Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of The Anim…. er The Video Game Pulse! I’m taking a break from Anime this week to offer up my collective thoughts on this year’s E3 convention. While I love anime to death, I am a gamer at my core and even hold a Bachelor of Arts in Game Design as proof of my versatility.
But enough about fluffing my own self worth… let’s get down to the E3 Expo! Now… before I being.. I’m only going to be going over the things that impressed me and I will be offering up my opinions said impressive sparkly things. Covering EVERYTHING would be a Herculean task at this stage and plus, we have plenty of news stories, opinion pieces, and a podcast that takes care of all of that.
So…
Microsoft
I simply laughed when people started screaming about Microsoft winning E3 and how their backwards compatibility was the nail in Sony’s coffin and that Sony couldn’t even compete. Oh if they only knew what was coming… but it doesn’t mean Microsoft didn’t impress with their conference.
First off, that aforementioned Backwards Compatibility. First off… it’s only 360 games and not all of them. Individual developers have to flip a switch and enable it on their end and Microsoft will take of the rest. This means that developers still own the rights to charge you if they want you playing games you already own just for the sake of skipping the hassle of plugging your 360 back into the television. At least, all first party stuff will be there for you to play, though, so that’s kind of nice. I do wish that it went back to the original Xbox as there still some awesome titles on there like the original Ninja Gaiden, that I would love to play again. It truly is a step in the right direction for some people, but not for me because I don’t own an Xbox One due to financial reasons, but I do own an Xbox 360 which is hooked up and I’m not even playing it because there’s nothing that I have that makes me want to play it. So what good is backwards compatibility to me when I, technically, already have it and am not doing anything with it? But if this news gets your jollies off, then more power to you… it does nothing for me.
Minecraft is a game I just never got into and I don’t really care to get into, but seeing it as a demo for how Hololens works just made me want Hololens even more. Also, a note to you people who are saying Hololens will kill Project Morpheus... I hate to disappoint you, but Hololens is AUGMENTED reality. Project Morpheus is VIRTUAL reality. There’s a huge difference there. If anything, Hololens is competing with Google Glass in the AR world. I would like to own a Holoens.. especially when Windows 10 launches and you can basically Minority Report your desktop anywhere, anytime. So when someone walks in the house and sees you with a visor on, twitching like you’re having a seizure, they will either call 911 or they’ll realize you’re just navigating through your favorite apps.
Gears of War 4 was announced and it’s bitter-sweet for me. On one hand, I love the Gears of War franchise and I played the hell out of the first three games. On the other hand, there’s no Cliffy B behind this game and it’s taking place after the trilogy has ended. That’s right.. Gears of War was supposed to be a trilogy.. aka.. three games.. just like another series that goes by the name of Halo, but just like Halo, the original developer is no longer involved with the game and Microsoft, a profit hunger American corporation that thrives in a capitalist environment, squeezed the stone and found not blood, but rather, sweet milky honey that smelled like money and decided to continue the franchise. As much as I hate to see games get extended past their original intended scope, I’m probably going to buy it, I’m probably going to play it, and I’m probably going to love it. Such is life, I suppose.
Also on a quick note… that Elite controller looks like complete and total overkill. If you need THAT much customization in a way you play a game, something is wrong with you. I know, I know.. MLG and E-Sports, and all that noise, but if you need different thumb pads and programmable grips and crap in order to be good at a game, then I kind of feel sorry for you. Sorry, but that’s my opinion.
Sony
Sony seemed doomed from the start. Microsoft dropped some bombs and it looked like Sony was about to get buried at E3, but then something happened. Something that stuck a buster sword right through the Xbox One.
FINAL
FANTASY
VII
REMAKE
Yes… an announcement so epic that it deserves eight lines of space in my column. Eighteen years ago, Squaresoft… yes… that’s what they were called before they merged with Enix if you’re too young to even known about that.. dropped Final Fantasy VII on the world for the original PlayStation. It was the first Final Fantasy game that took place in a 3D environment. It was the first final fantasy to have CGI cutscenes. (Final Fantasy V and VI had them, but only after they were re-released on PSOne.. and they were re-released after VII). It also boasted one of the best stories in Final Fantasy history and gave birth to one of the most iconic and legendary antagonists in all of gaming history: Sephiroth.
Then Sony and Squaresoft made a massive mistake. Nine years ago at the 2006 edition of E3, Sony unveiled the PlayStation 3 console which was to launch in 2007. Square completely redid the opening scene from Final Fantasy VII as a Technical Demo to show off the power of the PS3 hardware. Square had no intention of remaking the game, but when people saw the tech demo, needless to say, everyone lost their minds. Final Fantasy VII was already a smash hit and one of the most popular Final Fantasy games of all time. Square thought it would be cute to use that popularity to help promote the PS3’s capabilities. Oh… the Pandora’s Box they opened by doing so.
