[E3 2018] PlayStation: The Last Of Us Part II, Resident Evil 2 and Death Stranding

It’s that time of the year again. We can argue if the E3 is losing the impact of previous editions, or it is just becoming a worse and worse event. Nowadays, information comes and goes easier and faster that it ever has. The amount of leaks were huge this year (hey, even we had an unfortunate one), and this certainly kills the surprise effect of some announcements (DMC V, for example).

But I would lie if I said I wasn’t engaged. The past weekend I have felt something different in the air (I swear no drugs and no alcohol were taken). Getting on Twitter, Facebook and every other social media platform to find millions of gamers discussing that fucking The Elder Scrolls VI logo was dope. And TESVI was only one of the big surprises during Bethesda’s conference, right after Microsoft’s showcase.

While I didn’t like the last Playstation Experience so much, I had my expectations with Sony’s E3. The PS4 is in a great mood, with quality exclusives releasing every now and then. It would be silly for Sony to take their conference for granted. But mate did they delivered.

Gustavo Santaolalla appears  with a banjoo. He starts playing a song from… you know where, The Last of Us Part 2. The conference starts with an emotive moment. Lights goes out, trailer comes up. An adult Ellie is in a kind of celebration (the scenary is the exact same of the conference!). We are soon witness of a romantic kiss with an unknown friend of Ellie, and with barely a pause, it jumps right into the gameplay showcasing the main character in a jungle.

Stealth kills, crouching, using a bow are elements we already saw in the first game, but the scenery and graphical engine have went through a considerable change. Melee combat and finishers are also showcased in intense fights, while Ellie still tries to get out alive.

PlayStation’s showcase looks to be the most unique in years. As it turns out, it’s an “experience.” Taking what they call an intermission so that the audience can move onto the next part. Not surprising as the tent like building the audience was in to start, looked exactly the same as The Last Of Us 2 opening scene. Oh, and at the same time, they announced that God of War is getting a New Game Plus.

A dark DLC trailer for Destiny 2. A dark burned death filled area surrounded by what looks to be Rogue/evil guardians. Destiny 2 Forsaken September 4th 2018. Back to the showcase with yet another musical presentation. A flute instrument with a man in what looks to be traditional-ish Asian clothes, behind him is a screen of rolling hills of wheat. I think I’m back at Bethesda’s showcase by mistake folks.

Ghost of Tsushima followed up right after, showcasing gorgeous visuals in a peaceful land, until the inevitable combat rises in a more slow paced rhythm fighting with swords. It looks like a new promising IP that doesn’t hold much from the precessor’s portfolio, creators of Infamous: Second Son.

In what looks to be the most mind bending creative game in a long time, Control from Remedy & 505 Games, comes out 2019. But that wasn’t all, as a teaser for the remake of Resident Evil 2 was also announced, coming out in January 25, 2019.

We have a new trailer for Kingdom Hearts 3, presenting Pirates of the Caribbean. Epic ship battles await. Then we have some varied scenes from the story. Also a limited edition PS4.

Death Stranding unfolds, to be honest there is a lot of walking on rocky hillsides, while the main character look to carry a huge pack and other things. It shows the damage the journey is taking on his body, feet especially. Then a cut to cave with what looks to be an invisible creature making “footprints” in the mud. Both main characters stay perfectly still and quiet as if it’s a T-Rex (it’s not a T-Rex). When the two main characters emerge unharmed, they look out into a vast mountain filled world.

Ominous dialogue bordering on confusing scenes, filled with even more ominous phrases in between scenes. Things only get progressively more strange with Norman Reedus activates a baby in what looks to be an artificial womb. Essentially we saw a lot more and are simply filled with even more questions about the most mysterious game on Earth, no release date announced.

With Samurai and Pirates taking a theme in video games, it seems we were about to witness another. Big surprise though as a quick cinematic shows off, Nioh 2.

The new Spiderman video game finally shows off its gameplay. To no one’s surprise it’s essentially Arkham Spiderman on crack. And honestly, judging by what they’ve showed I and I’m sure many others will be completely okay with that. This game looks quick, sleek and powerfully fun. Left us with a cliffhanger though, just as some of Spiderman’s most powerful enemies are about to finish him off, a bright light shines and we hear Spiderman with wide eyes, “you?”

That was it for the PlayStation experience, though right after it finished they followed up with some more gameplay videos and one final announcement: From Software is developing a game for PlayStation VR, but there aren’t many details about it so far.