E3 2015 Preview: EA

E3 will soon be here. Tons of developers and publishers and other companies crammed into the LA Convention Center, all of them there to discuss games and gaming related stuff. It is a hellish nightmare. But also, its one of the most exciting times in the games industry.
EA will once again take to the stage for another press conference. Last year EA showed... stuff. But it felt like a lot of what they were showing was way far from release. Hopefully this year EA will have more to show than some ideas and some teasers. Maybe even some more poorly timed smoke cannons. Here is some of the games we expect to see at the EA press conference.

EA Sports, It’s In The Game (Conference)

The sports games are a big part of EA’s yearly line-up and as always, they will be a part of this event. Expect to see some FIFA 16, maybe more info about the recently announced women World Cup teams. These teams will be playable in FIFA 16 for the first time in series history. I also expect Madden, NBA Live and possibly NHL to make appearances at the event as well.
Where it gets interesting is with UFC. Will EA release a new UFC game this year? It sounds like that isn’t happening. If not this year, then surely next year. Unless the rumors of EA bringing Fight Night back and alternating between the two are true. Either way, EA will have a fighting game next year and this could be a great place to tease it or even show some early gameplay.

Fast Cars and Other Fast Stuff

EA revealed that the Need For Speed franchise is being rebooted and we will see more at E3. The new game looks like it will be returning to the Underground format, most likely being open world and focusing on street racing and it's culture. Also, hopefully, it will be ignoring that awful Need For Speed movie. After taking a year off, I’m excited to see what the new Need For Speed game will be.
Last E3 it was revealed that Criterion games is still around and working on a new game. It doesn’t look like a new Burnout game. But Burnout is a well known brand, so who knows. EA might slap the name on this new game. The first reveal of the game last year left me with a lot of questions and it was early, making it hard to really understand what that game is. I hope this year brings more information, better looking gameplay and maybe even a release date.

The Sims and Some Plants, Maybe Even Some Zombies

The Sims 4 sold well and The Sims series has a long history of offering expansions years after a game’s release. So I wouldn’t be surprised if The Sims 4 got name dropped at the EA event and if they talked about a future expansion. Less likely, but possible, is The Sims 4 coming to console. It could show up on PS4 and Xbox One. Maybe even Wii U. But this is just speculation and guessing. Odds for this are low and there aren’t many rumors about it happening. Still... E3 is where weird stuff happens.
On the topic of weird stuff, Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was a strange game. A strange game that ended up reviewing well and selling well. I wouldn’t be surprised if it got a sequel. And I also wouldn’t be shocked if PVZ2 made it’s way to Xbox One and Xbox 360. Maybe more consoles, but EA and Microsoft seem to be pretty chummy these days. So I wouldn’t be shocked if PVZ2 got a exclusive console launch on Xbox.

Star Wars and Mass Effect

EA is making Star Wars games. We know about Star Wars Battlefront. It has been confirmed that the new Battlefront will have a gameplay reveal at the EA conference. The other Star Wars game that EA has planned is from Visceral. This one we don’t know much about. We know Amy Henning, from the Uncharted series and Legacy of Kain series, will be the creative director of this new Star Wars game. But that’s about it. Now we can make some educated guesses, but I have a feeling we will get some information about this unknown Star Wars game at the EA E3 event.
In other space game news, I feel Mass Effect… 4?? Or whatever they end up calling it, will get a tease at the event. A full on gameplay reveal seems early, but a tease of some gameplay or a nice trailer maybe. Something about the next Mass Effect will be shown. Maybe a spin-off. Or maybe that rumored Mass Effect remastered trilogy will finally get revealed. Either way, something Mass Effect related is being shown. I can feel it in my bones.

Some Other Things

Mirror’s Edge 2 could finally get some actual gameplay shown off. But DICE is a busy and stretched studio these days. Or really studios. So I wonder how much effort is being given to Mirror’s Edge. My hope is that it gets shown off and we get a date. But the reality is that we might have to wait another year before we see any substantial about Faith’s next parkour filled adventure.
EA Access has been a success for EA, probably. They don’t give out hard numbers and we don’t know the amount of money they are making on it. But it’s still being run and even updated, so you would assume it is still making them money. So maybe we will say EA Access expand to PC? PS4? Wii U? Who knows. But it seems more likely than that rumor a few years back that Origin was coming to the Wii U.
Also, Titanfall 2 is not going to be at E3. This has been confirmed by EA and Respawn. So, there you go. Also I don’t expect any Battlefield 5 teases either. Seems way too soon.

Potentially A Great Conference

If everything I listed here happens, EA could have a really cool event. Hell if only a few of these things happen it could be a worthwhile conference. Who know’s what surprises EA has up it’s sleeve. We’ll have to wait till E3 to find out what Electronic Arts is planning for this year and the future.
Hopefully those plans include games that work and no awful reboots.