E3 2019: Every story and announcement in one place
All of the news from EA, Xbox, Ubisoft, Bethesda, Nintendo and more, updated every day
The Electronics Entertainment Expo 2019 is in full swing, and as you travel the show floor, it can be difficult to keep up-to-date on all the latest stories and reveals.
That's where we come in. This article will be continually updated throughout E3 to feature every piece of news -- whether we have produced a full story or not -- so that you can keep abreast of all the things, big or small, taking place around LA this week.
Tuesday, June 11th
Nintendo surprises with Breath of the Wild 2, Banjo-Kazooie and more
This year's Nintendo Direct was packed with reveals, from Switch versions of The Witcher III and Alien Isolation to the return of Banjo-Kazooie (albeit as Smash Bros DLC). Even known titles offered surprises, such as Link's Awakening's dungeon maker, and Nintendo capped it off with a first look at the sequel to Breath of the Wild. You can check out all the news here.
Xbox wants to buy a Japanese studio
We published the rest of our interview with Xbox boss Phil Spencer, in which he discusses the impact of streaming, why he's not afraid of Google Stadia and how far afield Microsoft is looking for potential acquisitions.
No more backwards compatible games for Xbox One
Microsoft has released the last original Xbox and Xbox 360 games for its current console, announcing instead that it's concentrating on bringing the functionality to Project Scarlett in the hopes of bringing four generations of games to its next system.
Ubisoft's message of hope for post-Brexit London
While Ubisoft is determined to avoid making any concrete political comments with its games, Watch Dogs Legion's creative director Clint Hocking discussed the messages he's trying to send through the game.
Japanese adventures from Bandai Namco
Bandai Namco gave September 27 release date for Code Vein, coming to PS4, PC and Xbox One. The publisher also announced a remastered version of Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch will be released for PC and PS4 on September 20, alongside a Switch port of the original.
A dead cert for the sprint
Sega announced a Sonic at the Olympic Games: Tokyo 2020 for mobile devices, arriving next spring. The publisher is still collaborating with Nintendo on a Mario & Sonic version for Switch.
Thatgamecompany's Sky to debut on iOS
Sky: Children of the Light by thatgamecompany will be released for Apple devices first in July, with Android, Mac, PC, console and tvOS to follow.
Kalypso goes Commando, HD-style
Kalypso Media announced it will be remastering three of Pyro Studios' titles: Commandos, Commandos 2 and Praetorians. The Commandos remasters will be developed Yippee Entertainment, while Praetorians will be handled by Torus Games. The latter two titles will be released for PC, PS4 and Xbox One in Q4 2019, while Commandos HD will come to Switch, Mac, Linux, iPad and Android.
Monday, June 10th
Double Fine confirms no layoffs to publishing team after Xbox acquisition
On Sunday, Microsoft announced it had acquired indie developer and publisher Double Fine and purchased Psychonauts 2 from Starbreeze. Today, Microsoft VP of business development Greg Rice said that as part of the acquisition, Double Fine would honor its existing publishing commitments and that while future publishing deals would remain to be seen, no one would lose their jobs.
Phil Spencer on Project Scarlett: "We want to be compatible across all generations"
Microsoft has been quiet about any further Stadia details than what was in its E3 presentation on Sunday, but Phil Spencer mentioned on Inside Xbox today that with its next-generation console, Xbox was committed to some form of backward compatibility. At the very least, Xbox Live seems like it might carry over.
Xbox's Phil Spencer: Our next console will have a disc drive
Phil Spencer also confirmed specifically to GamesIndustry.biz that Project Scarlett would have a disc drive, emphasizing the importance of physical releases alongside digital. "I want to give people choice," he said.
Publishers can put their own separate subscriptions on Google Stadia
Googla Stadia lead Phil Harrison said in an interview with Geoff Keighley during an E3 live show that the streaming platform is open to publishers wanting to tie their own, separate subscription services to Google Stadia. Shortly after this was reported, we'd get an announcement as to what that might look like...
