EA Play: Everything You Need to Know

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This year EA decided to do things a little differently, with theirs own event running alongside E3, with announcements in a press conference at the start, and then ample opportunity for people to get hands-on with the games thereafter.

EA Play started with an introduction from Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts, who welcomed everyone to the event at the Novo Theatre in Los Angeles. He then explained the duality of the event and the simultaneous show in London that was linked via satellite, with Chief Competition Officer Peter Moore hosting in London at the Hammersmith Apollo. Over the hour-long event we saw EA's lineup in a bit more detail, followed by a multiplayer stream that showed off Battlefield 1 gameplay with 64 players.

Titanfall 2

Vince Zampella was welcomed onto the stage to talk about Titanfall 2, and started off by reiterating that it will also be launching on PS4 this time around. There was also a multiplayer trailer which showcased a variety of features, a notable one being a grappling hook. Other than that there seemed to be more of the fast-paced, intense action fans expect from the game. He also announced that more features have been added, too, including six new Titans and more customisation options, details of which you can find in our more detailed news coverage. Zampella also encouraged players to sign up for the multiplayer test they will be hosting in the future.

The Respawn co-founcer also confirmed that there will be single-player in Titanfall 2 and that this would aim to explore the relationship between pilot and Titan and how the two can feel strong together. There was another trailer to go with this and showed a Titan named BT7274 being linked to a Rifleman called Jack Cooper after his original pilot is killed in action, both working together to defend against an alien threat. Titanfall 2 is set to be released on October 28 2016.

Madden NFL 17

Boasting what EA are calling the most balanced gameplay to date, Peter Moore introduced Madden NFL 17. New ways to play Franchise Mode as well as an all new commentary team were among the new features to be mentioned. Moore was keen to promote esports as well, highlighting the examples EA have set with Madden and FIFA in the past, introducing new competitive modes and weekly online contests for EA's biggest franchises. Three new ways to compete were then introduced: Challenger Events, which allowed players to easily host their own tournaments, Premier Events, large-scale live competitions that EA will host, and EA Major Events, global-scale competitions. EA Play in Los Angeles will host the first EA Major Event, the Madden NFL 16 Championship, this weekend.

In the spirit of esports there was a short video detailing the rivalry between two Madden players, Eric 'Problem' Wright and Zack 'Serious Moe' Lane ahead of the Madden NFL 16 Championship. With $50,000 dollars up for grabs, the eight finalists were brought on stage and introduced, EA being keen to show their enthusiasm for esports ahead of the many events they promise to host in the future.

Mass Effect: Andromeda

Aaryn Flynn, General Manager of BioWare took to the stage in Los Angeles to discuss the highly anticipated Mass Effect: Andromeda. Promising "more freedom then we have ever given players in a BioWare game", Flynn said that Andromeda provided a new world, a new cast and a new adventure, all powered by Frostbite. A behind-the-scenes video of the game followed Flynn's speech and showed off the improved visuals, facial animations and even some gameplay, all of which you can read about here. Although mostly teasing only a little bit of information, the game still looked impressive.

EA Play to Give

Andrew Wilson returned to the stage in order to promote free trials as well as EA Access, before then revealing a brand new initiative called EA Play to Give. This brings together in-game challenges with charitable donations to five charities: UN's HeForShe Initiative, National Centre for Women and Information Technology, Special Effect, Code.org and Code2040. There are five challenges in games such as Battlefield 4 and special squads in Star Wars: Battlefront to celebrate strong women.

FIFA 17

Peter Moore started the FIFA 17 part of EA Play by introducing The Journey, a new feature that follows one fictional player, Alex Hunter, as he progresses through a career in the Premier League. The accompanying trailer seemed to show an experience that was much like a Bioware RPG, something FIFA has not done before, emphasising narrative cinematics working in conjunction with the football gameplay FIFA is known for.

Another feature that was highlighted in FIFA 17 was the inclusion of managers such as Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola, who are rendered in the game. One such manager, Jose Mourinho, accompanied Peter Moore on stage during the announcement. After this, though, producer Aaron McHardy arrived to showcase some new gameplay features, via a new trailer he introduced additions such as the active intelligence system and the physical play overhaul. Among the other features of the game include improved graphics and the fact that it is the only official La Liga video game. You can read our hands-on preview of FIFA 16 by hitting this link.

EA Originals

Patrick Söderlund, EVP of EA, took to the stage in LA to announce EA Originals. After the success of Unravelled, EA are now keen to work with small developers to bring their games to life. This initiative will seek out developers to work with and partner with them during the whole process, from beginning to publishing, as well as funding and offering a level of security. Importantly, he claimed that all the profits will go back to the developers as well.

He then welcomed on stage Klaus Lyngeled of Zoink Games who introduced the first of these EA Originals games, Fe. Fe is a personal narrative about "our relationship with nature" and is a game without words; a story about a young cub who awakes in the forest alone and explores the world around it. The gameplay trailer was very beautiful in design, being subtle while showcasing the innovation of the studio. For more on Fe, including some insights offered by the team over in LA, click this.

Star Wars

Jade Raymond, general manager of Motive Studios, took to the stage next to talk about the many Star Wars games planned for the future, highlighting that existing titles that will get new content as well. She confirmed that Star Wars Battlefront 2 is on its way next year (more on that can be found on here), with DICE working in collaboration with Motive, building upon the first game and listening to the players as well as including content from the new films. Criterion are also working with them, but on a VR offshoot.

There was also an a quick look at an action-adventure Star Wars game that's coming in 2018 from Visceral Games. Amy Hennig, one of the minds behind Uncharted, is directing this title and creating new characters and narratives for fans to enjoy. More projects are in store, including one from Respawn Entertainment which is also an action-adventure title, although details about all of these games are scarce right now. What Raymond did show, however, was a sneak preview of some of these games via a behind-the-scenes video teasing what lies in store for Star Wars fans.

Battlefield 1

Söderlund returned once more to introduce arguably the centrepiece of the whole event, Battlefield 1. He said that the team had to pioneer and take creative risks with every game, and apparently it was no different with this title. Patrick Bach, DICE GM, then took to the stage in order to emphasise the importance of the role players have in creating and shaping games. It is for that reason, he said, that the developers chose to reveal the game alongside players and the reason why they were revealing gameplay alongside players as well, because after the conference had finished they started the first livestream of Battlefield 1, showing a full hour after the EA Play event. Intuitive destruction, dynamic weather and a whole host of other features, Bach claims, will make this the most immersive and dynamic Battlefield game ever. The open beta is due for release later this summer and will showcase all of this to players who are Battlefield Insiders.