You know the famous saying "the first love is never forgotten"? Well, there is nothing more true, at least as far as I'm concerned, given the long love story I've been living with Sony and its consoles for 19 years now. In fact, it was back in 1997 when the wonderful packaging of the historic PS1 came into my house: love at first sight, in fact; Gran Turismo, Tekken, Final Fantasy and Resident Evil have accompanied my childhood, replaced by sequels, new IPs and especially new versions of PlayStation in the following years of adolescence and in the present of adulthood. Over the years my professionalism and my interest in the videogame world have increased, without however taking away the lightheartedness that has always accompanied me pad in hand. You will understand now, thanks to this incipit, how much the annual edition of E3 is a sacred event for me: it is with immense pleasure that I am here to talk to you about the expectations and certainties of this Los Angeles Sony conference.
When the hardware gets tough ...
We all know, it has been rumored for a long time, it will probably be reality: let's talk about PlayStation 4.5, codenamed "NEO"; it could be a historic revolution, since such a significant mid-generation upgrade had never been seen before. According to persistent rumors circulating, the new version of PS4 should enjoy superior technical specifications, but not exclusive games: according to Giant Bomb, it is the prerogative of Sony be able to allow owners of any version of PS4 to play every title released possible. Titles coming out post PS4.5, as well as older titles thanks to a patch, should benefit from the much noise NEO mode, featuring improved graphics and more advanced visual effects. In terms of content, there should be no substantial differences: the “NEO” versions cannot have extra modes. Currently, as you can read, it's all a huge question mark: if these were the only features, how will the impact of PS4.5 NEO be in today's market? Will these be the only features exclusive to the new console? Will the price be competitive? We will have all the answers we are looking for Tuesday 14 June at 3.00, time of the highly anticipated Sony conference.
Speech aside, always talking about hardware, it deserves the PlayStation VR. It was born as the main competitor of Oculus and HTC Vive, but carrying with it the dogmas that Sony has instilled since the release of PS4: immediacy and, above all, competitive price; in fact, it will be enough to wear the viewer to start observing the contents in virtual reality and interact with them using the PS4 DualShock 4 joypad and the Move controllers, able to detect the movements of the users. We are more than convinced that Sony will dedicate part of the conference to VR, but our expectations are more than legitimate: games. In fact, we await titles totally dedicated to VR, which allow a greater identification than what we have seen so far, and which push us to spend 399 euros to test a new way of video games.
Sony's softeca is always greener.
Sony has hardly ever been unprepared on the software side. Password? Variety. Very often the Japanese house is criticized for the lack of a prince figure, the so-called mascot, which distinguishes one console from another: just think of Master Chief for Microsoft or Mario for Nintendo. Sony has always focused on variety and quantity and, in this E3, the guideline does not change; In fact, the festival of announcements, trailers and surprises is expected, headed by a very distinct figure: Fumito Ueda and his The Last Guardian.
The Last Guardian is the great awaited for this E3 from Sony. The re-sent title of the ICO Team was announced almost 10 years ago but, after endless ups and downs, it seems to be out by this 2016; It is reasonable to expect a gameplay video with a bang for the title, complete with a date and stratospheric Limited Edition to season an almost historic news for the numerous owners of Sony PS4. Speaking instead of absolute certainties, it is yesterday's news that Horizon Zero Down will unfortunately be released at the beginning of 2017, de facto denying the release by the end of the year; it is very likely that we will still see the Guerrilla title in all its glory, perhaps with insights into the history and gameplay that lies behind that mysterious world.
It deserves a separate discussion Detroit: Become Human; the title of visionary David Cage, after the October announcement, will certainly be shown and adequately explored, with a release date (hopefully) relatively close and perhaps an interaction with PlayStation VR, a peripheral that in my opinion would be perfect compared to the gameplay that Quantic Dream have accustomed us to play. In addition to this exceptional game hat trick, Sony has numerous other certainties to show: impossible not to name World of Final Fantasy, a jrpg slap like Ni No Kuni 2 and the numerous synergies with third party software houses: someone said Destiny 2 and Battlefield 1?
Given the bombshell surprises of the last E3, that is Final Fantasy VII Remake and Shenmue III, something should be expected again this year. Also from this point of view the conference is headed by a title, starring a nice Bandicoot in shorts and converse; impossible not to hope for a new Crash Bandicoot title, especially after the easter egg in Uncharted 4 and the repeated rumors of recent months. Among other things, Naughty Dog will probably announce its new title and, after the mammoth work done on Nathan Drake, a return to the beaches and forests of Crash it would really be the bomb of this fair. The announcement of a new one is also likely God of War, given the long absence of the ghost of Sparta from the screens, while the much talked about Resident Evil 7 it could be reality: it would be a worthy way to close this E3 from Sony, which promises to be literally explosive. Appointment on June 14, stay tuned players.
