Day 3 of E3 kicked off with Square Enix’s press conference, and while highly anticipated games like Final Fantasy VII Remake, The Avengers, and Guardians of the Galaxy were disappointingly not on display, several other significant games made their entrance.
Video Credit: GameSpot
Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the third installment to the Tomb Raider series, was the first game to be showcased. It featured a new dark, rainy jungle setting, traversal mechanics like grappling and wall running, along with stunning visuals of one of the biggest hubs ever created in a Tomb Raider game, complete with a hidden city and more tombs. Throughout the trailer, you can see Lara Croft using stealth to viciously attack her enemies, which gave an intense and exciting feel to the game.
Video Credit: GameStop
Another major game during the conference was Kingdom Hearts 3, which of course starred all the beloved Disney characters, including Mickey Mouse, Elsa, Donald Duck, Olaf, Goofy, Rapunzel, and many more. Reoccurring characters aside, the trailer also featured the introduction of Remy from Ratatouille, who was seen sitting on Sora’s head and helping him cook. Gameplay seemed smooth, with dazzling unique character skills and a fast-paced raft that fit multiple players.
Video Credit: GameStop
The last headliner, Just Cause 4, boasted various new elements to the game, the most prominent one being extreme weather simulations such as tornadoes, lightning, sandstorms, and blizzards. This opens up an entirely new world of creative sandbox gameplay, giving players the firsthand opportunity to experience mass destruction. Other features included new vehicles(bulldozers, car transporters, wrecking balls, jet skis, micro-jets) and a fully customizable grapple for Rico.
Other Important Notes:
Stormblood: Final Fantasy XIV Online has an upcoming patch 4.3 Under the Moonlight, and the conference gave a quick peek into the new Final Fantasy XIV Online x Monster Hunter World crossover.
A new 100% free game, The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit, is set to be released on June 26, 2018, for PS4, Xbox One, and Steam.
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age becomes available in stores September 4, 2018, on Steam and PS4.
Babylon’s Fall is coming in 2019 on PS4 and Steam.
Nier: Automata /BECOME AS GODS Edition becomes available June 26, 2018, on the Microsoft Store.
Octopath Traveler becomes available July 13, 2018, for Nintendo Switch.
The Quiet Man: more to come in August for PS4 and Steam
Photo Credit: PlayStation Universe
Overall, the conference was actually quite lackluster, as a large majority of the trailers shown had already been displayed at the E3 Microsoft conference. Not only that, as mentioned before, other major upcoming games fans were dying to see — Final Fantasy VII Remake, The Avengers, and Guardians of the Galaxy — were nowhere to be seen, leaving viewers unsatisfied and wondering.