Though I attended E3 as a guest of Xbox, I was fortunate enough to have been able to get some hands on time demoing PlayStation’s upcoming titles. Here’s a rundown of my PlayStation E3 experience with games that I had the opportunity to demo.
Spider-Man (PS4)
Insomniac Games’ upcoming Spider-Man game was definitely high on my list of PlayStation titles to check out at E3 this year as last year’s E3 preview was more of a media viewing session rather than a playthrough. This year, with the game set to release in September, I was lucky enough to have had a short play with the ten-minute demo at E3.
The demo gave me a quick, brief on screen tutorial of what the controls were and within moments I was swinging away through New York City. The controls were fairly easy to use and it felt great being able to swing from building to building across long distances.
Combat was easy to pick up and a whole lot of fun as there were several different methods of combat, including shooting webs, tying enemies up and tossing them around and more. Visuals were, of course, amazing and befitting a superhero title, with the game’s narrative feeling very Marvel-esque.
As I spent way too much time swinging about, I didn’t get to experience the full breadth of the demo, but from what I have seen and experienced, I’m beyond excited to play the game when it releases.
Blood & Truth (PSVR)
Blood & Truth is a follow up to 2017’s PlayStation VR (“PSVR”) title, London Heist and takes players on a journey as a James Bond like character hell bent on saving his mother, who’s been kidnapped. This British action-espionage game is filled with high-octane action mixed in with stealth gaming and epic gun battles.
Initially, I was excited, as I’d always wondered what it’d be like to be a spy like James Bond or assassin like John Wick. Experiencing this in real life was never going to happen so the next best thing was to play such a game as Blood & Truth in virtual reality. Boy, what a rush it was.
The game was slightly challenging to pick up as players are required to physically pick up objects such as weapons, pick locks and other physical activities such as climbing up walls. These physical aspects of the game, which required more movement made me feel completely immersed in the game and its narrative. Getting into shootouts with enemies felt very real and made me all the more invested in the game.
Unlike other PSVR titles I’d tried over the past two years, Blood & Truth captured my interest through it’s realistic visuals and thrilling gameplay. Being an action hero in a rather realistic environment was an adrenaline rush. I thoroughly enjoyed learning how to pick ‘locks’ and utilise different guns. However, I did start to feel the ‘weight’ of the PSVR headset and struggled to keep up with the fast-paced nature of the game. The novelty of Blood & Truth eventually wore off as I physically felt exhausted and a little dizzy after a few minutes.
Virtual reality gaming is certainly taking the world by storm. If it’s something that intrigues you, I’d definitely recommend Blood & Truth when it releases. Just be mindful that you may need to take regular breaks.
Dreams
Dreams is a sandbox title by Media Molecule, the team behind Little Big Planet, and places a lot of focus on “play, create, share” wherein all three aspects are merged together into one experience.
With the focus on player generated content, Dreams allows players to create and share their own levels, allowing for players to showcase their creativity as well as gaming skills. I was taken through a walkthrough of the game with one of the developers at E3 and was shown just how diverse and vast the game was.
The game has everything from jamming music to creating art and encourages players to be creative. Not only can players play the pre-built levels in game along with their own levels, they can also play the levels created by other players making the world of Dreams almost infinite.
The concept of this game is great as it allows for more creativity and community engagement. The graphics and audio in this game was also top notch, making watching and experiencing the demo a delight. However, one thing I was a tad concerned with is whether the game would be enjoyable for those who may not necessary be creative but this was countered by the fact that there’s such diversity in gameplay both in single-player and multiplayer modes that each session will offer variety.
Dreams is scheduled to have its beta released sometime this year. If you enjoyed Little Big Planet, then you’ll like Dreams.
My PlayStation E3 experience was certainly entertaining and after seeing the exciting new first party games that were announced, I’m excited, as I’m sure many of you are.