Wishful Thinking? Let's Talk About These E3 Rumours...
by Gary Alexander Stott
E3 is less than a month away, and excitement is fast building – as it should be. Soon, the gaming community will be treated to its own kind of special holiday as the future of videogames is revealed.
Naturally, E3 tends to be preceded by a host of rumours – some believable, others utterly absurd. This year is no different.
At this point, though, one thing seems almost certain: E3 2014 will have a heavy focus on new next-gen games as Sony and Microsoft make their stand against the current drought. Consequently, most of this year's rumours are concerned with sequels, reboots, and new IPs. But just how likely are these rumours?
Let's get started...
Naturally, E3 tends to be preceded by a host of rumours – some believable, others utterly absurd. This year is no different.
At this point, though, one thing seems almost certain: E3 2014 will have a heavy focus on new next-gen games as Sony and Microsoft make their stand against the current drought. Consequently, most of this year's rumours are concerned with sequels, reboots, and new IPs. But just how likely are these rumours?
Let's get started...
Sony
|
Of all the rumours currently circulating on the Internet, the majority seem to be related to Sony's conference. Here are some of the more interesting ones.
Uncharted 4 The Rumour: Uncharted 4 is to be given a three-minute trailer demonstrating graphics that set a new benchmark for console gaming. The Likelihood: Very likely. A new Uncharted game was announced at last year's E3, so it makes perfect sense to follow up on the reveal. Naughty Dog are renowned for their ability to produce rich visuals, and if Sony wanted to tease something truly next-gen, a new Uncharted game would rank pretty high on their list. |
|
God of War 4 The Rumour: Sony Santa Monica will showcase a CG trailer for the next God of War game. The Likelihood: It's certainly possible. God of War is one of Sony's biggest franchises, and another big-hitter with regard to graphics. Furthermore, God of War 3 had a somewhat open ending – though where could the series really go after the destruction of Olympus? Perhaps we'll finally see the modern-day concept teased by the first game, back in 2005. |
|
Project Beast
The Rumour: A new entry in the Souls series, currently going by the working title 'Project Beast', will be announced as an exclusive for PS4.
The Likelihood: Likely. Sony own the Demon's Souls IP, and producing the first next-gen Souls game would give them a distinct advantage over Microsoft. Moreover, further research seems to indicate that most of the team behind the original Dark Souls were working on something else during the development of Dark Soul's II. Lastly, a set of screenshots connected to the project with a very Dark Souls vibe recently leaked.
The Rumour: A new entry in the Souls series, currently going by the working title 'Project Beast', will be announced as an exclusive for PS4.
The Likelihood: Likely. Sony own the Demon's Souls IP, and producing the first next-gen Souls game would give them a distinct advantage over Microsoft. Moreover, further research seems to indicate that most of the team behind the original Dark Souls were working on something else during the development of Dark Soul's II. Lastly, a set of screenshots connected to the project with a very Dark Souls vibe recently leaked.
|
The Last Guardian
The Rumour: The Last Guardian will finally resurface as a PS4 exclusive, bathed in the majesty of next-gen visuals. The Likelihood: This one really can't be called. It would be a major crowd-pleaser on Sony's part. However, we have to consider the fact that this game has been in development hell for quite some time, and so rumours are naturally going to circulate in the build-up to E3. |
Project Morpheus
The Rumour: Sony will dedicate a large portion of their conference to their new virtual reality headset, and Media Molecule will announce one of its first titles. The Likelihood: At this point, practically a given. As for Media Molecule, VR does seem like it would be up their (very creative) alley, and it would certainly account for the vagueness of their last on-stage presentation. |
New Exclusives
The Rumour: Guerilla Games, Sony London, Sony Japan, and Quantic Dream are set to reveal new titles. Furthermore, Sony have been spotted filing trademarks for 'Kill Strain', 'Entwined', 'Bloodborne' and 'Guns Up!', which seem to indicate pending announcements.
The Likelihood: Very. Sony still has a ton of studios working on unannounced projects, and we first heard about The Order: 1886 through a trademark trail. As to what these games are and which Sony platforms they'll land on, we'll have to wait and see.
The Rumour: Guerilla Games, Sony London, Sony Japan, and Quantic Dream are set to reveal new titles. Furthermore, Sony have been spotted filing trademarks for 'Kill Strain', 'Entwined', 'Bloodborne' and 'Guns Up!', which seem to indicate pending announcements.
The Likelihood: Very. Sony still has a ton of studios working on unannounced projects, and we first heard about The Order: 1886 through a trademark trail. As to what these games are and which Sony platforms they'll land on, we'll have to wait and see.
|
The Last of Us 2
The Rumour: Sony will close their presentation with a tease for The Last of Us 2. The Likelihood: High. It goes without saying that The Last of Us is one of Sony's biggest success stories, winning over 200 Game of the Year awards and being heralded as a huge step forward for gaming as a narrative medium. Bearing in mind the original game is currently being ported over to PS4 in an effort to pick up the stragglers who have yet to play it (and make lots of monies in the process), a sequel seems inevitable – say what you will about whether the game needs a sequel. This would be a powerful way for Sony to end their conference, and Microsoft would have a tough job topping it. |
All in all, most of the Sony rumours are actually quite believable!
