This year’s E3 Presentation took players to “Bethesdaland”
Bethesda have held their annual conference at E3. Introduced by PR & Marketing Global VP Pete Hines, the 2017 presentation took players around an animated theme park for each announcement.
Virtual Reality
First up was the reveal of two familiar Bethesda titles entering the world of virtual reality.
Doom VFR will combine puzzle-solving and classic Doom shooter gameplay for an immersive experience that puts players on a derelict space station. With the hordes of beasts never too far away, players will have to work through a series of activities and battles in order to survive.
Fallout 4 VR will allow players to play through the entire game in VR. The massive open world, all of its inhabitants and locations will be included in this re-imagining of the post-apocalyptic title.
Doom VFR and Fallout 4 VR are scheduled for a late 2017 release. Watch the reveal trailers below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jspdtha3t1k
Elder Scrolls
With the imminent release of The Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind, Bethesda was keen to show players a little more of what they can expect in the coming months. Releasing later in the year, the Horns of the Reach and Clockwork City DLC will further expand the world of Elder Scrolls Online, with new locations, weapons and items to unlock.
The Elder Scrolls card game, Legends, will also be getting a new expansion. Launching on June 29 on PC, iOS and Android, Heroes of Skyrim will add over 150 cards to the game. Featuring familiar faces from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the new cards will also introduce a Shout mechanic to the game. Each Shout will have three levels that will increase in power with increased usage.
Those waiting for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim to release on Nintendo Switch were treated to a new trailer showcasing how the game will look on the console. As a special bonus, players were also treated to the sight of Link battling in the world of Nords, thanks to Amiibo support. The trailer also confirmed that there would be new content for Nintendo players.
For those looking for more original content, the unveiling of Bethesda’s Creation Club will allow players of Skyrim – and Fallout 4 – to download player creations. With everything from items, creatures and clothing available for players to download. Bethesda also confirmed that all creations would be fully compatible with the two titles and that content would be constantly updated as new creations were made available.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is scheduled for a late 2017 release on Nintendo Switch. Watch the trailer below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7980ZPK8Dg
Dishonored Goes On and Quake Champions
The next stop on the tour of Bethesdaland announced the arrival of a new story in the Dishonored universe.
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider is a new stand-alone story releasing in September. As Billie Lurk, players are on a mission to take out the mysterious Outsider who has arrived. Billie will be aided by her powerful ally – the Empress assassin, Daud.
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider will be available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC from September 15. Watch the reveal trailer below.
Up next was Quake Champions, which is getting a new edition to the roster and a fully open beta.
The newest champion has been unveiled as Wolfenstein’s B.J. Blazkowicz, who will join the roster in the coming weeks. Also ahead is the Quake World Championship event at QuakeCon in August. This special event will see the best players from around the world gather to battle it out for a share of a $1million prize pot.
Bethesda also announced that the Quake Champions beta would be fully open after the E3 2017 update. This new update will also include 3 new maps, a new weapon – the Tri-bolt – and improved features. Those wishing to participate will be able to register and receive a beta key from the Quake website
Watch the latest trailer below.
Evil Rises Once More
The first of Bethesda’s two new titles was the sequel to the 2014 survival horror The Evil Within.
For The Evil Within 2, players are once again brought back into the life of Sebastian Castellanos. Now searching for his daughter, Sebastian has to return to a nightmare filled world in order to find out the truth about what has happened to his child.
The atmospheric trailer – which included two merging renditions of Duran Duran’s “Ordinary World” – concluded with the announcement of the game’s release date – Friday, October 13, 2017.
The Evil Within 2 will be available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Watch the reveal trailer below.
The War is Here
The final step on the tour of Bethesdaland was the reveal of Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. In the sequel to the 2014’s The New Order, the action shifts to the Unites States in the early 1960’s.
Taking up arms against the Nazi regime, players once again play as BJ Blazkowicz as he joins the Resistance. Joined by new allies against some familiar faces, players will experience the next chapter in this alternate-history series. With new abilities, weapons, enemies and environments to explore, players will be able to forge their own path as they topple the oppressive force and begin the next American Revolution.
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is scheduled to be released on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC on October 27. Watch the full reveal trailer below.
For more information on all of these announcements, watch the conference in full below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbslVwy0XzY
Words by Megan Roxburgh