ELECTRONIC ARTS
Monday June 13, 0800 NZST / 0600 AEST
This year, EA has swapped its typically deafeningly loud E3 show floor booth for an in-all-likelihood-equally-loud off-site event that’s taking place within spitting distance of E3 proper – presumably so the publisher can put all its trash in E3’s dumpsters. EA Play is the name of said event, and it kicks off with a presser that marks the start of a week of E3 madness. The conference itself will only run for an hour, after which all attendees can fight each other to get hands-on with games like Battlefield One, before being thoroughly outnumbered by members of the public two short hours later.
Expected:
◆ Titanfall 2
◆ Battlefield 1
◆ Mass Effect Andromeda
◆ FIFA 17
◆ Madden NFL 17
◆ NHL 17
Maybe:
◆ Mass Effect remastered
◆ Beyond Cars (that cars/helicopters/wingsuits Criterion game from E3 2014)
◆ BattleCry
Long shot:
◆ BioWare's new IP
◆ Star Wars Battlefront 2
◆ Visceral's Star Wars game
BETHESDA
Monday June 13 1400 NZST / 1200 AEST
Bethesda will be hosting its own off-site show again after last year's presentation, which saw the reveal of Fallout 4, Dishonored 2, and more. Expect Bethesda to gloat about its recent product launches, talk more about Fallout and Doom DLC, and outline a whole bunch of new games. Also expect a strange and incongruous musical performance from Blink-182 to cap off 90 minutes of Bethesda madness.
Expected:
◆ BattleCry
◆ Dishonored 2
◆ Fallout 4 DLC
◆ Doom DLC
◆ The Elder Scrolls: Legends
◆ The Elder Scrolls Online
Maybe:
◆ Prey 2
◆ A Wolfenstein sequel from MachineGames
◆ A The Evil Within sequel from Tangoworks
◆ A remastered Skyrim
Long shot:
◆ A new Fallout from Obsidian
◆ Any of Bethesda Game Studios' "big, crazy" new projects
MICROSOFT
Tuesday June 14, 0430 NZST / 0230 AEST
As it did last year, Microsoft has lost ground to make up in the neverending console war, so we can all expect to see a truckload of game demos and announcements. The whisper on the wind is that new, updated Xbox Ones will be announced, and we're also likely to see significant tie-in with Windows 10, furthering the link between the two platforms. Mostly, though, the centrepiece attraction will be 90 minutes of Xbox boss Phil Spencer's ever changing, Katy-Perry-esque wardrobe of indie developer T-shirts.
Expected:
◆ Halo Wars 2
◆ Tacoma
◆ Crackdown 3
◆ Scalebound
◆ Sea of Thieves
◆ ReCore
◆ Gears of War 4
Maybe:
◆ Forza Horizon 3
◆ rumoured new Xboxes
◆ Dead Rising 4
◆ State of Decay 2
Long shot:
◆ Halo 5 PC
◆ Oculus Rift tie-in
UBISOFT
Tuesday June 14, 0800 NZST / 0600 AEST
Ubisoft, the franchising king, will undoubtedly reveal new gameplay footage or even entire new titles from its key game series in its 90-minute presser. But there's a decent chance we'll see something entirely new in there, too. Look for Ubisoft spokesperson and talented improviser Aisha Tyler delivering canned PR jargon through gritted teeth, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot announcing new games through a thick French accent, and a dance crew demonstrating Just Dance 2017 to an apathetic audience. We'll also be looking out for any language emphasising Ubisoft's independence, given Vivendi's noted interest in acquiring the company.
Expected:
◆ Watch Dogs 2
◆ For Honor
◆ Ghost Recon: Wildlands
◆ South Park: The Fractured But Whole
◆ The Assassin’s Creed film
◆ The Division’s first expansion, Underground
◆ Just Dance 2017
◆ New VR titles
Maybe:
◆ A new IP
◆ Assassin's Creed 2017
Long shot:
◆ Prince of Persia
◆ Beyond Good and Evil 2
PLAYSTATION
Tuesday June 14, 1300 NZST / 1100 AEST
The 800-pound gorilla of E3 conferences is Sony's 90-minute show, during which the company is expected to announce an updated version of the PlayStation 4 and demonstrate its upcoming slate of first-party and third-party games. With PlayStation VR's impending October launch, expect virtual reality to be a centrepiece of the presentation, while Sony executives coast along on a feeling of smug complacency about their place on the console totem pole.
Expected:
◆ PlayStation 4 Neo
◆ Dreams
◆ Horizon Zero Dawn
◆ The Last Guardian
◆ Final Fantasy VII remake
◆ No Man’s Sky
◆ Gran Turismo Sport
◆ PlayStation VR titles galore
◆ Destiny: Rise of Iron
◆ Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
Maybe:
◆ Detroit: Become Human
◆ God of War
◆ Uncharted 4 story DLC
Long shot:
◆ Shenmue III
◆ Hideo Kojima's new action game
◆ Persona 5
◆ Bloodborne 2
NINTENDO
Wednesday June 15, 1300 NZST / 1100 AEST
Nintendo is more or less sitting this E3 out, demonstrating The Legend of Zelda while everyone in the room and on the stream waits in vain for any mention of the Nintendo NX. Or maybe the company will flagrantly break its vows and drop finished NX consoles from the ceiling for everyone. But it's unlikely.
Expected:
◆ The Legend of Zelda
◆ Behind the scenes stuff with other devs
Maybe:
◆ Mother 3 English translation
Long shot:
◆ Much else, really
For more on which games are confirmed, likely, and unlikely for E3, check out our feature here.
For our completely pie-in-the-sky E3 wishlist, go here.
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