The 7 Greatest E3 Moments This Console Generation, So Far

Kingdom Hearts 3 and FFXV Reveal/Rebranding

If there’s one thing we know about Square Enix, it’s that the publisher takes its sweet time developing games. Both Final Fantasy Vs XIII and Kingdom Hearts 3 were in development for so long (one still is, in fact) that they reached parody status. And given that they were two of the most eagerly anticipated games in recent memory, it’s unsurprising that all eyes are on SE any time an update is shown. Yet nothing could possibly match the double reveal event of Kingdom Hearts 3 and Final Fantasy Versus XIII rebranding to Final Fantasy XV.

The news of Square Enix’s upcoming projects raised the roof at E3 2013, with fans screaming in a mad frenzy of delight that a new generation of their favorite franchises was inbound to a new generation of console hardware.

Ironically, we’re still waiting for one half of that duo to arrive five years later!

Yoshida Demonstrating How Second Hand Games Worked on PS4

Microsoft really did not start off the eighth console generation on the right foot. The Xbox One promised more performance, but Microsoft was also determined to make it more than just a gaming machine. The company promised the Xbox One would be the all-in-one entertainment package for your front room. There were radical new innovations teased, including Kinect, and an always-online design that used a cloud system to store and play digital media. Immidiately, both the media and the gaming community considered the impact that would have on second-hand games. How would we all be able to share, swap, and sell our old games as we had done before with physical discs? It seemed that would be impossible, and the situation spiraled out of control.

Sony wasn’t going to let this PR disaster fester without aggravating things with its own two cents, and in an absolutely hilarious skit that has gone down in gaming legend, Sony demonstrated how second-hand games would be shared on PS4. The instruction video featured Sony President Shuhei Yoshida, and it featured just one simple step: handing the physical game copy to another person.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Announcement

Three years after Final Fantasy VII Remake was so tantalizingly dangled in front of us, we’re still waiting on anything more substantial than fleeting glimpses of ‘gameplay’ and CGI cutscenes of its opening chapter. That’s been immensely disappointing, undoubtedly, even if we did all know in the back of our minds that we weren’t likely to see the game until many years later. Yet still, there’s absolutely no way anybody could deny the magic of that first reveal.

The narration, the music, the panning shot of Midgar, and then suddenly… the realization of what was unfolding before our eyes. The attendance of Sony’s 2015 E3 conference lost their collective minds. There were cheers of excitement, screams of delight, and tears of joy. Our prayers finally answered; Square Enix had listened to its fans.

Well, we’re still waiting… still replaying that triumphant trailer reveal, twiddling our thumbs until the next big update on what we hope will fulfill its destiny as one of the best remakes ever made.

The Last Guardian Re-Reveal

After Fumito Ueda’s Shadow of the Colossus became on of the PS2’s most iconic and beloved games, the stage seemed set for Ueda’s next big game to take the crown on PS3. In 2009, Ueda did indeed detail his next title, Project Trico, and it looked suitably amazing running on a new generation of hardware. Later announced as The Last Guardian, it would, however, never launch on PS3. Seven long years passed, the PS3 came and went, and it seemed as though The Last Guardian would never see the light of day.

That is until, in 2015, it made a stunning comeback. The adorable (or annoying, depending on your opinion) voice of the young boy calling his pet bird/dog/dragon as they traversed awe-inspiring ruins was as beautiful as it was shocking. Nobody could possibly have predicted The Last Guardian was still in the works, and that was soon to arrive on PS4.

In 2016 it arrived (after yet another delay) to mostly positive critical acclaim.

Kojima Walking Out on the Stage at Sony’s Conference, Death Stranding Teased

Hideo Kojima’s highly anticipated final entry to the Metal Gear Solid saga (for real this time) promised to be the most ambitious iteration yet. A huge sandbox setting realized in the stunning Fox Engine, and a story that linked Big Boss to Solid Snake; the long wait was nearly over. And then disaster; news surfaced that Kojima and Konami had fallen out in a big way. Worse still, working conditions for Kojima and his team were reportedly awful, and he was being shunned by seniors at the publisher, even having his name removed from the box art of the game.

Suffice to say, nobody was surprised when Kojima left Konami following the release of the (critically acclaimed) MGSV. What was surprising was how quickly Kojima found his new home at Sony. Just three months after the launch of MGSV, Sony announced that Kojima would be joining them to start work on an all-new PS4 exclusive.

Incredible, we all thought, but likely not something we’ll see for many years. Wrong. At Sony’s 2016 E3 conference, Sony dedicated a special segment of its stage-time to Kojima. Strutting onto the stage like a bonafide rock star, Kojima emerged to thunderous applause. He thanked his fans for support, thanked Sony for the new partnership, and then teased his latest project, Death Stranding, with the most unusual – but hugely exciting – trailer reveal.

What a legend.

Bethesda Fallout 4 Announcement

Bethesda’s E3 reveal of Fallout 4 has to go down as one of the biggest bomb drops of all time. Strangely enough, though, we actually already knew that the next post-apocalyptic story was well on its way in terms of its development cycle, and we even knew it was highly likely that it was likely the big reveal of Bethesda’s E3 2015 conference.

Yet what none of us saw coming was just how much we were about to see: story cutscenes, gameplay, characters, and a brand new building and inter-town trading mechanic that took things to a completely new level. Best of all? A release date, and one that wasn’t in the far-flung future. Fallout 4 was less than six months down the line, and there was even a cool little mobile spin-off called Fallout Shelter that you could download immediately after the conference.

Now that’s how you reveal a highly anticipated sequel.

Nintendo’s Pokemon/Metroid 1-2 Punch at E3 2017

2017 was a huge year for Nintendo. The Switch’s big on-stage reveal announcement, launch, and then subsequent resurgence to global popularity. There was a feeling that the company had turned a corner; it was a new leaf for a new-look Nintendo. Quite apart from its clever hybrid hardware, what was so compelling about Switch was its year-one game lineup. An instant classic in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, all-new IPs like ARMS, and the tease of a new Mario game. But what of the future? Had Nintendo really the clout to keep the console afloat in years to come, and had it listened to its fans wishlist for future game projects? The answer was a resounding yes.

Although the deep dive into Mario Odyssey was a show-stopping reveal at E3 2017, the most shocking and exciting news was arguably the tease of two games that we didn’t even see a scrap of footage of: Pokemon, and Metroid Prime 4. Hallelujah! A mainline entry to the Pokemon series with current generation graphics, and that new Metroid game we’ve always wanted. These far-flung game teases were decidedly un-Nintendo, but that was what so exciting.

What have been your favorite moments so far? Let us know in the comments below!