The past week was chock-full of awesome reveals for fans of nearly every gaming platform out there. PlayStation 5 owners will finally be getting their money’s worth once Horizon: Forbidden West drops, PC gamers will finally get to experience Uncharted 4 and Nintendo fans will get an upgraded Switch. Besides that, Far Cry is once again taking us to tropical environments, Dragon Quest is getting tons of games, and Microsoft and Bethesda are preparing for a huge E3 show.
Horizon: Forbidden West had an amazing gameplay showcase
Forbidden West showcases the best PS5 currently has to offer
Horizon Zero Dawn was one of, if not the best PlayStation game upon release and one extremely well received by fans. It’s no wonder then that the hype surrounding its sequel – Horizon: Forbidden West is at an all-time high. Sony’s State of Play event gave the eager fans a taste of things to come, showcasing a chunky 16-min gameplay video. What was revealed showed us beautiful environments, new areas, an intense sci-fi soundtrack, and interesting gameplay additions. Chief among the latter are new traversal options in the form of a high-tech glider and a grappling hook along with the ability to dive in beautiful underwater environments.
The melee combat received tweaks to make it more engaging and Alloy received some new toys for a more varied ranged combat approach. She’ll most definitely need them as the new enemies she’ll be facing will be fiercer than the ones she faced back in the original. Oh, and you can tame and ride robotic raptors. Now, who could dislike that? For more information and the full gameplay reveal, be sure to check out our original news coverage.
Uncharted 4 is coming to PC
Sony is finally sharing this gem of a game
Uncharted 4 is the latest and potentially last installment in the Naughty Dog franchise that has dominated the world of action-adventure third-person shooters with its glorious graphics and high adrenaline set pieces. Even by today’s standards, the game looks absolutely stunning so it’s a no-brainer for Sony to finally port it over to PC. Most recently, Horizon: Zero Dawn and Days Gone have seen much success on the platform, with the former netting the company a 250% return on investment and the latter being scored better than on the PS4.
Doing PC ports, Sony is getting more brand recognition and income on products that probably lost their selling power on hardware where they originally released. Many PC gamers are even inclined to purchase a well-done PC port even if they played the console version due to graphical and performance updates that come with them. Successful ports are also great for potential sequels as we’ve seen in the case of Days Gone which didn’t sell as well as expected on the PS4 but found massive success on the PC. Hopefully, Uncharted 4 PC port will be equally well-done and a possible spark for more games down the line. For more information on Sony’s plan for the PC platform and the Uncharted 4 port, check out our original news coverage.
Nintendo Switch Pro possibly releasing in September
The release of Switch Pro is sure to make a huge splash
While everyone is talking about the next-gen consoles from Microsoft and Sony, Nintendo is sitting quietly in the background, winning the so-called console wars. Switch beat PlayStation 4 as the fastest-selling console to reach 50 million shipped units and could by all indicators one day become the best-selling console of all time. The console is today sitting on 85 million units sold which is an amazing feat for a piece of hardware that’s been released only 4 years ago.
Unsurprisingly, following this success and the fact that both Sony and Microsoft had much success with mid-cycle upgrades, Nintendo intends to soon unleash the Switch Pro onto the market. According to reports, the plan is to put the new Switch into production in July and potentially roll them out as early as September or October, despite the semiconductor shortage across the globe. The shortage along with the improved hardware will definitely affect the price and reports indicate that the new console will be at least $100 more expensive than the current Switch. This is all speculation territory for now but if the timeline is correct, we should be seeing an official announcement very soon. For now, check out all we know about the console in our original news coverage.
Microsoft & Bethesda will hold a joint E3 conference
Is Microsoft about to save 2021?
Following Microsoft’s purchase of Zenimax in March this year, Microsoft announced that it and Bethesda will hold a joint conference for E3 2021. The 90- minute event will take place on June 13th during which the two companies will reveal their upcoming projects. Both companies have a lot to bring to the table and most would agree that this year’s conference will be key to boosting the hype surrounding their games and hardware ecosystem.
Bethesda has the two heavy hitters – Starfield and Elder Scrolls, while Microsoft will have Halo Infinite front and center, further boosted by possible appearances from Forza Horizon, Gears, and Age of Empires. While no one is holding their breath that Bethesda will release their games this year, we are at least hoping for more substantial information as we really haven’t seen anything from both the aforementioned games. Microsoft could do a Fallout 4 and showcase some of their games with release dates following just a couple of months after, which could somewhat salvage the strange year that is 2021. For more information and speculation on their E3 event, check out our original news coverage.
Dragon Quest XII and other Dragon Quest games announced
Fans of the IP will have much to chew through over the next couple of years
Fans of the Dragon Quest IP are in for a treat as there were numerous exciting announcements made during the recently held Dragon Quest 35th Anniversary Special live stream event. The biggest reveal was certainly that of Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate which will be a new, darker take on the series which will introduce some very different gameplay elements to the series. The game is still in the prototyping stages so it will be a long while before we find out more information or see it in action, but it’s good to know that it’s being made.
But, that wasn’t the only thing to be excited about. Dragon Quest 3 HD 2D Remake, Dragon Quest X Offline, Dragon Quest X Online version six, and Dragon Quest Treasures spinoff were also announced and showcased during the event. No release date was given for any of these, but seeing as they are smaller in scope than Dragon Quest XII, it’s fair to assume we would be seeing some if not all of them come out by the end of this year. For the full event and more information, be sure to check out our original news coverage.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus release date announced
Pokemon are finally taking a bold step in a new direction
Pokémon Legends: Arceus is probably the most ambitious Pokemon game yet and one that finally moves away from the tried and true formula of past titles. The game will take us to the Sinnoh region which is the region in which Pokemon originated. It will feature a large open world and real-time battle system instead of the traditional turn-based one. The trailer showcases some lush, green areas, and stealth sequences where your character tries to capture unsuspecting Pokemon by sneaking in the tall grass.
The new battle system is still a large unknown but it has the potential to draw in new audiences who dislike the slower-paced style of previous entries. Of course, it’s also possible that it could make old-time fans dislike the game if executed poorly. It’s only a matter of time when the game’s marketing will be kicked into overdrive and we find out the exact details since the game is coming out in just short 7 months. For the full trailer and more information, check out our original news coverage.
Far Cry 6 gameplay reveal showcases the new tropical setting
Ubisoft is bringing a new, yet familiar Far Cry experience
After being radio silent for months, Ubisoft has released the first gameplay trailer for Far Cry 6. The game will take place in a fictional, Caribbean island nation of Yara. This makes the upcoming game the first one since Far Cry 3 to be set in a lush, tropical environment. The story of Far Cry is one of the modern guerillas aiming to take back Yara from antagonist Anton Castillo, played by Breaking Bad‘s Giancarlo Esposito, featured in the first cinematic trailer for the game.
Much like Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, you’ll be able to select either a male or a female protagonist and roam the large open world to achieve your goals. This will entail doing the usual open-world stuff Ubisoft is known for like liberating outposts while customizing your weapons and vehicles in order to be more effective. Ubisoft seemingly does try to spice up the usual formula by adding some unique gameplay elements but if you want to check that out, visit our original news coverage and see for yourself.
