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Indiana Jones looked awesome, I'm not a huge fan of the Indiana Jones IP and I'm a bit salty we have to wait for Wolfenstein 3 but I can't deny that looked great and I'll be getting it day one, MachineGames just look like they "get" what Indiana Jones is and are being really faithful to the IP with the gameplay, the setting, the characters, the story, the music, etc.
I thought it'd be 3rd person but I'm fine with 1st person, I was convinced by that presentation it was the right move and it is where MachineGames expertise is, it will also stop stupid comments of it being an Uncharted clone. I liked the emphasis on puzzles and the combat with the whip looks really fun, Lol. I also like how they focused on non-lethal takedowns with either the whip or fists, cause Indiana Jones running through with an machine gun and mowing everyone down while funny would probably feel a bit weird, Lol. Like when Lara Croft became a Navy Seal in the reboot, Lmao.
Looks great graphically, I'm surprised they're using Harrison Ford likeness (I thought it would be too expensive) and the voice actually sounds like a good Ford impression too. Looks like it will be an overall faithful Indiana Jones story and well told. An adventure in exotic and historic locations filled with combat and puzzles.
Ara isn't a genre I'm interested in but it does look like it knows what it's doing, it looks really polished with a ton of systems.
Mana being in the show was a bit odd, I'd guess it's a continued sign of Xbox and Square Enix's partnership, Xbox showcasing one of Square's major titles of 2024 on one of Xbox's major shows of 2024, alongside primarily 1st party, I think Xbox and Square are just getting chummy with each other and this was largely what this was about, furthering their relationship, but it looked good as well, Lol. It was just odd as a third party being in a 1st party show.
Avowed looks great, a visual improvement over the 2023 trailer and still has 8 months of polishing to go. I loved the biome diversity, each zone looks unique. I love the variety in the combat (we have wands, pistols, melee weapons, spells, bow & arrows, multiple loadouts) but I think it looked a little stiff in parts, it looks like a better Elder Scrolls in pure combat but a lot better in variety, I think further polishing could improve things looking more fluid/responsive but it may also be more fun in my actual hands, it looks fine but could be better, using wands looks fun though. Dialogue, facial animation looks good. Talk about the RPG mechanics is promising and that's going to be the key thing for this game and I have complete faith Obsidian will nail that. Quests and world and environments look and sound great.
Avowed's key art fucking slaps too.
Hellblade 2 looked absolutely stunning as always, I'm fine with it being a similar length to Hellblade I and just focusing on being Hellblade and not some God of War rip-off (Senua is not a superhero, Lol) double down on Hellblade and not trying to chase after something else, I love the sound of the combat feeling like every encounter is a real fight for survival and you barely making it out of it, sounding really raw and gritty which is what it should be Imo. Atmosphere and immersion look top tier, I think there's going to be a massive amount of attention to detail in this shorter experience.
Format perfect as always, nothing felt like it overstayed its welcome. Wish we had more Developer Directs in the year. If they're starting to include third parties then ditch the "Partner Preview" and do another Developer Direct in Summer or something with some 1st parties and some 3rd parties and bring the branding under one label.
Last edited by Ryuu96 - on 18 January 2024
