E3 2019: Bethesda Breakdown & Report Card

June 11, 2019 Papa Dom

Bethesda’s “BE3” press conference had a decent line up of new games and updates for existing ones. Overall, there was a strong message of community as Bethesda tried to land in the good graces of their already die-hard, yet sometimes over passionate, fan base.

The Highlights:

Here’s what stuck out,

Fallout 76 is starting to look promising. Let us, for a moment, ignore that this product was released unfinished and instead pay attention to what Bethesda decided to focus on with it.

Wastelanders a free update apart of the Year 2 cycle of the game which will include a new main quest, choice of dialog with consequences and human NPCs. If you have been a fan of Fallout for a while then you know how detrimental this piece of update will be for this game. I don’t expect too much with the consequences for choices but I wouldn’t mind specific sets of loot only being available depending on how you continue through the main quest.

Nuclear Winter is Fallout 76’s Battle Royale mode. Specifically, 52 people with the addition of customizable perks and what one would assume is a drop naked and get looted typical approach to the game mode. The Storm/Ring or what ever you call seems to be reminiscent of Battlefield’s Firestorm ring. The market is absolutely saturated with BRs at this point but the focus of Fallout 76 isn’t just this mode so this is a happy and welcomed addition that should prove fun or at least a time killer.

Elder Scrolls Online is debated to be one of the best MMOs out in the market right now and with this genre continued updates are always one key to retaining a player base. Elsweyr is the latest in DLC for this MMO and has already been available to the public but Bethesda showed fans of the game what to expect as the content cycle continues with a new dungeon “SCALEBREAKER” and more to be announced at QUAKECON. The hype here is a good MMO getting better (god I wish I had more free time)
Deathloop makes its way into this section off hype and uniqueness alone. Arkane Studios, the minds behind Dishonored, are offering this new IP which will feature “mind bending story, meticulously designed levels and of course Arkane signature gameplay”. I can’t wait to see more!

The Mehlights:

DOOM Eternal the new killing machine simulator from Bethesda and looks to capitalize on the success of DOOM 2016. I know some people will disagree with me putting DOOM into this section, and I appreciate the newly improved multiplayer mode they are working on but this isn’t exactly a shocker. DOOM 2016 was a great game and I expect nothing less with this one. Looking forward to it but I am not at the edge of my seat excited either.
Commander Keen is a new mobile game. If the name is familiar this IP was originally created by id Software in the 90s. I can’t force my self to write more, look it may be a fun game if you are a kid but it isn’t for us seasoned vets over here at Wicked Good Gaming. This looks like it will do well as a product if marketed right but in the end that’s all it seems to be.
Ghost Wire: Tokyo was revealed and it is just another one of those vague cinematic no game play trailers. I am not sure what to expect from this one but it’s from the minds that brought us Evil Within so I am all in already! Here’s hoping the best.

Rage 2 Rise of the Ghosts expansion was announced and it features more of what the games already has to offer. Guns, enemies, and explosions. That is a good thing if you are already a fan but nothing stuck out to me that would make someone who isn’t be convinced to try.

Wolfenstein: Youngblood & Cyberpilot. First, Cyberpilot is a VR take on the franchise and I was tempted to put this in highlights because Wolfenstein is an amazing franchise and I appreciate the VR addition but this isn’t any different from what other publishers have been doing with their IPs. Youngblood seems promising as a new entrance to the main line games and features Co-Op but as of now there’s nothing too hype about it.

The Lowlights:

Orion is another cloud based service and it promises faster streaming and lower cost for players using it. This whole streaming service is still new and we do not know quite yet what makes one good stream service and another a bad one, it all sounds good on paper butIts too soon to call Orion the “go to” for Stream tech. I will wait for this side of the industry to grow a bit more as I am sure alot of others will too.

Elder Scroll Blades for the Switch, I may be biased and I am sure Blades is a good game mechanically speaking but I have read reports
that as most mobile game are that this is heavily monetized and progression is stunted unless you pay up. Im sure in short doses its good like during your morning coffee, hell I love quick mobile grind sessions but thats why you have it on your phone and not Switch. This, to me, just seems like a way to expand their market on this game, I really wonder who actually asked for this.

Elder Scrolls 6 had nothing shown. Obvious? Maybe. Sad? Totally!

There was a lot to say on this one as a lot was shown, I respect Bethesda for somewhat calling attention to their mistakes from the past year and I think they have some great personalities on their team and leading their new ventures for the future.

Their line up looks clean but I couldn’t help shake this dodgy nature I kept feeling from their dialog. Every time they talked about mobile it was extremely fast, micro-transactions weren’t mentioned but are obviously going to be a standard. The way they talked about Fallout 76 like they were listening to feedback and always adding what the community wanted even though they knew what was wanted and decided to release it unfinished STILL does not sit right with me.

Business is business, and from that perspective their dodgy nature was a smart move – yet I cant justify a full score of an “A” while it is apparent. Other then that I liked this press conference a lot and as always with Bethesda am already waiting on more.

Final Score: B-

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