CraigPlaysGames’ 20 Highlights from ‘Not E3’ Season

Not E3 season is over and there was a ton of great games shown off. I’ve tried to narrow down a list of over 50 down to just 20. I’m of course excited for the likes of Final Fantasy 7 Revelation but it wouldn’t be very interesting to read ‘it’s more of what I like’. Instead, the list will be comprised of new announcements.

Favourite Announcement - Spyro: A Realm Beyond (Toys for Bob)

It’s a very strange feeling, seeing a brand new Spyro game. Besides from his inclusion in Skylanders (which I consider a whole other property), it’s been 18 years since the release of The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon – an apt thing to mention as one of the very few things we know about the game from its brief teaser is that this game will have similar free flight to that game. I trust Toys for Bob – even if Crash 4 did have some problems, it was made with passion. If they treat Spyro the same way, I’ll be happy.

Magicians: The Devil’s Deal (Uppercut Games)

This one was a pleasant surprise for me, seemingly coming out of nowhere. I thought this was a new studio but turns out Uppecut Games is a studio I’m familiar with - I’ve not played any of their games but I do know them - Submerged, City of Brass amongst them. Irres[ective of that, first person magical Bioshock in a sylised hell version of Victorian London is a hell (Excuse me) of an elevator pitch.

There’s no release date beyond ‘2027’ yet but I’ve seen plenty of advertisements for this so we may be looking at a February or even January release date.

Until Dawn 2 (Firesprite Games)

Firesprite’s long rumoured project has been revealed to be Until Dawn 2 as many speculated, having the unfortunate springboard of the mixed received Remake by the now shuttered Ballistic Moon. To speak of the game itself, it looks to follow a new group of Teens who soon discover that fake paranormal quickly turns into real paranormal when the bodies start dropping. Doesn’t look like it’s gonna reinvent the wheel but it doesn’t really have to. 

Crazy Taxi: World Tour (Sega)

I’ll admit it, I’ve never played a Crazy Taxi game, it’s one of those big gaps in my gaming history. Jade was proper buzzing though so that was nice to see. I don’t have any nostalgia but that’s not to say I don’t have any interest - what I saw looked really fun.

Stranger than Heaven (RGG Studios)

If you sit by the river long enough, you’ll see the spiritual successor of a long running series you mean to try float by. I could have joined the Yakuza games at 0, or when the series rebranded to Like a Dragon. I didn’t but Stranger than Heaven looks like the perfect spot to join the franchise while also being it’s own new thing - something darker and more mature than that which came before. There’s also Snoop Dogg and Tupac, too.

Fables: The Wolf Among Us 2 + Fables: The Wolf Among Us Remastered (Telltale)

You know what they say about buses? Apparently it can apply to video games too. The Wolf Among Us 2 was announced 9 years ago (10 upon the games release) and has been delayed at least twice. Now there’s an actual trailer to back up the release date and not only that! The first game is being remastered (presumably in the new engine) to help get players up to speed. Absolutely adored the first game, can’t wait to play it again and the sequel! The sequel is coming!

Floor Plan: Slap out of it (Turbo Button)

There was a time where I was optimistic about the PSVR2 and was sad when titles like “I expect you to die” and any number of Meta games didn't get ported. Among them was “Floor Plan” but the developers are working on a game in a similar vein but for flat screen! Slap Out of It (or Floor Plan: Snap Out of It?) looks delightfully silly and puzzley which puts it right up my alley.

ILL (Team Clout)

I haven’t been keeping track of this game too heavily, just that it’s got realistic gore and it’s supposedly too good to be true/never coming out. From this trailer I can see the first bit is true but there’s a tenative release date of 2027. As far as Survival Horror goes, this looks fairly standard (in a good way). The dialogue and voice delivery could definitely do with some work but maybe that’ll be improved by launch. 

Crossfire (That’s No Moon)

Despite the selection of wild and wonderful titles on here, I’m also a sucker for a good modern military shooter. Despite the trailer trying to make the concept of ‘Cover’ exciting, the general premise reminds me somewhat of “Spec Ops: The Line” which could lead to a very interesting experience. Even if it's a dull as dishwasher shooter, I do happen to like those also.

Pikuniku 2 (Sectordub)

I know nothing of the first game beyond silly little guys and a CCTV state and now the sequel is silly little guys but in 3D. That's all I know and all I need to know.

Resident Evil Veronica (Capcom)

Capcom continue their very hot streak – Resident Evil Requiem, Pragmata, Onimusha: Way of the Sword in September and now a Code Veronica remake, known officially as Resident Evil: Veronica. I don’t know much about Code Veronica, but I’ve enjoyed all the Resident Evils I’ve played over the years and I can’t imagine it changing now.

