E3 2015 – Bethesda Press Conference #BE3

Posted on by
1

beth3

BETHESDA E3 2015 Showcase :

–Bethesda‘s first stand-alone press conference at E3 starts big, a day before E3 officially starts. It starts off with a promo video showcasing the staff and different studios under the Bethesda umbrella. It then moves onto a promo trailer showing its recent games in: Skyrim, Dishonored, Rage, Battlecry, Wolfenstein, Doom, and The Evil Within.

-Pete Heins takes the stage to epic music.

“Welcome to the first ever press conference for Bethesda Gameworks. Welcome all.”

DOOM

ee9eb62799794e52f43224041fc4856b

-The show starts off with DOOM. id Tech 6, or id Tech 666 ;). Marty Stratton takes the stage, from id Software. DOOM based on 3 foundations: Bad-Ass Demons, Big F’n Guns, and Fast Movement. Trailer based on mars again, and the game looks gorgeous and runs smooth. We’re in a mining facility, lots of molten steel. Climbable objects, brutal melee, lots of blood. Double Barrel shotgun is brutal, blowing enemies to chunks. Boost jump, and climbable platforming – more verticality. Game is fast and smooth, and slows down, slow-motion, when switching weapons. Showcases a lot of different weapons, chainsaw being the highlight. The melee looks contextual. Body part specific melee.

–DOOM multiplayer, fast paced arena mode, showcasing power-ups and vertical levels. Quick trailer shows what the DOOM multiplayer will look like.

-Next quick trailer announced DOOM Snapmap. Community in-game mod tools allows players to create their own maps and game types that can be shared to the online community. Shared across all platforms.

-Before Marty leaves, we’re back into the single player mode, in Hell. A couple new guns are shown, with difficult combat with new baddies, and the boost jump-stomp. The enemies get highlighted in either a blue or red coating which means melee is an option, not sure what the difference between the two colours mean. Final stand-off between the main guy and a HUGE bad guy where the BFG is brought up and fade-to-black. DOOM is announced for Spring 2016 on Xbox One, PS4, and PC.

-Pete Heins is back on the stage talking about DOOM Snapmap. He announces the network background for all their current games, and game in the future: Bethesda.net. This is where content creation will be housed.

Battlecry

2826781-battlecry

-Team Fortress style game is showcased, showing the work that’s been done of the past year. Cartoony art style showing lots of different characters and attacks. Sign-up for the global beta is open now.

Dishonored 2

original

-Harvey Smith and Raphael Colantonio directors at Arkane Studios on the stage to talk about Dishonored. FPS, stealth based story. Trailer for Dishonored 2: Pre-rendered video showing the new world, new powers, new bad guys, new hero? A new female protagonist. And a brief glimpse at the original mask. Fade.

-Two optional playable characters this time.

-Lastly, Dishonored Definitive Edition, HD remake with DLC – available this fall.

Elder Scrolls Online

-Now available on the consoles with the latest update Tamriel Unlimited. Quick trailer showing the new content.

Elder Scrolls Legends

-Strategy card game – with the Elder Scrolls heroes and history. Free to play, on PC and iPad.

Fallout 4

fallout-4-rumors-elder-scroll-6

-Pete Heins jokingly says the conference is over, much to the crowd’s chagrin. Heins gets confused at the crowd’s dismay, and the fans chant Fallout 4. He quickly remembers why everyone is here.

–Bethesda has won 3 consecutive Game of the Year awards with Oblivion, Fallout 3, and Skyrim.

-Todd Howard is introduced and comes to stage. Howard says the E3 is the best week of entertainment ever. Games are the best form of entertainment.

-The team started designing Fallout 4, after Fallout 3 back in 2009, but obviously had to do so slowly, as they were working on Skyrim. Discusses the teams attention to detail, showcasing the concept art of Fallout. Quick art reel.

