What to Expect From E3, the Gaming World’s Annual Woodstock

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E3 2018 - What to Expect From E3, the Gaming World’s Annual Woodstock

Next Tuesday the annual gaming conference, E3, has become will get started at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The expectation is that over 68,000 people will attend.

There will also be no shortage of activities and cool things to check out. Note that more than 2,000 products will be showcased!

Already there has been quite a bit of buzz and rumors. Many of the large developers have also been making announcements of games before the conference.  Despite all this, there should still be enough surprises to make the show well worth attending.

Okay, then, what can we expect from E3 2018? Well, here’s a look at some of the top game developers:

E3 2018: Electronic Arts

During the past few years, Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) has had its own pre-show at E3 (it was held yesteday at the Hollywood Palladium). It’s called “EA Play.”

As for this year, there will be the usual launches of the company’s sports franchises, such as FIFA 19 and Madden 19. But the big excitement is around BioWare’s Anthem. The setting is a tropical environment where “freelancers” — who wear mechanized outfits  — engage in adventures. Anthem is similar to shooter games like Destiny and is expected to launch next year.

EA will also likely talk about its monetization strategy. Last year the company stirred up lots of controversy when it got too aggressive with in-game purchases with its Stars Wars Battlefront 2 title. There were requirements to unlock key characters like Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker — or else the alternative was to pay more than $80 bucks!

So at E3 2018, it will be interesting to see how EA will be using — or not using — in-game purchase mechanics.

E3 2018: Ubisoft

It’s a good bet that Ubisoft Entertainment SA (OTCMKTS:UBSFF) will use E3 to show off its Beyond Good & Evil 2 title. It’s an ambitious sci-fi/fantasy adventure that will be in the System 3 ecosystem. The game is a prequel to Beyond Good & Evil, which was launched back in 2003.

But there are some other interesting titles that should get some attention. They include Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, which takes place in ancient Greece, as well as several titles from the late author, Tom Clancy.

E3 2018: Nintendo

To paraphrase Mark Twain, the death of Nintendo Ltd/ADR (OTCMKTS:NTDOY) has been greatly exaggerated. During the past year, the company has gotten back into the hyper-growth mode, driven by the huge success of its Switch hand-held console.

But the content for the platform is still fairly light. In other words, Nintendo is likely to highlight various titles, such as Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu, Eevee and Pokémon Quest. We may also get a peak at the mysterious pokéball controller.

But most of the focus is probably going to be on the new Super Smash Bros. game. Keep in mind that Nintendo will have a tournament that will start streaming on June 12.

E3 2018: Activision Blizzard

Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) will certainly have a major presence at E3 2018. But it still may be overshadowed by other mega rivals. For the most part, ATVI has generally taken more of a low-key approach to the conference.

However, for gamers, there should be a deeper look at some of the franchises. For example, we may get to check out a battle-royals mode for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. This is in response to the tremendous success of Epic Games’ Fortnite.

And finally, there should be more details on Spyro and the expansions for Destiny 2.

Tom Taulli is the author of High-Profit IPO StrategiesAll About Commodities and All About Short SellingFollow him on Twitter at @ttaulli. As of this writing, he did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books. They include Artificial Intelligence Basics and the Robotic Process Automation Handbook. His upcoming book is called Generative AI: How ChatGPT and other AI Tools Will Revolutionize Business.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2018/06/what-to-expect-from-e3-the-gaming-worlds-annual-woodstock/.

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