Top 10 Greatest E3 Moments

In 2012 the prospect of Next Gen was hot on everyone’s mind with the 7th Gen starting to come to a close, and Square Enix gave us all an incredible glimpse at to what the future holds with this impressive Tech Demo. With incredible attention to detail in the world, characters and visual effects, not only was this visually amazing, but it also lead to speculation on if this may have actually been a preview to an actual Final Fantasy game. Still given the insane hardware requirements needed to run these scenes in real time, It’ll probably end up being a 9th Gen Title before the average consumer can run this game.

It may have been an unlikely partnership but the world’s biggest video game company and the Adult Swim animation managed to create some unexpected gold. In order to avoid embarrassing on stage mishaps and to engage with their audience better, hilarious skits were prerecorded starring some of Nintendo’s biggest mascots. Bowser apologizes for repeatedly kidnapping Peach, Mario gets angry for not having his usual yearly release, and annoying fanboys shout at Reggie Fils-Aime from the crowd. (0:51 “Come on Reggie give us Mother 3”)It masterfully pokes fun at Nintendo’s own shortcomings and perfectly parodies the ravenous culture surrounding every E3 event.

Amazingly for a publisher that has created so many massive games, this was Bethesda’s first ever E3 conference. They slotted in alongside the big guns seamlessly with a simple yet effective presentation for a number of huge titles. While Doom and Dishonored 2 were exciting reveals in their own right, the first look at Fallout 4 is what fans were really after. Post apocalyptic Boston looked downright beautiful and the crowd barely had any breath left for the games surprisingly early release date. If that’s what they start with, we can’t wait to see what they have in store in the years to come.

There is nothing quite like a tasty crossover to get the hype juices flowing for excited fan boys. Born out of a friendship between Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima and Brawl’s director Masahiro Sakurai, Solid Snake would be the first third party character ever introduced into the Smash Bros. series. Nintendo used their comedy chops to announce Snake’s arrival, having him hide in one of Metal Gear’s trademark items, the cardboard box, while spying on a tense battle between Link, Mario and Kirby. Alongside the updated graphics and extra additions of Metaknight and Pit, Snake’s surprise reveal topped off another great Nintendo moment.

This fictional executive had become a hugely popular marketing figure before E3 2010 but sealed his cult status with a rousing performance during Sony’s conference. He has held a number of hilarious fake positions but as VP of Fanboy Relations, no one is more qualified to talk directly to hardcore gamers. He was only on the stage for five short minutes but his humor resonated with everyone watching. He was actually there to plug the Playstation Move but did it in such a way that you barely noticed what was going on, leaving you wishing more presentations were less business and more Butler.

When the lord and savior Gaben blesses you with his presence, you have to sit up and take notice. The crowd knew they were in for something special when Portal’s very own Glados initiated the ‘emergency surprise system’ to usher the director of Valve onto stage. It was made even more surprising by coming in Sony’s conference, the same company that designed the console Newell had previously called “A Total Disaster”. By saying that Portal 2 would bebest played on the PS3, he had pulled a complete 180 that was perhaps due to threats from VP of Sharpening Things, Kevin Butler.

Even though the device had been announced a few months prior to E3, there was still plenty of anticipation to see it’s plethora of features first hand. The social applications were intriguing but it was always going to be the glasses free 3D capability that would get consumers clamoring. It could have been overshadowed by the announcements of a GoldenEye remake and Skyward Sword for the Wii but the graphical power of the handheld when showing off Kid Icarus Uprising was exceptional enough to make it the standout of a packed Nintendo conference.

If Half-Life 3 is ever revealed then it will certainly eclipse the hype that it’s predecessor generated but at the time this was an incredible demonstration of how the source engine could blow any rival out the water. As well as showing off the groundbreaking environmental physics and realistic graphics, Valve’s presentation gave ample tidbits of story and showed the scale of the Combine’s invasion following the events of the first game. It was Newell himself who showed the unprecedented ability to manipulate the world around you as something that was not just a novel sideshow but a revolutionary game mechanic.

Just a year or so after the release of the divisive Wind Waker, Zelda fans were given an unexpected treat that was greeted with rapturous appreciation. There had been demands for Nintendo to create a Zelda game that combined mature themes with realistic graphics and a smiling Shigeru Miyamoto wielding a Master shield and sword was more than happy to deliver just that for millions of delighted fans. The standing ovation the short trailer received showed this was not just another soulless E3 presentation but a reveal that was genuinely important in people’s lives.
Before we reveal our top pick, let’s take a look at some honorable mentions.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Announcement
E3 2015

Killzone 2 Tricks Everyone
E3 2005

This absolute battering dealt out by the PS4 set the tone for the console wars while also bringing back memories of the PS1’s beating of the Sega Saturn in 1995. Sony didn’t really have to do much work either: Microsoft did everything for them by announcing a slew of features hated by gamers like restrictions on used games, needing to always be online and costing $100 more than Sony’s console. After quietly showing that the PS4 would deliver everything the Xbox wouldn’t, Sony could focus on what really matters to gamers: games that look good and are even better to play. To confirm Microsoft’s humiliation, former Sony president Jack Tretton literally dropped, or threw, the mic.

Do you agree with our list? Which E3 presentation still sends shivers of excitement down your spine or makes you giggle uncontrollably? For more gaming top 10s be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.