–Fallout 4 starts in the world, before the bombs start falling. Player creation starts. Option to play as a female. Quick tour of the house and the world before the bombs. References to the past game’s notables, with Nuka Cola, or Sugar Bombs. Next up, registration for the Bomb Shelter, where you set your vital stats. The city sirens start blaring and everyone is running towards the vault, when the atom blast detonates.

-Skip ahead, 200 years later, sole survivor of Vault 111. Introduction to the wasteland. Enormous dynamic world. Create who you want, go where you want, do what you want. Player freedom is priority #1.  Dynamic volumetric lighting is shown. Conversation system still a mainstay. Conversation are dynamic, and the game can be played in first person or 3rd. You can walk away from a conversation whenever you want.

-Introduced to the dog, Dogmeat, and dog commands. Everything is contextual.

-VATS is back, and shows slow-motion bullets.

-Game is based in downtown Boston. Quick reel of the many different locations that can be visited.

-Introduction to the new Pip-boy. Showcases layered armor system. Mini-game options in the Pip-boy. Real edition of a Pip-boy that supports a cell phone available in the collector’s edition, and has a pip-boy app as a second screen experience.

Fallout Shelter – iPhone Game

-Vault micromanagement game based in the Fallout world. Vault dwellers can level up, and can be sent out to the wasteland to gather resources and collect items. Vault can grow with new additions.

-Game is free. No timers, no internet connection required. Available tonight.

Back to Fallout 4

-Player can rebuild the world, in-game, in real time. People will arrive to your settlement. Can build crops, and power generators. Can run wires to terminals and lights, and defenses. You can build your own little settlement and community. Need to build defenses as the settlement will get attacked by raiders.

-Many settlement sights are available throughout the world that can be grown and built up. Completely optional.

-Crafting works on weapons too. 50 base weapons and over 700 modifications for those weapons. Can even modify our own power armor.

-Play how you want: FPS, 3rd Person, or through VATS. Quick video showing the variety of the game, weapons, and characters. Play how you want.

-Thank you to all from Bethesda to all the fans. Thank you for the patience. Game will be released November 10th, 2015, to much applause.

-Pre-E3 over and done with Bethesda.

-Up next is Microsoft’s at 9:30am tomorrow morning. See you in the morning.

-iRogan

iReview – SNIPER ELITE III – Sniping is Not a Co-op Activity

Posted on by
Reply

I heard you like sniping snipers? Good luck.

Title: Sniper Elite III
Developer: Rebellion
Platform: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, PC
Publisher: 505 Games, Rebellion
Reviewed on: Xbox One

Sniper Elite III is a tactical shooter that takes place in Northern Africa, and follows our hero, Karl war-hero blockhead during a conflict in the setting of World War II. Sniper Elite III, the follow-up to Sniper Elite V2, is actually a prequel, and takes place many years BEFORE the events of its predecessor? Time Paradox if you die I guess?

“2 lines you should never cross….horizontal and vertical”

You play a sniper, if that wasn’t evident by the game’s title. The same gameplay mechanics from V2 have been retained. We’re dropped into a very large battlefield with a set of objectives, and we essentially make our way from point A to point B to point C, silently eliminated enemies along the way. The game is played as a long range shooter, where our primary weapon is the sniper rifle, and we have a handy back-up rifle and pistol if things get up close and hairy. Included in the inventory are a few grenades, bandages and health packs, mines and trip wires for defense, and rocks for distraction.

THE GAME SHOWCASES A SLOW-MOTION SEQUENCE WHENEVER THE SNIPER RIFLE IS USED

The main objective, as a sniper, is to quietly eliminate the enemies. Once a comfy nest is found, the handy binoculars can be used to tag enemies, and then using the trusty sniper rifle, can then be easily picked off one by one. Then we need to pick ourselves up and relocate before they find out where we’re shooting from. We are Jack’s ghost.

My biggest gripe with the sniping mechanic is that you can’t actually tag enemies using the sniper scope. The tagging mechanic is the sole reasoning behind burdening the player with the binoculars, fumbling with the controller to switch between the two.

