This year’s E3 has come and gone, with all the game trailers, gameplay reveals, and cosplay. This year’s E3 featuring a number of predictable outcomes, but also quite a few surprises. While some conferences were rather hit or miss, the big three did fairly amazing jobs, and even Ubisoft had some heavy hitters for its presser. However, there can only be one winner and one runner-up for our opinion of who won E3.

EA Conference: EA’s show was met with mostly underwhelming sports titles and some mostly known fan favorites such as Star Wars: Battlefront II (gameplay) & Battlefield 1 (DLC), however it did shine when it showcased two “EA Originals”; Anthem and A Way Out. The former of which is being developed by staple EA Studio Bioware, while the latter is being handle Josef Fares who developed the critically acclaimed Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. Need for Speed: Payback also had an impressive showing as well. Grade Score: 69/100

Microsoft Conference: It was all about games for Microsoft at this year’s E3, with a no nonsense presentation focusing on titles coming to Xbox One and the now officially named Xbox One X (formerly Project Scorpio). One would think the Xbox One X would have taken up most of the conference’s time, but other than a few bits of mention to the console and the final portion of it, a majority of the conference was focused on software, which is exactly what Xbox One owners have been asking for. Microsoft also surprised with an announcement of 22 console exclusives coming to the system within the year or so. Admittedly they didn’t do too much to give reasons why people should buy the Xbox One X over the much cheaper 4K enabled Xbox One S. Grade Score: 85/100.

Bethesda Conference: This one is a little odd, Bethesda didn’t really showcase any new games beyond sequels to The Evil Within & their recent Wolfenstein reboot (no Doom 2 unfortunately), most of it was kind of just a showcase of already released IP, VR incarnations of those,  and the aforementioned sequels, however Bethesda did surprise with a promising looking stand alone expansion for Dishonored II entitled “Death of the Outsider”, and The Evil Within 2 looks even more terrifying than the original game. Grade Score: 73/100

Devolver Digital “Conference”: Speaking of odd, Devolver Digital had some kind of pre-recorded. performance piece show that was an extremely brutal parody of the industry and E3 itself (no wonder there’s heat between the two), it was hilarious, witty, and brilliantly done for its fifteen minute run. No new games were shown (as promised), but we did get new trailers for already known upcoming Devolver Digital games, I highly recommend seeing this if you haven’t yet. Grade Score: 90/100.

Ubisoft Conference: Now Ubisoft’s conference was an excellent surprise, several new IP were shown off including Skull & Bones, a Pirate themed multiplayer title based on the critically acclaimed Naval battle sequences from Assassin’s Creed: IV Blackflag. This is a title that was long asked for and Ubisoft surprisingly delivered the goods. Alongside Skull & Bones, Ubisoft announced The Crew 2 (which looks extremely promising), a new Toys to Life title; Starlink: Battle for Atlas, a mobile spinoff of its South Park IP; South Park: Phone Destroyer, Steep DLC focused on the Olympics, Just Dance 2018, an Egyptian themed Assassin’s Creed title, and the amazing looking Mario & Rabbids crossover; Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle (aka E3 show stealer), Ubisoft also shocked by re-introducing a new seemingly M rated Beyond Good & Evil 2. Grade Score: 94/100

Sony Conference: Much like Microsoft, Sony was all about software, so much so that once the pre-show ended there was zero presenters present, with Sony opting instead to have the trailers and gameplay footage to do the talking. Sony showed off some E3 returns such as God of War & Marvel’s Spider-Man (providing release windows for both), as well as surprising with announcements of a complete remake for Shadow of the Colossus, Monster Hunter’s return to Playstation, and impressive looking PSVR title Moss. Grade Score: 83/100.

Nintendo Conference/Tree House: Perhaps the most impressive show of E3 was Nintendo’s with announcement after announcement, and surprise after surprise the Switch & 3DS manufacturer went all in this year. Announcements included TWO Metroid titles; Samus Returns  on 3DS & the long-awaited Metroid Prime 4 on Switch, Switch debuts for Kirby & Yoshi next year, a core Pokemon RPG coming for Switch within the next year or so, the aforementioned Ubisoft team up for Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle (yes I’m including this here), Nintendo also showed off some great gameplay for Breath of the Wild DLC & Super Mario Odyssey. Grade Score: 97/100.

