My E3 2014 Highlights

As a lifelong gamer of course I've been very excited for this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo. Not that in Germany we wouldn't have our own giant game show called GamesCom but all the relevant stuff and the biggest news are announced at E3, so that's the one show to watch as a gamer. So, given the time gap I watched the Microsoft and Electronic Arts press conferences live and catched up on Sony and Ubisoft today. This post is just to highlight the games that excited me most.

But of course some words have to spoken about the big companies' performances. Generally speaking I really liked Microsoft's approach this year a lot. Right in the beginning they said they'd focus on games and damn, they did. They showed close to forty games and even while there hasn't been that big must play title it was all in all a good press conference (a thousand times better than what Don Mattrick delivered yesteryear, I'm so happy he's gone). EA won me with their short update on the Mass Effect series and Dragon Age Inquisition also looked nice. Ubisoft had two games that I liked, Far Cry 4 and Assassin's Creed Unity. Also Valiant Hearts, a 2D sidescroller playing in World War I, is somehow unique. Sony's press conference I liked a lot. Far Cry 4 had an impressive gameplay but I was really surprised by two things: No Man's Sky, a SciFi-indie-space-exploration game, and the reveal that GTA V will come to next gen and PC later this year (nothing's sure Red Dead Redemption never made it to PC). And Batman: Arkham Knight, of course. So all in all a very nice E3 so far. No big surprises, but lots of games to look forward, too. Let's see what Nintendo has to announce later today, even though this admittedly doesn't interest me that much. Not sure who has "won" and who "lost" just yet.

In any case, here are my personal favorites of this year's E3 (in alphabetical order):


Assassin's Creed: Unity





Assassin's Creed is mostly a quality series. I still haven't made it into ACIII yet (lagging back due to real life), but this one looks far better than this pirate bullshit from last year.

Batman: Arkham Knight



I love Batman and avidly played Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. This gameplay here looks just incredible! Should become a real must play title.

Dead Island 2



I'm not really interested in this game, but the trailer is hilarious.

Dragon Age: Inquisition







This could be a cool fantasy RPG. Graphic is stunning here.

Far Cry 4





Really hot gameplay, very well done, Ubisoft!

Inside



I didn't play Limbo who knows if I will play this one, but I like it's 1984-ish feeling.

Lifeless Planet



Exploring in a space suite!

Mass Effect 4



I'm happy to know that Bioware is working on the next title in one of my favorite gaming series of all time!


No Man's Sky



This has been a real surprise as it is an indie title. I just like what this game is offering. To seamlessly travel from space into the atmosphere of any planet, just wow!

Ori and the Blind Forest



I found this 2D sidescroller a welcome change during the E3 press conference.

The Witcher III: Wild Hunt



The Witcher III: WRPG's highest hope. I'll try to get into all games (the second at least) and the books before playing this one, so it can very well take a long while.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End



The finisher of Sony's press conference. The game's title teases the death of Nathan Drake? Really?

Valiant Hearts



A story driven sidescroller about the First World War? Interesting for sure!