Tonight, EA decided to take to the stage and show us some of what we can expect to see from them over the coming year.
First up was Madden NFL 13 for the Wii U.
EA's goals for the Wii U version of the game was to provide Nintendo fans with an authentic football simulation experience. To do this, they have utilised the hardware of the unique console and provided new touches in the way of gamepad touch screen controls.
With these new controls you can do the following:
- Play calling
- Navigate and access your playbook
- Adjust your formations
- Create custom hot routes for offensive maneuvers
- Change assignments of players for defence
To add to the authenticity, commentators Jim Nantz and Phil Simms are there to talk you through all the action as and when it happens.
Keeping with the sports theme, the next presentation was for Fifa 13 Wii U.
The two main aims for the Wii U version of Fifa 13 was to bring the next gen engine currently used in the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions to the Wii U user and to enhance the gameplay at various levels to enable a more casual demographic to be able to pick up the game and have fun regardless of their personal skill level.
To do this, they have added several new features accessible from the gamepad screen.
- When taking shots, penalties for example, the gamepad allows you to look around at the events surrounding you on the pitch
- You get crosshairs on the handheld screen for you to aim properly with and then shoot giving you more control of where that ball will actually end up
- Shake and shoot feature that allows you to shake the controller as you run toward the goal, by doing this you will see the opposition's net on the screen, where you can tap on the screen anywhere and dictate where to shoot the ball. Again this gives more control as to where it will actually end up.
- A tab system particularly useful in the games manager mode which enables you to do a variety of things like substitutions, view real time stats for any of your, or your opponents players and give you the ability to switch around tactics in real time, something which has to be done via the pause menu in the Xbox and PS3 versions.
EA want this version of the game to be a social experience you can share with family members and friends. Up to 4 people can be a part of the same team, all with different roles giving an extended co-op experience. Fifa 13 will be a Wii U launch title.
Next up things took a shift into mobile gaming. Ea spoke about how they want 'Seamless play, anytime anywhere'. It was also said that they want a mobile game for all tastes, and as a result of this thinking they plan to bring out 40 new mobile, social and online titles this year. That is quite a large amount!
Four titles were spoken about on stage, beginning with...
Fifa 13 iOS
Yep another Fifa title! People love football games it would appear!
A new graphical overhaul has been given to the iOS version, giving you better facial animations, nicer looking pitches and more realistic player movements. New controls have also been sorted including 2 new buttons - one for offence and one for defence. The offence button allows you to perform skill moves such as faints, stepovers and drag-backs and the defence button allows you to call a second defender, a CPU controlled player, to come and help you out.
Perhaps the biggest news for this title however is that it will now feature online multiplayer powered by Origin. This system will allow you to play with your Origin friends anywhere and anytime. You can also upload replays of bits of the game you are proud of, such as a decent goal, right to Youtube to share it with the world. It looks to be a fairly robust multiplayer system which will enhance the title.
Real Racing 3
Coming to a mobile device near you sometime this year is Real Racing 3. The game features licensed tracks like Laguna Seca and Silverstone to race your Porsche, Audi or whatever licenced car you choose, around on.
During the short trailer shown, it looked like a very nice racing title. Multiplayer is sure to be madness, it is the only mobile racing game with a 22 player grid! If you're a fan of racing games, this one is worth keeping an eye out for.
Orc Vengeance
If you have played Blizzard's recent dungeon crawler, Diablo 3 you may notice a lot of similarities in Orc Vengeance. It is a isometric action adventure title that puts you in charge of an Orc, and lets you smash your way to loot. Boasting intense combat, Skill moves, Epic boss battles and a cinematic story driven experience it looks to be a pretty sizable game, especially for a handheld device. Controls are all done via touch screen commands. You can assign skills to the double tap, circular, swipe and zigzag motions allowing you to carve up your foes with ease.
Next up is a really odd one, not a direction I personally saw PopCap going with their Plants vs Zombies series!
