E3's main theme: Brutality?

[CaptOfSerenity]

That seems to be the theme for this year?s Electronic Entertainment Expo, as ?Tomb Raider,? ?The Last of Us,? ?Far Cry 3,? and ?Assasin?s Creed III? set the tone with blisteringly violent gameplay trailers. Lara Croft gets pulverized by her environment and shoots arrows through men?s throats in a surprisingly graphic demo that makes me wonder if Crystal Dynamics actually wants an ?M? rating. ?Assassin?s Creed III?, itself part of a franchise based around stabbing people in the throat, showed off newer ways to kill. Of course ?God of War: Ascension? looked like a God of War game; Kratos ripped a monster?s skull in half. The aforementioned ?The Last of Us?, however, arguably stole the show.

Naughty Dog is finally breaking into ?adults-only? territory with ?The Last of Us.? It?s violent, gory, vulgar, and unflinchingly realistic. This game will probably win many ?game of show? awards, and stand out as a reminder of the brutal violence this year?s games showed. It?s not that games haven?t been this violent before, it?s that there hasn?t been this concentration of realistic violence combined with mature storytelling attempts. Mental illness, survival, rage, and fear were the storytelling themes shown to be in service of brutal gameplay on the first day of E3 2012. Some ?Mature? games that are actually mature.

Or at least, I hope they?ll be.

Post yo thoughts, dawg.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Vainly hoped for a Republic Commando 2, got 1313 instead. Might be good, might be a three hour long QTE.

 

[Khanht Cope]

Don't forget the Hitman Trailer.

 

[Nouw]

I'm confused as to why it's such a big deal this year. Doesn't E3 always have violent games?

 

[ultrachicken]

The violence in Tomb Raider perplexed me and I was really disappointed by it. I distinctly remember Lara feeling remorseful over killing animals in an earlier trailer. I do suppose these guys are dirtbags, but still, it's a little worrying to see her plow through dozens of mooks with no regard.

She probably doesn't show any regard because she's high on adrenaline. I fully expect them to delve further into how killing affects her psyche when she's not fighting for her life. Or, at least, I hope so.