It has been nearly seven months since Bethesda officially announced Rage 2, and fans have been treated to several high-octane gameplay trailers, and some sporadic information, ever since. Now, the company has taken The Game Awards as an opportunity to share more, showcasing a new gameplay trailer and giving the game a confirmed release date.

Scheduled for release on May 14, 2019, Rage 2's new trailer offers another look at the irreverent violence and wild vehicular combat players can expect from the new shooter, and glimpses at hovercrafts and motorbikes are likely to keep fan excitement building to this newly revealed release date.

Rage 2's predecessor, 2010's Rage, was met with mixed reviews. While our writers praised it for its "strong shooting" and "interesting take on the apocalypse," some players criticized the game for a less than expansive over-world and its limited exploration. Since, id Software Studio Director Tim Willits has addressed these issues head-on:

The loads -- you had the first-person combat areas, and then you had the driving areas, and then you had the racing areas. You had all this loading. That made it feel disconnected.

A more connected experience would certainly have made Rage feel bigger and given it greater depth, and id's commitment to making Rage 2 "seamless," and without loading screens, suggests that they have found a practical application for this lesson.

Furthermore, some felt that Rage's vehicular combat left something to be desired. This is where the sequels joint development between id and Avalanche Studios becomes particularly interesting. The vehicle-based gameplay Avalanche has implemented in its Just Cause series, along with 2015's Mad Max, are cited as standout moments in these titles, and the potential for those high velocity thrills to be translated to Rage 2 is likely to be exciting to many.

It is still to be seen if Rage 2 will be able to make good on its predecessor's promises of an exceptional open-world, first-person shooter experience. However, the gameplay trailer from E3 was one of our favorites from the conference, and tonight's reveal certainly keeps the energy up and the excitement driving forward.

Rage 2 releases on May 14, 2019 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.