It's been a hell of an E3, and Derek and Tiff have been spending their last couple of days giving us a sneak peek into the near future of gaming. I can't believe there's going to be a Titanfall sequel. I can't believe CD Projekt Red made a video game out that card game from Witcher 3. I can't believe that Derek's notes are legible. Fantastic job by our E3 team this year, and they've shared almost everything in notes and pictures for the 2old2play folks who couldn't make it to Los Angeles this week. Well done, Nolans!
Deep Silver
With Mighty No. 9 out of the way and Dead Island 3 dead in the water, it was up to the mighty Volition to bring the newness. Agents of MAYHEM is the new IP from the studio that makes all the Saint's Row games. Agents is part of the whole Saint's Row universe (note the symbol on the guys chest) and, not to be outdone by Gears, is brought to us in cartoony 3rd-person. The game may be centered on a faction war in Seoul between the Agents and the Legion, headed by a supervillian type named Dr. Babylon. The use of special abilities fills a Mayhem meter that unleashes an OP Mayhem attack once it's charged. Agents is a team-based shooter, and there are twelve characters from around the world to choose from.Tiff says that the graphics look good but the female character has a slow bubble. Better fix that shit, Volition.
Lawbreakers
Boss Key Productions is bringing this "arena shooter at heart" to the PC this summer, although Cliffy B. says he might be open to current-gen ports if he can find the right partner. Boss Key was showing their Turf War mode on the E3 floor, which is a domination-style mode where the first team to 13 points by capturing 3 hold points on the map wins. There are 4 classes to choose from and 8 available characters right now. Players can take advantage of Zero-G and "beat gravity into submission" so taking advantage of vertical space is integral. The floor demo featured some kind of symmetrical map: let's hope that's a nod of affection to Turok and not some kind of precedent. Apparently the player can fire blindly behind them as they bravely run away. That's a nice touch.
U+I
Carmageddon Max Damage looks super fun to our E3 team, and it looks fun to me too. Players can race, plow over pedestrians, or just destroy a bunch of shit in some 6-player online matches. There are 12 maps in the game, over 30 cars on the roster, and 60+ events. This one hits July 8.
Activision
Hey, have you ever wanted to create your own Skylanders character with one of your own toys, with Crash Bancicoot as your sensei? Well, Skylanders Imaginators is happening anyway so don't struggle. Players use creation crystals to bring toys to life, with creations being highly customizeable: body, gear, colors, powers, and even personality. It looks like the old Skylanders are being recycled as NPCs, so don't throw your old stuff out yet. Crash and other senseis guide the player through the game, each a master of a different battle type.
Activision also showed off a couple of levels from COD Infinite Warfare. One was the level from the Sony conference, but the second was a ship assault level set in Geneva called Black Sky. Derek says there were lots of civvies, exoskeleton suits, robots on the attack, and some cool grenades, including a spider grenade. The mission is to hack the enemy ship to cause it to self destruct...wait, wasn't that in Independence Day? Expect some fluid ship to ship space combat in three dimensions.
Pico VR
This self-centered, Android-based VR unit boasts dual 1080 x 1220 screens, has a processor in the controller, and it lightweight. The headset also works on the PC. Tiff says the unit is super comfy.
Lucid Sound
Lucid has three headsets on the floor at E3 this year. The LS20 is geared for mobile devices, sporting a light-up mic, mobile integration, and Siri is just a tap away. The downside is that this one is not wireless and does not separate game audio from chat. The LS40 features out of the box compatibility with all current consoles, including PC. The LS40 can also control your mobile phone and has built in voice activation, prompts, and presets. Tiff already uses the LS30, which tunes the audio automatically and uses its own drivers.
