Tag: Gaming

E3 2019: Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Stream Impressions

I would not consider myself a die hard Star Wars fan, but I would consider myself a fan of Star Wars. I’ve watched most of the main Star Wars movies, played most of the Star Wars games and have read some Star Wars novels. So I would say that this game would be right up my alley.

I didn’t watch this stream live because I really didn’t want to disrupt my sleeping schedule just for E3 so it was one of the first streams I watched when I woke up. I am going to say the 15 minute or so gameplay footage they showed did not disappoint and if I did stay up to watch the stream I would have been okay with it overall. As the stream progressed I noted down some of the positive elements that stood out to me which include:

  • Single player action game only
    • This is good news to me (and probably other gamers out there too). Most of the Star Wars games that I have enjoyed playing have been single player only games such as Knights of the Old Republic, Jedi Outcast, etc.
  • “Thoughtful” combat
    • It was mentioned that the combat was designed in a thoughtful way and it showed. From the enemy variety and placement, choice of using your lightsaber and force powers; it really was designed to have you think while fighting the enemy with many ways to go about completing the encounter.
    • The transitions between using your lightsaber and force powers looked fluid and smooth. Actually the entire gameplay was fluid and smooth.
    • At times there were “cinematic” moments while you were in combat such as when you were in the process of finishing off an enemy. The camera would pan around slightly, now I don’t know if this was done using one of the analog sticks or part of the game however.
  • Buttery Smooth Movement
    • As smooth as the combat was, so was the traversing and movement around the environment.
    • You can tell that this game took inspiration from Titanfall in regard to the wall running, clambering and climbing; it was made by the same developers.

You have a companion droid which looks to provide you with health when you are low (limited supply and you need to prompt for it, leaving you vulnerable) and it can unlock paths, provide you with Star Wars lore, and generally help you out to progress to the next area. Being an action game I know the focus will be on the combat and moment to moment set pieces, but I also really do hope that there are some puzzles in the game to break up the pace a little. We did not get any further information about the skill points and how they will be used or spent other than they can be used for force abilities. I would have liked to see that; will it be a skill tree? Or will it just be a “pick an ability” option?

If I was to be fairly critical of the game I noticed that it did not look the best or something coming out late 2019. I don’t know if it was the stream, but I was watching it at 1080P at 60 fps and for a 2019 game, graphically I had seen better looking games. It did not look bad but I would have expected some of the models and textures to look a little better. Some of the fire and smoke effects were also not the best I have seen. Lighting, shadows and the foliage were generally okay however. Having this quality shown is far better than having something look amazing and then when the game is released have it significantly downgraded, so kudos to Respawn here on that.

Maybe it was just me but the facial animations at the beginning of the gameplay along with how the character’s face was sitting looked a little off too. Now it was nowhere near as bad as Mass Effect Andromeda’s facial animations but it just did not look right. Being focused as a Jedi story I knew going in that you will not be choosing a force side, ie. light or dark. I don’t know why Greg would ask them this question. As someone who prefers the force abilities on the dark side and generally plays a Sith or dark Jedi I am a little disappointed but it is not a deal breaker. Perhaps I can choose to wield some of the dark side force abilities?

Overall from what I have seen so far of the game it looks like it is going to do well. There will be more shown at the Microsoft E3 2019 event which will be great and I will have a blog post about that whole event separately. Being a single player only game and because I buy all my games digitally now, it will be a game that I buy when it is on sale for at least 40% off; I don’t see it having much replay value (I could be surprised). If you want to check out the official Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order stream then use this link (I have timestamped it so that you don’t have to wait for the actual stream to start). Enjoy 🙂

Bethesda Press Conference E3 2018 Impressions

E3 started off with a whimper. EA had a horrible showing, they probably should not have done a press event this year. In stark contrast, the next day press conferences, Microsoft and Bethesda, were fantastic and there are way too many games that I am interested in coming out in 2018 and 2019. My bank account is not going to like me and I probably won’t have time to play them all either unfortunately.

