The days are long gone when an awards ceremony is simply that. Due to the size of the gaming industry, every event is an opportunity to make some big announcements, this being one of the last opportunities of the year to do so. But just what were the biggest – and most exciting – reveals to come out of The Game Awards 2019?
Maneater Release Date
Maneater looks like incredible fun.
It was actually revealed at last year’s E3 for PC before it was rumoured to be making the leap to console. The trailer was dropped during The Game Awards pre-show, and, much like the fearsome beasts themselves, I’m not sure anyone saw it coming.
Maneater is a game where you play as the infamous predator – a shark – and go on the hunt for humans to devour in an open world RPG style fashion. Ridiculous shark physics and over the top abilities look set to make this one a cult classic.
The game will be unleashed on 22nd May 2020 for Xbox.
The Wolf Among Us Season 2
Now, this is more of a re-reveal but I’m not going to get bogged down in technicalities.
Delayed after being announced in 2017, season 2 of the universally acclaimed The Wolf Among Us seemed at risk of fading away into the dark depths of gaming history. However, thanks to Telltale Games partnering with AdHoc studios, the project is very much back on.
Details at this stage are thin, but the first game has a dedicated following. It was an episodic interactive graphic novel, which was a prequel to the very dark “Fables” comic book series by Bill Willingham.
The second season is confirmed as coming to PC and console, as the original did, and hopefully it will be the fairytale ending we all deserve!
Fast and Furious Crossroads
I must confess, I’ve never watched a “Fast and Furious” film all the way through. I like cars and I like action but they never really grabbed me. Still, everyone else seems to love them and that is probably why the franchise is speeding towards a console near you for May 2020 with Fast & Furious Crossroads.
Michelle Rodriguez AND Vin Diesel (I prefer him as Groot) took to the stage to reveal Fast and Furious Crossroads. Both seemed to burst with excitement as they told the audience how they have been long time gamers, and were so happy to finally share the news that the project was in development.
As ever, I’m cautious around just how good a game will be when based on a film, or series of, and it’s fair to say currently the graphics look like they belong in the early noughties.
That said, I’ll reserve judgement so early on. Instead, have a look at the trailer for yourself.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
The top two reveals at The Game Awards 2019 were presented as one, but they qualify as separate entries and you’ll soon see why.
Microsoft decided not only to reveal it’s new console (more on that shortly), but also a brand new game that will release on it – this being Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II, a sequel to Ninja Theory’s Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice.
The trailer, apparently, consisted of in-game footage and looked pretty damn spectacular. Time will tell how close this will look to the finished release, but it seems likely to be the killer title to allow the new Xbox to flex its muscles. Check it out for yourself below.
Xbox Series X
Well this was a surprise, and what a scoop for The Game Awards.
Finally the next Xbox console is officially revealed – the Xbox Series X. It’s an interesting choice of name given there is already the Xbox One X out there, however it couldn’t look more different. Well, it may be the same colour but that’s about it, working in a much more box-like fashion and capable of being stored both as a vertical system (as shown), and apparent horizontal fashion. I’m not sure how I feel about this, given how I used to be terrified to move my Xbox 360 even a smidge when a disc was inside, for fear of it getting chewed up.
Still, it’s nice to see the console has a disc drive, and Microsoft aren’t forcing the “all digital” revolution on us just yet.
Yes, Mr Xbox himself, Phil Spencer, was there to big up the next generation, and it all sounds very exciting. He has promised us that the Xbox Series X will be the most powerful Xbox yet (thank goodness), boasting the strongest line up of exclusive titles ever with the 15 Xbox Game Studios teams busy at work. As expected, it will launch in Holiday 2020, with no specific release date or price tag confirmed as of yet.
And there we have it. The ceremony closed with a beautiful medley of musical pieces from each of the game of the year nominees. It was a classy, powerful and simply joyous way to end the celebration of gaming. As Reggie said, the industry is now bigger than film, music and TV. Long may it continue.
