Category: Games

Dying Light 2 was announced almost exactly a year ago at E3 2018. The first game was a blast, so the news that a sequel was on the way was received warmly by many.

A year on, we’re yet to hear too much more about the second in the series. However, with E3 2019 just around the corner, we’re bound for more Dying Light 2 news. With that in mind, let’s take a look at what we do know, and what we’d like to see this June.

What We Know So Far

Developer Techland revealed last year that Dying Light 2 is set 15 years after the events of Dying Light, in a “modern dark age.” Humanity has been devastated in the war against the Infected, and now surviving factions of human beings are vying for control of what may be the last city on earth. How you interact with those factions and whom you choose to align yourself with will have considerable long-term impacts on the physical world around you (like in the image below, which shows the same city district after making two different decisions). Of course, you’ll be doing all this while battling hordes of zombies, too.

Dying Light 2 will also be much larger than the original game; the city you inhabit is four times the size of all the levels in Dying Light. Like in that title, parkour plays a large role in getting around (and staying alive).

Beyond this, Techland says Dying Light 2 will contain some “surprises for people that like to play multiplayer.” The developer says this isn’t a battle royale mode, despite the mode du jour coming to the first game as part of its Bad Blood standalone expansion.

A release date has not been announced for Dying Light 2–all we know is that it’s coming to PS4, Xbox One, and PC in 2019.

What’s Confirmed For E3?

Techland has confirmed it’s bringing Dying Light 2 to E3 2019, though it hasn’t offered much in the way of clues. “We can’t wait to show you the latest look at our most ambitious project to date,” it said in a tweet. The game was announced on Microsoft’s stage last year, so it’s possible it could end up being shown off there again. Microsoft’s E3 2019 press conference starts on June 9 at 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET / 9 PM BST (6 AM AET on June 10).

What We Hope To See At E3

It’s been over four years since the first game launched for PS4, Xbox One, and PC, so we’re thirsty for more from Dying Light’s universe. Given we’ve seen little of the game since its reveal a year ago, more gameplay footage is a must. We’d also like more detail on the world-shifting mechanic Techland has previously spoken about. The differences look dramatic, but how much nuance does a system like that contain? And how much will it really affect your playing experience?

Further, we’d love to hear more about these multiplayer “surprises.” If it’s not battle royale, what is it? Is it standard deathmatch-type games? A shared open world? Only time will tell.

Of course, the biggest question on fans’–and our–lips is when will we get to play Dying Light 2? Techland has been hit with layoffs in recent months, though the company says development of Dying Light 2 is not affected. If that’s the case, the game should still be on course for its 2019 release–just tell us when, Techland!

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance is the upcoming prequel to the classic 1982 fantasy movie The Dark Crystal. The series has been in the works for a couple of years and finally hits Netflix on August 30. The first trailer has now been released.

Like the movie, which was co-directed by the late Muppets creator Jim Henson, the new show uses puppetry to create the world of the Dark Crystal. It looks visually stunning, and the trailer is packed with the weird creatures and striking set design that will be instantly recognisable to fans of the film. It looks like it’ll have the same mix of thrilling adventure and dark fantasy too–check the trailer out below, and the poster at the end of this story.

Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance will run for 10 episodes. It has an impressive voicecast, which includes Taron Egerton, Anya Taylor-Jo, Nathalie Emmanuel, Mark Hamill, Jason Isaacs, Keegan-Michael Key, Simon Pegg, Andy Samberg, Helena Bonham Carter, Natalie Dormer, Eddie Izzard, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mark Strong, and Alicia Vikander.

The official synopsis reads: “The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance tells a new epic story, set many years before the events of the movie, and realized using classic puppetry with cutting edge visual effects. The world of Thra is dying. The Crystal of Truth is at the heart of Thra, a source of untold power. But it is damaged, corrupted by the evil Skeksis, and a sickness spreads across the land. When three Gelfling uncover the horrific truth behind the power of the Skeksis, an adventure unfolds as the fires of rebellion are lit and an epic battle for the planet begins.”

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, director Louis Leterrier spoke about the challenges involved with using puppetry rather than the CGI you’d expect for a show like this in 2019. “I was not fighting against anyone, I was fighting against common sense and practicality,” he said. “It’s so so complicated to build a puppet, hire puppeteers, all that stuff. We chose the long, hardest road and we’re very thankful [we did]. It looks absolutely stunning.”

