The Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3 as it is most commonly referred, is where gaming’s giants come to show off their future wares. Most of the games you’ve come to love first saw the public light at an E3 Press Conference. It’s these conferences that are the real stars of the show — live streamed keynotes from major game publishers that are riddled with debuts, news and more than a few awkward moments.
This year, the lineup is more packed than ever before. Starting on Sunday, June 14, eight different companies will be putting on E3 Press Conferences. That’s more than ever before, totaling to over 11 hours of content over three days. If you’re the sort of person who wants to see the next big thing right as it rears its head, that means catching these shows as they’re broadcast live online. It’s an intimidating proposition. So here’s a handy guide on what to expect, so you can best manage your time. (All times listed are PST)
Twitch.tv will be streaming all of the conferences, but you should be able to find live coverage from any gaming site of your choice.
Bethesda (Sunday May 14, 7pm): Bethesda will be the first major event of the show, and it’s likely that their presentation can be broken down into two words: Doom and Fallout. Both are due out in the next calendar year and both have had next-to-nothing shown of them beyond short trailers. Doom was shown off to a private crowd at last year’s QuakeCon, to a thunderous response. But its reveal might be covered up by the nuclear cloud of Fallout 4 — Bethesda’s long-awaited open world post-apocalyptic RPG. Some smaller announcements will likely be in the cards as well; Elder Scrolls Online is overdue for a significant expansion and a sequel to Dishonored seems inevitable.
Microsoft (Monday May 15, 9:30am): The house of XBox will present themselves on Monday morning, packing a load of updates to various games that debuted last year. Rise of the Tomb Raider, Halo 5: Guardians and Forza Motorsport 6 will all likely take center stage, posing for their scheduled fall release. We’ll also hear more from open world superhero title Crackdown, an HD remake of the original Gears of War (which has been thoroughly leaked online) and Scalebound (the latest from Platnium Games, the team behind Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising). Fans of plant-based mayhem can also anticipate a sequel to Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare. Rumors have been swirling over a new title from Rare, likely a revival of one of their older properties. Will we see a new Banjo-Kazooie in the wake of Youka-Laylee‘s Kickstarter success? Could Battletoads rise from the grave to punish a new generation of gamers? Is it too much to ask for both?
Two titles that won’t be making the stage though, are the reboot of cult card-battler Phantom Dust (which went through a change in studios late last year) and TV/gaming hybrid Quantum Break (which is being held for Gamescom, later in the summer).
EA (Monday May 15, 1pm): Last year, Electronic Arts put on one of the most non-substantial E3 shows in recent memory. The majority of “revealed games” were conceptual prototypes, spending more time showing off people in boardrooms littered with concept art than substantial game play footage. Hopefully, those ideas have matured into something a bit more presentable for this year’s show. Star Wars: Battlefront will be the natural star of the occasion, but hopefully we’ll also see a glimpse of the new Star Wars title from Visceral Games & Amy Henning (creator of Uncharted). Need for Speed has confirmed it’ll be debuting gameplay at this show as well. Finally, if EA’s own financial reports are to be believed, Mass Effect 4 and Mirror’s Edge 2 will be hitting shelves early next year, making an E3 appearance likely.
Ubisoft (Monday May 15, 3pm): Archer star Aisha Tyler will be returning to Ubisoft’s stage this year, showing off the latest from Assassin’s Creed, Tom Clancy’s: The Division and Rainbow Six: Siege. Those three alone should be big enough to fill a conference, but never doubt Ubisoft’s odd obsession with bringing the strangest games possible to the show floor. In years past they’ve used the platform to talk about fitness software, games about controlled breathing, and a reinvention of lazer tag. As for more typical titles, a new Watch_Dogs could easily emerge after the first game’s dynamite sales. A reboot of Prince of Persia has been drifting around for years and it’s been a few years since Beyond Good and Evil 2 was last teased. Count nothing out.