“A sniper is the worst romancer, they never make the first move”

Strictly sniping everyone isn’t even necessary, but it does make things easier, if not slower. Once spotted and the alarms raised, the enemy just runs your way. All the enemies. This will give you ample opportunity to bring out the faithful assault rifle and shoot all the ducks in a row, as they waddle around the nearest corner in a neat line-up. Unless you’re achievement hunting, this is a sure way to clear the area.

They do make the sniper rifle fun. The game showcases a slow-motion sequence whenever the sniper rifle is used, as the camera follows the bullet across the map, into, and through the body cavity of our enemy, occasionally showcasing a Mortal Kombat-like X-Ray view of the body, as the bullet destroys organs and bone alike.

HUNDREDS OF ENEMIES THAT SWALLOWED MY BULLETS HAD NO IDEA OF MY PRESENCE

After a couple completed primary and secondary objectives and we’ve taken out our primary target, the end of each mission usually tapers out to a tank boss fight, and you’d better hope you still have some mines left. Sadly, nearly every mission ends this way.

Also, good luck finding any of the enemy snipers before they find you. 1. They look like the environment. 2. These sneaks spawn only when the player is in visible range, and give no warning of their presence. We’d have to be omnipotent to know their tactically pre-placed advantages. I can’t truly complain though, that would be hypocritical. The hundreds of enemies that swallowed my bullets had no idea of my presence either.

“One man’s fate comes from another man’s wait”

The story is forgettable, and told through illustrated cut-scenes between missions. The plot follows Karl who was sent on a mission to assassinate a high ranking general. We find plans of a secret project, and proceed through the next missions locating high value targets and more plans for a Supertank. Yay, more tanks. Predictably we find our final target and the Supertank factory, murdering everything along our path and win the day. The upside to the game is that it can be played in its entirety, in co-op. Rejoice, someone to share the pain.

I WOULD ARGUE THAT THE FASCINATION WEARS OFF AFTER ONE LEVEL

The co-op is a nice edition, but there’s no bonus for taking advantage of this feature. No co-op paths or bonus for dual sniping (not that that would even need to be a thing). All co-op is good for is getting caught by the enemy that much quicker, when your friend messes up. I don’t mess up. Not ever. I’m perfect. Segue to my short story that takes place within Sniper Elite III, and tells a tale of joy when co-op sniping.

Sniper Elite III, after the slow-motion gunshot appeal wears off, and the enemy spies your location for the umpteenth time because your co-op friend slipped up, gets very boring and tedious. Each level is loooong, and the sneakier you are, the longer it takes to complete. The game itself houses only 8 levels, but through enough grinding and trial and error, it’ll start to wear the patience thin. Each Sniper Elite level refuses to introduce any new mechanics, only a different locale, and a switch to the day and night cycles.

There seems to be some love for the sniper type, maybe because the typical shooter has de-saturated the typical modern war shooter appeal, as we see THAT game year after year. Sniper Elite III has tried to make the role more interesting. Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater did it right, needing only one level, and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 1 did it right, needing only one level. I would argue that the fascination wears off after one level in this case as well.

Since I like chronology, I’ll go subject myself to Sniper Elite V2 now, thanks.

For those who like snipers, sneaky boring gameplay, or getting sand everywhere.

Notable Achievements:
Through the looking glass (killed 10 snipers before they see you) – 10G
Charlie’s Challenge (get a testicle shot from 100M away) – 5G

-iRogan

WHAT I’M PLAYING – Splinter Cell: Blacklist

Posted on by
Reply

Splinter Cell: Blacklist is the direct sequel to Conviction. It’s the seventh installment in the series, if you include the PSP Essentials, and best yet.

Sam_Fisher_Render_SCBL

Gets Older. Moves Faster. Looks Younger

With 2010’s Conviction, the Splinter Cell series re-discovered its stride. It introduced quicker gameplay with fast take-downs, both lethal and non-lethal, and a spontaneous execute feature, where you can tag 3-4 enemies and shoot them all in a slow-motion, uninterrupted sequence. It did, however, sacrifice a lot of the Splinter Cell staples, such as the ability to move bodies.

