Watch Dogs Has Ruined E3 For Me
By jakob187 44 Comments
There are plenty of people that are going to read that title and say "man, fuck you, Watch Dogs looks awesome." That is the problem - Watch Dogs looks awesome.
When the demo was originally played, I thought to myself "if this is where gaming is going in the next generation of consoles, I'm super on-board". When it was revealed that it was current-gen consoles, it forced me to look at all the other games coming along and say "how the fuck do these other games look so janky?"
Sure, graphics don't mean everything. It comes down to tons of other stuff that I care about: gameplay, story, what systems are at play. Whether that entire Watch Dogs demo was scripted through and through or if that was open decision making (something along the lines of Hitman games) is yet to be determined. Nonetheless, it's one of those cases where graphics DO make the difference, where physics and interaction DO make the difference all around. The movements and how varied they are, the particle effects, the overall interaction of your phone-device-thingie to view information about everyone in a damn room...just all of this cool stuff that adds that extra layer of detail...
I tried to watch the Resident Evil 6 demo, and all I could think was "this game should look WAY better". I kept wanting to see more details and less stiffness, but it never happened. In turn, this gameplay demo that looked pretty alright to me instead turned into mediocre mush that I probably won't bother with.
You know what? In general, despite just how goddamn lousy their press conference was (thanks Aisha Tyler and what-the-fuck-ever that guy's name was), I'm pretty sure that Ubisoft has stolen the show for me. The list of games they are showing, the variety that they offer, and the technology behind them are overwhelmingly stout. They are offering a glimpse into the future of gaming without even having most of the new hardware yet. Even then, Zombi U...looks pretty fucking awesome.
Despite everything else, it comes down to Watch Dogs. It's the game that seems to be pushing the boundaries at this year's E3, making gamers look at their hobby with a new set of eyes. Whether they can keep up on the promise that the game shows, who knows. At least I can look at the rest of Ubisoft's line-up (Far Cry 3, Zombi U, Assassin's Creed III, Splinter Cell: Blacklist, Rayman Legends) and say that they are on the right track to making some fantastic games.
47 Comments