Bethesda showcased a number of games that I was interested in and also talked about games that I have little interest in playing. To quickly run down some of those games that I am not interested in:

  1. Elder Scrolls Legends: I really forgot that this game was even out. I don’t really play any of the digital card games that are available. I have occasionally played Hearthstone but never bought the expansions, and I have only played Gwent in the Witcher 3. Nothing will get me to play Legends unfortunately.
  2. Elder Scrolls Online: Here is another game where I never got into at the start and there have been a number of expansions released now. So jumping in right now I feel would be a little daunting. The only MMO games that I really do play are WoW and GW2. There is only so many MMOs out there that one person can play.
  3. Quake Champions: I do miss the days of hardcore arena shooters. Halo 5 Guardians is very close to this and scratches my arena shooter itch. I still remember the days playing Quake 3 Arena, but again Quake Champions I have little interest in playing. Plus I doubt the support in early access/beta (whatever they are calling it in its current state) will have servers in Australia and I don’t fancy playing an online arena shooter with at least 300 ms ping. Maybe when the game officially comes out and there are dedicated servers here in Australia I will pick it up.
  4. All the VR titles: I am not sold on VR for a number of reasons which I will not go into detail here, I much prefer AR and mixed reality. I don’t have a VR headset and I don’t plan on getting one anytime soon. So as cool as the VR titles Pete Hines talked about, I will not be playing them.
  5. All the mobile games: Fallout Shelter (now out on more platforms) and the new Elder Scrolls Blades are two mobile games which I don’t plan on playing. As was stated in my EA impressions post, my mobile is a tool so that I can be more productive. And if I do have a tablet, PC or console to play games on, a mobile game is not one that I would be playing unfortunately.

Now with all the items that really didn’t do anything for me, time to cover what did. And boy there was a number at this press conference. First off there was Rage 2. It was the title that started the press conference off and everything that they showed was great. Before I go into more detail about what I liked, I would just like to say that could we please not have any more musical numbers at E3. It was awkward to watch the live music but it appears that the fans watching live really seemed uninterested in what was playing. Other than that, my takeaways from Rage 2 were:

  • The game looks beautiful. From the landscape to the character and gun models. The explosions and fire also look really good.
  • The gameplay looks significantly different from the original game which I don’t know how to feel about. I really thought that id nailed the gunplay in the original, it just got a little too repetitive. This one looks like you have more options and various ways to neutralise the enemies which is always good, but it seems to play so different to the first.
  • The driving and driving combat also looks improved. Driving in the original game felt tact on, but this one feels like it is part of the experience exploring the large dystopian, post apocalyptic open world.
  • Overall it looks like it is going to be a fun game which is what I am after.

“If you can see it, you can drive it” – Rage 2

From one fast paced shooter to another. Doom Eternal. They should have just called this Doom 2. The remake of Doom was down right near perfect as first person shooters go. The story was minimal (that was fine for me, the original and sequel didn’t have much of a story either and I am not talking about Doom 3) but the gameplay was fast paced, brutal and extremely addicting. The CGI trailer they showed looked like Hell on Earth and the sound track matched it perfectly. To make a Doom sequel you need the following checked:

  1. Doom slayer more powerful than the previous game?
  2. More badass demons?
  3. Hell on Earth?

And all three of these were checked. We will have to wait until Quakecon in August to see more about the game, but this was a perfect tease.

Prey was a fantastic reboot. With free updates and new content coming it was a pleasure to hear this news. I look forward to playing Mooncrash with the near infinite replayability, and Typhon Hunter (which I feel is a derivative of Prop Hunt from Gmod). If there is one type of enemy that I enjoy killing more than the aliens, mutants, and monsters, it is the Nazi. Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus was another perfect sequel to a a near perfect FPS game. Wolfenstein Youngblood puts you in the shoes of BJ’s twin daughters and best of all you can play the game in co-op. Now you can kill Nazi scum with your best friend, as BJ’s twin daughters. The mayhem will continue on.

