14 DAY TRIAL // E3 2014 took place last week and delivered probably one of the best experiences for all gamers worldwide, not just ones that love or use a certain platform. We saw big game reveals, plenty of gameplay from upcoming titles, not to mention some surprise announcements across the board, whether they were from hardware makers like Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo, or publishers like EA, Ubisoft, or 2K.
E3 2013 last year was a pretty good conference but only if you were a Sony fan, and a tragic one if you were cheering for Microsoft. While the Xbox One continued to stumble amidst Microsoft's indecisions, the PS4 accumulated the popularity that boosted it in terms of sales.
Now, for 2014, things were really well balanced. The Xbox One, now under the guidance of Phil Spencer, focused on games and brought forth not just some great exclusive but also demonstrations of major third-party titles.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection or Sunset Overdrive received gameplay footage, while the Crackdown reboot or Phantom Dust got some cinematic teasers to fuel fan appetite. Meanwhile, The Witcher 3, Assassin's Creed Unity, or The Division were showcased to the world on the Microsoft stage.
Sony also brought forth plenty of big reveals at its own press conference, starting with long awaited ones like Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, The Order: 1886, or The Last of Us Remastered, and continuing with surprises like Bloodborne (formerly known as Project Beast) or LittleBigPlanet 3. Third-party titles were also on display, like Dead Island 2, No Man's Sky, Far Cry 4, or Battlefield Hardline, not to mention another long awaited announced: Grand Theft Auto 5 for PS4, as well as PC and Xbox One.
Sony also made a lasting impact by unveiling that the Battlefield Hardline beta is available on the PS4 and that Destiny, one of the most anticipated games of the year, has a special free alpha on the PS4, in addition to the fact that its beta will debut first on PS4 and PS3, and then on the Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
Nintendo may have been a bit late but it certainly impressed fans with the new Legend of Zelda game for Wii U, as well as with the fresh Star Fox title, Super Smash Bros., and some of the other projects imagined by its famous designer, Shigeru Miyamoto.
Meanwhile, the third-party publishers with individual press conferences – EA and Ubisoft – also lived up to the hype, more or less.
Electronic Arts kicked off with some of the games that are still in early production, like Star Wars Battlefront, Mirror's Edge, but also with the new projects from BioWare, which include the next Mass Effect as well as the all-new RPG project. Of course, being EA, the sports games weren't forgotten, with conference time being dedicated to NHL 15, Madden NFL 15, or FIFA 15. Battlefield Hardline was also featured in-depth, as EA and Visceral wanted to prove fans the new shooter is worthy of the name.
Ubisoft focused a lot on already-announced projects, like Assassin's Creed Unity, Far Cry 4, The Crew, or The Division, but it also took a bit of time to show off Rainbow Six Siege, which marks the return of the tactical shooter series. While all those demonstrations were great, fans were certainly expecting news of an Assassin's Creed on PS3 or Xbox 360, as well as of dormant franchises like Prince of Persia.
Even so, E3 2014 was a success as plenty of great games were revealed, both exclusive and non-exclusive, so it's a good time to be a gamer, no matter what platform you have.