Recap & Review: Ubisoft E3

by

Recap & Review: Ubisoft E3

Killer guitar solos, dancing, sexual innuendos, pirates, epic car chases, guns, punching, and EXPLOOOOOSIONS; Ubisoft’s E3 conference had it all. The massive developer showed off a bunch of new games for both the current gen and next gen that got me, and I’m pretty sure everyone else, excited for the future.

The press conference kicked off with the legendary Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains strolling on stage and busting out an absolutely EPIC guitar solo for “Man in the Box.” For any of you rock fans out there, the man’s still got it. Anyway, after he finished blowing everyone’s mind with some powerful riffs, he made a comment about playing over a recorded track and suggested bringing a band on stage. He then turned to the screen and started talking to a Kinect, telling it to open the new Rocksmith 2014 Edition, and enter “Session Mode”, a new feature that allows you to play along with a digital band that adapts to what the player is playing. He then blew everyone’s mind again by playing with a digital band backing him up. I can’t play guitar to save my life but this demo made me want to go get a guitar immediately.

Next up was a game that I’m super excited about: Splinter Cell: Blacklist. As a big fan of the series, I am thrilled to say that the series has returned to its roots after taking an interesting (but still awesome) turn in its last installment, Splinter Cell: Conviction. The trailer displayed plenty of in-game footage, (although no actual gameplay) and showed of Sam Fisher kicking a** and taking names as always. My one complaint is the fact that Michael Ironside is no longer voicing Sam Fisher, and, not that the new guy (Eric Johnson) is doing a bad job, it just put me off a little bit. Regardless, I will be getting this game when it comes out for the current gen on August 20th, 2013.

Following the dark and intense trailer for Blacklist was the bright and whimsical trailer for Rayman Legends. This trailer featured 100% CGI and didn’t tell much about the game, other than showing some of the enemies you fight and that you jump from world to world through paintings with your lady Viking friend. The second trailer, however, showed all in game footage, and let me tell you, it looks GORGEOUS. The art style used for this game looks very, very cool and almost looks like everything is hand drawn with love. Rayman Legends looks to be a very energetic, fun, and goofy platformer for all ages and should definitely warrant being looked into further.

Rayman was followed by The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot. In this game, all players have their own castle, where they have to build a series of mazes and traps to keep other player out and protect their loot. Once they’ve done that, the player can then try to break into other player’s castles and steal their loot. I wasn’t 100% sold on the idea when the presenter was pitching it, but after watching some of the in game footage, I was intrigued, much like I was after seeing Project Spark during Microsoft’s conference. Keep an eye open for this game because it looks cool/effing hilarious. Seriously, watch the trailer below; I died watching it. TMQEL will be coming out for the PC at…some point, BUT if you want to check it out sooner, go to www.themightyquest.com to sign up for the closed beta!

Ubisoft then showed off a quick trailer for the highly anticipated RPG, South Park: The Stick of Destiny. The trailer featured Mr. Marsh showing off this half karate/half fart called the Nagasaki, along with a bunch of quick cuts of the usual madness that is South Park. The game will be coming out for the current gen sometime this holiday season.  If you want a good laugh, check out this short minute and a half long trailer:

Finally, Ubisoft then moved on to their next gen lineup. Leading things off was an awesome new racing game called The Crew. After watching a very cool and intense CGI trailer, they got into talking about the heart of the game and showing a live demo. All I can say about this game is “WOW.” First off the maps are massive. How massive, you ask? TRY THE ENTIRE CONTINENTAL U.S.A.! THAT HUGE!! The whole concept is that you and your crew of 3 other friends try to infiltrate a criminal organization through racing and heist, and while you can play single player, the advantages of having a crew (hence the name of the game) with you is beneficial. The game also allows fully customizable cars, and car building that can be done remotely from a smart phone or tablet. I haven’t been a big fan of racing games but I seriously think this is one of the most unique driving experiences out there and I will definitely be getting this for my next gen console, whatever it may be.