For nine years… fans have unrelentingly asked, questioned, pleaded, and begged Sqaure to remake FF7 for the PS3. Then the PlayStation 4 came out and still, not a word from Square, but then one day Square FINALLY gave an answer. They said that they would remake Final Fantasy VII IF and WHEN their current Final Fantasy games proved to be as successful as VII was. Mind you, this was when Final Fantasy XIII-2 was coming out and that series wasn’t exactly doing Square any favors. We took that answer as the final nail in the coffin of our wishes because we knew the current Final Fantasy games are, quite simply, complete garbage compared to the epic behemoths like VII, XI, IV, and VI.
Then E3 2015 happened. The trailer played. “At long last, the promise has been made.” Final Fantasy VII REMAKE is being made for Playstation 4. We laughed. We cried manly tears of manliness. Some were sexually aroused, oddly, but in the end… Square listened and Square will deliver it unto us.
Thank you Square.
Thank you from the bottom of our collective hearts.
Oh and there was Shenmue III some Project Morpheus, Uncharted 4, and some other hooha that no one cared about because FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE!!!!
Yeah.. if you’re not a Final Fantasy fan, sorry for wasting your time.
Muppetendo
They stepped into E3 and was like… YO. STARFOX ZERO and once again the internet lost their collective minds. We got a true successor to Starfox 64. It has flight missions, it has the Land Rover/Hover Tank, it has new vehicles and you can play all the missions using different vehicles for a different experience each time. That is AMAZING.
Too bad I don’t own a Wii U and cannot currently afford one. That game will have to go on my wish list right next to Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze, Mario Kart 8, Super Mario 3D World, Legend of Zelda Wii U, Bayonetta 2, Super Smash Bros Wii U, Xenoblade Chronicles, X, and Jeopardy.
Yes, I said Jeopardy.
What?
I LIKE JEOPARDY. GET OFF ME, BRO!
The new Zelda game for 3DS, Triforce Heroes, reminds me of the Four Swords Adventure game they gave away free on the 3DS not that long ago. I wasn’t a fan of that game so I might be skipping this one.
Outside of that.. I can’t really say I was impressed by anything Nintendo put out there. I get their whole target demographic and whatnot, but they just didn’t really announce anything that blew me away outside of Starfox.
Square-Enix
Wow…
Just Cause 3…. Mic Drop
Sequel to Nier… Mic Drop
Replay the FF 7 Remake Trailer… Mic Drop
KINGDOM HEARTS III… BOMB DROP
New RPG IP: Project SETSUNA… Mic Drop
Moonwalk out of the convention with Epic Sax Guy blaring over the speakers.
That’s all I have to say about that.
PC Gaming
This is the first time in E3 history that they’ve had a conference dedicated just to PC Gaming and after I saw the entire 2 1/2 hour conference, I sincerely hope it will be the last time we see a PC Gaming conference. Oh…. my… GOD… was that completely terrible.
So we got Killer Instinct coming to Windows 10 with cross platform play with the Xbox One. Okay, cool. No Man’s Sky (which was REALLY impressive in the Sony conference), will be simultaneously released on Playstation 4 and Windows 10. That made people excited.
And then AMD showed off some video cards and the rest was severely forgettable except for Enter the Gungeon. Oh GOD I want that game.
Who was that guy who couldn’t stop twitching and had that really long awkward pause? It’s like someone pulled the plug out of his back and didn’t realize it until it was too late. That one dude summed up my entire feelings on the PC Gaming conference. Never again… FOR THE LOVE OF GOD… NEVER… AGAIN.
Overall, E3 had some amazing moments and it had some pretty bad ones. I liked what I saw and I cry that I can’t afford any of it.
If anyone would like to donate $5000 to me to help put a microscopic scratch in my debt which would also allow me to enjoy some of these upcoming releases and consoles, I would greatly appreciate it, but in reality, I’m not holding my breath. One day I’ll get there.. one day.
With that being said, I’ll be back with more anime stuffs for you guys next week so be sure to keep it tuned in for that. The Spring season is almost over so I will have reviews afoot for you all as well. Drop me a line if you choose to do at joshpiedra@theouterhaven.net. Also follow me on the Twitters if you feel it with the lower chambers of your heart @PulseIn
Until next time…
Ja ne!