The real reason why most if not all the people tuned into the press conference was for Fallout 76. And boy did it not disappoint. I have to give it to Mr Howard, he is a true showman. He knows how to excite the crowd, make them laugh and keep them interested. The main points that I got from the reveal through the trailers and clips shown (I absolutely love those Vault Tec videos) are:

  • Prequel to the other Fallout games.
  • 4 times the size of Fallout 4 (hopefully 4x as detailed and populated, there is no point in having a larger world with less content).
  • Set in West Virginia with a number of distinct regions and home to creatures based on actual West Virginian folklore (great way to incorporate the history and location).
  • New lighting and rendering techniques making the world 16 times more detailed.
  • Completely online (some people are hesitant about this, but I have no real problem with it).
  • The game can be played solo but it is easier to group up with friends and tackle the wasteland together.
  •  There will be no server options and your characters will move with you whenever you play (I take it that it behaves very similar to DayZ where there is an official hive that allows character persistence no matter what official server you are on).
  • Building is now not limited to several locations and can be taken nearly anywhere with the new C.A.M.P. toolbox.
  • Scattered across the wasteland there are nuclear missile sites where the players once they have the necessary codes can activate the nuclear missile causing havoc on the environment where hit.
  •  Coming out October 27, 2018 (really did not see this coming).

“There is no ‘i’ in nuclear wasteland” – Fallout 76

Closing the event, two trailers for what appear to be next generation games were shown. Starfield a brand new IP from Bethesda. Interested and want to learn more. And The Elder Scrolls 6. Loved Oblivion and Skyrim, so another ES game that is not an MMO is always a lovely addition. Overall I think Bethesda done a fantastic job showcasing games that interested me and continued the solid performance after Microsoft’s press event.

You can see the Bethesda event here.

EA Play 2018 Press Conference Impressions

I woke up at 4am AEST to watch the EA Play 2018 Press Conference and then again before I left to watch UFC 225. During the second watching I wrote down some notes about what interested me, what got my attention and what I am looking forward to that is coming in 2018 and in 2019. Unfortunately there does not seem to be much on that list so this post may be a little small and light on content. Before I go into that list I am going to highlight games, etc. that were announced but I am not interested in playing or I felt the announcement did little to excite me:

  1. FIFA 19: I have not bought a FIFA game in a really long time. I have EA Access and am more than happy to wait for the title to come into The Vault.
  2. Star Wars: Battlefront 2: I enjoy the Star Wars games that get released but with the mess that was SWBF2 at launch, I stayed away from this title. No improvements made by DICE will get me to buy this game or play it anytime soon.
  3. Unravel Two: I never played Unravel and I am not really into platformer games. I can appreciate what the developers have done but it is just not up my alley.
  4. Sea of Solitude: Another title that did little to excite or interest me. I hope the developers find a market for their game though, and good luck to them in finding success.
  5. NBA Live 19: Basketball is not a sport that I follow so I completely ignored this title.
  6. Madden 19 and Young Kiv: NFL is one of the leagues I do watch as a New York Giants fan, but like the FIFA games I don’t buy them. Also the eSports personality of Young Kiv did not do anything but get me to say “who is this and why should I care”.
  7. Command and Conquer Rivals: What I would do for a C&C game that is for the PC. A mobile game is an automatic turn off. My smartphone is primarily a tool for me to be more productive and communicate with people, not play games.

With those items out of the way, the only remaining announcements are the ones that managed to interest me or were different enough that they got my attention.

Battlefield V

So there was barely anything revealed and talked about. More will be shown at the Microsoft Xbox E3 2018 Press Conference which is good. But my takeaways from what did get revealed and talked about which interest me were:

  1. Superior mobility (dive and smash through windows).
  2. Stationary turrets are now moveable.
  3.  Even more destruction. Could we be going back to the days of Bad Company 2? I hope so.
  4. Plenty of customization. From the guns to the tanks.
  5. No more loot boxes and no premium pass. Thank God. Nothing worse than fracturing the community and having people buy gameplay advancements.
  6. War Stories. Unfortunately will have to wait until the Microsoft Xbox E3 2018 Press Event to learn more about the first one.

Some elements that made me roll my eyes and say “really” include:

  1. Battlefield Battle Royale mode. Not every game needs to copy the success of Fortnight, even if they try to put their own spin on it.
  2. Again no proper in-game, live, actual footage from a real match. I don’t want to see in-engine footage trailers. I want to see how the game actually plays.

Cloud and Subscriptions

When Andrew Wilson (CEO of EA) came out I knew there would be some new business practices and plans revealed. A cloud streaming service from EA will be coming in the future and an early version of it is playable at the event. I don’t see this taking off anytime soon, especially if it uses EA servers but I can appreciate the technology behind it.