Sony (Monday May 15th, 6pm): PlayStation will be hitting the floor with a two hour conference this year, as well as a stable of exclusive partnerships with third party software. If you’re interested in Call of Duty: Black Ops 3. PlayStation’s stage is likely the spot to see it in action. For those obsessed with Destiny, a peek at the next expansion (rumored to be titled The Taken King) could be in the cards. Metal Gear Solid V, Mad Max and No Man’s Sky have also all made PlayStation stage appearances in the past. Expect them here.
As for first party efforts, expect a big presence for Uncharted 4: A Thieve’s End. More fun with Nathan Drake will come in the form of Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, a bundle of the first three game’s campaign modes dressed up for PS4. News on Bloodbourne DLC has been confirmed, and it’s sounding like its blood brother Dark Souls 3 will also be in attendance. As for the rest, your guess is as good as mine. Guerilla Games’ (the studio behind Killzone) has been rumored to be developing a major new RPG. Plus, it wouldn’t be a Sony press conference without the looming promise of The Last Guardian, the third game from Shadow of the Colossus developer Team Ico. The game has been in development hell, with no new footage shown in six years. But it wouldn’t be E3 without some unattainable hopes and dreams.
Nintendo (Tuesday May 16, 9am, plus smaller events on Sunday May 14 at 7:20am and 3pm): Nintendo won’t be holding a typical press conference this year (opting for a pre-taped ‘Nintendo Direct’), but they will be having a significant presence. On Sunday they’ll be streaming the finale of their Nintendo World Championships, a revival of their 1990 gaming competition series. That particular event ended with the debut of Super Mario Bros 3 — could a similar surprise be in store for this event?
Super Smash Bros fanatics will need to get up early, as an Smash-focused ‘Direct’ will air on Sunday morning. A recent leak all but confirms that this announcement will pertain to new DLC characters: Roy from Fire Emblem and Ryu from Street Fighter.
As for the main event on Tuesday, there’s not much we can predict. Nintendo is a tight ship, and leaked information is rare. Updates on announced titles like Starfox, Persona X Fire Emblem and Yoshi’s Wooly World are a given, but that’s about it. (Unfortunately, we do know the next Legend of Zelda will not be making an appearance.) New DLC for existing titles like Splatoon and Mario Kart 8 would be interesting, and it’s likely that another round of Amiibos will be announced for scalpers to hungrily gather up. Or perhaps a new Metroid title is waiting in the wings to grace us all with its presence.
Square-Enix (Tuesday May 16, 10am): Like Bethesda, this will be Square-Enix’s first E3. It’s unclear what to expect, but they certainly have enough titles scheduled for a 2015 release to fill out a show. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided will show its pretty cyberpunk face for the first time, and Just Cause 3 also has yet to show off game play. JRPG fans can anticipate the latest from Star Ocean and Dragon Quest, but don’t count on Final Fantasy XV (Square plans to begin the games’ full marketing push in a few months). As for new announcements, a new Hitman is looking very likely. But the biggest question of all hinges on Kingdom Hearts 3. Will the fan-favorite mashup be present? Time can only tell.
PC Gaming Showcase (Tuesday May 16, 5pm): Capping off the show is the AMD PC Gaming Showcase Powered By PC Gamer (say that three times fast), another new entrant. It’s still not clear exactly what this show intends to be; it’s three hours long and has scheduled appearances from a mix of indie developers and major players (Blizzard, Square-Enix). Even Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft’s XBox division will be there, likely hocking the benefits of Windows 10. As for games, expect to see SOMA, the latest from Amenesia: The Dark Descent developer Frictional Games. Gone Home developer (and Portland natives) Fullbright will be showing off their ominous Tacoma. Gears of War creator Cliff Blizinski will also be stopping by, hopefully with a peak at his new title co-developed with Nexxon.
If you can’t catch any of the shows live, The Emerald will be writing up full recaps on each day of E3 2015, letting you catch up with all of the show’s latest developments as they happen.
Follow Chris Berg on Twitter, @Mushroomer25