The annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is nearly upon us, and with it comes an onslaught of eagerly anticipated games and hardware. First started in 1995, E3 is to video games what the Cannes Film Festival is to movies: a great place to preview upcoming blockbusters, indie sleepers, and surprise hits. A change of format from “come one, come all” to “invitation only” nearly ruined the long-running industry convention, but E3 is back with a vengeance and conventioneers are all the happier for it.
While most of the games being shown at E3 2012 have already been previewed on many websites and have released enough screen shots to make Google image search wheeze like a Biggest Loser contestant, it never hurts to have one last sneak peek at the products soon to be reducing work productivity and splitting up couples around the world. Without further ado, here is Yell! Magazine’s look at the games being shown at E3 2012 – we can’t wait to get our grabby hands on them.
Tomb Raider
Square Enix
Buxom archeologist Lara Croft went from a polygonal industry phenomenon with triangular boobs in the mid-’90s to industry laughing stock in record time. Broken games, rehashed gameplay and nonsensical plots seemed to promise that the next tomb Lara explored might be her own. Luckily, gamers were treated to a rebooted, younger, harder-edged Lara in a fondly looked-upon E3 2011 trailer.
Featuring cutting-edge graphics, a story leaning more toward survival than Indiana Jones-style heroics, Tomb Raider is set for a more expansive unveiling at E3 2012. Little is known about what gameplay mechanics the title will employ, but quick peeks hint at careful preservation of light sources via torches, exploration mechanics similar to those found in the Uncharted franchise and Lara fighting more against a hostile environment than human opponents.
Will Lara live to raid again? Or does this archeologist belong in a museum?
Developer Crystal Dynamics is about to embark on its fifth(!) attempt to bring Lara Croft back to relevance, we wish them luck!
Assassin’s Creed III
Ubisoft
As often praised as it is mocked, the Assassin’s Creed franchise is an odd duck. There’s a section of gamers enthralled by its gameplay, setting(s), and convoluted century-spanning storyline. Others, of which I must include myself, really don’t get what the big deal is. Either way, get ready to throw another log on the argument fire because Assassin’s Creed III is one of the biggest attractions at E3 2012.
Consisting of the biggest leap forward in the series’ continuity, the story jumps forward in time to the American Revolution, spanning the years 1753 to 1783.
Free-style running takes an innovative turn as new protagonist Connor Kenway uses snowy forests instead of crowded city streets as his playground, and gamers should expect guns to introduce a major shift in how combat works. Oh, and I’m sure the game will constantly takes breaks to bore us to tears with the modern day perils of good old Desmond Miles. Hope they have Kleenex at E3 2012.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
Konami
Oh look, it’s the ghost of E3′s past! Officially first announced at E3 2009, the latest entry in Hideo Kojima’s ever-popular is one bi-polar game. Intended as a spin-off for series costar Raiden (aka, not Snake, never Snake, not as cool as Snake, mop-topped pretender to Snake’s throne… I could go on.) the game was almost cancelled because of difficulties in making the title’s ground-breaking gameplay mechanics work. An instant favorite with the crowds at E3 2010, a trailer showcased innovative sword-swinging gameplayand over-the-top action sequences.
Apparently ditching the franchise’s penchant for sneaking around battlefields, Revengeance opts for a more God Of War-style mechanic to slicing and dicing foes with sharp implements. However, Kojima has stressed on several occasions that the game hasn’t completely abandoned stealth, focusing instead on a more “hunting stealth” approach rather than lying in wait for opponents to walk by. Still, considering the disgusted fan reaction to Raiden’s initial introducing in Metal Gear Solid 2, it remains to be seen if the blond fop can carry a title on his own. Those at E3 2012 will know first.
The real question is… DOES SNAKE MAKE A CAMEO!?
Borderlands 2
2K Games
Guns! More guns! Tons of guns! No other game in my over 25 years of video gaming as tickled my inner lootaholic more than the original Borderlands. Featuring an infinite diversity of guns presented in infinite combinations, Borderlands’ armory was a veritable box of chocolates: you never knew what you were going to get.
Borderlands 2 was first unleashed upon the world at Gamescom 2011. Since then, character videos for each of the title’s classes have been unveiled, but it’s at E3 2012 that the game will have its most massive presentation yet. Developer Gearbox Software promises more of the unique brand of humor that made its forebear so beloved and, lest we forget, tons of guns! Judging from videos released thus far, the designers have truly tasked themselves with making each firearm as unique as possible with different reload and idle animations, elemental effects, rotating and segmenting parts, and a whole lot more. If there’s one title in 2012 likely to take me away from my obsessive Diablo III item hording, Borderlands 2 is most definitely it.
