We're just a few weeks away from the spectacle that is the Electronic Entertainment Expo, and before the show floor opens, some of gaming's biggest players are holding press conferences that will undoubtedly be filled with surprises, awkward speakers, and plenty of dubstep. Electronic Arts is set to share the future of their gaming plans on June 10th at 1PM PT, and there's plenty of reason to be excited.
We already have a good sense of what will be there, as Battlefield 4, Dragon Age III, Madden 25, and a slew of other sports games are absolute no-brainers, but the publisher has got to have a few surprise game announcements, right? The company did just secure exclusive publishing rights to the Star Wars license, after all. Here are five game announcements that we're hoping will be made during EA's presser.
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5. Battlefield: Bad Company 3
Sure, Battlefield 4 is on the not too distant on the horizon, but the Bad Company franchise is so drastically different from the core series that it shouldn't be forgotten. As DICE has sought to chase after the Call of Duty crowd with Battlefield 3, we're seeing a shift in the landscape of EA's first-person shooters to overly dramatic and super serious experiences. Heck, just look at the disaster that was Medal of Honor as an example. The Bad Company series on the other hand is rife with humor and personality, something the FPS genre is sorely lacking at the moment. While it's highly unlikely Electronic Arts is planning on making a Bad Company 3 right now, it's not going to stop me from praying it might happen.
4. Mirror's Edge 2
This entry was included specifically for our reviews editor, Daniel, who absolutely adored the original Mirror's Edge like so many other gamers who have a soft spot for innovation. While the parkour action game didn't sell boatloads for EA, there's a dedicated core following that would eat up a sequel. Not only that but word has spread since the game's release, and a jaw-dropping next-gen followup built on the Frostbite 3 engine would certainly have a slew of gamers on board. The reality is that the industry is saturated with shooters and sports games, and gamers want something fresh and unique.
3. Star Wars: Battlefront III
EA just recently acquired the publishing rights to Star Wars, so it's only a matter of time before we see a whole bunch of new games set in George Lucas' beloved universe. The title that fans have been clamoring for quite some time is a new Battlefront game, and there is no doubt in my mind that the fellas at DICE already have something underway. In fact, EA's CFO just recently teased the fact that a new entry in the series is in the works. Will the company be able to scrap together something in time to show at this year's E3 press conference? Probably not, but even just an announcement or CG trailer would be enough to whet the appetite of Star Wars fans.
2. Mass Effect 4
We know a new Mass Effect game is in development, and we know that Commander Shepard's story is over. As such, the possibilities for where BioWare Montreal could take the franchise are truly endless. It could take place during a completely different point in time, put you in the shoes of an alien race, or a host of any number of other changes that would (hopefully) breathe new life into the franchise. I absolutely love the series' conversation mechanic, and to see where the dev team might take it into the next-gen has me brimming with excitement.
1. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic III
The Old Republic may have dashed our hopes of ever getting a proper KOTOR 3, but I refuse to believe that we'll never see a followup to Obsidian's action RPG. BioWare blew everyone's mind with the original years ago on the Xbox, and so much has changed since then. Imagine playing a Star Wars roleplaying game with the advancements we've seen in games like Dragon Age and Mass Effect. As far as I'm concerned, a proper Knights of the Old Republic III is an absolute must for Electronic Arts. The only thing that worries me, is that the publisher may be afraid to move forward with something like this in fear of cannibalizing interest in SW:TOR.
