STACK July 2017 Issue 153

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Microsoft's E3 2017 press briefing
was the first E3 conference I had
the pleasure of attending. There's
just something about being in the room when
not only is a new console revealed, but also
the 2018 Porsche 911 GT2 RS, that you just
can't put into words.
The new console is a monster – 'the most
powerful ever', as we weren't allowed to
forget – and you're going to want to invest in
some new tech if you want to make the most
of it; a 4K UHD TV is essential and a kick-
ass sound system should also be a
prerequisite. The Xbox One X launch
line-up includes Shadow of War,
Forza Motorsport 7 and Crackdown
3, with Microsoft also upscaling and improving
a bunch of most-loved franchises to look the
best on its new hardware.
To Microsoft's credit, having Phil Spencer
do most of the talking this year, and
letting the trailers and gameplay speak for
themselves, really worked; it was just down
to the nitty gritty of the games. 42 of them,
to be exact, with around half being Microsoft
exclusives. It was a pretty impressive
showing, but no new Halo left me wanting a
bit more.
But there were plenty of quality titles on
hand. Teased at EA’s conference, Anthem
from BioWare looks a lot like Mass Effect
meets Avatar, and is a new co-op IP set in the
far reaches of space. The gameplay on show
looked fun, but we’re just hoping we don’t
have to rely on random players to complete
missions.
We also (finally) saw more on Cuphead
– that’s now releasing in September – and
more Sea of Thieves (which we played
050 JULY 2017
visit GAMES FEATURE
MICROSOFT
Forza Motorsport 7
The X Factor
Words Alesha Kolbe