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e3 2018
E3 2018 Predictions: Sony
The Sony E3 press conference is never without drama. Whether it is throwing shade at competitors, delivering surprise announcements, or wowing crowds with its formidable first-party lineup, Sony always makes its time in the spotlight must-watch TV for gamers.
So what’s in store for 2018? We have our share of guesses.
From Software’s New Game Takes The Stage
We know the Dark Souls creators have something up their sleeves. Is it Bloodborne II? That Shadows Die Twice title the studio teased at The Game Awards? Whatever it is, we are confident the game will be at the Sony showcase.
Probability: Sure Bet
Dreams Awakens To A Release Date
Media Molecule’s intriguing and sometimes perplexing creation suite has been in development for some time now, and every time we see the game in action we can’t take our eyes off it. Announced back in 2012, the dreamy interactive experience is currently slated for a 2018 release, so we think a hard date is well within the realm of possibility.
Probability: Sure Bet
Death Stranding Gets Weird Gameplay Demo
Never one to shoot straight, Hideo Kojima loves to perplex during his public appearances. Whether it was making up a fictitious Moby Dick Studio with its heavily bandaged head Joakim Mogren for the MGS V: The Phantom Pain reveal or the cryptic early trailers for Death Stranding, the man loves creating intrigue. We expect that trend to continue during the first reveal of Death Stranding gameplay footage. After all of the confusion, we finally walk away from this press conference with a clearer idea of the game plays, but we still expect to come out of the demo with a healthy amount of questions.
Probability: Sure Bet
PlayStation VR Relegated To Montage
It’s no secret that virtual-reality platforms are struggling – Sony admitted it earlier this year. Given the diminished appetite for the platforms and the fact that these games are notoriously difficult to market outside of strapping someone into a helmet to experience it themselves, we’re confident Sony will relegate PSVR to a montage showcasing the new experiences coming in 2018. The real place to properly check out these demos is the show floor, anyway.
Probability: Sure Bet
FFVII Remake Gets Another Teaser, But No Gameplay
No publisher takes its time with game development like Square Enix. I mean, Final Fantasy XV started development in 2006 but didn’t release until 2016. Final Fantasy VII Remake was officially unveiled on the Sony stage at E3 2015, but since then its appearances have been limited to a brief CGI visual tease during the Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary opening ceremony in Tokyo last year. We expect to see more of the remake this year during the Sony press conference but don’t get your hopes up for a big gameplay demo. We’re guessing the best we can expect to see is another trailer. After all, Square still has to ship Kingdom Hearts III (which was announced way back in 2013) first.
Probability: 50/50
The Last of Us: Part II Gets Release Date
Naughty Dog’s dark sequel to one of the best games of the last generation is the studio’s major focus with Uncharted: Lost Legacy out the door, and we expect them to have made enough progress over the past year to warrant a hard release date. But will it be in 2018 or 2019? That’s the big question. We’d expect them to defer to 2019 and give Spider-Man the spotlight for this holiday season. The web slinging superhero looks more than worthy based on what we’ve seen so far.
Probability: 50/50
Red Dead Redemption II Teases PS4 Exclusive Content
When it announced the Red Dead Redemption II pre-order options, Rockstar revealed that some content will be PS4 exclusive. Though Rockstar hasn’t given proper demos of its titles during E3 for many years, the company still makes occasional appearances during press conferences. Given its relationship with Sony (which hosted the next-gen GTA V trailer during the PlayStation showcase a few years back), we wouldn’t be surprised to see some of these exclusive features teased onstage. Everyone is dying to see the game in action, so this would be a great excuse for convincing Rockstar to take the floor.
Probability: 50/50
Guerrilla Teases Horizon Sequel
Dutch developer Guerrilla Games knocked its new IP shot out of the park with Horizon: Zero Dawn, and as evidenced by the Killzone series the studio has a history of capably delivering fast follows. We don’t expect the Horizon sequel to be ready for a proper showing just yet, but that doesn’t mean Sony wouldn’t whet our whistles with a logo reveal or CGI teaser that hints at what’s to come for Aloy.
Probability: 50/50
Supermassive Games Announces New Project
This Guilford studio has kept a frantic pace over the last decade, delivering 14 games over the last seven years, but we have no idea what they are up to next. We expect Supermassive to move away from VR (four titles in the last two years is plenty) and get back to its narrative-driven concepts like Until Dawn. Could that mean a proper sequel or a new project altogether? That’s anyone’s guess, but we’re decently confident we’ll at least see what the studio’s next endeavor.
Probability: 50/50
Wild Re-Emerges
Remember Michel Ancel’s Wild? The Rayman creator’s side development house Wild Sheep Studios debuted the PS4 exclusive back in 2014, and we haven’t heard anything substantial since. E3 would be a perfect time for the studio to show off its hard work over the past three years and reconvince gamers that playing as a diverse cast of creatures across a giant open world is an appealing proposition.
Probability: Longshot
PS4 Portable Announced
The PlayStation Vita may have been the best mobile gaming device ever made before the Switch came along last year, but for whatever reason it just didn’t click with consumers. Sony gaming division head John Kodera recently said Sony is still testing mobile gaming efforts, so we know the company isn’t ready to walk away just yet. Could that mean the company takes a page out of the Switch playbook and delivers a versatile PS4 edition that can be played both at home while docked and on the road in portable mode? Chances are that hybrid wouldn’t be ready for primetime just yet, but we’re hopeful Sony is moving down that path.
Probability: Longshot
What are your E3 predictions for PlayStation? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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