As we continue with our Electronic Entertainment Expo coverage, we move on to the final publisher’s conference with Ubisoft. Like the past E3 Sanchez Soapboxes I’ll go over what got the most reaction out of me, and reference the Editor in Chief, Joe, to bring you the details. So without further ado, here’s Ubisoft.
Just Dance 4
For the second time in the day a performance, only this time by hip hop artist Flo Rida. This was to promote Just Dance 4. I took solace in the fact they got this over with early. What took me by surprise was the host of the event, Aisha Tyler, saying she was looking at the female dancers too.
Far Cry 3
As I’ve said in the past, I’m not a big fan of first person shooters, however the island setting, and the theme of insanity really sets this game apart. I might not play it, but with the setting and the theme, this game seems very interesting, and the more I see it, the more these people might turn me into a fan of their game. Also on a side note the digital nudity, may have helped it’s case.
Splinter Cell: Blacklist
Sam Fisher is one bad mother, shut your mouth! I’m telling you this game looks very cool, elements of stealth, shooting, and killing as a trained assassin all seems to come together in an adrenaline fueled action game. I’m still going to keep my eye on this one.
Rayman Legends
I have to admit, that when I saw Rayman Origins at last year’s conference, I thought it would be a simple kids game. How wrong I was. Rayman Origins was such a refreshing title, that brought me back to my very young gamer days when platformers were the bread and butter of gaming. Rayman Legends looks to continue bringing platformers back to today’s gamer. If anyone is going to pick up the Wii U, I would strongly recommend this title, just based off the last Rayman game.
Zombi U
What’s this? A game for core gamers? As a Nintendo exclusive? The trailer was great. It was an eerie look into, what I’m assuming is set in London, based off the rendition of “God Save the Queen”, and a car driving off London Bridge, and the Royal Guardsmen swinging a bayonet to decapitate a zombie. I’m glad Nintendo is trying to get the core audience back, but zombies just seems like an easy way to go. With that said, it was a wonderful trailer, so I’m not going to try to be too hard, and I hope Nintendo truly does try to get the core gamer back.
Assassin’s Creed 3
I genuinely respect the Assassin’s Creed franchise. However seeing AC 2, AC: Brotherhood, and AC: Revelations in consecutive years, I worried the franchise would loose something if they kept releasing an annual game. However Assassin’s Creed 3 changed that because it’s set in colonial America. Don’t get me wrong, I like seeing the other cities of the past but it’s very rare we see the early days of the United States, and the Revolutionary War represented in video games. It is something that could rejuvenate the series, and might bring in new players to the franchise.
With that said, everything shown, from the trailers and the gameplay, looks sweet. Climbing trees, and cracking skulls open with the tomahawk, I just want to ask where I sign up. It’s a very highly anticipated title, and with good reason. Everything presented keeps generating more buzz for what’s becoming one of the defining games of this generation of consoles.
Shootmania
Ubisoft’s entry into e-sports, was presented in a kind of dull way. Personally, I don’t feel this demonstration helped me to get fired up about Shootmania, or e-sports in general. Maybe it’s just me though.
Watch Dogs
As soon as I heard the setting set in Chicago, the Watch Dogs demonstration had my interest. Then seeing the game in action had me hooked. It seemed like a great mix of action, espionage, and using technology to your advantage. One thing that really had me besides the setting in the Windy City, was the fact that Watch Dogs is a brand new title. This was a very pleasant surprise, and generated a lot of buzz throughout the day.
Summary
Ubisoft’s conference had it’s downsides. For one the backstage host for the show actually made me miss the Mr. Caffeine guy from last year. The Just Dance 4 and the Flo Rida performance was something that I tuned out of, but there were a lot of good things too. Seeing the presentations for Splinter Cell: Blacklist, Far Cry 3, and Assassin’s Creed 3 were great. The Zombi U trailer was great, but Watch Dogs was by far the talk of the conference.
Overall, I felt Ubisoft had the best presentation of any of the publishers that day. When I compare it to Electronic Arts, or even Konami’s Pre E3 presentation, I think Ubisoft took a big risk closing with Watch Dogs. A big risk that, in my view paid off. I hope more conferences are handled like this more often, because to that point, it was the conference of the day.
Let us know what you thought of the Ubisoft conference in the comments below. Also check out New Gamer Nation’s E3 coverage. We still have some more for all of you the gamers.