Microsoft
|
As with the Sony rumours, Microsoft's conference has purportedly leaked ahead of schedule. Here are some of the more significant claims.
|
|
Halo 2: Anniversary Edition & Halo 5
The Rumour: 343 Industries will announce the long-rumoured Anniversary Edition of Halo 2, and Halo 5 will be dated. The Likelihood: Likely. Halo 2 was originally released back in 2004; this year's E3 conference will mark the 10-year anniversary of the game, and so the timing seems very convenient. A release date for Halo 5 is also believable following last year's announcement tease. |
Rare Reboots
The Rumour: Rare are to reveal reboots of Battletoads and Perfect Dark, the latter of which will be a third-person adventure game. The Likelihood: It's not unbelievable, and a third-person Perfect Dark would be the perfect way to rejuvenate the series (no pun intended). |
|
Ryse 2
The Rumour: Ryse 2 will get a gameplay trailer showcasing a medieval setting and a reworked combat system. The Likelihood: Very unlikely. Unless Crytek were developing Ryse 2 parallel to the first game, and somehow anticipated how critics would react to the combat system, they wouldn't have had nearly enough time to put any of this together. An announcement for Ryse 2 is possible, but anything more seems like wishful thinking. |
|
Crackdown 3
The Rumour: Crackdown 3 will be announced, together with a vague release date. The Likelihood: High. A major Microsoft IP that never got a third game, it would be the perfect rival for Sony's inFamous, and a potential system seller. |
Epic
The Rumour: Epic are set to unveil a great-looking game based on their 2012 Samaritan demo. The Likelihood: Possible. Epic haven't released anything new in a while, and a game based on the mysterious Samaritan demo would be sure to build interest. |
Lionhead
The Rumour: Lionhead will showcase gameplay from Fable: Legends, and end their presentation with a tease for their next title.
The Likelihood: Very likely. Gameplay footage doesn't sound too crazy, and the studio is also known to be working on a currently unannounced game.
The Rumour: Lionhead will showcase gameplay from Fable: Legends, and end their presentation with a tease for their next title.
The Likelihood: Very likely. Gameplay footage doesn't sound too crazy, and the studio is also known to be working on a currently unannounced game.
|
Gears of War
The Rumour: Black Tusk will show a CG trailer for the next Gears of War game. The Likelihood: Very likely. Microsoft bought the Gears IP back in January, which shows they have an interest in the future of the series. A new Gears of War game would almost certainly draw players to the Xbox One. Most of the Microsoft rumours also happen to be fairly grounded, though are sequels to long-lived franchises really what the Xbox One needs, or would new IPs be a better move? We'll see what Microsoft comes up with in June. |
|
Nintendo
With regard to Nintendo, there has only been one real rumour – though it's a big one.
|
New Hardware
The Rumour: Nintendo will unveil new hardware at E3 in an effort to make up for the Wii U's losses. The Likelihood: Very unlikely. If Nintendo were really going to make a big comeback, it would be on the stage. This will mark the second year Nintendo takes a more subtle approach through small events and digital announcements. The company has also stated that they will not be announcing any new hardware this year, which seems to crush all hopes of a new system. That's about it as far as Nintendo are concerned. Poor Ninty. Hopefully gamers will be talking about them more following their announcements this year. |
Third Party
Lastly, we still have the non-exclusive games that constitute most of our gaming diet.
|
Grand Theft Auto
The Rumour: One of the crazier rumours claimed that Rockstar would announce Grand Theft Auto VI. A more moderate rumour suggested GTA V would be confirmed for next-gen consoles and PC. A less adventurous rumour implied that story-based DLC would be revealed for GTA V. The Likelihood: With all these rumours flying around, it seems likely that there will at least be something Grand Theft Auto related at the event – though it won't be GTA VI. |
|
|
Fallout 4
The Rumour: Bethesda will finally reveal Fallout 4, which will be set in Boston. The Likelihood: Very. More and more rumours have been spreading about the next title in the franchise, and last year a leak seemed to confirm that the game would be set in the ruins of Boston. |
Assassin's Creed
The Rumour: Ubisoft will showcase Assassin's Creed: Unity and Assassin's Creed: Comet. The Likelihood: Pretty much certain. Ubisoft need something to show at their conference, and the Assassin's Creed series has a long history with E3. |
|
Mass Effect 4
The Rumour: We'll finally get to see Bioware's new Mass Effect game. The Likelihood: Very likely. They're known to be working on it, and have teased fans with brief glances of concept art in the past. This would be a great time to show something more substantial. |
There are a lot of major franchises set to reappear any day now, and E3 seems like the perfect event for them to do so.
And there we have it. Most of this year's pre-E3 rumours actually seem quite likely. There are a lot of possibilities for this year's event, and the newest generation of consoles are teeming with potential. Developers are sure to be aware of that; let's hope they start off the next generation of E3s with a bang.
We'll be watching...
And there we have it. Most of this year's pre-E3 rumours actually seem quite likely. There are a lot of possibilities for this year's event, and the newest generation of consoles are teeming with potential. Developers are sure to be aware of that; let's hope they start off the next generation of E3s with a bang.
We'll be watching...