E3 2017 Awards:

Below you can find our show awards for this year’s E3:

Best Sequel/Prequel/Continuation:

Winners: Life is Strange: Before the Storm, The Evil Within 2

Runner-Ups: Metro: Exodus, Dishonored: Death of the Outsider, Far Cry 5

Honorable Mentions: Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, Ori and the Will of the Wisp, Beyond Good & Evil 2

Biggest Confirmed Rumor:

Winner: Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle

Runner-Ups: Dual Metroid Prime 4 & Samus Returns announcements, The Evil Within 2

Honorable Mentions: Pokemon on Nintendo Switch, Shadow of the Colossus Remake, Forza Motorsport 7,  Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, Dragon Ball FighterZ

Best Surprise Announcement/Reveal:

Winner: Backwards Comp for OG Xbox on Xbox One & Xbox One X

Runner-Ups: Beyond Good & Evil 2 Re-Introduction, South Park: Phone Destroyer

Honorable Mentions: A Way Out, 22 console exclusives coming to Xbox One/Xbox One X, Super Lucky’s Tale, Moss

Best VR Reveal:

Winner: Moss

Runner-Ups: Doom VFR,  The Impatient

Honorable Mentions: Skyrim VR, Monster of the Deep (FFXV VR), Fallout 4 VR

Best New IP (First Game Entry):

Winner: Skull & Bones

Runner-Ups: A Way Out, Starlink: Battle for Atlas

Honorable Mentions: Detroit: Become Human, Days Gone, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, Anthem

Best Indie Showcase:

Winner: Cuphead

Runner-Ups: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, The Last Night, Undertale

Honorable Mentions: Deep Rock Galactic, Super Lucky’s Tale

Best Gameplay:

Co-Winners: Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, Super Mario Odyssey, Marvel’s Spider-Man

Runner-Ups: Dragon Ball FighterZ, Cuphead, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy

Honorable Mentions: Metro: Exodus, Metroid: Samus Returns, South Park: Fractured but Whole

Best Handheld/Mobile Showcase:

Winner: Metroid: Samus Returns

Runner-Ups: South Park: Phone Destroyer, Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux

Honorable Mentions: Ever Oasis, Mario+Luigi 3DS Remake, King’s Knight: Wrath of the Dark Dragon

Best Overall Presentation:

Winner: Super Mario Odyssey

Runner-Up: Marvel’s Spider-Man

Honorable Mentions: The Crew 2, Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, Yoshi Switch

Most Wanted (2017):

Co-Winners: Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, Super Mario Odyssey, Cuphead, Middle-Earth: Shadow of War

Runner-Ups: Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, Metroid: Samus Returns, Sonic Forces/Mania

Honorable Mentions: Crackdown 3, Forza Motorsport 7, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, Destiny 2, Assassin’s Creed: Origins, The Evil Within 2

Most Wanted (2018):

Co-Winners: Marvel’s Spider-Man, God of War 4, Dragon Ball FighterZ, Far Cry 5

Runner-Ups: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, Yoshi Switch, The Crew 2, Yakuza 6

Honorable Mentions: Anthem, Skull & Bones, Monster Hunter: World, Kirby Switch

Best Long-term (Franchise/Enjoyment) Potential:

Winners: Skull & Bones, Sea of Thieves

Runner-Ups: Dragon Ball FighterZ, Star Wars: Battlefront II

Honorable Mentions: Starlink: Battle for Atlas, State of Decay 2

Most Potential As A Single Title (2017/18/Beyond):

Co-Winners: Kingdom Hearts III, The Evil Within 2, Cuphead, Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle

Runner-Ups: Anthem, Need for Speed: Payback, The Crew 2

Honorable Mentions: Crackdown 3, Monster Hunter: World, Far Cry 5

Best Multiplayer Potential:

Co-Winners: Star Wars: Battlefront II, Splatoon 2, Skull & Bones

Runner-Ups: Call of Duty: WWII, Cuphead, Dragon Ball FighterZ

Honorable Mentions: Pokken Tournament DX, Anthem, State of Decay 2

Game of Show:

Winner: Mario+Rabbids: Kingdom Battle

Runner-Up: Yoshi Switch

Most Disappointing No Shows:

Winner: The Last of Us 2

Runner-Ups: Red Dead Redemption 2, Cyberpunk 2077

Personal Favorite E3 Conference:

Winner: Nintendo

Runner-Ups: Ubisoft, Devolver Digital