Bethesda Softworks just won E3’s Day 1 with their first E3 showcase ever. The two and a half hour conference, broadcast live on Twitch and Youtube and hosted in the Dolby Theatre. After they unwittingly leaked Dishonored 2 a day earlier while rehearsing for E3 proper, there were very little in the way of surprising news, but they still managed to rock the stage.
DOOM
For me personally DOOM was the star of the show. Bethesda thought so too, as they opened the show with DOOM. After releasing a ten second trailer to a trailer a month ago, Bethesda and Id revealed the new DOOM game properly. And oh did they reveal it! After Id’s Executive Producer, Matty Stratton opened the show, ten straight minutes of Demon eviscerating ultraviolence in the gorgeously brown and brown locales of exotic Mars, Stratton introduced new features of DOOM. Which was followed by eight more minutes of demon slaughtering in Hell. We will cover DOOM in depth a bit later, so stay tuned for that.
Battlecry
Battlecry is a new action multiplayer game from the Battlecry Studios. A new player faction was revealed and the closed beta was announced. In fact, they’re accepting invites now right here, if you’re interested.
Fallout 4
Todd Howard came on screen and revealed the first few minutes of gameplay after talking about how far games in general have come and showcasing concept art of Fallout 4. Now our protagonist is fully voiced, and you can choose either spouse of a couple to play as. Bethesda also revamped most of the RPG systems we came across, including Character Creation, Dialogues, The Pipboy, Weapon Modifications, interacting with NPCs, crafting etc. The one system that was left alone was the V.A.T.S., a holdover from the days when Fallout used to be turn based. Stay tuned for more detailed analysis of the E3 footage. To wrap it all up, the launch date was announced to much fanfare: 10th November of this freaking year!
Dishonored 2
Dishonoured 2 was revealed by Arkane and Bethesda with a proper trailer showcasing the new protagonist, Emily Kaldwin, by Arkane Studios heads Harvey Smith and Raphael Colantonio. There was new tech shown, like the seemingly magical grappling hook. The game is set 15 years after Dishonored, and Dunwall is now plague ridden. We will keep you posted as new information emerges.
Other News
Fallout Shelter is a new iOS resource management game launched earlier today. It has no timers or paywalls, and requires no persistant internet connection besides is free to play. Do check it out here.
The Elder Scrolls: Legends is a Free to Play card game set in the TES universe, set to compete with Hearthstone and Magic: The Gathering for iOS and PC. It is set to release later this year.
Bethesda also announced a Pipboy companion app along with a “real” Pipboy, which they will bundle with the Collectors Edition. Your smartphone can slot in it, and the Pipboy acts as a second screen while playing the game.
For day to day coverage of E3, bookmark us. Do let us know how you feel and what favourite franchises you are hyped for.
