The Most Exciting Game Announcements at E3 2021
It’s an awful, terrible time to have no money to spend on video games.
Despite the magic of E3 being stripped away over the years by lackluster showings from publishers, and the practicality of big industry events like this being questionable, E3 season remains for me one of the most exciting times of the year. This year’s E3 proved to be exceptionally full of exciting new games to look forward to (and also lament the damage they will inevitably do to my anemic bank account.) Here’s a quick look at my picks for the most exciting games at this year’s E3:
Metroid Dread
Metroid Dread may not be Metroid Prime 4, but that’s okay! I’ll take any Metroid I can get from Nintendo at this point. Dread looks to be a classic 2D Metroid game with the addition of soulless, nearly-indestructible robot enemies that hunt you ceaselessly and murder you with an eye laser if you’re caught. The Metroid series has always been somewhat unnerving, so these guys will fit right in. Also, it’s coming out soon — look for it on October 8, 2021.
WarioWare: Get It Together!
I have a shameful confession to make — I’ve never played a WarioWare game in my life. However, the series is praised for absurdity, which is something a weirdo like me can get behind. I can play minigames (or microgames, in this case) where I pluck armpit hairs and knock over ice cream cones with a friend? Count me in.
Shin Megami Tensei V
Shin Megami Tensei V is game about a beautiful androgynous anime character who has to bargain with demons and fuse them together to fight other demons in a post-apocalyptic hellworld. Cool. Persona 4: Golden was my first outing into this universe, so I’m looking forward to trying out the reportedly more hardcore, OG demon collecting game.
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp
Holy shit, Advance Wars remakes!? On the Switch!!?? I don’t think anyone saw this coming, but I’m super excited to see this series make a comeback. I spent endless hours playing the first GBA title. This version has revamped the original, super cute sprites into a 3D-ish art style that’s equally endearing. War is adorable!
Breath of the Wild 2
After what was almost assuredly a bit of a fakeout in which series producer Eiji Aonuma delivered news on a bunch of other Zelda stuff, new footage from the long-anticipated sequel to Breath of the Wild 2 was finally shown off today. In the footage, we see Link sporting a new hairstyle, a demon arm a la Princess Mononoke’s Prince Ashitaka, Link wielding a flamethrower, new enemies, potential time-bending powers, and bits of Hyrule floating in the sky. It’s a lot of new information that’s sure to get series fans theorizing until the game’s release some time in 2022.
Battlefield 2042
The Battlefield series is far and away my favorite multiplayer FPS. The past few installments were a bit disappointing, but 2042 appears to be a true return to form for the series. Combat is returning to a “modern” setting after forays into WW1 and WW2, team sizes have increased from 32 to 64 players, the class system from the previous games has been replaced with a new “specialist” system that allows for much more freedom when choosing weapons and gadgets. Those hoping to escape from the existential dread of climate change won’t be able to do so in this game — the soldiers you play as have all been displaced by climate catastrophes, and games will be filled with dust storms, tornadoes, and presumably plagues of locusts as well. Battlefield 2042 is scheduled to release on October 22, 2021.
Replaced
Replaced may be the most visually appealing game that I saw during the entirety of E3. This game looks absolutely gorgeous. Described as a “cinematic platforming, pixel art and free-flow action combat with a deep, engaging dystopian story set in an alternative 1980’s,” Replaced may scratch the Cyberpunk itch that CD Projekt failed to satisfy earlier this year.
I may have missed a few games here and there, but that’s about it for my picks! What games are you looking forward to? Did I miss something really obvious? Let me know!
