Walmart leak spoils hype for E3

Biggest gaming show in the world takes place next week in L.A.

“Blame Canada!” has been the mantra on videogamers’ lips and fingertips on keyboards for the past month.

With the huge annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (also known as E3) about to take over downtown Los Angeles and set the stage for the next year in gaming, get ready for some jokes at Canada’s expense as the biggest game makers unwrap the details on their latest wares.

Thanks to a Walmart Canada website leak last month, several high-profile games may have had their thunder stolen before they were officially announced. While the company said the items on its “new releases” page were just placeholders that were accidentally published, the list has already shown some Kreskin-like accuracy with a number of titles, including Rage 2, Lego DC Super Villains and Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, all of which have been announced since the leak.

Gamers love leaks. While some game developers were likely frustrated as marketing plans had to be adjusted, Walmart Canada certainly isn’t the first to spill the beans on big games. This is just a part of the fun of E3, gaming’s massive annual marketing spectacle for fans, which also serves as one of the biggest business meetups for media and the industry. Gaming companies try to be like spies with their data, hoping for big reveals, while fans online love to ferret out every bit of information before the show, and then still have enough appetite left to feast on the truly gluttonous news dump of trailers, game reveals and announcements, which then spawn endless articles of impressions, hands-on details and countless streams on Twitch.tv and YouTube.

Canada is at the centre of the hype in other ways, too. Beyond leaky fun, many high-profile Canadian games will be front and centre at E3.

After all, Canada is the third largest maker of video games in the world, adding an estimated value of $4 billion to the economy. More details are expected on games such as Anthem by Edmonton-based Bioware, Shadow of a Tomb Raider by Eidos Montreal, Ubisoft titles including Assassins Creed Odyssey and the Toronto-made Starlink: Battle for Atlas, EA’s annual batch of sports games and many more.

Then there’s the meta game that sort of sits on top of every- thing, in that after all the press conferences and announcements, all gamers sit in judgment of who won E3. The Big Three console makers all enter with some momentum. Nintendo has been like a Phoenix rising with its latest console, Switch, which has been out for a year and has been an amazing success, after its predecessor, the Wii U, bombed. Microsoft has been focusing on bridging the gap between Windows PC and Xbox, and also released the most powerful console last year, the Xbox One, but many gamers feel it needs more exclusive games. Sony’s PS4 has been killing it, with the most hardware sales and a series of beloved exclusive games.

In competition, all need to keep momentum with new and exciting titles, and to deliver on ones that have previously been announced. PC, mobile, indie, virtual and augmented reality will also take chunks of gam- ing’s multibillion-dollar pie.

Behind the excitement of it all, Canadian game developers are crossing the border with some anxiety. The Trump administration’s attack on NAFTA and the recent tariffs imposed on Canada haven’t targeted the game business, at least not yet. But the industry isn’t holding its breath, and the possibility of a heightening trade war is one of things the Entertainment Software Association of Canada plans to discuss with its counterparts at the industry event.

But that’s serious stuff for the real grown-ups to think about. What most people really want to know is: when will we get a chance to suit up in Anthem’s Javelin mech suits? Will Sam Fisher sneak past leaks onto the big stage in a new Splinter Cell? What more will we learn about Square Enix’s Avengers Project game? Sure, you can blame Canada for the leaks, but there are plenty of games made here that people can’t wait to see, hear about and of course, get our grubby hands on to play. That really what E3 is all about.

The leaked games checklist

Here are the as-yet unannounced games that were listed as new releases on Walmart Canada’s website, some of which have since been confirmed. Confirmed: Rage 2 Lego DC Villains Assassin’s Creed Odyssey Speculative Releases:

Splinter Cell (Note: Previous game was made by Ubisoft Toronto, so this could be locally made.) Gears of War 5 Forza Horizon 5 (This would be a shocker or mislabelled, since Forza Horizon 4 has yet to come out.) Just Cause 4 Borderlands 3 Destiny Comet

EA Anthem is a much anticipated game from Edmonton's Bioware. The game features players wearing mech suits called Javelins.