E3 2016: Expectations and Dreams

With E3 2016 lurking around the corner starting tomorrow, it's time to list a new list of Expectations and Dreams, before the annual show will commence once again:

Expectations:

1.The Legend of Zelda: Insert Subtitle

With development time easily reaching Ocarina of Time and Skyward Sword, the next major Zelda will no doubt spark the interest and hype back into the franchise, as I am sure that Nintendo will pull out a great mixture of old and new tropes to the series, including an "open world" of tackling the dungeons in any order.

2.Resident Evil 7, REmake 2

With the 20th anniversary, it will be utterly impossible for Capcom to ignore this commemoration, because the timing could not be better. Either one of these titles could be presented, and for both cases, I hope that the horror roots will be completely restored, just as the 2 Revelations already marked the right paths.

3.Final Fantasy VII Remake

A release date is unlikely, but an exciting gameplay trailer alongside Squeenix's many other major titles will no doubt empower the nostalgia countless gamers have for Final Fantasy VII, including me. All it takes is for more prominent characters to re-appear, more exciting combat, and a glimpse of the Gold Saucer!

4.Mass Effect Andromeda

It's time for Bioware to expand the Mass Effect universe further, with or without Captain Shepard. Many are eager to finally see footage of Andromeda, but perhaps even more interesting, I can't wait to see the return of the vast dialogue and lore, besides the above average third person shooting.

5.Paper Mario: Color Splash

Unfortunately, everyone expects Sticker Star 2.0 to happen here. If only Intelligent Systems knew that we all love the first 2 Paper Mario's, but that we are divided by the other 2. Is there still time for the traditional gameplay, partners and unique NPC's with story chapters to come back to Color Splash?

6.Sonic the Hedgehog

Sega has been mumbling about rejuvenating their flagship franchise for a while now, and it seems that if we forget about the doomed Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice for a moment, that we just might finally see, either a proper Sonic Adventure 3, or a proper classic 2D Sonic side scroller appearing at E3.

7.Yooka Laylee

I have high hopes for this one, as much of the original team behind the famous N64 platformers has gathered once again, and it just might re-ignite massive interest back into the "collectathon" genre once we can try Yooka Laylee out.

Dreams:

1.F-Zero U, 3D, or NX

By far my most demanded dream game, F-Zero deserves to return to the modern family of Nintendo's IP's, and it easily differentiates itself enough from Mario Kart, by mere speed alone. Just use the GX/AX template and expand from there, with HD, online, a course editor, amiibo and so on and so on!

2.Seiken Densetsu

Mana titles have appeared over the years, but none have come close to the quality 2 and 3 brought to us on the SNES. What if Square Enix is finally able to transition the gameplay over properly? Either on a handheld or a console, Seiken Densetsu deserves another chance. Or, while I am on topic, perhaps Secret of Evermore ought to deserve another chance as well.

3.Advance Wars

Enough with Fire Emblem already lads. It's been 8 years since the last title emerged, and therefore it's time for another Advance Wars, which I always preferred over their medieval counterpart. Just make it appealing for a larger audience, don't fix the gameplay and introduce a map editor with the ability to share maps online.

4.Mega Man

All of the drama and the shame surrounding the development of Mighty No. 9 does not mean that Mega Man cannot return after a 6 year hiatus. I already spoke about this in a previous blogpost this year, but to summarize, Capcom should either reboot the franchise, or concentrate on one of the various cliffhangers.

5.Warcraft IV

I have only played 1 hour of gameplay from World of Warcraft. Merely for investing time alone into MMORPG's am I not interested by them, and I also dislike that pausing is difficult when you go on long quests with many other players. Anyway, I grew up with Warcraft 1, 2 and 3, and they only got better with each title. I would love to see Blizzard concentrate on Warcraft IV after releasing sequels to StarCraft and Diablo, and also having just released a new IP in recent years.

6.Half Life 3

Gabe should break the "can't count higher than 2" curse already and finally make everyone go absolutely crazy by announcing Half Life 3, since Gordon Freeman and G-Man deserve to return! The first title remains a great long FPS adventure, and the second title is pretty good on it's own as well, except for leaving with a cliffhanger.