- Culture
- 21 Jun 16
Ubisoft’s E3 showcase was filled to the brim with announcements about upcoming video games, including some exciting news about the newest gaming frontier: Virtual reality.
Ubisoft’s E3 press conference covered an array of video games being released both this year and next year, including Watch Dogs 2, Ghost Recon Wildlands, South Park: The Fractured but Whole, For Honor, and Star Trek: Bridge Crew.
Ubisoft also unveiled two new expansion packs for the popular game Tom Clancy’s The Division.
Watch Dogs 2’s extended E3 demo, arguably one of the most anticipated trailers, did not disappoint. A lot of its predecessor’s flaws, such as sluggish combat and traversal, seem to be fixed in Watch Dogs 2. The attention to environmental detail in the first game was incredible, but the sequel has managed to expand on it even further to create more realistic surroundings.
Watch Dogs 2 is set in a futuristic version of the San Francisco Bay area, which has become overrun with technology that an unknown establishment is using to control the populace. Players will take on the role of Marcus Holloway, a member of the hacktivist group Dedsec, who is fighting against the corruption of technology with the use of his exceptional hacking skills.
Some improvements made from the previous game include an increased range of hacking possibilities, easier controls for combat, new mechanisms to hack (i.e. drones and quadcopters) and a more upbeat storyline for Marcus than the one for the previous game’s title character Aidan. The electrifying new video game is set to be released on November 15, 2016.
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The tenth instalment in Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon series, Wildlands, puts players behind enemy lines in Bolivia with the goal of severing the connection between the local government and the drug cartel. The third person shooter allows players to switch between multiple characters, which will help during missions that require more than one person to complete. So, for example, players can fly a helicopter while also driving a motorcycle by simply switching back and forth between the two. The game will be released next year on March 7.
For those who want a game with just as much laughter as there is action, South Park: The Fractured but Whole delivers. This game tries not to take itself too seriously, with hilarious jokes, silly combat scenes and plenty of flatulence in between. Players will take over the role of the new kid on the block, who joins the other children of South Park in role-playing as a superhero. The children of South Park each have superpowers they can utilise to fight enemies, which gives players a multitude of ways to complete missions. The game’s release date is December 6, 2016.
Ubisoft has been releasing tidbits of information on their upcoming video game For Honor since last year, and at the 2016 E3 conference fans were finally given some substantial details through a gameplay demonstration and a cinematic trailer.
The game revolves around a war involving three factions—the Vikings, Knights, and Samurai—that has been going on for thousands of years, so long that all three sides have forgotten why they started fighting in the first place. The focus of the game is on melee fighting, so Ubisoft has enhanced it to include a multitude of new moves and actions.
Players will be able to customise three keys characters, one from each faction, that they can use to fight each other and the true villain of the story, a mysterious woman named Apollyon. The game also has a multiplayer feature that will allow players to fight one another, rather than brainless AIs, which some consider much too easy. The game comes out next year on Valentine’s day, February 14.
One of the most exciting announcements from Ubisoft came in the form of an upcoming release of the first VR, or virtual reality, Star Trek video game. Star Trek: Bridge Crew allows players to interact with each other within the game by using a virtual reality headset that covers the eyes completely, giving players the illusion of actually being inside the game. Using a shared virtual reality with friends also gives the multi-person gaming experience a more realistic edge. The game comes out sometime this fall.
Two new expansion packs are coming soon for the acclaimed open world video game Tom Clancy’s The Division. The first expansion pack to be released is called Underground, because all of the action takes place underneath New York City. With this DLC, players will have to navigate the treacherous subway system in order to reach their objectives. It will be released this year on June 28 for Xbox One and PC, and on August 2 for PS4.
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The second expansion pack, called Survival, is exactly what it sounds like. Players will have to scavenge the streets for food and weapons in order to survive the harsh climate in the game. This DLC will add another challenging layer to an already action-packed video game. It’s official release date has not been confirmed, but it is expected to come out sometime this summer.
Ubisoft made several more announcements during their showcase at E3, but the main highlights are included in the preceding paragraphs.