There was the mention of EA Origin Premier as well. I was really hoping that they would allow people who have EA Access and EA Origin Access to have a single subscription to play EA games on both Xbox and PC. But no, instead it is a way to play (it would seem) brand new EA published titles without purchasing the game through EA Origin Access, much like Xbox Game Pass and Microsoft published titles. I cannot see myself buying this subscription service however.

Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order

This got me interested because I generally like Star Wars games and I really enjoyed Titanfall. Vince Zampella teased a new Star Wars game set between Star Wars Episodes 3 and 4, where the Jedi are hunted. Unfortunately the game will be released in 2019, if it does not get delayed or pushed out. Not much else was said about the title.

Anthem

To start the Anthem portion of the event there was a fast paced, intense trailer which did not look too bad. Some of the information that we did get from the panel of BioWare employees that were on stage include:

  1. It is not an MMO. This is good for me because I can really only have one active MMO in my life and that is World of Warcraft.
  2. Major focus on characters for the story and player choices. This is good because if the characters are dull and boring then everything else is dull and boring.
  3. Much of the single player experience will be experienced in bases and the multiplayer experience will be in the open world portions of the game.
  4. BioWare is already preparing Anthem to be DLC ready in terms of story. They did not say DLC specifically but they did say Anthem is built to have story added at any time. What better way to get people to pay for DLC than with story content.
  5. Promises of ongoing and long term meaningful content. Hopefully it will be better than the original The Division content and the content that Bungie has been pumping out slowly for Destiny 2.
  6. Real world purchasable items will be there but will be only cosmetic and there would be no loot boxes or randomness when buying content.
  7. The game if not delayed or pushed back will coming out 22 February 2019.

So there you have it folks. I will also be doing a Microsoft and Bethesda recap so stay tuned for those.

Being an Xbox and Windows Insider

After installing a new Xbox OS update on my Xbox One X console, I launched the Xbox Insider application to see what the changes were and if there was any new Quests, Polls, Survey, etc. I noticed that I had been an Xbox Insider for 3 years and 11 months, essentially as soon as there was an option to try the latest features and opt in to new functionality I jumped on it. Along with being an Xbox Insider, I am also a Windows Insider; but I have not been as active in that program in recent months. Checking out the new features and functionality that the teams over at Redmond and around the world working at Microsoft are developing is something that really excites me. I love trying out new gadgets, devices, software, etc. What Microsoft is doing with both their Windows and Xbox platforms, allowing individuals to try new features and provide constructive criticism and feedback is extremely positive and very pro-consumer. It helps ensure that the best product is produced.

However by trying out early builds on either platform is not always fine and dandy. There have been a number of times when simple and basic functionality such as Xbox Live Party Chat did not work at all or installing and/or updating applications completely failed. Luckily to combat this, Microsoft has separated the Insider builds into “Rings” which determine the stability of each build and how new the features you will be getting are. If you are in the Alpha Ring (like I am) then you will get the latest and potentially breaking builds or you could be in the Delta Ring and get a significantly more stable build but not have the newest features. This creates choice for the individual while still allowing them to contribute to the evolution of the platform and assist in bug reporting (something as a software engineer is extremely helpful, the more testers the better). More software companies really need to start providing this feedback process as software is becoming ever increasingly more complex.

Many people will most likely not want to be involved in trying unstable or incomplete builds/features for various reasons. To me though, providing feedback and helping the features become less buggy and complete ready for the masses is rewarding (even though I do not write a single piece of code). To make trying out the new features more enticing and understandable, Microsoft has created Quests and Surveys. Generally if there is new functionality added after an update a new Quest will appear which shows you how to activate and or try it out. It is a very handy way to get your device configured with the new features. The Surveys provide an easy way to communicate how you find the new features (if they even do work as intended) and if there are any issues that you encountered. Reporting bugs and issues is also extremely easy. Each platform as their own Hub that allows you to provide as much detail as possible to help Microsoft resolve your problem, and if others have the same issue then they can piggy back off yours and add further information and diagnostic data.

