The Best Games of E3 2016

E3 2016 may have been the best one ever, with publishers and developers clearly bringing their A-game to the show. The level of excitement that developers were showing over their games was unparalleled. Here, in the third year of the new console cycle, they’ve really gotten the hang of current technology, and are seeing some upgrades, be they relatively minor like HDR lighting or major like Virtual Reality that allow them to tell their stories in exciting new ways.

With a list of games that includes Zelda, Batman VR, For Honor, South Park, Titanfall 2, God of War, Sea of Thieves, and oh so much more, it would be easy to pretty much say “everything.” However, that’s not the way best of lists work.

Here are the best things we saw at E3 2016 this year, with honorable mention going to nearly everything this year.

Best New Technology – PlayStation VR

The PlayStation VR did more than show me some new VR toys this year at E3 2016; this time around, it actually made me want VR in the home. That wasn’t something that had happened before when I had played with other VR hardware or games; I enjoyed some of those experiences, but none of them made me go “I need this” the way that games like Batman: Arkham VR and Farpoint did. With an announced 50 launch window titles (from October to December, with more in January), this might be the biggest launch of a modern console platform. If the quality can stay as high as the games at E3 this year, we are truly in for a new dimension of gaming on the PSVR. 

Honorable Mention: Play Anywhere – Microsoft is essentially giving gamers who have a decent Windows 10 PC a second Xbox One with their new Play Anywhere program, allowing one purchase for both copies of upcoming exclusives.

Best Mobile Game – Deus Ex GO

Sometimes, you get a booth appointment, and they throw something at you that you go, “eh, not really my thing” or “I dunno if we’ll cover this.” Well, color me shocked by how much fun Deus Ex GO was. It’s a simple enough puzzle game to pick up and play with literally zero instruction, but gets complex and deep enough to keep you playing for a long time. I can see this game very easily becoming my go-to for any short mobile gaming situations, and even being one I could sit around and accidentally lose an hour to.

Honorable Mention: Pokemon GO – Didn’t get to play this one at E3 2016, but everything I’ve seen of it looks like a blast, including the new information revealed at the show. As long as it isn’t too dependent on microtransactions, I can see it being a big part of my (many) travels for work over the coming years.

Biggest Adrenaline Rush – For Honor

Typically on a Thursday at E3, especially now that the show starts on Sunday, press, PR, and industry alike are all a little worse for wear, and maybe dragging a bit. Well, I found the cure for that syndrome this year, and it was playing For Honor. This is a whole new action adventure game, with one-on-one duels, as you play a lone soldier amongst a massive battling army. A Knight, a Viking, a Samurai – you get to play the different fighting styles, see the different militaries, and experience one-on-one combat that hasn’t been done in a game before. Every hit, every swing of your weapon feels strong and visceral. When you make contact, especially during a particularly difficult battle, it feels like an accomplishment every single time. In half an hour of gameplay, it never lost its novelty, and in fact only got more exciting as I opened up more combos, figured out more tricks, and achieved more of the fantastic executions. What a game; it made me feel like Thursday at noon was the first game of the whole show.

Honorable Mention: Titanfall 2 – I never quite felt like I got the hang of Titanfall 2 while playing, or like I 100% knew what was going on. However, it was still fun, and my heart was racing when I walked out of that tent, ready to play more.

Best Holy $#!& Moment – Sony’s Fully Orchestrated Press Conference

When you’ve been sitting in press conferences for two days, one more time being crammed into a packed theater can be wearing. That is, until a full orchestra and men’s choir start a driving theme that sets your senses on fire. It was a tremendous way to start Sony’s press conference, leading into them playing a live soundtrack to not just God of War, that started the show, but most of the rest of the press conference as well. Insanely cool, and made being in the room where it happened so much more special in this age of everything streaming.

Honorable Mention: Kojima Takes the Stage – Okay, this might be cheating a little, but let’s be honest, Sony’s presser was basically wall-to-wall holy $#!& moments. Hideo Kojima coming onto the stage and declaring, “I’m back!” followed by the eerie and emotional trailer for Death Stranding was a real highlight, though.

Best Hands-Off Demo – South Park: The Fractured But Whole

 

The best way to describe South Park: The Fractured But Whole is painfully funny. Wait – that doesn’t sound right when you read it out loud, does it? Still, I was laughing so hard during this demo, I came out with my cheeks and abs tight from the experience. It captures the South Park feel so perfectly, and after what was arguably the best season of the series in 2015, it’s great to see that carried over into an interactive experience. The gameplay has also improved upon their first game, The Stick of Truth, still doing classic turn-based RPG; all while the other characters sit there and berate you. I came out and told a friend “I just got yelled at and berated by Cartman for fifteen minutes and I can’t stop smiling.” A December release, it should be the perfect palette cleanser after the long main release season. 

