Test's Top 3 (From E3)
As we come to my personal conclusion of E3 2018 coverage I want to take a step back, looking at the convention as a whole, and call out the three games that I am most excited for. Also, I want to take a look at the one title that I was hoping for the most, but wasn’t given.
The Division 2
I am just as shocked as you are to see that my entire list has not been monopolized by Nintendo. Before I became a part of the GameZilla Media community I was extremely into traditional, boots on the ground, shooting games. I played far more Call of Duty than I’d ever care to admit. I’m also not one that’s tempted by Sci-Fi shooters, such as Destiny and Halo. Though the last couple Call of Duty games definitely did not strike even the slightest chord with me, watching the trailer and gameplay we were given for the Division 2 got me more excited for a realistic shooter than I have been in nearly a decade. Though I am not equipped with an Xbox One (X) or a PlayStation 4 (Pro), a good Stea, sale for the Division 2 will have my name written all over it.
Pokémon: Let’s Go!
Nintendo certainly did not put a lot of focus on Pokémon: Let’s Go! during their official E3 Direct, but they had over an hour of game-play available in their Treehouse that followed the main presentation. As I watched the director of this game (Junichi Masuda) walk us through a lot of the different mechanics, I fell in love with this derivation of the series I’ve been so fond of the past 20+ years. The game looks gorgeous, introduces a ton of 'quality of life' upgrades (for the sake of being more casual) and brought Pokémon to life in a way that resonated with me. While I know is this title will not satiate the competitive, grinding, super complex, role playing game need that next year’s title will, I am more confident than ever that this set of games will slide fondly into my collection, and into my heart.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
If you didn’t see this coming from 100 miles away then I suggest you read literally anything else I’ve written. This game seems like a love letter to the casual fans as well as the competitive ones, giving something new to everybody. We don’t get wave dashing back, but they’ve added directional dodges and penalties for being too defensive that will ultimately increase the speed of the fights. This will bring some competitive spirit to this generation that Super Smash Bros. Melee has had a vice grip on for the last 17 years. The inclusion of every character that’s ever been on a Smash Bros. roster make sure that there’s something for everybody, rather you're brand new to Nintendo, or a long time fan. While I hope that we find out some information soon about a complex, single player campaign or something similar, I have no doubt that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will absolutely stand true to its name, “ultimate“.
Those are the three titles and I’m looking forward to most excitingly following everything that E3 week had to offer. However, I do want to highlight just one title that I was very much hoping for that we did not get.
Animal Crossing: New-er Leaf
It has been almost 6 years since we last saw a traditional Animal Crossing game come to Nintendo‘s consoles. I believe we are at the perfect point in the Nintendo Switch's life cycle to introduce a game that is simple, fun, almost limitlessly customizable, and an experience you can truly make your own. Introducing players to a world where they can invest as much time as they want to build their perfect home, explore an ever-changing neighborhood, and spends hundreds of hours doing literally nothing is exactly what I thought Nintendo would bring to the table. I really hoped that we would see the next generation of Animal Crossing announced this year and since I don’t think this game would be one that would generate it's own midyear Direct, I’m afraid will be waiting until 2019 at the earliest to pay back some suave raccoon an ungodly amount of bells.
So that’s my E3 in a nutshell. Catch me in the Discord and tell me what your top three games were this year, and keep an eye right here at www.gamezillamedia.com as everyone on the team wraps up this year’s coverage.
Now it’s time to go back to playing Pokémon Go as I get my roster ready for Let's Go!, so until next time — Game On!