E3 2017 was fine. In fact it had some great high points, like Beyond Good and Evil 2, Shadow of the Colossus Remastered, Pokémon and Metroid Prime 4 confirmed for Nintendo Switch, and the Super Mario Odyssey blowout. However, there was a little something missing from the conferences this year.  Something that, in years past, had kept gamers glued to the live streams.

What was missing? Let’s break it down and find out. Here are five reasons why E3 2017 wasn’t at it’s best.

5. Xbox One X didn’t impress gamers at home.

Project Scorpio’s reveal as the Xbox One X was an important moment for this console generation. The clear second placed console finally had a chance to impress and get the attention of gamers, to pull them back from the impending Sony monopoly. The only issue was that it felt a bit lackluster. Unless you had a 4K monitor, and watched the 4K Stream, there was little difference from usual. Nothing truly stood out as a moment where Microsoft proved to gamers that they needed Xbox One X.

Yes, Anthem looked fantastic, Forza Motorsport 7 showed just how good Xbox One X games could look, but for me personally on my 1080p monitor on a YouTube stream, I never felt like I needed to part with my $499. This made every “Looks gorgeous on Xbox One X” comment to feel very reliant on my trust in the commentator.

Microsoft failed to sell the reveal as a great moment in gaming, and as soon as the conference was over, most gamers just moved on.

4. EA, Bethesda and Sony: More of the same

EA play called upon YouTuber’s to hype up Battlefront 2 and Need for Speed, which fans of those series didn’t need. All these “influencers” did was flub the presentation, making it seem as if putting amateurs on stage at the biggest gaming even of the year was a stupid idea.

EA went on to pull an Ubisoft when it comes to their sports games: Take a feature that worked from one game, such as The Journey in FIFA,  and spread it across all the sports titles they offer, very much akin to the open world games á la Assasins Creed, Far Cry, and WatchDogs.

Bethesda brought us six games that were already announced, and two games that were leaked and teased for the past year or so. It was short and sweet, but without an update on the Sci-fi space game “Star Field” and the lack of Elder Scrolls VI news, it a very bland conference.

Sony was very much of the opinion that Spider-Man, God of War and Uncharted would do. While some titles such as Monster Hunter World, a full on remake of Shadow of the Colossus, and such were announced, it mostly felt like a rehash of last year’s leftovers. it was very much a dull experience compared to the Kojima walkout, God of War reveal, and Resident Evil 7 debut of E3 2016.

3. Nintendo’s underproduction of the Switch hampered the big reveals that could have been.

 

Getting confirmation of Metroid Prime 4 and a console Pokémon gmae, as well as seeing Super Mario Odyssey in action was fantastic. They were big reveals that set the internet alight. But it feels slightly empty a week later. Why the wait?

During the ‘Spotlight’ Direct, the developers admitted they were pleasantly surprised at how enthusiastically gamers attached themselves to the Nintendo Switch. It sold much better than expected, and now that it’s popular, Nintendo can’t get the parts to keep up with demand.

And that’s why we’ll be waiting a while on that Pokemon Switch game: The Nintendo Switch supply isn’t capable of supporting Nintendo’s biggest franchises. All of the Wii U ports and newer IPs feel like a way to maintain demand, to keep the Install base from growing restless while waiting for the dream games.

E3 2018 will be very, very interesting for all fans of Pokémon, Metroid and any other currently unseen classics including Smash Bros.

2. Everything is coming in 2018.

When you look back at most of the big games announced or shown at E3 2017, there’s a common theme: 2018. Think of some of the best games in the conferences, Spider Man, God of War, Far Cry 5, Anthem, Shadow of the Colossus and more are all coming out in 2018. Even Nintendo and there ‘2017 only’ conference included Kirby and Yoshi – 2018 games.

It’s hard to get too excited for games that may be at yet another E3. Spider man and Anthem will get another showing, with the others possibly getting Gamescom, general announcements, possible PSX/ Nintendo Direct reveals, and more.

Q1 has become the new Q4 for game releases, with all that Christmas money ready to be spent, it’s become the perfect time to release a new IP, avoiding the FIFA’s, Madden’s and  FPS powerhouses of the world.

1. 2017 has already blown us away

Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Resident Evil 7. Nier: Automata. Horizon Zero Dawn. and Persona 5, are all possible Game of the Year contenders in there own right. That’s not even considering great games like Injustice 2, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Yakuza 0, Nioh, and Tekken 7. 2017 has been one of the best years of all time for pre-E3 releases. Out of all the games to release after E3, only Super Mario Odyssey may get in on the hunt for the Game of the Year.

These games have been beyond fantastic, with Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild selling a console on it’s own, becoming a genre-defining classic that should change the way open worlds are made.

On top of that, the Nintendo Switch launched on March 3 2017, questioning the way gamers digest their games, offering Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on the go, and bringing a new dimension to the open world RPG.

Overall, the strength of early 2017 made any release in late 2017 seem less impressive through comparison alone, making E3 2017 a hard sell to impress the consumers, leading to a less impressive showing.

Did you feel underwhelmed by this year’s E3? Do you agree with our list? Do you have your own reasons? Let us know in the comments below.