Blacklist brings these series staples back, and then some. It is the full product. Back is the Echelon suit with goggles and light sensor, lethal and non-lethal take-downs, mark-and-execute, and Spy vs Mercs. You will notice one change: Sam Fisher’s voice.

The story is set around the events of a blacklist being revealed, where key targets will be killed off every few days if the terrorists don’t get their way. The Fourth Echelon team is tasked with preventing these assassinations, so each mission stands alone in a larger arc.

After each mission, we get graded on our performance into three categories: Ghost (silent non-lethal), Panther (silent lethal), and Assault (full combat, loud and violent). Each mission can be replayed in whatever style the player chooses, and each character in the team will have their own story missions available to Sam. These can be played solo and co-op.

The co-op missions vary in design, some are infiltration and extraction – strictly silent, another is elimination of the enemies, and a 3rd is a wave based survival.

Each mission nets you an income, and you use the money to buy upgrades for your suit, weapons, and even the Fourth Echelon plane. One of the newest additions to the load-out is the tri-copter, introduced in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. You can fly it around silently and scope out the area ahead and tag enemies. It even has a knock-out gas feature, and sticky shocker for security surveillance.

maxresdefault (2)

The game is the best of the series, and is a blast to play. Visually, it’s a minor step-up on Conviction, but it does showcase some smooth animation for the take-downs, utilizing motion capture, larger level design, and some epic escape moments with level destruction.

Splinter Cell Blacklist marks the last 360 title on my shelf left to be played, and I’m not sure why I waited so long to play it. I’m hoping Illestrader will pick up a copy so we can play it in co-op.

Expect a full review upon completion, but due to the age of the game, I don’t expect I’ll be able to test out the Spy vs. Mercs multiplayer mode.

I’m going to try to get an iReview out before the end of the week, and Achievement of the Week is on Sunday.

I’m also thinking about ideas for an opinion column.

-iRogan

NEWS – Those Mid-Week Lulls Tho

Posted on by
Reply

So I have a new co-op buddy and we’re going to be going through Tomb Raider – Temple of Osiris. Yay!

On the 360, in 2010, Tomb Raider – Guardian of Light was released and it revealed that the single player Tomb Raiding narrative isn’t always needed. It provided a smart simplistic co-op game, in the top-down dungeon crawler view, with clever puzzles and fun combat.

maxresdefault (1)

4 years later, and a next-gen transition – Tomb Raider – Temple of Osiris. Graphically it’s not much of an upgrade, but it is bigger in scope. It is now 4 player capable, and the puzzles actually reform, depending how many players are in the room. More of a preview to come.

Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is Real, and its actually called Mirror’s Edge Catalyst
The team at DICE have confirmed that this is not Mirror’s Edge 2, it’s not a direct sequel.

“is not a sequel, this is not Mirror’s Edge 2. We have landed on a vision that honors the first game — pushing the boundaries of first person movement and diving deeper into the story behind our heroine Faith — but also brings a lot of great new, interesting gameplay and features to the experience for our players.”

f5V59QNwkiY9.878x0.Z-Z96KYq

Mirror’s Edge will be at E3 as well. Colour me excited.

Adr1ft – So, Like Gravity – The Video Game?

Will We See The Last Guardian at E3?
The Last Guardian will finally be getting a re-reveal at this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo, apparently.

“on very good authority that this will be the year that Team Ico finally presents its follow-up to much loved classics Ico and Shadow of the Colossus.”

The Last Guardian was first announced for PlayStation 3 back in 2009, but thanks to studio troubles, the title still has yet to see the light of day.

Over the next few days I’ll be discussing Splinter Cell: Blacklist, and posting an iReview for Sniper Elite III.

We’re getting into the real news, just around the corner with E3. I hope to bulk up the E3 Hub page with more info heading into the event that starts Sunday with Bethesda.

-iRogan