The EB Games Expo has come and gone for another year, and we got to check out more of the event across the weekend after what we initially thought of it on Friday.
We originally mentioned that the expo was well spaced out, but this later questioned us as to whether the event was attracting large numbers. We were proven wrong on Saturday and Sunday as the expo was full of people left, right and centre. Long ticket lines were even forming outside for those who wanted to drop by for the day.
While this was a huge positive for the expo in terms of its strength and future, it was also disappointing for General Admission ticket holders who wanted to check out the hottest titles for this year, only to be waiting in queues for 2+ hours. That said however, not all games were like this. Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 was a rather short wait (15 mins) across the three days, Just Cause 3 was readily accessible along with Dark Souls III.
In addition to the titles we saw on Friday, we got to check out The Fourth Player / The GAP podcast at the Bethesda Auditorium which was hosted by Paul Houlihan, Nathan Cocks, Luke Lawrie and Joab Gilroy. It was certainly entertaining and insightful to hear their views on the current gaming scene and in general.
The Xbox booth had an impressive setup for Forza Motorsport 6, with the game being played across three displays driven by three Xbox One consoles and a Logitech G29 steering wheel. I’m really curious as to how it all links together, I’d love to recreate such a setup at home! Xbox had a Lap Times board set up as well to see who could get the fastest lap around the Rio de Janiero circuit. We didn’t get the fastest time, but we got on the board so we left rather happy.
Kochie tried again and again to defeat the end boss on the demonstration level of Dark Souls III, but it was no luck. We bumped into Jeremy ‘Junglist’ Ray of Game Informer who gave it a much better attempt by getting the boss down to a quarter health, the most impressive we’ve seen from those who’ve played it. I’m looking forward to watching videos on YouTube of those who successfully defeat this particular boss when the game comes out.
So if you’re wondering whether to go to EB Expo in another year’s time, our recommendation is to get a hold of a General Admission ticket for a daytime session and an Express Pass for a twilight session (which allows you to jump the queues to check out games). This gives you the opportunity to scout out the expo and get an idea of where things are, then you can give all the games a good bash later on. Above all, you’ll end up enjoying a full day at the event.
Be sure to check out our photos from the event on our Facebook page!