Couldn’t get up in the middle of the night? No problem, we did for you! Here’s all the news from Xbox’s E3 conference.
Xbox One S – Xbox’s slimmer Xbox One console official announced
As per the leak, there is a slimmer Xbox One console, the Xbox One S coming this August. Expect it to cost $549 here in Australia though. Don’t jump on a pre-order yet though, scroll down for more new console info!
Gears of War 4 – Gameplay reveal
It was here he announced that Gears of War 4 would be part of Xbox’s Play Anywhere initiative, where if a gamer buys it on Xbox One, they’ll also gain access to the Windows 10 iteration of the game. The game will support cross-play across all of its modes, from campaign co-op to horde; even achievements and your game saves will be supported by cross-play.
Gears of War 4 releases on Xbox One and Windows 10 on October 11.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V-aBdWY2us&ab_channel=MKIceAndFire
Killer Instinct – General RAAM
General RAAM, from the original Gears of War has been announced to be playable in Season 3 of Killer Instinct. Anybody who has purchased Killer Instinct Season 3 will have access to him in the coming weeks.
For the entirety of E3 2016 week, he will be playable free to all Killer Instinct players.
Forza Horizon 3 – Coming Down Under!
Playground Games took to the stage during Microsoft’s E3 conference to officially announce Forza Horizon 3, which appears to be set entirely in our great land of Australia. From the Yarra Valley to the Great Ocean Road, there’s a number of beautiful rural roads to traverse on September 27 when the game launches.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25n04I3UALU&ab_channel=Gamer%27sLittlePlayground
Recore – Gameplay revealed
With little to no fanfare, Microsoft have revealed some of the first gameplay of Recore as well as sneakily confirmed that it will be coming to Windows 10 as well as Xbox One later this year. The game will be part of Xbox’s “Play Anywhere” component, which means that it’ll be playable across both Xbox and PC on Windows 10.
Recore is releasing September 13 for both Windows 10 PC and Xbox One.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnKT9ZCGgBE&ab_channel=Xbox
Final Fantasy XV – We got to see some battle mechanics
Square Enix took to the stage during Microsoft’s press conference to show off the fluid battle mechanics from their upcoming Final Fantasy XV.
Taken from a segment in the game called Trial of Titan, the footage shows the heroes taking the fight to a monumental stone creature. It’s a look at the game that fans are sure to love.
Final Fantasy XV will release on September 30.
The Division – First expansion revealed
Microsoft have revealed the first proper expansion for The Division, which Xbox One players will be privy to downloading before anybody else, a full 30 days before other players.
Titled Underground, the expansion a new incursion titled Dragon’s Nest, extra unexplored Dark Zone districts as well as new locations and items which take place underneath New York.
Battlefield 1 – Early access
Xbox One owners with EA Access will be able to play Battlefield 1 early on October 13.
Community initiatives – Listening to their fans
They announced they’re meeting a whole number of community needs, these include:
- Background music – allowing gamers to listen to music of their choosing in the background of gaming.
- Cortana – the power of Cortana, Microsoft’s very own Siri, coming to Xbox One.
- Clubs – allows gamers to create clubs with fellow gamers from all over the world, for any game they’re into.
- Looking for Group – this will be a Godsend for those who struggle to find friends who play the same games as them, allowing people to seek out like-minded gamers, hoping to achieve the same things.
- Arena – this will allow gamers to organise their own tournament brackets, which’ll be a boost to Xbox’s competitive gaming culture.
Minecraft – Cross-play coming for Xbox, PC, Android and iOS
Microsoft announced that players will be able to play together no matter what device they are on – whether it be an Xbox, a Windows 10 PC or an Android/iOS device.
Microsoft also revealed that Minecraft Realms, the dedicated server service, will also be available for Xbox Live, Windows 10, iOS, Android and Gear VR devices. The service can be demoed for free.
Custom controller – Get colourful!
Xbox will now allow you to order custom controllers via xbox.com, changing the colour of the controller itself as well as the buttons and d-pad.
We Happy Few – Coming first to Xbox
Following Microsoft’s ID@Xbox reel, featuring a bunch of games including Inside (from the creators of Limbo), Compulsion Games took to the stage to show off their upcoming title We Happy Few.