Plants vs Zombies presents Talking Zombatar
Talking Zombatar is a free to play PvZ product available on all iOS carrying hardware. The basic gist is that you have a zombie that you carry around with you, like an interactive pet.
With this zombie pet you can dress them up, talk to them - and get an answer sometimes in Zombese...and make them custom dance moves so you can watch them strut their undead stuff. You can complete daily quests to unlock rewards for your little rotting friend and to make them happy. With Origin support, you can also share pictures and video all taken with the app and featuring you and your zombie friend.
And that rather strange app wrapped up the mobile segment.
Yet another Sims 3 expansion pack was then announced called The Sims 3 Seasons.
This new expansion brings fun seasonal activities to your Sims town including:
- Swimming in ocean under the bright summer sun
- Snowboarding in a winter wonderland
- Football amongst crisp autumn leaves
- Spring fling - get drunk, have fun
And much more.
New weather effects engulf your cities on November 13th 2012. If you preorder the expansion then you get the Ice Lounge free, this can be placed anywhere in your towns and is there all year round and includes a club full of furniture made of ice.
Need for Speed World was the next onto the stage for a very brief look at what is coming in the next few months. Players can expect to see a new race mode coming into the game, Drag Mode. This is one of the most requested modes for NFS World so it will excite many that it is on its way. There are also new licensed cars coming including the Porsche Carrera GT which was showcased on stage and looked pretty speedy!
A trailer was then shown for the latest Battlefield 3 map pack, Battlefield 3: Armoured Kill. It showed huge maps, focusing primarily upon vehicle combat. Available in September, you can expect to see new tanks, ATVS, mobile artillery and an aerial gunship as well as a new game mode called Tank Superiority which pits two tank platoons against each other as you fight for control over a flag.
The next in the series of map packs Battlefield 3: Aftermath was briefly teased with vague details regarding some storyline filler which takes place between the Iran/Iraq border just after the earthquake. Finally we were introduced to End Game no details were given except for it "Contains Motorbikes" and will be out March 2013.
We covered Medal of Honor earlier in a news post on the front site. If you missed it you can visit this link to catch up on the details. What was spoken about during the presentation was that the events that are played out in the game are all based upon real events that have shook this world so expect to see some realism to the storyline in the game.
Returning to the game is Linkin Park who have put together a song for the game called Castle of Glass.
It's also more than likely common knowledge by now, but if you pre order Medal of Honor you have access to the Battlefield 4 beta when it happens.
Next up a new entry to the Mass Effect series was detailed. Mass Effect 3: Leviathan will be coming to Xbox 360, PC and PS3 this summer. It takes place during the events of ME3 and you play through an emotive story featuring a hunt for the Leviathan mentioned in the title. Whilst doing this you will explore new planets and speak with new characters. It is unclear whether Leviathan is a stand alone entry or DLC for Mass Effect 3 however, this article will be updated with clarification.
More Mass Effect 3 goodness is coming to the Xbox, PC and PS3 in the way of the Mass Effect 3 Firefight Pack, due on Aug 7th. With this pack you can get your hands on 2 brand new weapons and 5 bonus weapons for your future playthroughs and multiplayer games. And last but not least it was revealed that Mass Effect 3 will be a launch title for the Wii U.
It will use the Wii U game pad to bring new features to the game and will have an interactive backstory section for those who haven't played the previous games to catch up on the plot. In this backstory, you are allowed to make decisions at pivotal points of the story.
And the very last game that was mentioned was Army of Two: Devils Cartel. A return of the well liked tactical co-op series. This time featuring two new characters, a mature storyline and the Frostbite 2 engine underneath it all. The first unveil of the game is being shown at GamesCom. If you missed our news post featuring some details for this game, you can find it here.
And that' the lot for now! Are you looking forward to any of these games? Why not leave a comment and let us know.
Though I don't think plat or ginge will be picking up Fifa 13 now, the line manager on that game is a man city fan!
Some interesting games though, mostly predictable with the likes of Fifa and Madden but there were some odd ones there too, Like the PvZ game, that's a very strange one!