Overall the entire Insider experience on both platforms has been fun and for someone who is looking to try new features before others, or just wants to help Microsoft out in providing the best possible experience for everyone then the Insider programs are a must. For more information about the Xbox Insiders Program check out the following link. For more information about the Windows Insiders Program check out the following link.

My New Xbox One X

I wanted to write this a little while ago, but needed to have some more time playing on the Xbox One X and try to experience as much as possible. Since the launch of the new Xbox One console, I have been having a blast. Yes I am an Xbox fanboy so maybe my view is slightly skewed but Microsoft made an extremely great (dare I say) near perfect console.

Xbox One X Project Scorpio with various Xbox One controllers
Xbox One X Project Scorpio with Xbox One Day One, Elite and Project Scorpio Controllers

To my luck, I managed to pre-order an Xbox One X Project Scorpio Edition, I know a number of people that wanted this edition but missed out due to the limited number. After using it for a little while I thought I might sum up the experience I have had with it so far and also areas where there is some contention on the Internet.

Breakdown

Price

I knew I wanted to purchase the Xbox One X when it was still called “Project Scorpio”. From what I was reading and the rumours swirling around the Internet , I knew it was going to be a powerful console and it wasn’t going to be cheap. A high price tag was not going to discourage me from purchasing it. I pre-ordered the Xbox One Elite controller and that was $200 AUD, so paying around $700 AUD for a new, and powerful console was not an issue. I mean a GTX 1070 is still going for $700 AUD. For the power and convenience the console provides it is super cheap, plus I have a large library of Xbox games so I am not going to invest in another console.

4K and HDR

Weeks before the lead up to the release of the console there were many gaming sites that posted about how “unnecessary” or “wasted” it would be to purchase the Xbox One X console if you do not have a 4K TV or one that supports HDR. Funnily enough there were none of these articles written when the PS4 Pro was coming out/released (bias “journalism” maybe). I don’t know where these so called “journalists” got this information because Microsoft to their credit on numerous occasions highlighted the benefits a gamer would have if they only had a 1080p display.

I personally do not have a 4K/HDR supported TV; mine is still a 65” 1080p Panasonic plasma TV. The games (enhanced or not) all look gorgeous. Gears of War 4, Halo 5 Guardians, Quantum Break, etc. all look brilliant with their enhancements. Even the games that haven’t gotten the enhancements look slightly crisper and cleaner to me like Battlefield 1. I have spoken to a number of friends on Xbox Live who do have 4K TVs with HDR and have an Xbox One X, and there has been a unanimous agreement that the visual fidelity is high class.

Performance

I knew the Xbox One X was powerful and would help with load times, framerate, etc. but boy did I underestimate how much of an improvement there would be. Off the top of my head I can think of two games where the load times have significantly improved. Destiny 2 and XCOM 2 (I’ve been playing these recently). Loading to the Tower or any planet in Destiny 2 took it’s sweet time on my original Xbox One. On the Xbox One X the time it takes to go to those same locations is easily halved.

XCOM 2 on the original Xbox One was a disaster when it came to loading. If you tried loading a save, loading a mission, or coming back to your ship, it could easily take one minute. On the Xbox One X it loads in under 15 seconds. Before I could go and grab a drink from the fridge and come back to still see that the game is still loading, and now on the Xbox One X it just loads too quick to do any of that.

Games like Halo 5 Guardians, Gears of War 4, Battlefield 1, etc. all feel smoother. They feel like they are hitting higher refresh rates (or targets that they were originally supposed to be reaching). I don’t know, I can’t measure it and maybe I’m just imagining it, but the games feel like they play better. It is the same as going from a monitor that doesn’t support 144Hz to one that does and you reach that refresh rate, the game just feels so much better. So overall I think the Xbox One X is on a completely higher tiered level to the original Xbox One. Kudos Microsoft for squeezing so much performance out of such a dense little box.

Good Internet

My current Internet download and upload is 100Mbps and 40Mbps respectively (again I am fortunate enough to be able to have fibre connected directly to my house). I also do not have a data cap. Both of these (speed and data) are extremely important when considering the Xbox One X. The game updates to handle the 4K assets, etc. are massive (some games nearly double in size). So if  you have slow Internet download speeds or have a relatively small data cap then it will seriously hamper your ability to play the recently updated Xbox One X Enhanced games. From what I can tell there is no way to not download these updates if you have an Xbox One X console.