They announced the game will be first coming to Game Previews for Xbox One next month in July.
Gwent: The Witcher Card Game – Standalone game announced
CD Projekt Red took to the stage to reveal their standalone Gwent title, Gwent: The Witcher Card Game. The long requested project will be launching on PC, Xbox One and Playstation 4, but those who want to have a taste of flicking their cards early can sign up at the official website to register for the beta.
CD Projekt Red revealed that Gwent will feature a single player mode as well as multiplayer options, making it a rather comprehensive package and the most in-depth Gwent experience yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwOYujoF-48&ab_channel=Sassafrass
Tekken 7 – Coming to Xbox One
Namco Bandai took to stage at Microsoft’s conference to confirm that Tekken 7 is coming to Xbox One when it launches early next year, complete with all new story mode.
As a parting gift, they also announced that, in celebration of E3 week, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 will be added to Xbox’s backwards compatibility library. Not only that, it’ll also be a free download for Gold subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bUPc2nAbCo&ab_channel=E3Trailers
Dead Rising 4 – Officially announced with Trailer
Dead Rising 4, as we reported previously, definitely exists and will be releasing on Xbox One as a console exclusive and Windows 10 PCs.
Little details about Dead Rising 4 were confirmed outside of the location and Frank West as a playable character. As we get more information, we’ll be sure to update you!
Scalebound – Co-op gameplay trailer are the best kind of trailers
One of the more hotly anticipated titles coming out of Microsoft’s exclusives catalogue, Scalebound was shown off on-stage during Xbox’s conference.
Scalebound is another Xbox title to feature Play Anywhere, meaning once it’s bought digitally for Xbox One, gamers will gain access to it on the Windows 10 platform.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-ZVMU_KA-M&ab_channel=Xbox
Sea of Thieves – Gameplay reveal
Rare’s most ambitious title yet, Sea of Thieves, received the gameplay demo treatment tonight at Microsoft’s E3 briefing. The demo was not live – instead Rare invited several members of the Sea of Thieves community to play against each other without any tutorials. They were given free reign of the game world and then left to their own devices.
We don’t know a whole lot about Sea of Thieves just yet but it could be one of the more unique online experiences when it launches next year. The title will also support Play Anywhere, meaning that copies purchased digitally on Xbox One or PC will allow players to play on the other format, sharing progress.
State of Decay 2 – Official announced
Another of the casualties of yesterday’s leak, State of Decay 2 has been officially revealed during Microsoft’s keynote at E3.
It’ll be another in Microsoft’s line-up of Play Anywhere titles, available to gamers on both Xbox One and Windows 10 when it’s bought on either.
Halo Wars 2 – Beta is now live!
One of the worst kept secrets, Microsoft today revealed a brand new trailer for Halo Wars 2 which put the new villain centre stage. Developed by Creative Assembly, the game is taking shape quite nicely and is on track for a release in February 2017.
Microsoft also revealed that the game would be coming to the Play Anywhere programme – meaning buying Halo Wars 2 once, digitally, would let you play it on both Windows 10 and Xbox One across both platforms.
Those looking to try out Halo Wars 2 will be able to play the multiplayer beta, which goes live and runs all week as of today.
Halo Wars 2 will be releasing February 21st, 2017.
Project Scorpio – New console is real
In a not-so-surprising move, Xbox has officially revealed the existence of Project ‘Scorpio’, the mid-gen successor to the Xbox One, presumably coming to the market sometime next year.
Promising 4K gaming with 300 gigabytes of memory per second and 6 teraflops in performance the Xbox is said to be the next big leap in console gaming.
Next to the teasing of specs, Microsoft has noted that all games and accessories will be compatible with the Project Scorpio, continuing the “Play Anywhere” platform that the company wants to base the entire Xbox platform on.
Currently, there aren’t much more details about the platform, but as we head throughout the summer and run towards Gamescom we might hear more sooner rather than later!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFLAtdhsf_4&ab_channel=MKIceAndFire
And post-show…
Crackdown 3 – Now coming 2017
Dave Jones’ ears must have been burning down at Reagent Games, as he’s written a blog post in the wake of Crackdown 3’s surprise no-show at Microsoft’s keynote this morning. The post confirms that the game, originally thought to be coming out this year, has in fact been moved to a 2017 release.
