I always get excited for E3. It’s Video Gamer Christmas. For weeks, months even, the biggest names in games and entertainment horde all their secrets like parents slyly tracking down a surprise puppy for their tween. The gaming industry eventually drops all pretenses of keeping quiet, teasing us with short video clips and logos for the final few days before the conference.
I’m ready to start unwrapping presents. E3 2019 is just hours away. Here are the things I want to see at the show.
Microsoft
I’m pinning most of those hopes on my platform of choice: Xbox. Xbox is heading into E3 2019 without a lot of things to get excited about.
First, there’s Project xCloud. Project xCloud is a cloud gaming service that will let anyone play their favorite games on a phone or tablet. I want to know when we’ll be able to test Project xCloud for ourselves. I also want to know how much Project xCloud will cost, because that’ll be what makes or breaks this service.
Also, they should throw us a bone and announced a final name. That way we can stop using this ridiculous code name.
Once they’re done dazzling us with Project xCloud, I’d like Microsoft to show off this new Xbox app that must be on the horizon. The company recently renamed the Xbox app in the Windows Store to ‘Xbox Console Companion.’ So, it stands to reason that there’s a new app coming that’ll act as a gateway for Project xCloud and Xbox Game Pass for Windows. Theoretically, this same app will be available on iPhone and Android too.
Finally, I want Microsoft to show me the exclusive games. I’m not talking just Gears 5 either. I want teasers for Halo Infinite. I want to see this new Fable that Playground Games is allegedly building too. Lastly, I want to hear that there are more games coming that might morph into long-running franchises.
One thing I don’t want to hear: “gamers are at the center of everything that we do.” I get that the only way to drive a message home is to repeat it at every opportunity. Unfortunately, it’s always come off a bit like the company was pandering, especially when the only folks watching a live broadcast showcasing games are gamers. (Also, I do more than play games on my Xbox, but that’s a topic for another day.)
Sony
Sony won’t have a formal presence at E3 2019. Depending on who you talk to, that either means that the Electronic Entertainment Expo itself is in danger of being irrelevant or Sony’s roster was going to be a little lite this year. I’d say it’s a little bit of both.
That does not mean that I expect Sony to keep quiet while everyone else is showing off. They’re the market leader in consoles, and right now they’re putting their focus on the next PlayStation. I expect them to drop an online video that reveals what this console looks like, but not how much it costs.
I sold off the PlayStation 4 I got last year for Marvel’s Spider-Man because I prefer to focus my attention and efforts on Microsoft’s offerings and franchises. That being said, I want to know all that Sony is willing to share about this new console. If they drop some fire, I’m perfectly willing to give them the props they deserve. When some of us win, all of us win.
Nintendo
Here’s a fun fact for the road, I sold the Nintendo Switch to get the PlayStation 4 I recently sold off. I know, the Switch has some great games. Hell, Splatoon 2 is incredibly fun.
I’m going to need some big hardware announcements from Nintendo to truly get me excited for anything they’re doing too. They don’t have to give me an entirely new console, though. I’ll take an improved version of their existing breakout hit.
This new Nintendo Switch should have more internal storage. It should also have a microphone so that I don’t have to pair it with my smartphone like it’s 1999 all over again and a more rigid body to prevent the type of bending flexing the first one suffers from. That kickstand? Give the people want they want: more comfortable angles.
As the rumors Kotaku published a while back suggest, this highly theoretical new Nintendo Switch should not come with the TV dock. Nintendo should sell the dock separately and get the price of a new Switch down from $299.99 to $259.99.All that next-generation Pokémon that’s about to land is a perfectly good opportunity to lower the amount of upfront money it costs to enjoy the Switch.
Everyone Else
Respectfully, Google should stay silent during E3 2019 until they have a logical reason for why folks should abandon cloud game services from established competitors for the wild unknown of Google Stadia. If they’re really feeling generous, they can also explain the new cloud gaming service’s incredibly generic name and logo.
Between Ghost Recon: Breakpoint and the new rumored Watch Dogs 3, Ubisoft is all set, I think. I’m one of the few people who enjoyed both Watch Dogs and Watch Dogs 2, apparently. I can’t wait for a new game in the series that takes on the blatant misuse of our personal data that we’ve uncovered in the time since the last game launched.
EA, go ahead and show me more Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. You’ve got my attention. At least, I’m more inclined to buy Fallen Order than I ever was Battlefront or Battlefront 2
So how about you? What could any of the major players announce at E3 2019 that would get you excited?