Then finally, it was time for Watch Dogs. Since we had already seen the Watch Dog gameplay during Sony’s conference, Ubisoft didn’t give us much more on the game. However, they did give us a very awesome and bad a** CGI trailer that you absolutely need to check out.

Following Watch Dogs was Just Dance 2014, the latest installment into the popular dance franchise. The latest Just Dance will feature popular tracks from dozens of pop, rap, rock, and techno artists and allow players to have the ability to dance with up to 6 players at once. Just Dance 2014 will be coming out in October 2013 for all platforms (current and next gen).

Ubisoft then went on to announce the Rabbids Invasion interactive TV show on Nickelodeon. The show will feature the Rabbids from the popular franchise of the same name, and follow them in their misadventures on earth. Xbox One, however, will allow the viewer to interact with the TV show to help progress the story. My impression of it was that it was kind of like how Dora the Explorer would talk to kids watching the show, but in this case the Rabbids will actually hear you and see where you’re pointing via the Kinect. While this is obviously geared towards a much younger audience than myself, I have to admit that this is a pretty cool concept and I’m interested in what else Ubisoft (or other developers) will do with this idea in the future. Here is the demo of Rabbids Invasion:

Ubisoft then moved back to the more adult games, showing off both a CGI trailer and an in-game footage trailer for Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag. The CGI trailer showed off the new assassin Edward Kenway chilling in a tavern when some Spanish conquistadors strolled in and made themselves at home. Kenway’s crew starts a brawl in the bar, creating a prefect diversion for Kenway to make his way through the chaos and take out his target. He and his crew take off in their ship but are pursued by a Spanish vessel because they clearly weren’t happy that Kenway killed their buddy. They try run them down but Kenway and crew open fire, turn around, and raise hell by boarding the ship. Kenway effortlessly destroys everyone in his way as he makes his way to the captain. Upon reaching him, they engage in a quick sword fight that ends with Kenway crushing the captain’s skull with the wheel of the ship. You cant get much more bada** than that.

The in-game trailer was just as beautiful and epic as the CGI trailer, showing off a lot of naval battles and signature Assassin’s Creed take downs. However, what stood out to me the most was how amazing the scenery looked. From the lush jungles to the beautiful Caribbean architecture, from the bright blue ocean to the white sand beaches, Assassin’s Creed has never looked this good. This game is shaping up to be a very solid and beautiful installment to the franchise.

The next game, or rather games, that were shown was Trials Fusion and Trials Frontier. The popular motor bike platformer is now heading to both next gen consoles AND your mobile device (Fusion for next gen, Frontier for mobile). Both games will complement one another and allow users to see previous runs and high scores. Both games sound like they’re going to be absolutely crazy.

Finally, the last game to be shown was The Division. This game is the one I might be the most excited for out of the entire Ubisoft line up (maybe excluding Watch Dogs). The presentation started off with one of the most scary, real trailers I’ve ever seen. I’m not talking graphics by the way; I’m talking about the premise. The trailer talks about how America’s infrastructure has become so complex and fragile that it could collapse at any time. The game poses the question that what if, on the biggest shopping day of the year (Black Friday), a mutated form of the flu finds its way onto a dollar bill, which finds its way on to a human, to toys, games, everything. A flu pandemic breaks out, hospitals fill up, quarantine zones are established, transportation is halted, international trade stops, the stock market crashes, the oil dries up, and food becomes scarce. As America starts to tear itself apart, a sleeper cell division of the secret service will awaken to try and maintain order. That’s where the player comes in. In the gameplay demo shown after the trailer, the demo-er is playing in open-world New York City with 2 other friends. They make their way through the streets to the police station to free the officers that had been taken hostage by enemies. During the firefight, a 3rd friend comes in on a helicopter via their tablet and relays tactical information.  IT WAS AWESOME. I seriously think this might be one of, it not the best reveal of the show. You absolutely need to check out this trailer and demo.

The Good:

-A lot of solid games shown

-THE DIVISION

The Bad:

-Not enough game play

-I miss Michael Ironside

 

FINAL VERDICT: Ubisoft had one hell of a good conference and I can’t wait to see all these games soon

SCORE: 9.0