E3 2018 Highlights

E3 2018 Highlights

What a week it has been in the world of gaming. We've had game play footage, announcements, and enough hype to keep us going through to September. I've also realised how much my bank account will suffer with the number of games that I want to buy. 

I'll admit, I didn't watch a lot of E3, but I have been keeping up with it via social media. It honestly makes me wish I could be there. I watched E3 via streams, so I took part in stream chat and it was such a wonderful experience. 

Without futher adieu, and in no particular order, here are some of my E3 Highlights. 

• Spyro Reignited Trilogy Gameplay Footage

For the weeks leading up to E3, a lot of speculation went round about what Spyro news would be shared. The majority of fans, myself included, expected to see concept art from Spyro: Gateway to Glimmer/Ripto's Rage and Spyro: Year of the Dragon. I believe we were hoping for some game play footage and we were not disappointed. It looks stunning. I never played the original trilogy, but I watch so much game play of it, predominately through speed runs, so there were a few things I picked up on. I still haven't warmed up to Sparx's design, and he looks even more dopey when in these demo levels. But the colours, I love the way gems reflect off the grass, the burnt colour you get from singing the grass and the reflection of the boxes in Sunny Flight. 

What I hope we'll see in the coming months is more concept art, especially for Spyro: Gateway to Glimmer/Ripto's Rage and Spyro: Year of the Dragon, as well as game play for the other two games. I can't wait for the release date of September 21st. Hey, at least I have a week before lectures start to play through the game. 

• Soulcalibur VI

I'm not going to lie, I have been excited for this game since Soulcalibur V. I grew up playing Soulcalibur II, and because of the E3 announcement of the season pass bundle, the character reveals and the character game play, I am revisiting the second game. 

The character game play, looks incredible. Some of the characters I liked from previous games look better than ever. I've even heard rumours of one of my favourite characters returning, though until it is announced, I'm only taking that rumour at face value.

Though an official price has not been announced for the game and season pass bundle, this is a game I will most definitely have to buy. I am hoping that the game will follow a similar style to Soulcalibur II, with the Weapons Master mode as a story mode. Whilst it is highly unlikely, I definitely preferred this to the story mode of Soulcalibur IV and Soulcalibur V. 

• Fallout 76

You would think that because I used Fallout 4 in my coursework, I have actually played Fallout before. Well... I only played an hour and got out of the vault. Bethesda Games announced a massive bundle for Fallout 76 (which I will not be getting), as well as Fallout Shelter now being on the Switch and PlayStation 4. 

Still, I am really excited for Fallout 76. The game play we were shown looked like even I could play it. And trust me, I am not good at Fallout. Whilst I like that we will be able to play online, I'd probably annoy everyone, so I think I'll stick to solo play until I learn the ropes. 

Graphically though, it looks stunning. The transition from the bright and colourful vault, to the seasonal patterns of outside the vault really make me want to play this game. Though the idea of it being four times bigger than Fallout 4 is a bit daunting, there is emphasis on this game should be played multiplayer. With a November 14th release date, this might just end up on my Black Friday list.

• Spider-Man

I'll admit, I wasn't too hyped about this game until I saw game play footage of it from E3. With a September launch, I will struggle to not play this game. 

From what I can tell, it is a similar format to the older games, but graphically, I love it. I remember when Spider-Man came out on the PlayStation 3 and thinking that it looked stunning. But I was blown out of the water by the attention to detail. I especially love that Spider-Man now runs up the walls, rather than climbs in a very Hunter-esque (Spyro: A Hero's Tail) manner. It's little things like that, that really make me want to play, especially as it shows how fluid the game mechanics are. 

• Kingdom Hearts 3

This is a game franchise I should have played before. I am saving up for the 1.5 and 2.5 bundle as well as the 2.8 bundle. With a release date of January 29th 2019, I am hoping to have a least played through part of this franchise before then. 

It's Disney, so how can I not enjoy it? The Frozen world looks gorgeous, and I absolutely adore the Tangled world. Comparing the character models to their animation, they are so accurate that in a side  by side, I struggled to tell the difference. 

I will confess, I need to know the history of Kingdom Hearts before I play this game, just so I don't make a complete fool of myself (which I will probably do anyway). I highly recommend Tealgamemaster's videos on the Kingdom Hearts franchise. His are the videos I'll watch to know the game. 

• Assassin's Creed Odyssey 

Okay, so I've never really show an interest in Assassin's Creed. I know the story, I've seen my brother play hours of it on the PlayStation, and sure Ezio has a decent story line. BUT, Odyssey is set in Ancient Greece! Those that know me, know I am a massive Greek mythology nerd, and have spoken about Ancient Greece in coursework the past few years. 

