immersive experience is unique.

The first thing to note, the headset is $400 by itself. The price is pretty steep however, that's only the headset. You'll also need to get a PS camera, which could be another $50. Plus any additional games. There is a bundle that comes with the headset, along with the camera and two Move controllers, as well as a copy of PS VR Worlds all for $500. Either way, you'll be spending a lot of money.

Design wise, the headset is simplistic and looks durable. However, the same can't be said with all the wires needed to connect the device to the PS4. There're at least 4 different wires all needed to connect to either the PS4, the TV, or a separate processing unit, which means you need to have a good amount of space to fit all of the hardware.

After spending roughly an hour messing with wires and setting everything up, I finally got to try the headset. From first impression it felt nice. The padding on the head strap helped support my head, and didn't cause any pain or headaches. There are side panels to block  out outside view and light. Also the area for your nose has a thin layer of padding. Overall the headset was comfortable and was not heavy what-so-ever.

I tired a few demos from the demo disc that came with my headset, and some worked pretty well and impressive. Although, slightly bummed from the short length of each demo only lasting a few minutes. Out of the demos I tried the ones that really stood out for me were: Kitchen, Drive Club VR, and Until Dawn: Rush of Blood.

I also took the time to download Job Simulator, a VR experience of having to work at different types of jobs. The game was funny and pretty immersive, however what threw me off at times were the Move controllers not responding to the action I'm trying to perform.

The latest game I playing with the VR is Resident Evil 7 Biohazard. This, unlike all other games I've tried, is a full game experience that lasts for hours. Being in first-person really adds more to the immersion as this game relies on survival horror. The atmosphere makes this game on the VR kind of terrifying to play. So far this game is one of my favorites.

Overall, my experience with PS VR is mostly positive. I like the way how to PS VR headset feels and responds. I also love the immersive experience you get with different games. There are a few things however, that do hinder my enjoyment at times. Using the PS Move controllers in some games is a hit-or-miss. sometimes the controllers along with the headset, and sometimes you're going to be fighting with the controls. If Sony could release an updated version of the Move controllers that improves on the tracking, that could easily solve this issue. The other issue is that most games now are somewhat expensive and offer so little. most games I've seen go anywhere from $20-$60, and may only have 2-4 hours worth of content. RE7 was one of the few exceptions as I spent about 8-10 hours with VR on the game.

For PS VR I would give this a score of a 7 / 10. While the PS VR gives a new experience to gamers, you'll have to be cautious on the price for these headsets and any additional accessories, as well as the fact that most games feel more like glorified demos that are high of price, but low on content. I would say wait for a price drop on the headset. By the time the prices go down, there should be more games that can offer a lot more than what we have now. The PS VR headset is not bad by any means, but you should also consider the expenses.