Kemuri: Hunt the Unseen (Unseen)

Announced at The Game Awards 2023, we now finally have a proper look at what Kemuri even is, kind of. A third person sandbox city world about choosing an archetype to hunt down Yokai. Thematically and visually it seems very cool, though I'm gonna need to learn more about the general structure of the game. The three player co-op angle hasn't put me off persay but it does beg the question of what kind of game this is going to be.

Mighty Cuphead Adventure (Studio MDHR)

I didn’t expect Studio MDHR to make an appearance, let alone two announcements. The first was full confirmation of a Cuphead sequel which is crazy on it’s own but alongside it – an 8 bit platformer with the vibes of the original titles run & gun stages. More excited for the full sequel obviously I’m certainly willing to try the platformer. I only hope they’ve improved from the Run and Gun stages from the original. They weren’t bad but easily the weakest part of the game.

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve (Bandai Namco)

The fact this one interests me is a surprise in itself. Never played an Ace Combat game before and apart from the space sections of the Ratchet and Clank series, can't really think of any time I've done much with Dogfighting gameplay. Admittedly the dogfighting stuff I've not even looked into, it's the seemingly heavy narrative focus the game has that's drawn me in. Should probably check actual gameplay though…

Clutch (Maverick Games)

Best I could find had the TechRadar preview sticker on

When I look back at some of the games I played on the PS2, I find myself somewhat surprised by some of the games I had - Need for Speed Underground 2, Crazy Frog Racer - things like that. Turns out I had a little bit of a thing for Racing Games. Clutch is looking to mix racing with an open world with a Fast and Furious (the older ones) like story which has put it on my radar. Perhaps the restart to my racing game love.

Apple Crumble (Happy Broccoli Games)

From the developers of Duck Detective comes something different but even cooler than those two titles. It’s Grandma’s birthday and someone's trying to kill her! I think this is less of a puzzle game than the two Duck Detective titles but still an interesting little mystery game with the same kind of great humour. 

Rayman Legends Retold + Rayman Origins Enhanced Editions (Ubisoft)

While Legends wouldn't have been my choice of game to get a remake (Revolution was right there) I can't say that I'm not incredibly excited about Rayman being given this much of the limelight at Unisoft. Legends is already a phenomenal game and it looks like the very little fat the game had is being trimmed and things are being improved tenfold. If it wasn't for Spyro, this would easily be my most anticipated game.

God of War: Laufey (Sony Santa Monica Studios)

This is a game I’m very much in two minds about - on the one hand Ragnarok felt like a bit of a rushed mess at times in no small part to making the game fill the role of the both second and third games in a trilogy of games that’s only a duology. The reason was stated that they didn’t want to work on the Norse stuff forever. Yet here comes Laufey. On the other hand, everything we’ve seen from Laufey looks really cool - l like the character of Faye herself, the concept of the Everywhen seems interesting and the new gameplay flourishes look cool too. It won’t fix Ragnarok but might wrap up the Norse saga quite well.

Dioxide (Byte Barrel)

I'm not sure what event this game was even shown off at but a stylish first person shooter (That's not boomer shooter or multiplayer) is a win in my books. Interesting art style and a cool (if touch generic) story book and I'm in to see how it shakes out.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo)

I’ll be the first to admit I don’t like Tears of the Kingdom and I’m not a massive fan of the Wild saga as a whole, especially in comparison to the older titles. Seeing Nintendo swing for the fences and attempt to remake Ocarina of Time - one of the highest rated games of all time, is certainly an enticing prospect. I can’t say i’m sold on the artstyle just yet but we’ve only seen a tiny snippet so far and it’s safe to say I’m excited for more.

There’s the 20 I chose to talk about but there was a great many over the ‘Not E3’ season. It’s hard to not be saddened by the state of the industry but the games are looking just as good if not better than they ever have.

The other highlights: Wolverine, Bancho the Chef, The Lost Wild, Phantom Blade 0, Cuphead 2, Alien Isolation 2, genATLAS, An Eggstemely Hard Game, Mafia: The old Country - Man of Honour DLC, 1666: Amsterdam, Saw: Genesis, Final Fantasy 7 Revelations, Tenebris Somnia, Mr Records, Ithaca, Screenbound, Super Yooka Laylee Kart, Arizona Sunshine, The Pines, Dear Van Gough, Wheel Mates, Prison of Husks, Don't Fret, They Will Come, My Cannibal Family, The Road of Dust and Sorrow, Exodus, Persona 4, State of Decay 3, Senua, Doom: The Dark Ages - Revelations DLC, Persona 6, Clockwork Revolution, Thief: The Dark Project Remastered, The Duskbloods, Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Control: Resonant, Silent Hill Townfall, Dune: Awakening Metro 2039 and The Sinking City 2.