I did notice that downloading titles on the Xbox One X seemed slower than on the original Xbox One. I am on the Alpha Insider Preview ring so there may be some OS issues, but other people I have talked who are not Xbox Insiders pretty much agree that their downloads seem to be going slower on the new console. I’ll be keeping an eye on this and if it persists then I may have to have a little chat with the Microsoft Support team or raise an issue.

Storage Space

Along with these large downloads to support the 4K assets comes the need for more storage space. This is one area I think Microsoft needed to do a little better. A 1TB internal storage device is not nearly enough to support all the new Xbox One X Enhanced games that a gamer could potentially have. My internal HDD is near capacity with all the updates my games have received recently (I only have 75GB left). I do have an external HDD but may need to consider purchasing another. So do invest in another storage device to ensure that you do not run out of space.

Final Thoughts

Who is this Xbox One X console for? Well due to the high price tag I don’t imagine it is for the casual gamer, or someone who is not interested in playing the latest games at the highest fidelity possible on a console; for that I would suggest the Xbox One S. The individual who would buy this console would be one of these I believe:

  1. Looking to buy a new console where money is not a purchasing factor.
  2. Looking to upgrade your old or original console where money is not a purchasing factor.
  3. Looking to upgrade your old or original console to play the latest games at the highest console fidelity possible.

Do you need a 4K/HDR supported TV to enjoy the Xbox One X? Absolutely not. I don’t have one and I am having a blast; everything looks amazing and the games play better than before. There is a noticeable difference even in 1080p 🙂

Do you need a good Internet to use the Xbox One X? Unfortunately I believe yes. I cannot see in the settings anywhere to disable 4K updates if you don’t have a 4K TV. Downloads could take an extremely long time and you may hit your data cap if you have one. This is one of the downside of 4K gaming.

If someone off the street right now asked me, “Would I recommend the Xbox One X?” I would say “yes” in a heart beat with no hesitation. I would tell them that they don’t need 4K or HDR to experience what the Xbox One X offers, I would even mention to be mindful of the download sizes for game updates.

I don’t give technology a numbered rating but if I had to give one to the Xbox One X, it would easily be a 9.5/10. I cannot fault Microsoft for the product that they have built.

Kudos Microsoft.

My E3 2017 Summary

It has been a very busy week (and weekend), and not just in the gaming world. With me being a massive gamer I was paying close attention to this year’s E3. I was surprised and fairly satisfied with the announcements, especially from coming from the Microsoft Press Event (to be up front, I am a massive Xbox and Windows gamer so there is some bias in what I am interested in). Below are my memorable moments from E3 and the games, products, features or services that I am looking forward to the most or am excited to get my hands on (in no particular order):

  • Microsoft Xbox One X (aka Project Scorpio):
    • What more can I say than, “The World’s Most Powerful Console”? True 4K gaming, HDR and Dolby Atmos support. Even though I do not have a 4K TV, having the games supersampled on my brilliant 65” 1080p Panasonic TV and reducing the loading times while increasing the framerate is always a bonus. Day one purchase for me, no questions asked 🙂
  • State of Decay 2:
    • I absolutely loved the first one. A little rough around the edges but it was super fun. It was a great zombie survival game. Happy that they are releasing a sequel. Looks like they have doubled down on what worked and removed elements that were a pain and fell short in some areas. Another day one purchase for me.
  • Crackdown 3:
    • Terry Crews. Can I get a hell yeah? Collecting orbs has never been so much fun. The chaos and mayhem I created when playing the original and sequel will always have a special place in my heart. This sequel has been a long time coming and I am looking forward to this one.
  • The Evil Within 2:
    • The first was a horror masterclass IMO. It knew how to create the most intense and gripping moments, while also pulling back and letting you do your thing. If the sequel is anything like the first (and from the videos I have seen, it is) then this will be a horror game that I cannot pass up on. Any true fan of horror games will most likely be keeping this on their radar.
  • Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus:
    • If there was one game that was worthy of a sequel it was the rebooted Wolfenstein: The New Order game. The reboot was a masterclass in showcasing how an FPS should and can be created. Pure chaos and fun with characters that felt unique and memorable. From the trailer this appears to be more of the same. New guns to blow your enemies into giblets, what more could a FPS fanatic want?
  • Star Wars: Battlefront 2:
    • Did someone say battledroids? A beautiful, rich and engrossing experience from what I have seen. Nothing more needs to be said. I grew up playing with Star Wars toys and a mate of mine summed up the new series perfectly.

