EA was the first major publisher to announce they were pulling out of E3 this year and would no longer have a booth on the show floor, so it is ironic that E3 2016 unofficially kicks off with the EA press conference Sunday at 1:00 p.m. PDT. Even though they no longer occupy their traditional space just inside the main doors of the South Hall at the L.A. Convention Center, EA still has a huge lineup to showcase this year, including their usual group of sports titles, two huge shooter franchises in the new Battlefield and Titanfall games, multiple Star Wars projects, and one of the most highly-anticipated RPGs of next year, the new Mass Effect. They will be showing these titles (and hopefully a few more surprises) at their press conference and as part of their EA Play fan event, taking place just down the street from the convention center.
Battlefield 1
Kim Deuel, Staff Contributor
Set in World War 1, Battlefield 1 will feature more choices and variety than previous games in the Battlefield franchise. This includes new weapons, horses and biplanes and a new persistent squad system that will make it easier for player groups to jump between servers. The official reveal was only a month ago, but EA or Origin Access players as well as those who preordered the deluxe version will be able to play as early as Oct. 18, 2016. A full release will take place a few days after for XBox One, PS4 and PC. Followers on Twitter have been promised a new trailer reveal on June 12, to coincide with EA’s press conference that day. Hopefully we will get to see more gameplay during the conference or — dare we hope — EA will announce a surprise beta for the game as they did for Battlefield Hardline at E3 2014.
Titanfall 2
Kim Deuel, Staff Contributor
As shown in the above teaser trailer for Titanfall 2, the full worldwide reveal for the game will occur June 12, the same day as EA’s pre-E3 briefing at their EA Play event. Whether or not this means players will get an official release date is unknown although rumors speculate it to be sometime in October, close to the release of Battlefield 1. Developer Respawn Entertainment has promised that players will not be disappointed and that they think “Titanfall 2 will steal the show.” We have already been promised a single-player campaign — something the first title did not have — so hopefully we will see more of that in their press conference and in the time we get to spend with the game at the EA Play event.
Mass Effect Andromeda
Doug Trein, Staff Contributor
The beloved sci-fi RPG series may have concluded it’s original trilogy back in 2012, but Bioware has been hard at work developing the next great Mass Effect title for several years. Details about Andromeda have been scarce since its teaser trailer announcement during last year’s E3, but expect EA to showcase some major details about the game during this year’s event. So far, we know players can play as either a male or female human character, and that the Mako, a six-wheeled space lander vehicle, will make a return from the first game. Even though the game was recently delayed to a Q1 2017 release, it would be crazy if EA didn’t show actual gameplay footage in some form next week.
Madden 17
Kim Deuel, Staff Contributor
Madden 17 is the latest in the NFL football game series named after the Hall of Fame announcer and former coach John Madden and developed by EA Tiburon. It was recently announced that the game would be released Aug. 23, 2016, and that the Patriots’ Rob Gronkowski will be on the cover. Two versions of the game are already available for pre-order at multiple retailers. Fans should expect to see actual gameplay demos and new videos on display at EA Play, and perhaps a breakdown of the new features and other tweaks being made to this year’s version.
NBA Live 17
Kim Deuel, Staff Contributor
Although nothing official has been announced regarding NBA Live 17 and it’s appearance at EA Play this year, EA is well known for their love of their Sports games and it’s fans, so players should expect NBA Live 17 to be there in one form or another. While release of the console game has been delayed to early 2017, EA Sports will be bringing the series to mobile users later this year.
NHL 17
Doug Trein, Staff Contributor
The EA NHL series has existed for nearly two decades and will receive its next installment in NHL 17. The latest game will feature The World Cup of Hockey and all 27 teams from the ECHL North American hockey league. Players can expect several gameplay and game mode improvements in this entry, including improvements on player skating, on-ice actions, and franchise modes. No release date has been set for the game, but chances of a game demo at E3 are likely.
FIFA 17
Doug Trein, Staff Contributor
Arguably the most popular sports game franchise in all of video gaming at a global level, FIFA 17 arrives September 27 in North America. The most notable change in this entry is the entirely new game engine. Previous FIFA games were developed within the Ignite engine, but this time around FIFA will be created in the Frostbite engine, used in popular games such as Star Wars: Battlefront and Dragon Age: Inquisition. Since the release date is so soon, expect to see a playable demo of a near-final version of the game featured at EA Play.
Untitled Star Wars Visceral Project
Kim Deuel, Staff Contributor
There are several Star Wars games coming from EA. That much we know. The one we are most interesting in learning more about has been in development at EA Visceral has since 2013. It is being worked on by creative director Amy Hennig (formerly of Naughty Dog) with assistance from former Ubisoft producer, Jade Raymond. It is speculated that the Visceral game is an open-world RPG with a storyline that will take place outside the events of the main series. Maybe we will get a glimpse of things to come — including an official title and a release date — during this year’s E3 event.
Star Wars Battlefront DLC
Kim Deuel, Staff Contributor
Star Wars Battlefront released last fall, and since then developer DICE has been working hard on adding new free content while also launching the first paid expansion pack, Outer Rim, for the game as part of the Season Pass. The expansion included several new maps, weapons and two new heroes, Greedo and Nien Nunb. EA also announced that Season Pass holders would receive the second digital expansion pack, Bespin, this June. EA has promised 8 new heroes total (2 per expansion) and more information to come over the summer. What better time to share with players upcoming release dates and more than during EA Play!