E3 2019 is fast approaching and in under two weeks time, we’ll be inundated with press conferences, new game announcements, gameplay videos, and everything else that makes the annual event so exciting. Historically, much of the excitement has been focused on the big three: Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. However, in recent years publishers have also wowed attendees and those watching it all unfold via the internet. Bethesda is one of those publishers, generating buzz with Fallout, Doom, Wolfenstein, and The Elder Scrolls related announcements. This year, the company is once again holding its own press conference, and we’re expecting it to be pretty exciting.

Bethesda is set to host its press conference on Sunday, June 9. For those who aren’t in Los Angeles, California and able to attend in-person, the press conference will be streamed online and, of course, here on GameSpot. We’ll also have the breaking news as it happens. If you plan on watching, take a look below for a breakdown of everything you need to know.

What Time Does Bethesda’s Press Conference Livestream Start

Bethesda’s E3 2019 press conference will take place on June 9, before the show officially opens. It is expected to begin the livestream at 5:30 PM PT / 8:30 PM ET for those in America. However, if you’re in the UK, you’ll have to stay up into the early hours of Monday, June 10, as it starts at 1:30 AM in the BST timezone. Those in Australia, meanwhile, will be able to catch the show at the more reasonable time of 10:30 AM AEST on June 10.

Where To Watch

Bethesda will be streaming its press conference on its Twitch and YouTube channels. You’ll also be able to catch the livestream on GameSpot’s various channels. We’ll have our expert analysis before and after the stream as part of our pre- and post-shows. Make sure to bookmark the links below, and you’ll be able to see all of our E3 2019 coverage using them.

What To Expect

It’ll come as no surprise to learn that Bethesda has been pretty quiet about what it plans to show at its E3 2019 press conference. Thus far, all it has confirmed is that Doom Eternal will have a presence, which makes perfect sense given that it is scheduled to be released this year. Bethesda got the Doom train rolling this year at GDC, specifically during the Google Stadia reveal, where it showed plenty of gameplay. It was a rather fast and furious showcase of all the new abilities the Doom Slayer has, from the Meat Hook used to grapple around environments to retractable arm-blades to slice up enemies. Hopefully, id Software will take to the stage to give us a more in-depth look at it all and explore how it will fit into the chaotic rhythm of gameplay. With any luck, we’ll get a release date too.

Beyond that, we know that Wolfenstein: Youngblood is in development and is another Bethesda title that should be released later this year. It takes place 19 years after Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus and has Jessica and Sophia Blazkowicz, the twin daughters of B.J. Blazkowicz, as the central protagonists. The duo head to Paris to try and find their missing father, and kill some Nazis along the way. In a series first, Youngblood will allow co-operative play, and we haven’t seen much of how that will work, so we’ve got our fingers crossed for hot co-op play deets.

The Elder Scrolls Online continues to be a game that Bethesda is supporting, so there’s sure to be some time dedicated to giving players of the game insight into what’s on the way. Bethesda has ensured that the game feels fresh through DLC updates, so we wouldn’t be surprised to see more of that, but fans will no doubt also want to know about tweaks and overhauls that may be planned, and E3 2019 is an ideal place to reveal those.

The same can be said for Elder Scrolls Blades, the mobile Elder Scrolls title that was recently released. Since the game is still in its infancy, Bethesda will want to draw as much attention as possible to the game and convince viewers to pick up the game and get involved. Given the number of eyes that will be on them during the press conference, expect a hard sell on Elder Scrolls Blades at some point.

The final safe bet is Rage 2, which is out now but set to receive DLC that we’ll probably get our first glimpse at during E3. Bethesda does like to surprise us, however, so maybe there’s more. We’re hoping that Arkane, the team behind Dishonored and Prey, has something to show. While it is working on Youngblood alongside MachineGames, we’d love to see the studio debut a new game of its own.

And now for the bad news: While Bethesda has announced The Elder Scrolls VI is in development along with a brand-new game called Starfield, Todd Howard has confirmed these will not be at E3 2019.

Make sure to check out GameSpot’s full coverage of E3 2019 for the latest breaking news. You can also see what other publishers and companies are doing in our full E3 2019 schedule.