Though sequels and remakes dominated the E3 games news (for good reason—who isn't excited for Fallout 4?), this year's expo was also the debut of several intriguing new IPs from well-known studios.

While it's hard to say what to expect when this is just our first glimpse of these new E3 games, it's also hard not to get hyped about the exciting directions these games are taking, emphasizing and exploring creative themes, refining familiar combat, and blending genres for cool new adventures. Whether you're all about RPGs, love strange new worlds, or prefer hardcore combat, there's something exciting to be found in these E3 games.

Creativity and Imagination Steal the Show in Dreams and Unravel 

Not to say that remakes and sequels can't be imaginative—after all, every franchise was once a daring new IP—but this year's E3 games showed an exciting tendency towards imagination and inspiring creativity.

Media Molecule's Dreams really showcases the power of creativity, as it's the driving force of the game. While it doesn't have the platforming and straightforward creation tactics of Little Big Planet, Media Molecule's previous big hit, Dreams aims to take on the logic and ethereal appearance of dreaming, letting players manipulate figures and play with a variety of game and story-making tools to make unique, bizarre creations. They're considering an early access or beta approach to release to allow the community to speak on and influence the project's ultimate direction, encouraging the gaming community to exercise their creativity in many different ways.

There's also Unravel, the latest from Coldwood Interactive, who has previously worked primarily on sports games. In the tradition of games like Kirby's Epic Yarn, you play as Yarny, a little yarn creature, to solve puzzles, traverse platform environments, and explore gorgeous environments. Though it's reminiscent of other yarn games and seems to play a bit like Litle Big Planet, what we've seen of the gameplay looks to be a fun twist on traditional platforming that will require players to think outside of the box.

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Up Next: E3's New IPs Offer Big Suprises

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Familiar Combat Mechanics Get Freshened Up in For Honor

Combat mechanics become familiar for a reason—they're fun and they work, and if it isn't broken, why fix it? But that doesn't mean we shouldn't make improvements to familiar genres, and this year's E3 games seem intent on refining standard combat mechanics into new experiences.

For Honor, Ubisoft's new medieval-esque combat game, aims to do just that. Many games that involve swordfighting tend to be pretty straightforward, using combos or pre-assigned attacks to get the job done. For Honor aims to make swordfighting more realistic, requiring players to match stances with their opponent to block and attack effectively. It's sort of like Dynasty Warriors stripped of all the ridiculousness, with hordes of enemies to defeat, keeps to capture, and a widespread battle to advance. As Vikings, Samurai, and Celtic warriors, players will feel the weight of armor and the strategy of swordfighting rather than just the hack-and-slash that typically dominates games with sword combat, encouraging the development of technique and tactics to drive the game forward. 

Unique Post-Apocalypse Aesthetics Characterize Horizon Zero Dawn and ReCore

Post-apocalyptic games are nothing new, and E3 games featuring that setting may have been slightly overshadowed by the giant looming figure of Fallout 4. But that isn't a problem—though these settings might get a little tired from time to time, there's always room for innovation in the ruins of society.

For instance, there's Horizon Zero Dawn, the newest game from Killzone creators Guerilla Games. Rather than being your typical desert wasteland, the vast expanses of the open-world Horizon Zero Dawn are a unique blend of prehistoric and post-apocalyptic tropes, including giant robotic dinosaurs and weapons like bows and arrows infused with advanced technology, giving it the familiar feel of magic but rooting it in science. The game will also lack a tutorial, encouraging players to develop their own methods of play to take down the giant robotic enemies.

There's also ReCore by Keiji Inafune (creator of Onimusha, Mighty No. 9, and Dead Rising). ReCore takes place in a world largely devoid of humans, but populated by robots with exchangeable cores. Like Horizon Zero Dawn, the blend of an apocalyptic setting with advanced technology combines our love for shiny new weaponry with the wild, untamed nature of a world where humanity no longer rules.

While sequels and remakes signal a return to gaming's roots, new IPs and the trends they use show the new ventures the industry want to explore. Though not a lot is known about these new titles, they show a lot of promise to bring something new and exciting to the table or redefine the mechanics we know and love.

What new E3 games have you the most hyped up?