The graphics look fantastic, and in a new addition to the game, you can now play as a Kassandra, a female who shares the same story line as Alexios, the male character. The characters navigate through the tribes in the Peloponessian War with allegiances to the Athenians and the Spartans, as well as various other historical events within Greece. I don't want to spoil it, but doing the last little bit of research for this blog post, I completely fangirled reading it. All the history that I know about, combined with a game franchise that I am familiar with, is making me so happy. 

It will be interesting to see how I play the game, considering I've never played it. Still, I am excited for it and this is definitely going on my list. 

I'll leave it here, because I could go on for hours. There are other games I am excited for, and games I still need to look into, but you can guarantee I am going to spend a lot of time playing video games over the next twelve months. 

My Top 10 Games of All Time

My Top 10 Games

Recently, I've been playing [and watching] a lot of games I used to play when I was younger. Currently, I'm watching a walkthrough of Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks, and watching speedruns of the classic Spyro games, as well as Spyro: A Hero's Tail speedruns. This love of games could explain why I decided to do my coursework on it, but I thought I'd do a top 10, and see if it changes by the end of the year, considering the Spyro Reignited Trilogy and Spider Man game are released in September.Without further adieu, onto my top 10 video games. 

Spyro: A Hero's Tail

I am a bit biased towards this game, as this was my first game. I still remember playing through the demo on a free demo disc out of the PlayStation UK Magazine. I have fond memories of this game, right down to the time I accidentally deleted a save file and refused to play the game for months. It was out of fear I would be in trouble for deleting the file. The Dragon Village theme song tortured me for months. 

This game is also what got me into creative writing. This is the time prior to gaming videos on YouTube, but I was determined to write down all the dialogue. So much so, that to this day I can still quote the second cut scene (since the first cut scene doesn't have any dialogue at all). At the time of performing this game as a play (sorry guys, I was bossy, I know), we had only completed half of the game on any %. But I was still relieved to have four years worth of hard work and learning the dialogue of the game out there for our families to see (thank you for not recording that!). 

I admit the game has its faults, especially playing to 100%. For the most part, it sticks to the bright aesthetic of the older Spyro games, with characters like Hunter, Sparx, Moneybags, The Professor, SGT Byrd and some of the elders: Tomas, Astor, Magnus, Titan, returning. And then there's Blink. That sucker can burn in the depths of... Well you get the idea. Blink is essentially the Agent 9 of A Hero's Tail. As a child I didn't mind Blink. I actually thought Sparx was the hardest playable character, and more often than not, I had to ask Dad to help me with it. 

However, going back and replaying the game makes me realise just how awful Blink controls. I can do a whole post on A Hero's Tail closer to September if you'd like. 

For all it's flaws, this is a game I constantly revisit, either by playing it myself, or watching walkthroughs online. It will always be my favourite game, no matter how old and broken it becomes.

Tux Racer

This might come as a bit of surprise, but this was actually one of my favourite games growing up. Though there is no narrative, and it's essentially linear, samey gameplay, I adored it. 

There have been many stories, some of which I can still remember, that my brother and I would come up with whilst playing this game. I guess that technically means I was creating Tux fanfiction before I even knew what fanfiction was... that's an odd revelation to have when writing a blog post. 

I can't talk about this as much as some of the other games, but if I could play this game again, I most definitely would. 

Lego Harry Potter 1-4

Surprise, surprise, it's a Harry Potter game. Yes, I am trash for this game. Oddly enough, this game and the Order of the Phoenix game I completed within the day on the DS. I was [and still am] completely obsessed with playing the Harry Potter games. 

I mention the DS game because I didn't actually play the PlayStation version until it came out on the PS4. The DS version of the game is a lot different than the PlayStation version, but I wouldn't call it bad. Both are equally enjoyable, and I actually enjoy the PlayStation version more. The DS game, much like other DS [film adaptations] games of their time, it was very linear, very samey and very repetitive. 

Whereas the PlayStation version is a lot more open-world, in terms of I can go to various places whilst following the storyline. There were even times I got confused and frustrated with the game, which means it must be doing a good job. 

I will always enjoy playing Years 1-4 and think I favour it more, as it was the first Harry Potter game I played. 

Lego Harry Potter 5-7

I never actually played this one on the DS. And I did debate putting this one on the list, especially since I have fonder memories of the Order of the Phoenix game. 

However, I really enjoyed playing this on the PlayStation. Going from Years 1-4, straight into 5-7 did take a bit of getting used to control wise, and even longer for me to adjust to the different locations. It wasn't difficult, but it was certainly a change from the previous game. 