Ubisoft enters subscription battleground with Uplay Plus
Uplay Plus is Ubisoft's new subscription service that costs $14.99/month and gives users access to the "ultimate editions" of over 100 titles. It's coming to PC in September, and to Google Stadia in 2020.
Ubisoft fills E3 hour with Tom Clancy games and Watch Dogs Legion gameplay
The rest of Ubisoft's press conference included musical numbers, grandmas beating up bad guys, and a dog onstage. We saw extended gameplay of the newly announced Watch Dogs Legion, a new IP called Gods & Monsters, and lots and lots of Tom Clancy games.
Shenmue III is an Epic Games store exclusive on PC
The PC Gaming Show didn't have much in the way of major news, but it did include a long list of games that are coming (either exclusively or otherwise) to the Epic Games store. Among them? Shenmue III, which had been mentioned to Kickstarter backers as a Steam release in the past, but for which Ys Net is not offering any refunds.
FFVII and Avengers bookend Square Enix's hour of announcements, commercials
Closing out E3 Monday was Square Enix with a press conference entirely focused on games. It especially spotlighted the Final Fantasy VII remake, as well as a new Marvel Avengers game from Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal.
Double helping from Coffee Stain
The Goat Simulator studio announced turn-based strategy game Songs of Conquest, developed by Lavapoint, and revealed it will be publishing Vaulted Sky Games' Midnight Ghost Hunt, a hide-and-seek style title where you need to clear a house of ghosts before (you guessed it) midnight.
The zoo opens this November
Frontier Developments' next management title, the self-explanatory Planet Zoo, arrives for PC on November 5.
The undead Nazis are back
Rebellion announced Zombie Army 4: Dead War, a four-player co-op shooter for PC, PS4, Xbox One, coming in 2020. It also revealed Evil Genius 2: World Domination will be released on PC in 2020.
Whip it good
Cloudhead Games announced Pistol Whip, an action rhythm shooter inspired by both Beat Saber and Superhot. It's in development for PC VR, PSVR, and Oculus Quest.
Oculus Quest library expands with zero-G sports and zombie shootouts
With Oculus Quest now available, popular VR titles Echo Arena and Arizona Sunshine will be ported to the standalone headset.
Seeking a friend for the end of the world
Arizona Sunshine developer Vertigo Games announced After the Fall, a new post-apocalyptic co-op shooter for Valve Index and Oculus Rift S.
More Budget Cuts
Fast Travel Games and Neat Corporation announced Budget Cuts 2: Mission Insolvency. The VR action game will be released for Valve Index, Oculus Rift S and other Steam headsets later this year.
Sunday, June 9th
Microsoft will launch new Xbox console next year
The biggest news coming out of Microsoft's E3 2019 press conference was the reveal of details about Project Scarlett, Microsoft's next-generation console. It's planned for launch Holiday of 2020, with Halo Infinite as a launch title. Project Scarlett will be "100% focused on games," will include an SSD, and will be capable of 120fps and 8K resolution. It's purportedly four times faster than the Xbox One X.
Microsoft buys Double Fine Productions
At Microsoft's press conference, Double Fine CEO Tim Schafer took the stage alongside the announcement that the studio and publishing label had been acquired. As part of that deal, Microsoft paid $13.2 million for the Psychonauts 2 IP from Starbreeze, and the game saw a new trailer on the E3 stage.
Microsoft forms dedicated Age of Empires studio
In addition to the Double Fine acquisition, Microsoft has created a new Age of Empires studio headed by Shannon Loftis. Age of Empires 4 is currently in development by Relic Studios, which is owned by Sega, and is being published by Xbox Game Studios.
Xbox Game Pass PC launches today
Announced last week, Xbox Game Pass on PC is out now in open beta, costing $5/month (though the price will rise to $10/month when it reaches full launch). The PC version of the service has also been added for no additional charge to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, a $15/month subscription that includes both Game Pass for console and Xbox Live Gold.
