Square Enix has hosted their 2019 E3 Presentation. Bringing together fans and press in Los Angeles, the event showcased some of the companies upcoming titles, with the Final Fantasy franchise and the Marvel’s Avengers project taking centre stage.
Final Fantasy
Following on from the confirmation of the release date of the Final Fantasy VII Remake – March 3 2020 – fans got a closer look at what they can expect from the game.
Producer Yoshinori Kitase and Director Tetsuya Nomura both took to the stage to showcase a special gameplay demo, featuring Cloud and Barret in a battle against a Scorpion Sentinel, as well as some changes to gameplay – which include shortcut mapping for powers and abilities – which will provide a more immersive experience for players.
The audience was then treated to an extended trailer, featuring Tifa and Aerith in battle and Sephiroth appearing as a vision to Cloud. The trailer also confirmed the release date and showed off two special editions of the game.
However, the Final Fantasy VII Remake was not the only project from this beloved franchise showcased at the presentation with a first look at the remaster of Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, details about the upcoming Final Fantasy XIV Online DLC – Shadowbringers – which will be launching in July and the announcement of the first spin-off from the Final Fantasy Brave Exvius mobile game – War of the Visions.
Finally, it was confirmed by Square Enix that Final Fantasy VIII is being remastered and is scheduled to be released this year.
Coming Soon
A whole host of trailers gave fans a glimpse of what is to come from Square Enix over the next few months:
- Dragon Quest Builders 2 is coming to PlayStation 4 on July 12, with a demo launching on June 27 to try out the new four-player co-op as well as getting a taste of the new story
- Octopath Traveler is now available on PC through Steam
- The remake of The Last Remnant is now available on Nintendo Switch
- Circuit Superstars is a new top-down racing game which will be released through the Square Enix Collective in 2020
- A new trailer showed off more of the infected world of Dying Light 2
- Oninaki is a new action RPG with a throwback style launching on August 22
- Romancing Saga 3 and SaGa: Scarlet Grace will be coming to western audiences for the first time soon.
Rounding out the new projects was the announcement of Outriders. Currently in development at People Can Fly, the game is described as a “dark, modern shooter” where players will be able to create their own Outrider to take on the challenges ahead. While a teaser trailer was shown at the event, developers did confirm that more details about the game will be coming later in the year.
Marvel’s Avengers
Rounding off the presentation was the first look at Marvel’s Avengers.
In the premiere trailer, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are gathering to celebrate Avengers Day and unveil their new Helicarrier and HQ when a heist gone wrong and a catastrophic accident leaves San Francisco – and the team – devasted. Disbanding in the aftermath, five years pass before the team have to reunite to save the world once more.
During the showcase, several of the game’s voice cast was announced. Nolan North, Jeff Schine, Travis Willingham, Laura Bailey and Troy Baker will be taking on the roles of Iron Man/Tony Stark, Captain America/Steve Rogers, Thor, Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff and Hulk/Bruce Banner respectively.
It was also announced that the game would have four-player co-op and that all updates will be free to play. Developers Crystal Dynamics also announced that the game will be released on May 15, 2020, while a second trailer announced that one of the first characters to join the team will be the original Ant-Man, Hank Pym.
Information on all the games featured can be found here.
Watch the presentation in full below
Words by Megan Roxburgh