I do enjoy this one, but not as much as Years 1-4, which is ironic since my favourite Harry Potter book is Order of the Phoenix, and favourite films are Order of the Phoenix and Half Blood Prince. I think certain parts are maybe a little too annoying, especially down Knockturn Alley once you start Year 7, but I very quickly adjusted to that. 

I will return to it and probably will keep playing it, but in my heart, it won't beat Years 1-4.

Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks

Funnily enough, I never actually completed this game, but every time I revisit it, I get a little bit further. This was my first Zelda game and put me right on track (pun intended) to being part of the fandom. 

I think my determination to complete the game is what keeps me coming back. Whilst I adore the score with this game, parts of it can be challenging. The worst part for me, was getting the Spirit Flute in time with the metronome when playing with the sages, was really difficult for me. Adding onto the fact that the wind machine also requires you to breathe into the microphone probably exhausted me more than I used to care to admit. 

It is a game I will revisit and one day complete. Until I can get Breath of the Wild, this is as good as I can get to a Zelda fix. 

Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy

I actually debated whether to include the trilogy, or Wrath of Cortex in the top 10. I still have yet to complete both games, however, Wrath of Cortex was my childhood. 

I chose the N.Sane Trilogy, not only because it was part of the reason for one of my coursework pieces, but because I've watched hours upon hours of game-play footage on it. Like with the original Spyro games, I was too young to get into Crash on the PS1, so to revisit the franchise I've been part of since the early 2000s, and play these games, it's amazing. 

I will complete the games, and will probably then replay them and curse at the exact same points I already have done (which is a lot), and I hope they release some more Crash games in the future. 

Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery

How could I not include Harry Potter:Hogwarts Mystery? It's the only game I currently have on my phone and I'm constantly playing it. 

I won't spoil it, but from what I've played so far (mid-way through second year), it's a really good game. Like with most mobile games, if you pay to get energy, you blast through it quicker. However, I am enjoying playing at my own pace. 

The story, in my eyes isn't the best, especially as the game appeared to be marketed as more of an open world type of game. But I wouldn't say it's awful. You still get to make friends, but you get the "action" that you would have gotten if the game was set 1991-1998. 

I'm excited to keep playing, and once I finish the game, I'm sure I'll have a full blog post on it. 

Lego Star Wars The Complete Saga

I wasn't sure if I was going to include The Complete Saga, because I actually enjoy the games individually. The Complete Saga combines Star Wars: The Video Game and Star Wars: The Original Trilogy into one game, adding a couple of levels here and there. 

Whilst this remaster of the two games has more perks, such as ghost studs and multipliers, they also made some of the levels easier. I do enjoy playing the games, however, I prefer both games individually. I just couldn't decide which game I enjoyed more. 

I will always play the games, but I think I'd play the PS2 versions over the PS3. Also, the fact that the PS3 version doesn't have Yoda in his chair is deeply upsetting, and if it wasn't for the reason of not being able to choose which game, I wouldn't have the Complete Saga on here.

Imagine Figure Skater

This game! I remember thinking I wouldn't really like it. I hated ice skating and wasn't good at roller blading, nor did I have any interest in Figure Skating. But I guess the perk of this game was to imagine what it would be like to be there. 

And boy, was I proven wrong. This is my favourite Imagine game and I adored it. Right from learning how to skate, to competing, more often than not choosing the music from The Nutcracker (Waltz of the Flowers/Waltz of the Sugar Plum fairy). I think loving Barbie in the Nutcracker was why I chose that song. 

Would I revisit again though? Possibly. I think it would have to be a strong urge to play it again (kind of like the one I feel in me as I write this), and have time to curse when I get things wrong. It probably won't be as fun to me now as a child, but I'd still enjoy it.

Lego Rock Band

If someone had told me when I first played this game I'd be listening to this music as an adult, I probably wouldn't have believed you. But here I am, aged 20, listening to the majority of the music that was featured on this game. 

It did get a bit samey, and I don't think I ever completed the game, but I did enjoy it. Every once in a while I revisit it, but with having Spotify, I can just listen to the songs.
It does make me appreciate the different instruments within the songs, and I admire people who can complete songs on the expert mode. I only managed hard on a few of the songs. 

I admit, if I played it now, I'd probably be too busy singing the songs and would lose a lot of the time. Maybe in the future I will play it again, and complete it this time. 

Thank you for reading!

I hope you've enjoyed seeing my top 10 games. As I was writing, I was thinking of other games, but I had to stick to ten. 

See you next week!

-Emmaberry-