E3 2013 Highlights: What Got Us Excited

The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) last week brought a lot of exciting things for gaming fans, most notably two brand-new consoles and a wide and impressive range of new titles.

While the E3 was clearly dominated by the new consoles, Xbox One and PlayStation 4, the show’s primary focus remained the games, and especially new generation titles. Here are some of the E3 2013 highlights and what games to look out for this year.

Sony wins, Microsoft not so much

An IGN readers’ poll shows that 81% of readers think Sony won the E3. Microsoft was second with 12% and Nintendo won 7% of the votes. Truth be told, Sony’s PlayStation 4 event came as quite a surprise, especially after the disappointing Xbox One event from Microsoft.

The PS4 seems to have been developed just to spite Microsoft: it is cheaper than Xbox One, doesn’t need to be online at regular intervals and has no restrictions on used games. Oh and did we already mention that it’s $100 cheaper?

Microsoft will have to get its PR engine in full gear if it wants to catch up. The new console is a cool, smart gadget, but the tech giant seemed to forget that at the E3, leaving fans feeling disappointed.

Nintendo holds its own

In this clash between consoles, everybody seemed to think there wasn’t enough room for Nintendo. But the Japanese giant managed to prove everyone wrong and to impress the E3 audience with a wide range a new titles both for Wii U and for 3DS.

Nintendo announced a total of 14 games for both consoles and the return of many popular characters, such as Mario, Fox McCloud, Donkey Kong and others. But it was the announcement that gaming icon Mega Man would join the Super Smash Brothers that got everybody excited.

Games, games, games!

Among the many new titles announced or showcased at the event, there are several that are definitely worth playing. Many of the new titles will be playable on both next-generation consoles, so if you haven’t decided what console to buy yet, you can at least get some cool new games.

One of the titles that will run on both platforms is Destiny from Halo developer Bungie and Call of Duty publisher Activision. Destiny is a multiplayer sci-fi shooter that will take gamers on missions across Earth but also to Mars and Venus. The game looks impressive, so we hope it can replicate the success of the Halo franchise.

Disney Infinity and Fantasia: Music Involved are the two new titles from Disney, appealing to both kids and adults. Disney Infinity is a nice open world franchise mash-up game, while Fantasia promises an amazing musical experience to players using the Xbox One Kinect.

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag from Ubisoft is already on everybody’s radar. The developer showed ore footage of the game and announced that it would be available for next-generation consoles as well.

Ryse: Son of Rome is a brutal action game set in ancient Rome, developed by Microsoft and Crytek for Xbox One. It’s an impressive game that is definitely worth playing, both for the unique atmosphere and visuals and for the action.

Titanfall from Electronic Arts and Respawn offers a unique first person shooter that allows players to fight with traditional weapons but also by using mechanized robots, promising double the action and excitement.

These are just some highlights of this year’s edition of the gaming industry’s largest event. The next year edition of the E3 will be held June 10-12, also in Los Angeles. What did you think of E3 2013? What were your favorite events? Let us know in the comments below.

[Images via Washington Post & E3]