Microsoft kicked everything off, but Electronic Arts followed shortly after. Their press conference has been widely regarded as “weak” compared to the other events held during the day, but they made a number of announcements that are relevant to families.
1. Star Wars Battlefront looks like the Star Wars game we have all been waiting for!
The EA event opened with a montage of footage showing the developers working to craft an experience that is authentic to the original Star Wars trilogy. They were visiting the original locations used for filming and trying to capture the look and feel for use in the game.
They showed off concept footage showing Hoth and Endor and it was stunning. We don’t have much more in the way of details yet and the game is VERY far off, but if the game looks anything like what they showed off during this event it will be a treat for Star Wars fans.
2. The Sims 4 is coming and it looks like a lot of fun!
The Sims has been a phenomena for more than a decade and this iteration is looking like it will be even wilder! Players will be able to control their Sims personalities for the first time.
Even better: players will be able to create their custom characters and share them with players the world over via an in game gallery. (I can’t wait to see what gets created!)
The tagline is “Smarter Sims. Weirder Stories” and I think that will ring true. (Especially considering the trailer showed Death incarnate carrying around a tablet to record people’s deaths. No. Seriously.)
3. Criterion Games is developing an extreme sports racing title!
Criterion was the developer behind the Motorstorm series and they have, once again, been tapped to do a racing series. This time they are going to be taking us off the dirt track and into some seemingly exotc spaces.
We didn’t see much more than concept footage, but it appears that Criterion will be having us fly around in squirrel suits, racing on ATVs, and slamming through the waves on jet skis. They are focusing on more extreme racing sports this time around and I am pretty excited to see what they have in store.
4. PGA Tour Golf looks so good I can’t even stand it.
I’m not a golf guy… at all, but PGA Tour Golf looks astonishingly good. First off, the developer has decided to use the FROSTBITE 3 ENGINE (I put it in all caps to emphasize the insanity) to develop the game. This is the same engine responsible for giant buildings collapsing during 64 person multiplayer matches in Battlefield. And yet, it is still a game about golf.
There is even a course that involves a burning naval warship that has crashed into it.
How does anyone NOT want to play this game?
5. Mirror’s Edge 2 has been announced.
Mirror’s Edge was a cult hit during the last generation that focused on a minimalist art style and parkour. Fans of the series have been waiting for a sequel for quite some time and it is now confirmed to be on the way.
Mirror’s Edge is not a children’s game by any means, but it is a first person game where each level is essentially a visual puzzle. Every surface, gap, guard rail, and enemy are a part of it. This is a unique gaming experience and one that is worth a look.
What about you? What do you think about what you saw?
