So, my time in San Francisco is temporarily on hold because of a few reasons. One of the main reason is that I am a bit homesick…which leads to my second reason. I need to regroup in preparation to make San Francisco my permanent home. But there’s so much more than that.
Happy Independence Day to all friends, family, colleagues, and fans. I am watching Independence Day for the…well…I don’t know how many times while working on my projects. I kinda don’t believe in taking a day off on a holiday as my mind is always flooding with information. So, I’m going to watching the fireworks while progressing through this gaming project.
Well, that’s all for today, I want to get back to my writing. Please, don’t forget to follow me on my social media platforms (Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads) which are on the right side of my web page. Also, I do love hearing suggestions of what books to read outside of my norm (Science fiction and fantasy) as I am a part of the Goodreads’ reading challenge for 2018.
I’m still traveling around San Francisco and having fun with the energy that this city. But, that doesn’t mean that I’m resting on my bum as I’ve been hard at work on my projects…well…one project at a time, really.
My goodness…San Francisco is amazing. It’s warm (major plus). It’s vivid. It’s full of personality. And, much like Philadelphia and New York, everybody here is always on the move. But getting there was a complete and utter nightmare of the funny variety. A very funny variety.
Now, that E3 is over and I had to chance to sit down to study all of the games that was announced during the five days of coverage. As a tradition of mine, I’m going to list my 2018 E3 Wishlist:
Origins Game Fair is this weekend and I couldn’t be any happier. Video games. The card games – both trading and non-trading alike. Board games. Even tabletop games are bringing everybody to the yard. And here I thought only milkshakes did that. Yes, I know it was a bad joke but I’m just too damn excitement, right now.
Nintendo has always held a special place in my heart and for many reasons. For starters, it was the system that my mom was comfortable with me playing after I blew out my Sega Genesis. Plus, it has a wider variety of games that two people (i.e. my brother and I) can play. Since then, I’ve always been a big fan of Nintendo and their products. Even their avant-garde approach to press conferences and showcases has always tickled my funny bone. This year was no different.
I own a PlayStation 4 so you can imagine how pumped I was for his press conference. But, unfortunately, I was having a flashback to the awful EA Press Conference. I mean, the game line-up was great but the presentation was an absolute mess.
Ubisoft is a game company that tends to surprise me every year – in a good way. Every year, they show me one game that always makes me say “Meh” but still make me want to buy it. Then my “Meh” turns into “Ah!” after giving into my curiosity. And, this year, I’m hoping to feel that same feeling.
Like always, they announced their latest installment to their Just Dance franchise with Just Dance 2019 with a bizarre, yet humorous, performance of many costumed dancers to show off some of the games to be expected in the game. Offhand, I could hear Camila Cabello’s “Havana” and Maroon 5’s “Sugar” so I’m excited about this one. I’ve always been a fan of music games.
Another smile formed on my face as the trailer for Beyond Good and Evil 2 was shown to the audience. I mean, this game looks freaking phenomenal as it shows off their story and cast. It even had some gameplay feature to showcase that the game will be cooperative allowing one to control ground and another for the air. But, the real icing on the cake…Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Yep! He made an appearance to discuss his company, HitRecord, and how he will be allowing fans to “collaborate with Ubisoft to contribute music, artwork and level design they’d like to see in the game.” This is going to be fun. Haha!
They talk about a small update that’s coming to Rainbow Six: Siege. But, Trials Rising is something I’m slightly interested in. It’s all about pulling off incredible stunts on motorbikes. Another game of intrigue was a horror VR game called Transference, which I will not touch because I’m a punk when it comes down to horror games.
Now, this time around, The Division 2 was properly discussed as the weapon upgrade system was explained in greater details. To put it simply, you have three specialties to choose from (Sharpshooter, Demolitionist, and Survivalist) and you can upgrade and improve your stats and abilities of that class. Even better, they announced that there will be three FREE DLC packs, each one a full episode in an ongoing story.
Another treat for the Ubisoft Press Conference was, yet, ANOTHER performance to remind the audience that Donkey Kong was coming to Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle: Donkey Kong Adventure. They even announced that Cranky Kong Rabbid is going to be a playable character. To further showcase their ever-growing bond with Nintendo, Fox McCloud is shown to be apart of the Nintendo Switch’s version of their new game, Starlink: Battle for Atlas, an open-world sci-fi adventure game.
Skull & Bones is a game that might give Sea of Thieves a run for their money. Not something I would fancy but I can see the appeal of creating fleets and fighting against others for loots and such. And though the crowd’s reception was positive, it went into an overwhelming uproar when Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey was unveiled. It’s like they completely forgot about the For Honor expansion that was announced.
Yep! Another one…and this time it’s tackling the architecture and landscape of ancient Greece during the Peloponnesian War. But, there are two major changes coming to the franchise. One of them is that you have to CHOOSE between Alexios or Kassandra (sounds familiar) and the other being that you have to certain decisions in dialogue that will affect how the story will play out.
Yet, another solid press conference from Ubisoft and a well deserved 85 of 100.
Square Enix was the first company that introduced me to the world of RPGs with the first Final Fantasy. Couldn’t read of it as a child but I could go with the motion and figure things out. Haha! That being said, I’ve always been extra antsy about their press conference. But this year…my god…this has got to be the briefest press conference I have ever watched. Well, let’s face it…it was a thirty-minute video presentation but with some good content.