E3 Announcement: E3 Announcements announced before E3 announcements.
In the lead up to E3, there's always rumours swirling about what to expect from the big names in the industry. 2012 has been handled a little differently to previous years. Instead of waiting for E3 to announce anything of interest, many publishers have decided to forego the wait and reveal titbits of information the week before E3.
With so much hype around the big reveals, it's easy to lose track of what's going on, which is why we at VGI have decided to provide a quick round up of all the latest news and rumours ahead of next week's E3 coverage.
Sacbee is reporting that Square Enix plans to bring its biggest portfolio of titles to E3 2012, lead by the returning Agent 47 in Hitman: Absolution.
CinemaBlend believes that Ubisoft will be announcing a selection of Wii U exclusives, along with demonstrations of Ubi-franchises Assassin's Creed III, Far Cry 3, Rayman Legends, and Rocksmith.
Over at NintendoEverything, they've learned that Aksys Games has confirmed two games of its lineup to be showcased at E3. The first, Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward for 3DS and Vita and the second: Record of Agarest War 2 for PS3.
GamersHell (or is that Gamer Shell?) reports the Snail games lineup as: Age of Wushu, Black Gold, Penguin Royale, Amber and 5 Street 2.
Digitalspy has the E3 teaser trailer for Far Cry 3.
VGI's own Declan Skews gives his thoughts and insight into the Wii U and it's supposed “power.”
Nowgamer claims that there's a Splinter Cell: Retribution reveal planned for E3.
Cubed3 reckons that THQ has no plans to bring Metro: Last Light to the Wii U.
The folks over at GameSpot UK have been quick to point out that the final Wii U hardware specifications will be revealed at E3.
Well duh!
And finally VGI favourite IGN have compiled a spoilerific list of everything to expect at E3.
2K GAMES: Spec Ops: The Line (360, PS3, PC), Borderlands 2 (360, PS3, PC) and XCOM: Enemy Unknown (360,PS3, PC) .
ATLUS: Persona 4 Arena (360, PS3) and Persona 4 Golden (Vita).
BOHEMIA INTERACTIVE: ArmA III (PC), Carrier Command: Gaea Mission (360, PS3, PC) and DayZ (PC)
CAPCOM: Resident Evil 6 (360, PS3, PC), Lost Planet 3 (360, PS3, PC),DmC (360, PS3) and Street Fighter x Tekken (Vita).
C C P: Dust 514 (PS3)
EA: Battlefield 3: Armored Kill (360, PS3, PC), Battlefield 3: Close Quarters (360, PS3, PC), Crysis 3 (360, PS3, PC), FIFA Soccer 13 (360, PS3, PC), Madden NFL 13 (PS3, 360, Wii, Vita),
Medal of Honor Warfighter (360, PS3, PC), NCAA Football 13 (360, PS3), NHL 13 (360, PS3), SimCity (PC), Outernauts (Facebook), World Series of Poker (iOS)
HARMONIX:
Rock Band Blitz (XBLA, PSN)
KONAMI: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (360, PS3, PC).
LARIAN STUDIOS: Dragon Commander (360, PS3, PC) and Divinity: Original Sin (PC, MAC).
MAJESCO: NBA Baller Beats (360) and Zumba Fitness (360).
NAMCO: Star Trek: The Game (360, PS3, PC), Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (360, PS3), Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (PS3), Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition (PC), Dragon Ball Z for Kinect (360) and One Piece: Pirate Warriors (PSN).
NINTENDO: Pikmin 3 (Wii U) and Super Mario Wii U (Wii U).
PERFECT WORLD ENTERTAINMENT: Neverwinter (PC) and Raiderz (PC).
SEGA: Aliens: Colonial Marines (360, PS3, PC, Wii U), Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (360, 3DS, PC, PS3, Vita) and Jet Set Radio (Vita).
SNOWBIRD GAME STUDIOS: Eador: Masters of the Broken World (PC).
SONY: PlanetSide 2 (PC), DC Universe Online (PS3, PC), Free Realms (PS3, PC), Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures (PC), EverQuest (PC), EverQuest II (PC), and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes (PC).
SQUARE ENIX: Hitman: Absolution (360, PS3, PC), Tomb Raider (360, PS3, PC), Sleeping Dogs (360, PS3, PC), Quantum Conundrum (360, PS3, PC), Heroes of Ruin (3DS), Kingdom Hearts 3D Dream Drop Distance (3DS), Theatrhythm Final Fantasy (3DS) and Gameglobe (WEB).
TECMO KOEI: Dead or Alive 5 (360, PS3)
THQ: Darksiders II (360, PS3, PC, Wii U) and Metro Last Light (360, PS3, PC, Wii U).
