As the second day of E3 kicks off, all eyes are green with envy for Microsoft’s upcoming console, the Xbox One X – formerly known as Project Scorpio. The new console totally stole the show at the Xbox E3 conference, with Microsoft choosing to open the entire shebang with its brand new console, which it claims is the “most powerful console ever.”
Of course, a console is nothing without some games. So without further ado, here’s the biggest news straight out of the Xbox E3 conference:
Xbox One X looks awesome
The announcement everyone has been waiting for is finally here, Microsoft has officially named its brand new console. Formerly known by its codename Project Scorpio, the big console for 2017 is named the Xbox One X.
Microsoft upcoming console is arriving on November 7 worldwide, coming in a slick grey colour scheme and rocking the design of the Xbox One S, but smaller. Yes, you read that right, the Xbox One X is the “smallest Xbox ever” too. Crazy stuff.
As for the Xbox One X specs, you’re looking at the innovative Scorpio CPU with a liquid-cooled vapour chamber, a 6-teraflop GPU clocked at 1.172 GHz with 12GB GDDR 5 memory and 3266GB/s memory bandwidth. It can show over eight million pixels, supports HDR, a wide colour gamut and even comes with a 4K Blu-Ray player too.
Anyone already locked into the Xbox family will be pleased to hear that all Xbox One accessories and games work on Xbox One X, with faster load times, and supersampling to make games look better even at 1080p. Some existing games will be getting a 4K patch to make them look better on the Xbox One X too, just like they have with PS4 Pro.
The Xbox One X price is set at $499, with the UK price set as £449.
Original Xbox games join backwards compatibility service
Bolstering the already impressive Xbox One backwards compatibility service, Microsoft has announced that original Xbox games are getting added to the service soon. Although no release date has been confirmed yet, Microsoft has teased that one of the first OG Xbox games to be added is the fan favourite, Crimson Skies.
‘Forza Motorsport 7’ is screeching into your lives
AS everyone expected, one of the biggest titles for Microsoft and the Xbox One X this year is Forza Motorsport 7, which comes complete with the gorgeous Porsche 911 GT2 1X when it arrives on October 3. The game looks fantastic in 4K, with tracks featuring spectacular vistas, a variety of weather including the fantastic phrase ‘dynamic puddles’ that grow over the course of a race and heat that affects your tires.
The game will feature over 700 cars including the largest collection of Lamborghinis ever. Forza Motorsport 7 will run in full 4K at a buttery smooth 60fps.
‘Crackdown 3′ is one of Christmas’ big titles
One of the biggest Xbox One exclusives, Crackdown 3, just got stamped with a release date. You’ll be blasting your way through the sci-fi world on November 7, making it one of the major 2017 titles for Xbox One. That’s the same release date as Xbox One X y’all.
Metro Exodus is taking you into the sewers again
We love it when a game you didn’t expect gets announced at an E3 press conference, and we love it, even more, when it’s a fresh entry in a series you’ve really enjoyed. And that’s definitely the case with Metro Exodus from 4A Games.
The game trailer shown off at E3 2017 saw the protagonist exploring the underground caverns and facing what looked like horrific giant rats. When they emerged into the daylight, it’s shown off to be a big and beautiful post-apocalyptic world where wolves are tearing apart corpses and strange mutant things are looking for a snack. Armed with a crossbow and an assortment of other weapons, the hero zip-wires to safety, narrowly avoided getting run over by a train and is pulled inside by a female associate.
Assassin’s Creed Origins really is walking like an Egyptian
After months of leaks and rumours, the Xbox E3 press conference was the place to officially unveil Assassin’s Creed Origins. For the first time, the series is taking us to ancient Egypt and will follow the story of one of the first assassin’s ever, Bayek.
