Official E3 Site Possibly Gives Us A Look At What Sony And Microsoft May Be Planning On Showing At E3

E3 is almost here, and you know what that means- it means loads of new game announcements by all major players in the industry, and a fresh wave of software (and hopefully hardware) to look forward to. E3 has traditionally been the most exciting time of the year – remember last year’s major E3 announcements, which included The Last Guardian and Final Fantasy 7 Remake? – and this year promises to be no different.

The question of course is, exactly what is it that we can look forward to seeing at E3 this year- especially from the major console holders? Nintendo, of course, is sitting out, opting to show The Legend of Zelda, and The Legend of Zelda only. But what about Microsoft and Sony? Rumors of upgraded consoles aside, what exactly are they planning on showing at E3?

Their official lineup as listed on the official E3 website may give us some clues to that. The E3 website usually masks the games it lists, listing them only by genre and platform, probably in an attempt to ensure that no game gets prematurely leaked- but a look at what Sony and Microsoft are apparently planning still reveals some rather interesting details.

First, their submitted lineups:

MICROSOFT:

Accessories > Xbox
Accessories > Xbox 360
Accessories > Xbox Kinect
Accessories > Xbox Live
Accessories > Xbox One
Action > Xbox
Action > Xbox 360
Action > Xbox Kinect
Action > Xbox Live
Action > Xbox One
Adventure > Xbox
Adventure > Xbox 360
Adventure > Xbox Kinect
Adventure > Xbox Live
Adventure > Xbox One
Arcade > Xbox
Arcade > Xbox 360
Arcade > Xbox Kinect
Arcade > Xbox Live
Arcade > Xbox One
Augmented Reality > Sony Playstation 4
Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox
Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox 360
Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox Kinect
Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox Live
Fighting / Wrestling > Xbox One
Fitness > Xbox
Fitness > Xbox 360
Fitness > Xbox Kinect
Fitness > Xbox Live
Fitness > Xbox One
Hardware > Xbox
Hardware > Xbox 360
Hardware > Xbox Kinect
Hardware > Xbox Live
Hardware > Xbox One
Music / Dance > Xbox
Music / Dance > Xbox 360
Music / Dance > Xbox Kinect
Music / Dance > Xbox Live
Music / Dance > Xbox One
Peripherals > Xbox
Peripherals > Xbox 360
Peripherals > Xbox Kinect
Peripherals > Xbox Live
Peripherals > Xbox One
Racing > Xbox
Racing > Xbox 360
Racing > Xbox Kinect
Racing > Xbox Live
Racing > Xbox One
Retail > Xbox
Retail > Xbox 360
Retail > Xbox Kinect
Retail > Xbox Live
Retail > Xbox One
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 3
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 4
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation Vita
Role-Playing > Sony PSP
Simulation > Xbox
Simulation > Xbox 360
Simulation > Xbox Kinect
Simulation > Xbox Live
Simulation > Xbox One
Sports > Xbox
Sports > Xbox 360
Sports > Xbox Live
Sports > Xbox One

SONY

Accessories > Sony Playstation
Accessories > Sony Playstation 3
Accessories > Sony Playstation 4
Accessories > Sony Playstation Vita
Accessories > Sony PSP
Action > Sony Playstation
Action > Sony Playstation 3
Action > Sony Playstation 4
Action > Sony Playstation Vita
Action > Sony PSP
Adventure > Sony Playstation
Adventure > Sony Playstation 3
Adventure > Sony Playstation 4
Adventure > Sony Playstation Vita
Adventure > Sony PSP
Arcade > Sony Playstation
Arcade > Sony Playstation 3
Arcade > Sony Playstation 4
Arcade > Sony Playstation Vita
Arcade > Sony PSP
Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation
Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation 3
Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation 4
Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony Playstation Vita
Children’s / Family Entertainment > Sony PSP
Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation
Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation 3
Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation 4
Fighting / Wrestling > Sony Playstation Vita
Fighting / Wrestling > Sony PSP
Hardware > Sony Playstation
Hardware > Sony Playstation 3
Hardware > Sony Playstation 4
Hardware > Sony Playstation Vita
Hardware > Sony PSP
Music / Dance > Sony Playstation
Music / Dance > Sony Playstation 3
Music / Dance > Sony Playstation 4
Music / Dance > Sony Playstation Vita
Music / Dance > Sony PSP
Racing > Sony Playstation
Racing > Sony Playstation 3
Racing > Sony Playstation 4
Racing > Sony Playstation Vita
Racing > Sony PSP
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 3
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation 4
Role-Playing > Sony Playstation Vita
Role-Playing > Sony PSP
Simulation > Sony Playstation
Simulation > Sony Playstation 3
Simulation > Sony Playstation 4
Simulation > Sony Playstation Vita
Simulation > Sony PSP
Sports > Sony Playstation
Sports > Sony Playstation 3
Sports > Sony Playstation 4
Sports > Sony Playstation Vita
Sports > Sony PSP
Strategy > Sony Playstation
Strategy > Sony Playstation 3
Strategy > Sony Playstation 4
Strategy > Sony Playstation Vita
Strategy > Sony PSP

Okay, so let’s look at this properly. First, let’s deal with the accessories- for Sony, it is evident that this may be the PlayStation VR, as well as maybe Move controllers. Microsoft are, alternately, probably going to show off the HoloLens, and some more Oculus Rift functionality. It has also been rumored that they will have yet another new controller to unveil at E3, like the Xbox Elite Controller last year.

The interesting question here is, do console revisions count as ‘accessories’? Because if so, then the ‘accessories’ listed above may just be referring to the rumored PS4K and Xbox One Elite/Xbox One Slim.

The actual games list is far harder to parse- it is to be remembered that Microsoft and Sony not only show off their own titles, but also showcase games from their third party partners, AAA and indie, so those games listed above could be just about anything- they could be referring to in house titles, or they could be referring to third party games and indie partnerships. Still, it is at the very least evident that both companies plan to showcase a full, varied range of titles- something that is doubtless appreciated by most people.

E3 2016 begins next month.