Bethesda E3 2018: All Their Major Announcements
E3 presentations can sometimes be a mixed bag, but given the excitement behind Bethesda’s announcement of a new ‘Fallout’ game last week, we knew this would be one to watch, and it didn’t disappoint! Not only did we get more details on ‘Fallout 76’, but also a new ‘Doom’, more info on the leaked ‘Rage 2’, an epic looking ‘Elder Scrolls’ mobile game, and the tiniest of peeks at ‘Starfield’, a brand new sci-fi IP! You can watch the entire presentation here, but below is a breakdown of the announcements:
Rage 2
They kicked off the event by showing some gameplay footage of one of their worse kept secrets (thanks to Walmart Canada, who got a shoutout from the stage), ‘Rage 2’. Described by a number of people as the “sequel nobody asked for”, this is a ‘Mad Max’ style post-apocalyptic shooter where you play Walker, the last ranger, battling “the authority”. Guns, violence, shooting things on foot and in cars… It’s basically crazy fun destruction with automobiles.
Doom Eternal
A direct sequel to 2016’s award-winning and best-selling DOOM by id Software. The trailer doesn’t give a whole lot away, but it’s basically an upgraded version of the first-person shooter you know and love.
Wolfenstein: Youngblood & Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot (VR)
A couple of new additions coming to the Wolfenstein franchise. Firstly, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, a new solo/co-op game that takes place in 1980, 19 years after BJ Blazkowicz ignited the second American Revolution in Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. You play BJ And Anya’s twin daughters and it will land in 2019.
The second game, ‘Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot’, is a VR title in which you play a hacker who can take over Nazi robots and turn them against their masters. Described as part of Bethesda’s “ever ending question to bring the message of ‘f&*k Nazis’ to every platform possible.”
Quake Champions
PC class-based first-person shooter Quake Champions, which has been on early access for a while on Steam, is now free to download on Steam or Bethesda.net Launcher between 10-17 June 2018. Play solo, with friends, or against the all-new bots in classic modes like Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Instagib; or put your skills to the ultimate test and compete in Ranked Duel and 2v2 modes!
Prey: Mooncrash & Prey Typhon Hunter VR
https://youtu.be/ySVBHI2OeAg
The Prey franchise got a couple of new additions. ‘Prey: Mooncrash’ is brand new DLC which sees you fight overwhelming odds to escape the secret TranStar moon base where the enemies you encounter, the hazards you face, the goals you complete, and the loot you collect are different each time you play. Story Mode, for those looking to casually experience the game’s immersive narrative; Survival Mode, which will put your veteran cosmonaut to the test with hardcore hazards like oxygen levels and bleeding; and New Game +, which gives all players a whole new reason to return to Prey after they complete the game… And it’s free!
‘Prey Typhon Hunter’ is a new VR experience which lets players can use their VR headsets to explore the Talos I space station as a Talos employee.
The Elder Scrolls: Blades, The Elder Scrolls VI, The Elder Scrolls: Legends
Lots of stuff for fans of ‘The Elder Scrolls’ franchise! There was a new trailer for ‘The Elder Scrolls Online’, and news that digital card game ‘The Elder Scrolls: Legends’ is coming to Switch, PS4, and Xbox One this year with improved graphics. However, the big two announcements were the fact that ‘The Elder Scrolls VI’ is in development, although the trailer (above) gives very little away!
Also, they announced a stunning looking new mobile game, ‘The Elder Scrolls: Blades’. This is a massive first-person RPG where you play a member of the Blades returning to his hometown to find it in a very sorry state. You travel through handcrafted and procedurally generated dungeons to gain funds to rebuild your town however you see fit. You’ll also be able to visit your friend’s towns. You can play in portrait and landscape mode on the phone, but they are also planning to bring it to other devices and it’ll work in VR. It’s coming this Autumn, and it’ll be FREE!
Fallout 76
Being a massive Fallout fan, this is the thing I was waiting for… ‘Fallout 76’. They put out a new trailer, which you can see above, but also gave us a bit more info about the game:
- You start in Vault 76, a Vault built to celebrate America’s tercentenary (that’s 300yrs).
- The rumours were true, it’s entirely online, and has multiplayer, however, you can play solo if you choose. They seem to be saying every human you meet will be another player.
- You won’t see the servers, you’ll just automatically be joined online with dozens of other players.
- The map is four times the size of Fallout 4.
- It has new rendering and lighting technology, which allows for “16 times” the detail.
- There are six distinct regions, each with unique styles, risks and rewards.
- You can build bases/towns, and build them anywhere! You can do this on your own or team with friends.
- Although it’s described as a “survival game” it’s not hardcore. Dying won’t mean losing you progression.
- There are new activities (we saw a group playing musical instruments in the demo!), and new monsters.
- There are nuclear bunkers scattered around the map, and by finding the codes, you can set of the missiles and nuke any target you see fit! You can then battle your way through the radiation to collect unique or rare rewards.
- There is a special edition preorder which comes with a full-sized “working” power armour helmet!
- ‘Fallout 76’ is being released on November 14, 2018
Starfield
One last little surprise – ‘Starfield’. A brand new original IP, and the studio’s first new franchise in twenty-five years. Other than it’s an epic space/sci-fi game, there’s not anything else we can say about it, other than go “Ooooh…”
Just one final thing… Bethesda has been taking some flack about the fact they’ve released ‘Skyrim’ in so many versions on so many platforms. That lead to them enlisting Keegan Michael Key to present ‘Skyrim: Very Special Edition’…
