E3 2013 (E3plante!, as we dub it every year) is just under three months away, and while we’re sure there will be some pretty big game announcements before then (Call of Duty, anyone?), we thought it worthwhile to take a look at the big games to look out for this year. This is by no means a list of the only games you should be watching, as E3 should be filled with some big surprises, but these are the ones that stick out in our minds.
The Legend of Zelda (Wii U)
Was there really any doubt this would be here? Nintendo showed off the “HD Experience” when the Wii U was first announced at E3 2011, and fans went nuts over the possibility that the next Zelda game could look just that good. In a recent Nintendo Direct video, not only was a Wind Waker HD remake announced, but so was an all-new Zelda title for the next generation platform. We will likely see it at E3, though we’re not banking on gameplay or even real footage of the game. We’ll be happy with a name and a screenshot or two, because that’s likely all we’re going to get until the game launches sometime in 2018.
The Legend of Zelda (3DS)
We’re already getting a remade Zelda title in the form of the upcoming Wind Waker HD remake, so we’re pretty positive that if Nintendo were to go Zelda-crazy on us this year, they’ll do it with a new adventure on Nintendo 3DS, not the purported Majora’s Mask remake. We’re always stoked to see Zelda, but we’re just not sure it’ll play out like this if we’re already getting Wind Waker HD and a glimpse at a new console Zelda, too. Then again, we do need something to tide us over until that Wii U version of the game hits.
Assassin’s Creed IV
This list is going to be heavily dominated by Ubisoft titles, but how can you complain when they’re all this good? Assassin’s Creed IV surprised everyone when it was announced a scant three months after Assassin’s Creed III hit store shelves in November. We know the game is launching in October, but we’ve yet to see any extensive gameplay from the title. Expect the game to make a big splash (no pun intended) at E3 this year as Ubisoft demos the game at either Sony or Microsoft’s press conferences, as well as their own.
Call of Duty
We don’t usually put Call of Duty games on this list because they’re getting a little long in the tooth. However, with the recent rumour dump we reported on, this game looks to actually continue the story in a unique and more interesting way. With that said, we’re pretty sick of the franchise at this point, but if it sells, we can’t really blame Activision for going nuts with it. If all the rumours we’ve heard about Call of Duty: Ghosts turn out to be true, maybe we will have a Call of Duty we’ll actually look forward to playing this year.
Watch_Dogs
Sure, Ubisoft’s new game is one we’ve heard a ton about, but Watch_Dogs is also one that we haven’t seen a lot of. Outside of the two videos we’ve seen of the game, we know that it is set in a typical American city with the atypical ability to control virtually everything around you. However, it promises a world that is interactive in a way that we haven’t seen before. The game not only looks delicious, but is said to be running on every platform under the sun. This E3 will be Watch_Dogs‘ big show as it completely comes out of the woodwork, so keep your eyes peeled for it.
Rainbow Six: Patriots
Another Ubisoft title, Rainbow Six: Patriots is one that we haven’t heard about since last year. Ubisoft showed off an incredibly realistic demo early last year, and hopefully, E3 2013 is going to be the time when they show off the rest of the game. Unfortunately, we haven’t heard anything about the game since then. Nobody has denied that it’s still in the works, so we have no reason to believe that it’s been canceled. We’re expecting this game to be for next-generation platforms, if it’s not a launch title.
The Last Guardian
We know, we know. We’ve been clamouring for The Last Guardian since its original announcement in 2009. And we’ve said in the past that we had it on good authority that the game would eventually rear its head on an actual console, and we’re happy to report that… Well, okay, we don’t have much news on this one either other than the fact that it hasn’t been canceled.
The Handheld Onslaught
Last year, we predicted “The Vita Onslaught” and Sony went ahead and basically ignored the Vita throughout its E3 presentation. It touched on a few games but expected that most people would see all the Vita games on the show floor. Of course, the millions of people who couldn’t attend the show had no idea about these games, and Sony messed up.
This year, we’re predicting a handheld onslaught. While Nintendo held a separate conference this year dedicated to 3DS titles, we think they’ll shy away from that this time around and focus on the 3DS alongside its Wii U titles. Sony will also be a lot more aware of how the Vita needs to cohesively tie into the PlayStation 4 system in order to last past this holiday season.
We’re going to see a ton of great games at E3 this year, and the ones we’ve highlighted don’t even begin to scratch the surface of the smaller developers and indie games we’ll see at the show, not to mention the buckets of cool hardware we can expect, either.
Stay tuned for our final predictions before the show in June with the third entry in our E3: What Will, What Might, and What Won’t series. Until then, check out how our predictions fared in 2012!