The 2014 E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo came to close yesterday with Sony’s press conference, as they came out swinging to best Microsoft at every opportunity. Sony brought the excitement with a bunch of new game announcements, their plans for several upcoming remastered games, new services they’re planning for PSN users (some even free) and even new hardware.
What immediately caught my eye outside of all the impressive game play during the press conference was the announcement from Sony for a new service called PlayStation Now, which will act as a destination to rent or purchase older games from previous console generations that might not already be available on PSN in digital form. Putting an emphasis on social activity, Sony also announced that the PS4 would be the first console to allow live streaming and will also allow people to watch your games online now too, even going so far as to allow spectators to chime in during the real-time game play.
PS4 is also adding YouTube in the future which will allow players to record any moment from their gaming session and upload it directly to their YouTube account with just the press of a button on their DualShock 3 controller.
Gaming peripherals like the PlayStation camera were also discussed at the media briefing, as well as the much talked about virtual reality headset, Project Morpheus, which had a few quick mentions but no real information was given except that it will be available to check out on the show floor during E3 2014 this week.
Also introduced was a device called PlayStation TV, which will act very much like a streaming media box for PlayStation content (akin to a Roku). PS4 users can hook up the device to a secondary TV and wirelessly access their system and games from anywhere inside their homes. Coming to North America for the first time, PlayStation TV will also ship will over 1,000 games from the PlayStation Now library as well as additional PS1, PSP and Vita classics made available. In addition, the PlayStation Now service will become available on newer Sony model televisions where no console will even be required. All you need is a controller to plug directly into your Sony TV and your set. Just crazy.
Sony also revealed their plans for three upcoming remasters that should get gaming fans out there all kinds of giddy. First, PS3 and PS4 users can get ready for a remastered version of Tim Schafer’s 1998 PC game, Grim Fandango. Next, 2013’s The Last of Us is getting the next-gen treatment and will be made available July 29, 2014. Grand Theft Auto 5 will also be getting remastered for next-generation consoles, while allowing users to port their game over from their previous generation console. Sony also upped the ante by revealing that not only can PS3 users transfer their character and progress over to PS4, but so can Xbox 360 users. Kind of a ballsy move- well played, Sony.
Now, let’s take a look at the games which were featured during the PlayStation 2104 E3 media briefing:
Destiny: Sony started things off by showing a trailer for Destiny, a sci-fi action shooter that takes place in a world where humans have colonized and populated other planets throughout the solar system. The trailer gave off sort of a high-brow, elevated vibe with a lot of talk about “bettering the world” but there were a lot of great, realistic graphics to take in and Destiny looks to be like a lot of fun for sci-fi fans who love battling alien races in a futuristic setting.
The Order: 1886: Holy crap, does The Order: 1886 look super cool. The demo had a fun, old-timey vibe to it where it looks like players will be working within an alternate history universe akin to the Assassin’s Creed games. What we were shown at the presentation for The Order: 1886 involved a mysterious man who stumbles upon a creature of some sort inside a rundown building. The creature first appears to be zombie-like in nature but then quickly morphed into something more lycanthrope-esque and the chase was on from there. We didn’t get too many details from what we saw from The Order: 1886 today to know too many specifics about the game but either way, it looks like it’s going to be a badass monster hunting game that I can’t wait to play.
Far Cry 4: While the first five minutes may have debuted during Ubisoft press briefing earlier in the day, we got a much more in-depth look at the actual game play footage for the highly anticipated Far Cry 4. During the demo, we got a taste of what Far Cry 4 has in store for players including an evil mastermind who utilizes weaponized animals, the ability to grapple your way through a leafy jungle as you prepare to infiltrate a nefarious compound as well as environments that look ripe for destruction. Everything about Far Cry 4 reeks of over-the-top action movie-esque awesomeness and you can get it in your hands on November 18, 2014.
Something else worth noting is that a special feature that’s being made available for Far Cry 4 is that PSN players can invite their friends through the network to play the game with them, even if they don’t own the game.
Dead Island 2: For Dead Island 2, we were treated to a fun trailer that follows a jogging enthusiast on the Venice Boardwalk who clearly has just suffered zombie bite but isn’t ready to let that cut into his workout time as he pushes on, bite be damned. And as he jogs onward, more and more zombie-related chaos is revealed, which should no doubt make all the Dead Island fans happy. While it didn’t show off any actual game play footage, what we saw for Dead Island 2 was a lot of fun and has me wondering if the game moves to California for this next installment.
Battlefield: Hardline: Traditionally a modern combat game, this new Battlefield game takes things in a different direction by focusing on stories about the police and the criminals they’re pursuing. It appears that you can play as either cops or robbers in Battlefield: Hardline which is another fun feature that mixes things up a bit.
No Man’s Sky: Another super impressive-looking game, No Man’s Sky is an infinite universe sci-fi/adventure game that allows players to start off on their own planet so that no two players will have the same gaming experience whatsoever. The demo showed off how you will travel between the different worlds via space ship and the hyper-colored visuals really gave off a fun vibe. No Man’s Sky will be making its console debut on PS4 although an exact release date was not revealed. Based on what was shown, No Man’s Sky looks like a game you could have endless fun with.
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain: As a fan of the Metal Gear Solid franchise, the very first thing I noticed about The Phantom Pain is that the story seems to take place sometime between the events of Metal Gear Solid 3 and 4 based on the age of Snake from the demo presentation. There was also a bit of a retro vibe to what we saw from Metal Gear Solid 5 as it looks like this game gets back to the roots of the series (including a few returning characters) that’s made it so popular over the years.
Arkham Knight: Another highly anticipated game of 2015 already has to be Arkham Knight and from what we saw of it at the PlayStation media briefing, it should to live up to the hype when it finally hits shelves next year. Everything about Arkham Knight looks amazing, almost like a glossier version of the previous Arkham games and it was revealed at the PlayStation presentation that there would be a Scarecrow Nightmare Mode that was exclusive only to those who will play the game on PS4.
Uncharted 4: A Thieves End: PlayStation of course saved one of their biggest reveals for last with a teaser for the upcoming Uncharted 4: A Thieves End which will be coming out some time in 2015. Uncharted 4 also marks the first time that the series will be coming to next-gen consoles as well. The teaser was brief but showed us an exchange between Drake and Sully after a mission goes awry and Drake is now forced to handle things on his own. The graphics were stunning and for Uncharted fans, A Thieves End looks like another home-run from Naughty Dog.
Other games showcased during the Sony PlayStation media briefing -which clocked in at almost two hours long- included Mortal Kombat X, Powers, Blood Borne and there was also an announcement made about an upcoming Ratchet & Clank movie that’s being released in 2015.
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