10 Next-Gen Games Shown at E3 to get Excited About

Every year, video game developers show off their latest and greatest productions to the gaming world at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3 for short. This year especially, with the next generation of gaming systems set for release this holiday season, developers really wanted to make a statement. For some gamers, E3 is like Christmas. For most gamers, E3 is the source of the items that will eventually be on their Christmas list. So without further adieu, I give you my top 10 next generation games, shown at E3 to get excited about.

10. TitanFall

Respawn’s long awaited first title since coming together, brings you a first-person shooter experience like no other in Titanfall. Respawn is comprised of many of the developers that created the original Call of Duty games, including the Modern Warfare franchises. In Titanfall, you play a soldier equipped with what looks like a large robotic death machine or Titan, to destroy your enemies who also have their own Titans. While originally planning on releasing Titanfall on current-gen systems, Respawn had decided to have it on next-gen systems instead because it gave them more flexibility with time and were able to perfect some areas in the game that look and feel way better on the next generation of technology. From the videos and screenshots Respawn has made available, it is obvious that they are very seasoned in how to construct a first-person shooter. The graphics and frame rate look absolutely stunning for this type of game and from what I can tell, it looks super badass. You do not want to miss this one. Below is the E3 announcement trailer.

9. Super Smash Bros. Universe

The gang is back, ladies and gentlemen. The brave, Italian plumber, the heroic, sword-wielding elf, the gun-slinging space commander, and the strong, barrel-throwing gorilla, plus many more, are back to beat the living crap out of each other for your amusement on the Wii U. Nintendo has already announced two new characters to the game including Villager from the Animal Crossing series, as well as Mega Man from a partnership with third-partier Capcom. With so many Mega Mans to choose from, they eventually chose the Blue Bomber from Mega Man 2, which means he is equipped with moves from such bosses like Heat Man, and Metal Man. The graphics look crisp and fresh, with the environments our heroes fight in looking even better. Do your finger exercises, and let the button-mashing ensue.

8. Destiny

From Bungie, the original developers of the Halo series is back on the gaming scene with Destiny. Unlike Halo, it is an action role-playing, first person shooter game in an open world setting. It is set seven hundred years into the future in a post-apocalyptic environment. Some of the coolest games I have played in recent memory are games that have been set in post-apocalyptic conditions, and Destiny looks like it will become the next classic. Bungie has stated that the gameplay will always be “alive”, meaning that some events that happen in the game were not exactly planned by the developers themselves. They have also said that it will feature some massive multiplayer online (MMO) components. Destiny‘s multiplayer mode will also boast Bungie’s powerful “hopper” technology allowing gamers in matchmaking to have a more natural experience. It is because of games like this as well as Titanfall, that I believe the Halo and Call of Duty series will soon be an afterthought in the first person shooter marketplace. (Sorry to those of you expecting to see Halo or Call of Duty on this list).

7. Ryse: Son of Rome

In this hack and slash third-person game, you play a Roman general named Marius Titus that leads a Roman infantry. Think Russel Crowe in Gladiator. Ryse is an Xbox One exclusive and will available at the systems launch in November. It is also integrated with kinect, so that your commands to your subordinates are smooth and give it that realistic feel as if you are actually Marius Titus barking out orders. It seems like Ryse is Microsoft’s answer to Sony’s enormous success with the God of War franchises, as they have always been Playstation exclusives. The cut scenes look like a movie and the gameplay is not far off with its graphics. The combat looks fun, fast and intuitive. It also looks like it can get challenging when a lot of foes have you surrounded, which is a good thing for hardcore gamers. This is the type of game much like Super Smash Bros, where you can go on and take all of your anger and frustration from everyday life, out on your enemies. I can’t wait to let my inner Maximus Decimus Meridius out.

6. South Park: The Stick of Truth

If you are, or ever once were, a South Park fan, this game is a must-have. Trey Parker and Matt Stone (creators of South Park) have written, and co-produced this new tale in the world, or town, of South Park. No, it is not another South Park movie or episode, it is actually a video game. You play as the “new kid” in town in a role-playing adventure with your South Park pals. After getting delayed because of THQ’s bankruptcy, Ubisoft picked up the pieces of the game and teamed up with Obsidian Entertainment (Fallout 3, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II) to continue working on it. The fact that it is written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and is a role-playing game, has me jumping with excitement. The graphics look like an actual episode! I repeat, the graphics look like an actual episode! Would anyone like to place bets on if Kenny dies or not? Get ready for crude, inappropriate, and knee-slapping humor in South Park: The Stick of Truth. 

5. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

I have a confession to make. I’ve never played any of The Witcher‘s. And what’s even more embarrassing, is the fact that I consider myself one of the biggest RPG fans out there. I must have been too busy playing all of the Elder Scrolls games. I digress, but better late than never, right? The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the third and final installment in the epic saga set in a more open-world environment than the series’s previous two games. The game follows Geralt, as one of the few remaining “Witchers”, or monster-killer-for-hire with the ability to perform supernatural powers. Like previous RPG games in the past, as is the new trend in RPG’s, the story will be driven by your character’s choices throughout the game. The debut trailer for the game (below) shows the protagonist dueling with huge unknown creatures, in gorgeous-looking surroundings and backdrops. Although I may have missed out on the first two games in this franchise, I will surely make up for it with this new one coming in 2014.

4. The Elder Scrolls Online

Right on cue, The Elder Scrolls Online comes in at #4. This will be the first of Bethesda Softworks Elder Scrolls game that can be played with others online. Bethesda is known for making amazing RPGs like the Fallout series, and most recently, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, both of which I still play religiously. With The Elder Scrolls Online, Bethesda has finally breached the MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role playing game) realm. This game will be set one-thousand years before the events of The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, and will be indirectly relatable to the previous Elder Scrolls games. The vast setting in The Elder Scrolls Online spans the entire continent of Tamriel, a lot of which is being saved for expansion content. This game will show off in-depth customization of class systems not seen in MMO games yet. For example, every race will have access to the same six classes, which means you will not have to settle on a race just because they do not have the class you want to play with. Previously set for release for the upcoming holiday season, the developers at E3 announced that it is being delayed until spring 2014. They soon turned many gamer’s frown upside down by announcing some huge news. The game will also be released for Xbox One, along with the already known platforms of PC, Mac, and PS4. That has me giddy, as I am an Xbox advocate.

3. Watch Dogs

This upcoming title from Ubisoft, has been turning heads at E3 for the past two years. First announced at the 2012 E3, it won Best of Show award from GamingExcellence and IGN gave Watch Dogs its Best New Franchise award. It is as an open-world, action adventure stealth game with the gameplay focused on hacking electronic devices in order to stop criminals before they commit a crime. You play as Aiden Pearce, who has the ability to hack into his city’s central operating system, which also allows the player the freedom to solve objectives and missions in a multitude of ways. Examples of his hacking skills include disrupting traffic lights to cause collisions, access to people’s cell phones to gain intelligence, and prompt failures in enemy equipment in order to distract them. Evading the police is also a big part of this game, much like games like Grand Theft Auto. If I had to guess, from what I have read and seen on this game, it’s a combination of the open world freedom you get from the Grand Theft Auto games combined with the cool, sleek gadgets you see and play with in the James Bond games and movies. Below is the gameplay trailer shown at E3.

2. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

The only reason this game isn’t #1 is because we have seen many Metal Gears in the past and there are newer stories to be told. Don’t be upset Snake, #2 is still respectable (just don’t hurt me, ok?). That being said, Snake is back! Kojima Productions takes all of the stealth, action-adventure espionage, colorful cast characters and epic stories that were featured in previous MGS games and combines that with an open world environment for the first time in MGS history. What more do you need in a video game, honestly? The game offers many modes of transportation, including horses for the first time in history of the franchise. You will recognize some old and probably nostalgic faces from previous MGS games, in this new one. Gamers will enjoy beautiful next-generation graphics as they guide Snake through this latest adventure. Like Watch Dogs, gamers will have many options to choose from on how they want to complete their objectives. You can either have Snake go in guns blazing, or take the recommended stealth alternative, and silently take out enemies undetected to complete your mission. The choice is yours.

1. Tom Clancy’s The Division

Surprised to see a Tom Clancy title at #1? To answer my earlier question, “what else do you need in a video game?” The Division is a massively multiplayer online third person tactical shooter role-playing game. That is pretty much all I need in a video game. It features MMO elements that World of Warcraft and Diablo have, but it plays, looks and feels like your average console third person game. In the game, a disease that spreads on Black Friday causes the United States to collapse in five days. The post-apocalyptic nature of the game makes for what looks like a legendary story. The gameplay looks smart and engaging, with the interactions with other players online looking insanely cooperative. You play as part of an unconfirmed squad that was created to save whatever remains of the world as we know it. The world and local map’s interface that your player can look at via the pause menu is something we have never seen before as gamers and it simply looks so cool. The gadgets and technology your player is equipped with, rivals such ones you’ll see in Watch Dogs. In the 7-minute gameplay trailer (below) that was shown at E3, it portrays New York City in ruins, as the players guide themselves through a gun fight at a police station. I could easily see myself getting lost in this world for months, maybe years.

Very Honorable Mentions

• Final Fantasy XV
• Evil Within
• Mirror’s Edge 2
• Project Spark
• Star Wars: Battlefront
• Thief

Another year, another E3. Too many games were announced, or had new footage to show this year that had my mouth watering. All we can do now is wait, but have to be careful not to freeze ourselves. It’s going to be hard not to. Well, it’s official. Once these games are released, I will not only be broke, but I’ll also have no social life whatsoever. Is it bad that I’m OK with that?

What do you think? Leave a comment.