E3 Originals: The Crew  l  The Order: 1886  l  Project Spark  l  Sunset Overdrive  l  Titanfall

Perhaps taking a leaf out of the LittleBigPlanet playbook, the recently announced Project Spark aims to encourage creativity everywhere. This is a fantasy themed adventure with a nice twist. Players can create everything from enemies to maps with the in game controls or even using SmartGlass.

Mountains can be raised, pathways created, jumping blocks placed and forests planted all with the touch screen convenience of SmartGlass and the improved voice and video sensors in Kinect 2.0. The game developers noted on stage that there are an infinite number of ways to manipulate and create in the Project Spark world.

As soon as a level is created, the instigator or their friends can jump into the brand new world and start playing. The newcomers are also able to dynamically change the world by creating AI companions and new enemies on the fly. It is worth noting that while the Xbox One is obviously the lead platform for this title, a Windows 8 version is also being developed which will hopefully mean the PC modding community get behind it and some wonderful levels are created.

Without a release date, it is unclear as to when players will be able to get their hands on the game but it certainly looks like one to keep an eye on if you enjoy building your own worlds to play in. If done right this could be the game to knock Minecraft off its creative block shaped throne.

Available on 360 and PS3 l Published by EA l Developed by Insomniac Games l Classified MA15+ l Supports 1-4 players

REVIEW IN BRIEF > This is a game that makes you want to wait for the sequel. It has the ideas, it has the mechanics, but the whole thing feels underdone. From its espionage characters that do nothing more than shoot things to its over reliance on four player weapon combos, Fuse never hits the highs promised in the pre-release. If you do sink some time into it, you’ll probably grow to like the Echelon mode or the upgraded Fuse powers or the epic mech boss battles. Just make sure you bring your friends along for the ride. Read the rest of this entry »

E3 Originals: The Crew  l  The Order: 1886  l  Project Spark  l  Sunset Overdrive  l  Titanfall

Coming across as a combination of an MMO and The Fast and the Furious, Ubisoft’s The Crew was certainly a highlight during the day’s E3 Conferences. The Crew is a racer that is persistently online and offers a massive scope in how players can interact with other racers through this connected world. According to reports, dozens of major US cities will be represented in the final game.

The Crew also boasts a very impressive graphics engine with some stunning locations and highly detailed cars to drive. It is clear that this is a true next gen game and not simply an upscaled PS3/360 port. All of this eye candy appears to runs at a silky smooth frame rate no matter how much action is crammed on the screen at any one time.

There is a clear MMO influence on this game with players encouraged to meet up, form a Crew (Ahh so that is where the name came from) and undertake a variety of challenges including things such as simple races and armoured truck robberies. So for those of you who like to go fast but are sick of the usual racing games that tend to populate system launches, The Crew may be just the game for you. Look for it on XBO, PS4 and PC early next year.

E3 Originals: The Crew  l  The Order: 1886  l  Project Spark  l  Sunset Overdrive  l  Titanfall

Ready at Dawn, a company perhaps best known for its work the PSP incarnations of the world’s angriest Spartan has just announced a new PS4 exclusive called The Order: 1886. Not much in the way of gameplay has been shown so far, but everyone was treated to a very cool looking CG trailer that showed off the 1800s London setting as well as some steampunk stylings and what appears to be an army of werewolves. The good news is that the trailer was done in-engine and director Ru Weerasuriya promises that “these visuals are what you can expect in the final game when you play it.”

In a blog post on the PlayStation website, Weerasuriya reveals that The Order has been in development since 2010 and is set in an alternative timeline (seems all the rage these days) where the industrial revolution occurred due to an ongoing battle with inhuman (aka werewolves) enemies. He has also promised that players will run into historical figures throughout their canine slaying quests, though none have been announced at this stage.

With stunning visuals, vicious enemies and the always popular steampunk setting, Sony and Ready at Dawn look like they are onto a winner. Let’s hope the developer’s transition from the handheld space into the more prestigious console based arena is a smooth one.