The alpha gameplay shown off during the conference showed Bayek travelling back to his hometown of Siwa as he works to kill the fake oracle Medunamun. As rumoured, it seems you’ll be able to use your pet eagle, Senu, to scout out the map rather than having to climb lookout posts. Your armoury will include bows and arrows, a shield, throwing knives and small blades
From the looks of it, the gameplay won’t deviate from the classic Assassin’s Creed tropes too much, but you will be levelling up your character and gaining skill points that you can use to customise Bayek for your personal play style. There was a moment where he shot an arrow and you seemed to be able to control it after it’s launched, similar to the way Yondu controls his arrow in Guardians of the Galaxy.
State of Decay 2 is another emotionally charged apocalypse
A game that’s basically like living inside an episode of The Walking Dead, State of Decay 2 – an Xbox One exclusive – will see you pulling together a team of zombie-fighting survivors, building a home and deciding the best ways to look after your people, feed them, heal them and more.
From the looks of the trailer, it looks like the zombies are taking quite a bit of inspiration from the likes of Left 4 Dead 2, with a huge chunky undead literally ripping one of the characters in half. There were intestines everywhere – yuck. The game is coming in Spring 2018, so you’ve got a bit of a wait for this one.
Sea of Thieves is still rocking the pirate’s life
Rare’s Sea of Thieves also got an extended section of the Xbox E3 conference, with a guided demo of underwater exploration in the shared world pirate game. You can loot sunken shipwrecks to build your booty and even follow riddles to find more treasure. Watch out for sharks looking to nibble your peg leg though.
But we were also shown how land exploration will work, with skeletons coming to life as you work your way inland. Teamwork is obviously key in this game, with plenty of roles for your crew to take, splitting up to find the treasure and protect the precious cargo while others protect your ship. Trading and making money are other big parts of the game too it seems, along with battling, facing the stormy seas and cannonballing your comrades to far flung places. The graphics are looking glorious and the more we see of this game the more excited we are for some pirating adventures.
The graphics are looking glorious and the more we see of this game the more excited we are for some pirating adventures. But you’ll have to wait until early 2018 to actually play it sadly.
Cuphead finally has a release date
The highly anticipated indie title, Cuphead, finally has a release date and it’s coming September 29. The game has been showed off quite a bit in recent year and was originally scheduled for a 2016 launch. However, thankfully we now knew exactly when we’ll be able to get in on the cartoon, finger-clicking, incredibly unforgiving title exclusively on Xbox One.
Life is Strange: Before the Storm is going to be a brilliant summer treat
The fantastic episodic title Life is Strange from Dontnod Entertainment is getting a prequel called Life is Strange: Before the Storm. Instead of starring Max Caulfield as the first game did, this one will follow her friend Chloe Price and her life before the events of Life is Strange. It’s even prior to her having her blue hair.
When episodes 1-3 arrive on August 31, you’ll be discovering what in fact did happen to Chloe’s missing friend Rachel Amber all those years ago.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is a new, equally beautiful, adventure
Fans of the Xbox One exclusive from Moon Studios, Ori and the Blind Forest, is getting a sequel called Ori and the Will of the Wisps. An equal pianist appeared on stage to unveil the game, which sees Ori teaming up with a rather forlorn owl who’s obviously been through some kind of traumatic loss. Prepare to get those tissues ready for that soundtrack too.
Anthem could be your next MMO addiction
Following the game’s announcement at the EA Play E3 conference, Anthem was the game to round out Microsoft’s Xbox E3 offerings with a full gameplay reveal.
In the world of Anthem you’re freelancers who are hired out to protect humanity. Every player is kitted out with an exosuit called a Javelin, which is fully customisable so you can tailor the way it moves to your own specs.
The futuristic world is filled with big beasties that you’ll need to take down as you explore the world, doing everything from flying around like Iron Man to jetting your way through underwater caverns. Interestingly, one of the big features of the world is that large scale world events like Shaper Storms can force you to change your tactics.
It looks like you’ll be able to earn weapons by defeating enemies and you’ll be able to form a squad with you and three of your friends.