E3 is almost here, and you know what that means- it means loads of new game announcements by all major players in the industry, and a fresh wave of software (and hopefully hardware) to look forward to. E3 has traditionally been the most exciting time of the year – remember last year’s major E3 announcements, which included The Last Guardian and Final Fantasy 7 Remake? – and this year promises to be no different.
The question of course is, exactly what is it that we can look forward to seeing at E3 this year- especially from the major console holders? Nintendo, of course, is sitting out, opting to show The Legend of Zelda, and The Legend of Zelda only. But what about Microsoft and Sony? Rumors of upgraded consoles aside, what exactly are they planning on showing at E3?
Their official lineup as listed on the official E3 website may give us some clues to that. The E3 website usually masks the games it lists, listing them only by genre and platform, probably in an attempt to ensure that no game gets prematurely leaked- but a look at what Sony and Microsoft are apparently planning still reveals some rather interesting details.
First, their submitted lineups:
MICROSOFT:
- Accessories > Xbox
- Accessories > Xbox 360
- Accessories > Xbox Kinect
- Accessories > Xbox Live
- Accessories > Xbox One
- Action > Xbox
- Action > Xbox 360
- Action > Xbox Kinect
- Action > Xbox Live
- Action > Xbox One
- Adventure > Xbox
- Adventure > Xbox 360
- Adventure > Xbox Kinect
- Adventure > Xbox Live
- Adventure > Xbox One
- Arcade > Xbox
- Arcade > Xbox 360
- Arcade > Xbox Kinect
- Arcade > Xbox Live
- Arcade > Xbox One
- Augmented Reality > Sony Playstation 4
- Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox
- Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox 360
- Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox Kinect
- Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox Live
- Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox One
- Fitness > Xbox
- Fitness > Xbox 360
- Fitness > Xbox Kinect
- Fitness > Xbox Live
- Fitness > Xbox One
- Hardware > Xbox
- Hardware > Xbox 360
- Hardware > Xbox Kinect
- Hardware > Xbox Live
- Hardware > Xbox One
- Music / Dance > Xbox
- Music / Dance > Xbox 360
- Music / Dance > Xbox Kinect
- Music / Dance > Xbox Live
- Music / Dance > Xbox One
- Peripherals > Xbox
- Peripherals > Xbox 360
- Peripherals > Xbox Kinect
- Peripherals > Xbox Live
- Peripherals > Xbox One
- Racing > Xbox
- Racing > Xbox 360
- Racing > Xbox Kinect
- Racing > Xbox Live
- Racing > Xbox One
- Retail > Xbox
- Retail > Xbox 360
- Retail > Xbox Kinect
- Retail > Xbox Live
- Retail > Xbox One
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 3
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 4
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation Vita
- Role-Playing > Sony PSP
- Simulation > Xbox
- Simulation > Xbox 360
- Simulation > Xbox Kinect
- Simulation > Xbox Live
- Simulation > Xbox One
- Sports > Xbox
- Sports > Xbox 360
- Sports > Xbox Live
- Sports > Xbox One
SONY
- Accessories > Sony Playstation
- Accessories > Sony Playstation 3
- Accessories > Sony Playstation 4
- Accessories > Sony Playstation Vita
- Accessories > Sony PSP
- Action > Sony Playstation
- Action > Sony Playstation 3
- Action > Sony Playstation 4
- Action > Sony Playstation Vita
- Action > Sony PSP
- Adventure > Sony Playstation
- Adventure > Sony Playstation 3
- Adventure > Sony Playstation 4
- Adventure > Sony Playstation Vita
- Adventure > Sony PSP
- Arcade > Sony Playstation
- Arcade > Sony Playstation 3
- Arcade > Sony Playstation 4
- Arcade > Sony Playstation Vita
- Arcade > Sony PSP
- Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation
- Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation 3
- Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation 4
- Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation Vita
- Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony PSP
- Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation
- Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation 3
- Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation 4
- Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation Vita
- Fighting / Wrestling > Sony PSP
- Hardware > Sony Playstation
- Hardware > Sony Playstation 3
- Hardware > Sony Playstation 4
- Hardware > Sony Playstation Vita
- Hardware > Sony PSP
- Music / Dance > Sony Playstation
- Music / Dance > Sony Playstation 3
- Music / Dance > Sony Playstation 4
- Music / Dance > Sony Playstation Vita
- Music / Dance > Sony PSP
- Racing > Sony Playstation
- Racing > Sony Playstation 3
- Racing > Sony Playstation 4
- Racing > Sony Playstation Vita
- Racing > Sony PSP
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 3
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 4
- Role-Playing > Sony Playstation Vita
- Role-Playing > Sony PSP
- Simulation > Sony Playstation
- Simulation > Sony Playstation 3
- Simulation > Sony Playstation 4
- Simulation > Sony Playstation Vita
- Simulation > Sony PSP
- Sports > Sony Playstation
- Sports > Sony Playstation 3
- Sports > Sony Playstation 4
- Sports > Sony Playstation Vita
- Sports > Sony PSP
- Strategy > Sony Playstation
- Strategy > Sony Playstation 3
- Strategy > Sony Playstation 4
- Strategy > Sony Playstation Vita
- Strategy > Sony PSP
Okay, so let’s look at this properly. First, let’s deal with the accessories- for Sony, it is evident that this may be the PlayStation VR, as well as maybe Move controllers. Microsoft are, alternately, probably going to show off the HoloLens, and some more Oculus Rift functionality. It has also been rumored that they will have yet another new controller to unveil at E3, like the Xbox Elite Controller last year.
The interesting question here is, do console revisions count as ‘accessories’? Because if so, then the ‘accessories’ listed above may just be referring to the rumored PS4K and Xbox One Elite/Xbox One Slim.
The actual games list is far harder to parse- it is to be remembered that Microsoft and Sony not only show off their own titles, but also showcase games from their third party partners, AAA and indie, so those games listed above could be just about anything- they could be referring to in house titles, or they could be referring to third party games and indie partnerships. Still, it is at the very least evident that both companies plan to showcase a full, varied range of titles- something that is doubtless appreciated by most people.
E3 2016 begins next month.