Xbox adding Remote Play-style console streaming
Xbox's Project xCloud is finally getting a hands-on debut in LA this week at E3, alongside more details about the cloud streaming tech. XCloud will turn individual Xboxes into "your own personal and free xCloud server," allowing users to stream either from their own hardware or from dedicated Microsoft consoles anywhere, anytime.
Microsoft's 2019 press conference, recapped
In addition to Project Scarlett, Game Pass, and xCloud, Microsoft announced games at a steady clip. A full list of these can be found in our recap of the full conference.
Bethesda unveils Orion game streaming tech
Though most of its conference was devoted to game and expansion reveals, Bethesda did show off Orion, a collection of software techniques that Bethesda is combining into a unified software development kit usable in any game engine. The gist of the tech is that it improves streaming performance, reduces latency, and generally makes the experience better on the user end. It's a developer tool, and Bethesda says it's meant to work with streaming services like Google Stadia or others.
Bethesda's E3 revealed new IP from Tango Gameworks, Arkane Lyon
Largely game-focused, Bethesda's E3 press conference included updates or expansions for almost all of its major recent releases, release dates for previously-announced games such as Doom Eternal, and three new titles: a revival of Commander Keen as a mobile game, and new Ip from Tango Gameworks and Arkane Lyon.
Saturday, June 8th
EA sign major new indie publishing deals
EA's Originals division has signed three new games: Lost in Random by Zoink, RustHeart from Glowmade, and a 'new co-operative experience' from Hazelight. EA has also revealed that 11bit will be bringing Frostpunk and Moonlighter to its subscription service: Origin Access
FIFA 20 launches on September 27th
The new FIFA game also features a new Volta Football mode, which lets gamers play 3v3 Rush (no goalkeepers), 4v4, 4v4 Rush, 5v5 and Professional Futsal. It's similar to the FIFA Street series.
EA details new content for The Sims 4, Battlefield V and Apex Legends
Battlefield 5: Chapter 5 will take place in World War 2's Pacific theater. The free update will be available before the end of 2020. The Sims 4: Island Living is coming to PC on June 21, and Xbox One and PS4 on July 16, and will add new activities, clothing and careers. Meanwhile, Apex Legends' second season begins July 2nd and includes a Ranked Mode, a new weapon from the Titanfall series, and a new Legend.
Pre-E3
Team17 and Playtonic reveal Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair
To be showcased during E3, the sequel to Yooka-Laylee combines 2.5D platforming with a Zelda-style overworld. It's due this year.
The GamesIndustry.biz E3 Magazine is available to read right now
You can check it out right here.
Destroy All Humans is being remade
THQ Nordic is remaking cult-classic Destroy All Humans for PS4, Xbox One and PC. It's due in 2020.
Google Stadia's paid service launches in November
The paid version of Google Stadia, Stadia Pro, offers 4K, 60fps, HDR streaming and will cost $9.99 (£8.99, $11.99 CAD, or €9.99) per month. Though subscribers will still have to purchase games at full price to play and own them, Pro members will receive discounts on games not available for users of the free service, as well as occasional free games beginning with Destiny 2 and its new Shadowkeep expansion. Stadia Base will launch after Stada Pro sometime in 2020 and will be the free version of the service, with the caveat that games played on Base will get up to 1080p and 60fps, but not 4K HDR. Free games are also not included.
Pokémon Sword and Shield launches November 15th
The Pokémon Company detailed all about its major upcoming game, including double pack and new creatures.
Death Stranding is out in November
Sony may be giving E3 a miss, but it dropped a surprise before the show by revealing a new trailer for Kojima Productions' Death Stranding. It arrives November 8th.
A second Surge
Focus Home Interactive and Deck13 gave a September 24 date for action sci-fi RPG The Surge 2, heading to PS4, PC and Xbox One.