Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, a video game by John Carpenter… Summer Game Fest announcements

Born in 2020 on the absence of the E3 show due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Sumer Game Fest has now become essential in the announcements of the upcoming line-ups of video game publishers. This live show does not replace the other conferences which have maintained their annual meeting, but it has the merit of unveiling highly anticipated titles and a few surprises. Selected pieces.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Might as well strike hard at the start with THE end revelation of this Summer Game Fest presentation, which unveiled the very first images of the very (very) awaited Final Fantasy VII Rebirth; second part of the remake, the first part of which was released in 2020.

The original game, released in 1997, was the first in the saga to offer 3D. It was with this episode that a whole generation of players discovered the Final Fantasy saga, then totally unknown (by the general public) in Europe. An iconic opus that had sold more than 11 million copies.

With manga, side games (Before Crisis, Director of Cerberus or CrisisCore) and especially the Last Order (OAV) films and the amazing Advent Children, this game has created a multi-media universe for a complex story with many messages, including the most important and obvious: that of protecting the planet. of human exploitation.

Its remake released 23 years later is absolutely sumptuous. We told you here all the good that we thought of it.

In FF VII Rebirth, a Sony exclusive, players reunite with iconic heroes Cloud, Barret, Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII after their escape from the dystopian megalopolis of Midgar. They then embark on the trail of Sephiroth, the terrifying antagonist thirsty for revenge whom everyone believed dead.

In addition to having offered us wonderful images, the fans were spoiled since we now know its (almost) release date: early 2024!

Mortal Kombat 1

On May 18, the progenitors of the Mortal Kombat saga unveiled a new opus called Mortal Kombat 1. Still developed by NetherRealm Studios under the leadership of the saga’s indestructible father, Ed Boon, the upcoming game will introduce a new Mortal Kombat universe created by the god of fire Liu Kang, in which fans will find reimagined versions of iconic characters. . A reboot, then.

But if the announcement of the title, also scheduled for September 19, 2023, was made with a sumptuous cinematic, the studio split real gameplay images last night. Between fatal blows devastating and Fatalities more vicious and bleeding than ever, the game promises to be rather refreshing.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

On May 23, Sony Playstation devoted no less than 15 minutes of its Showcase to its highly anticipated Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, still developed by the talented in-house studio Insomniac. It was in this case a rather hair-raising chase sequence in its staging.

We are therefore entitled to a Spider-Man version symbiote, supported by a Spidey version Miles Morales, facing here a villain well known to Marvel fans: Kraven. The game will be exclusively solo, so no co-op game planned. But there was a bone in this presentation: no specific release date other than a vague “fall 2024”. It was a bit of a misunderstanding. And it was above all an opportunity for Sony to keep a little biscuit in its bag for this Summer Game Fest.

If no new image was shown, apart from an Artwork featuring Kraven, it was mainly to reveal on stage – finally! – the release date: October 20, 2023!

So we share with you the images of the game presented last May…

Alan Wake II

Great game released in 2010 created by the Finnish studio Remedy (as a reminder: the father of Max Payne !), a real tribute to Stephen King and his novel The Part of Darknessbut also to David Lynch, Alan Wake finally sees a sequel to the (mis)adventures of the cursed writer, supposed to be released this year. And we even now have a date: October 17th.

There too, very few new images compared to the presentation made at the Showcase of Sony Playstation, revealing that we will control at certain times an FBI agent tracking down Alan Wake after the events of the first part.

John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando

John Carpenter loves video games, spends a lot of time on them, and regularly makes it known, with enthusiastic Tweets on his page. It must also be said that his filmography has largely fueled the imagination of Game Designers, such as Hideo Kojima who borrowed his Snake Plissken from New York 1997 for his saga Metal Gear Solid, via The Thing (adapted in video games by the way). Or even the horror FPS FEAR 3 released in 2011, which Big John was associated with on the creation of cutscenes. A title that had not quite shone in the firmament.

No big deal, Big John has seen something else. He is therefore behind a new game published by Focus Entertainment, called John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando; to better underline the paternity of the project.

Developed by Saber studio, behind the game World War Z, this FPS will place players in the shoes of a commando member armed to the teeth and destroying hundreds of mutants / zombies. We would swear to see sequences from George A. Romero or Zack Snyder and his Army of the Dead.

For originality, please iron again… But it can be nice.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II

Ordinarily, we would not necessarily have mentioned such a license (oh how cult, by the way!) on the site. Except to rethink that, in December 2022, we learned that Amazon Studios had gotten its hands on the adaptation rights of Warhammer 40,000Game Workshop’s board game license.

A project that will be developed together in the form of a TV series and a film, with conductor Henry Cavill, a big fan in front of the eternal license, who will be both actor and producer.

Sequel to a surprisingly decent game released in 2021, this Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II unveiled images of a campaign playable in co-op up to three. And it’s really envy in fact, in addition to being quite beautiful. A little gourmet appetizer while waiting for Cavill’s still distant projects on the small and big screen.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II is supposed to come out this year, unless there is a possible postponement.

Sandland

Sandland is a manga created in 2000 by Akira Toriyama. His history ? In a desert world where humans, like demons, suffer from an extreme shortage of drinking water, Beelzebub the Prince of Demons and Lao, the sheriff of a small town, team up to go in search of a source of hidden water.

The project Sandland was unveiled in December 2022 and brings together several partners to make this license a transmedia experience. Launched by the announcement of an animated film co-produced by Sunrise Studio, a studio belonging to Bandai Namco Filmworks, the project is completed today with the official announcement of a video game, the release date of which has not yet been announced. not yet communicated.

The first images of this action game mixed with RPG reveal a graphic style that is furiously reminiscent of that of Borderlands, whose universe was itself steeped in references; the most obvious being that of Mad Max 2.

Under The Waves

Singular studio that Quantic Dream, creator of his own genre, the interactive drama. At its launch, it obviously does not yet know that it will give birth to this innovative genre, supported by cutting-edge technology, which will mark the history of video games. No continuation also in its titles developed with the long course; always original creations. A luxury, too, in a video game industry regularly tormented by the idea of ​​rinsing successful franchises and an absence of risk-taking in productions labeled “AAA”.

From the first significant experience The Nomad Soulwhich will see a great new collaboration with David Bowie, the already highly anticipated Star Wars Eclipse, the first game by the way from Quantic Dream which will not be based on an original idea but on a pre-existing universe, passing through heavy rain, Beyond: Two Souls and of course Detroit: Become Human, the studio can be proud of a rather exceptional longevity of 26 years. A challenge, where many of his colleagues have more or less quickly put the key under the door.

Recently, the studio launched a new label, Spotlight by Quantic Dream, intended to publish video games created by independent studios. It is under this umbrella that the French studio Parallel settled down. Based in Paris, founded by Ronan Coiffec, Nicolas Bredin and Sébastien Renard, three veterans with more than 12 years of experience in the AAA video game industry, Parallel Studio has developed a first game with a rather hypnotic universe: Under The Waves.

Here is the trailer…

First shown at Gamescom 2022, this game will be released on August 29 on Xbox Series S/X and PlayStation 5. Under The Waves follows the journey of Stan, a professional diver operating in the depths of the North Sea. Isolated underwater, he begins to experience strange events that will make him doubt his sanity.

Narrative adventure game that depicts the crushing weight of mourning and exposes the impact of Humanity on nature, Under The Waves offer seductive images, whose graphic touch is sometimes reminiscent of that of the film La Vie Aquatique. Watch closely anyway.