“It is a Star Wars kids dream. EA and DICE have crafted a sequel where you can go in and play with your favourite Star Wars characters and worlds you love; just as you did when you were a kid playing with your Star Wars toys.” – DEFJESTA 17.

  • Anthem:
    • This was a surprise, coming out of left field. Most of the games BioWare create are magical. From the characters to the story. Anthem looks to be EA’s answer to Activision’s Destiny. A little disappointed with the game that is Mass Effect Andromeda, so I am cautious about this one. Will be paying very close attention to this and will make a decision to pick this up at a closer date, probably after the reviews. Will also talk to my mates to see what they think, it appears to be heavily co-op focused.
  • A Way Out:
    • It is great to see a developer come out onto the stage and be so confident and pumped for the title that they are developing. This one was a favourite of mine when it was shown at this year’s E3. It looks unique and ambitious with plenty of potential. If they can pull this off then this will be a really enjoyable experience with replay value galore.
  • Sea of Thieves:
    • Nearly all of my Xbox mates are looking forward to this title. A romp across the open seas, having a blast looking for treasure and fighting other pirates. Something about this game reminds me of the Fable franchise, which is a good thing. Everything that I have seen of this game is leading me to make this a day one purchase.
  • Middle Earth: Shadow of War:
    • The Nemesis System was nearly perfect. Having refined it and having what appears to be objectives that can be failed and never replayed, makes everything worthwhile and meaningful. It just builds from a solid first game outing.
  • OG Xbox Backwards Compatibility:
    • This was a complete and utter surprise. I know Phil Spencer said the titles in this backwards compatibility list will be smaller due to licensing, but I am still looking forward to playing some OG Xbox games [1]. Please let KOTOR 1 and 2 be playable *fingers crossed*. So to the entire Xbox team, thank you for this, from the bottom of my heart. I know we didn’t need to have this feature, but it shows you really care for what gamers find important; and this is playing games no matter the generation.
  • Ori and the Will of the Wisps:
    • When this came up and the music played, a tear shed from my eyes. The first game was beautifully crafted. The tight controls, perfect art style and masterclass score made Ori and the Blind Forrest deserving of a sequel. Day one purchase, no questions asked.
  • Metro: Exodus:
    • When the 4a Games logo came up on screen, my brother and I both widened our eyes at the same time. Could it be a new Metro? Boy were we jumping for joy when it was. The first two games were not only gorgeous but were difficult. Day one buy again.
  • Forza Motorsport 7:
    • The only racing franchise now that I play is Forza, sorry Need for Speed. Be it the brutally realistic Motorsport series, or the more arcade Horizon. This game is really going to showcase what the Xbox One X can really do in 4K at 60 fps. I bought Forza Motorsport 5 when the Xbox One launched and I will be buying this racing game when it comes out for the Xbox One X as well.
  • Vampyr:
    • Coming out of nowhere, this game intrigued me. I need to see more of it, but from what I saw it looks like it is going to be fun. There is something about the setting and vampires that gel well. As the release date comes closer and more information is released I’ll be making a decision whether to purchase it, or wait for it to go on sale. Either way it will be going in my digital game collection.
  • Age of Empires Definitive Edition:
    • Growing up as a kid, this franchise was my got to RTS, next to Warcraft (sorry I didn’t play StarCraft). I played the HD remaster of the second game and enjoyed playing that one, even though the multiplayer matchmaking was slightly broken (but that is for another time). This will likely be a game I pick up purely based on nostalgia.

Being such a solid week for gamers, no matter what platform that you play on or the genre of games you prefer, there is something out there. I probably missed some other games, but these are the ones that I remembered off the top of my head. If there are others that you think were worthy of mentioning then feel free to add them in the comments below.

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