Honorable Mention: Tacoma – After the success of Gone Home, many have been anxious to see what’s next from Fullbright, and the good news is, it looks to have their style but still something brand new. Tacoma looks like the kind of hard science fiction novels and short stories I grew up reading, come to life, and that’s extremely exciting. It’s nice to see a game unafraid to slow down and tell a story.

Best Single Player – Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Nintendo actually pulled off bringing only one game to E3 2016, and that’s because it was The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Anything short of an incredible Zelda experience couldn’t have done this, but that’s exactly what they provided. With a jaw-dropping expansive version of Hyrule, free open-world exploration, intuitive controls, and an intriguing start to the story, this could be the only game Nintendo promotes for the next year, and it would still keep them in the most-anticipated conversation the entire time.

Honorable Mention: Watch Dogs 2 – Yes, seriously. The game in its short demo directly addressed many of the issues of the first, and seems to really deliver on the promise of the original game. New gadgets and extremely fun 2-player co-op missions (yeah, not technically single-player there, but still) makes this game one to watch.

Best Multiplayer – Sea of Thieves

Sea of Thieves focuses on bringing people together, and letting them have fun their way. It’s a very difficult experience to describe, when it’s so much more fun to just jump in and play. The game is in early stages, with only the basics shown at the Expo, but it was simply a blast (of a cannon) to play. Sitting down with one acquaintance and three strangers on my team, I felt about two minutes in like I was playing with four close friends. That’s not an experience a lot of games can give, and I can’t wait to see what else they have in store.

Honorable Mention: Halo Wars 2 – Another blast of a time from Microsoft, Halo Wars 2 does everything the first game did, but better, and more accessible. The new, quicker multiplayer matches should make this a great “pick up and play” game, even between other more marathon gameplay sessions.

Best Reveal – God of War

After kicking things off with the live orchestra and choir, we saw… a child, playing with toys. A familiar voice talked to him, though, of a hunt – and then emerged from the shadows. The pop in that theater in Los Angeles could probably be heard from San Francisco, as fans, press, and industry went absolutely nuts. Then we got an entire live gameplay demonstration (with live soundtrack!) to boot, and seeing Kratos back in action, with some significant changes, was just awesome. No release date for this new God of War yet, but it’ll be one of those days that a whole lot of gamers take off whenever it does hit the PS4.

Honorable Mention: Spider-Man by Insomniac. It was a huge surprise, a ton of fun, and very exciting – but we got way less information about it than God of War, which edged it out.

Best Overall Publisher – Ubisoft

During a nearly three-hour long appointment, Ubisoft just got me more and more excited for their next year and change of gaming. The line-up didn’t have a bad game in it. I started with Watch Dogs 2, which looks to really step the franchise up. With new gadgets like the flying drone or the adorable remote control car droid, way more hackability, and co-op missions that can be played a number of different ways, this game will definitely occupy a lot of gamers time this fall. For Honor provided an incredible adrenaline boost (as mentioned before) that made Thursday noon after five days of long hours feel like it was day one again. Ghost Recon: Wildlands should be the best of the franchise, and I can’t wait to play with my group of friends. Steep was simply gorgeous to look at, and the route/challenge sharing will make it just continue to grow. South Park‘s irreverent fun is just hilarious, and looks like a great improvement on the gameplay side, as well. The VR experiences of Star Trek and Eagle Flight are unique, showing off new ways to play in that dimension that’s going to change gaming in a big way this year. Yeah, Ubisoft came to play, and they did it all without their biggest franchise at the show this year (Assassin’s Creed).

Honorable Mention: Microsoft – Microsoft definitely came to play with an incredible line-up of exclusives this year. Do the list: ReCore, Forza Horizon 3, Halo Wars 2, Sea of Thieves, Gears of War 4, Dead Rising 4, and many more; it’s a crazy games line-up with something for everyone, and the big upgrades to Xbox Live and the Play Anywhere announcement are all huge for gamers.

Best of Show – Batman: Arkham VR

 

Batman: Arkham VR was a total surprise. No leaks, no hints, it just sort of… appeared. Imagine the further surprise when taken back into the closed door areas of WB Games’ booth, and told I got to play. What followed was a completely new experience, one that had me shaking my fist in the air in excitement, high-fiving every member of the development team in the room, and at one point nearly had me in tears. The emotional connection that Batman VR pulls off is absolutely incredible. It’s game of the show, and I can’t wait to dive into it this fall.

Honorable Mention: For Honor – Again, For Honor was the gift that just kept on giving, and I felt its affects (and kept talking about it) the entire day after playing it. The way that game connects you to the character makes you feel like you really accomplished something, and you can taste the thrill.