It’s the third day of E3 press conferences, and Square Enix just showed up with... well, with a pretty disappointing show.
The Japanese publisher had a couple of game announcements, some videos about games we already know about, and a pair of slightly longer looks at Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Just Cause 4. And then it just sort of ended.
But hey, man. This is Kotaku, I came here to write a gosh darn roundup post, and that is what I’m gonna do. Here we go.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider has expanded stealth options.
They started with a look at Eidos Montreal’s Shadow of the Tomb Raider, which sure looks like a stealth game! Definitely some new ways to sneakily kill dudes in this game, including berserk arrows that can make enemies turn on their friends, as well as the option to apply mud camouflage in order to vanish, John Rambo-style, into the vines and bushes. A developer said the game will have one of the “biggest hubs ever created in a Tomb Raider game,” and more tombs than ever. I like these games, and this one looks like another one that I will probably like.
The Awesome Adventures Of Captain Spirit will connect to Life is Strange season 2.
The developers at Dontnod said that Captain Spirit, which they announced yesterday at Microsoft’s conference, is intended to bridge the gap between the first season of Life is Strange and the coming second one, and that it will connect in some ways to the latter game. They see all the games as part of a bigger universe, which is neat. It’s out as a complete, free experience on June 26.
Platinum is making a new game called Babylon’s Fall.
Given that Platinum made Bayonetta, Vanquish and Nier: Automata, it’s a safe bet it’ll be an action game. It’s coming out in 2019.
Just Cause 4 is all about the weather.
I’ve long been on the record that weather is an interesting topic of conversation, and today’s Just Cause 4 demo seemed to share my opinion. The game is set in a fictional South American country with blizzards, sandstorms, lightning, and of course, tornadoes, each of which will directly affect gameplay. The developers say they’ve added a bunch more functionality to Rico’s grappling hook, which should lead to some enjoyable experimentation once this game comes out. They also say they’ve overhauled combat by making enemies smarter, which I’m not sure was exactly the issue with Just Cause 3's combat, but of course I’ll reserve judgment.
The Quiet Man is apparently about kicking ass while deaf.
It looks like a brawler, and the trailer says they’ll sharing more about it in August. I like when games experiment with sound and silence, so I’m interested. The YouTube description on the trailer describes it as “an immersive story driven cinematic action experience seamlessly blending high-production live action, realistic CG and pulse-pounding action gameplay,” and says it’s a movie-like experience that can be completed in one sitting. Hmm.
A few more things: We got a trailer for Final Fantasy XIV’s “Under the Moonlight” update and news of a Monster Hunter: World crossover; a new trailer for Dragon Quest XI; and another little trailer for Octopath Traveler.
And that was it. No, seriously! No major Final Fantasy news, nothing on the Final Fantasy VII remake, and little meaningful information about the new games they announced. Oh, well. Not every E3 press conference can be a blockbuster.
We’ll be back later this afternoon for Ubisoft’s conference, and then again a few hours later for Sony. And of course, we’ll be here throughout next week with more news, game announcements, hands-on impressions, and developer interviews.