TRION: Defiance (360, PC, PS3), End of Nations (PC) and Rift (PC).
UBISOFT: Far Cry 3 (PS3, 360, PC), Rayman Legends (Wii U), Assassin's Creed III (360, PS3, PC, Wii U), Rocksmith (360, PS3, PC) and ShootMania Storm (PC).
VALVE: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (360, PS3, PC).
ZEN STUDIOS: Zen Pinball 2 (PS3, Vita), Marvel Pinball: Avengers Chronicles (360, PS3, Vita),
Marvel Pinball 3D (3DS) and KickBeat (Vita).
ATLUS: Persona 4 Arena (360, PS3) and Persona 4 Golden (Vita).
BOHEMIA INTERACTIVE: ArmA III (PC), Carrier Command: Gaea Mission (360, PS3, PC) and DayZ (PC)
CAPCOM: Resident Evil 6 (360, PS3, PC), Lost Planet 3 (360, PS3, PC),DmC (360, PS3) and Street Fighter x Tekken (Vita).
C C P: Dust 514 (PS3)
EA: Battlefield 3: Armored Kill (360, PS3, PC), Battlefield 3: Close Quarters (360, PS3, PC), Crysis 3 (360, PS3, PC), FIFA Soccer 13 (360, PS3, PC), Madden NFL 13 (PS3, 360, Wii, Vita),
Medal of Honor Warfighter (360, PS3, PC), NCAA Football 13 (360, PS3), NHL 13 (360, PS3), SimCity (PC), Outernauts (Facebook), World Series of Poker (iOS)
HARMONIX:
Rock Band Blitz (XBLA, PSN)
KONAMI: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (360, PS3, PC).
LARIAN STUDIOS: Dragon Commander (360, PS3, PC) and Divinity: Original Sin (PC, MAC).
MAJESCO: NBA Baller Beats (360) and Zumba Fitness (360).
NAMCO: Star Trek: The Game (360, PS3, PC), Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (360, PS3), Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (PS3), Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition (PC), Dragon Ball Z for Kinect (360) and One Piece: Pirate Warriors (PSN).
NINTENDO: Pikmin 3 (Wii U) and Super Mario Wii U (Wii U).
PERFECT WORLD ENTERTAINMENT: Neverwinter (PC) and Raiderz (PC).
SEGA: Aliens: Colonial Marines (360, PS3, PC, Wii U), Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (360, 3DS, PC, PS3, Vita) and Jet Set Radio (Vita).
SNOWBIRD GAME STUDIOS: Eador: Masters of the Broken World (PC).
SONY: PlanetSide 2 (PC), DC Universe Online (PS3, PC), Free Realms (PS3, PC), Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures (PC), EverQuest (PC), EverQuest II (PC), and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes (PC).
SQUARE ENIX: Hitman: Absolution (360, PS3, PC), Tomb Raider (360, PS3, PC), Sleeping Dogs (360, PS3, PC), Quantum Conundrum (360, PS3, PC), Heroes of Ruin (3DS), Kingdom Hearts 3D Dream Drop Distance (3DS), Theatrhythm Final Fantasy (3DS) and Gameglobe (WEB).
TECMO KOEI: Dead or Alive 5 (360, PS3)
THQ: Darksiders II (360, PS3, PC, Wii U) and Metro Last Light (360, PS3, PC, Wii U).
TRION: Defiance (360, PC, PS3), End of Nations (PC) and Rift (PC).
UBISOFT: Far Cry 3 (PS3, 360, PC), Rayman Legends (Wii U), Assassin's Creed III (360, PS3, PC, Wii U), Rocksmith (360, PS3, PC) and ShootMania Storm (PC).
VALVE: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (360, PS3, PC).
ZEN STUDIOS: Zen Pinball 2 (PS3, Vita), Marvel Pinball: Avengers Chronicles (360, PS3, Vita),
Marvel Pinball 3D (3DS) and KickBeat (Vita).
Author's View
If I were a betting man, I'd be putting my money behind Nintendo. They shocked the world with the Wii, and have a follow up that could re-revolutionise the industry. With everyone unsure of what to expect in terms of power, I for one cannot wait to see what Nintendo have up their sleeve.
There is also, or course, the possibility of an Xbox 720 and PS4 announcement. Personally, I don't think it'll happen, or if it does, there will be next to no information given. Launching a next-gen console alongside the Wii U, which should be released at an affordable price point, would cripple anyone stupid enough to go toe-to-toe with the Big N.
Which probably means Microsoft will announce something ...
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Position: Editor-in-chief
Born in Cyrodiil but raised in Ferelden, more commonly know as England. Wesley Copeland is a passionate writer with more opinions than an ostrich.
