With the yearly Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) just around the corner, the excitement is building as everyone waits in anticipation to hear more about the next top title which they’ll be spending their hard earned money on. With so many games on show each year it can be quite tough to know where to look first, so for a helping hand here are the top 5 AAA titles that we want to hear more about at E3 2016.
(5) Gears of War 4
Gears, the series which revolutionised 3rd person cover shooters and spawned one of the best storylines seen on console to date!
Announced last year, Gears of War 4 is the second game from The Coalition and is the first sequel developed by the studio in the series’ main storyline. After seeing the great job the guys over at The Coalition did with the Gears of War: Ultimate Edition many people, myself included, are excited to see what awaits this time around.
Players will be taking on the role of new protagonists this time out including one J.D Fenix, the son of famous series veteran Marcus Fenix, in a new adventure seemingly set with a much darker and grittier tone than seen before. With a whole new enemy breed to contend with, and last year’s trailer gracing our eyes for the first time at E3 2015, we can be certain of hearing more from Gears of War 4 this time around.
(4) Forza Motorsport
Okay so it may not be the most obvious game to be talking about given that we haven’t even got a title yet, but we’re looking forward to the next Forza title. With content still releasing by the bucket load for last year’s Forza 6, as well as the ongoing development for Forza 6 Apex, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the next Forza game is not due any time soon. But with Microsoft’s E3 Xbox Fanfest tickets granting “special Forza Motorsport event” entry to each of the five hundred lucky ticket holders and a statement from Microsoft stating that we would have to wait until June 2016 for details for details on the next Forza entry, it is almost guaranteed we will be seeing a lot more from the beloved Forza franchise at E3.
Microsoft have once more announced a partnership with Lamborghini, just as they did for the hugely successful Forza Horizon 2, with the next cover car confirmed to be the Lamborghini Centenario. It would therefore be wise to expect the announcement being a third entry to the Forza Horizon series – as of yet though we can only wait in great anticipation for whatever announcement Microsoft make on June 13th.
(3) Battlefield 1
So EA may be holding their own little party, but we’d be amazed if we didn’t hear more about Battlefield 1.
Maybe the title isn’t quite what many of us had expected, but the guys over at EA certainly listened to the fans when it came to this one.
With almost every major FPS series these days taking a blind jump to a much more futuristic setting, many gamers gave a sigh of relief to see that EA decided against following the same pattern, and it was to the delight of many when it was announced that the latest title would see us returning to the era of the WW1.
While we have seen titles set in older war times before, with some of the older Call of Duty and Medal of Honor titles taking place during some of the most famous wars to date, recent years have seen big developers take to the future to show us warfare on the next epic scale. But with Battlefield 1 promising large scale battles on land, sea, air and hand to hand combat, as well as in-depth weapon customization, it looks likely that EA may provide the experience gamers have wanted for some time.
(2) Sea of Thieves
The guys at Rare do a fantastic job when it comes to creating immersive titles, with some of the finest and most memorable titles coming from Rare showcased in last year’s fantastic Rare Replay collection.
So it was great to see them announce their latest game, Sea of Thieves, last year. With the studio stating this to be their most ambitious and biggest title yet, many people are excited to see more from the open world, MMO, pirate adventure they have created. Last year’s gameplay trailer looked incredible, showing off impressive ship battles with multiple players able to co-operate as a crew aboard each ship. First person exploration is near on guaranteed and that makes Sea of Thieves definitely a title to keep an eye out for.
With a launch date estimated to be late 2016, it is expected that this Xbox exclusive title will be one of the main showings at this years Xbox briefing and with many people already showing their love for the game with Rare’s own play it first contest receiving thousands of entries it has all the features to be, not only one of E3’s biggest titles, but potentially one of 2016’s biggest titles also.
(1) Ghost Recon: Wildlands
Ubisoft may not have the best luck at E3 when it comes to presenters but one thing they never fail on is showing off top quality titles.
Ghost Recon: Wildlands was a title they announced at the end of last year’s E3 conference, claiming that it will boast the largest open-world environment they have ever created, whilst being developed with an entirely new engine made for the game. Wildlands will feature a large selection of targets for players to track down and with each mission having multiple ways to play, it’ll ensure plenty of variety and freedom in the way you play.
Vehicles have been confirmed for Wildlands and will be required to traverse the large open world area of the game – motorbikes, buggies, lorries, ATV’s and helicopters, along with many other types of yet unannounced transport, should all be present.
The game will be played in third person with first person set to be an option in the game, although it is currently unannounced as to what aspect this will feature. Players must expect the need to plan carefully before any execution can take place with many targets being heavily protected with security – with various ways to take on a mission either during the day or the night, it will be interesting to see what more Ubisoft have to show us at this year’s Expo.
Honourable Mention: Resident Evil 7
I couldn’t let this article go without a mention for RE7.
Capcom have been criticized in recent years for the lack of horror in recent Resident Evil outings, with Resident Evil 5 and 6 focusing more on action adventure than horror. However, with recent remasters seeing them return to the finest roots of survival horror, many people have been questioning what will be seen next in the Resident Evil franchise.
In recent weeks however confirmation has been outed from industry professionals that Resident Evil 7 will receive a world premiere at E3 2016 and with many questions remaining unanswered about the next Resident Evil title, and high profile announcements being thrown freely around, it seems certain Capcom will have something special prepared for their best-selling I.P.
Resident Evil 7 is said to return the series back to a much more tightly woven horror experience instead of the action adventure seen in recent titles and with Capcom said to be preparing for a full scale attack for the second half of 2016, there is high potential for Resident Evil 7 to be one of the end of year blockbuster titles headed our way this year.
