E3 2021: Mario and Avatar lead the game announcements at E3

You can look forward to new Mario, Flight Simulator and Avatar games

After a year off due to the Covid-19 pandemic, E3 is back!

It's been announcement after announcement as developers and publishers get all the games they've been working on out in front of people for the first time.

The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) usually takes place at the Los Angeles Convention Centre, with thousands of industry professionals and gaming journalists in attendance.

But with travel still limited and many parts of the world still combating the spread of Covid-19, this year's show moved to digital-only for the first time.

Alongside an Xbox release, Flight Simulator will get Top Gun themes fighter jets

Microsoft: Trailers and time to fly on the Xbox

Microsoft were the big name appearing on Sunday, with the company showing back-to-back trailers, rather than using their time to give big speeches about their plans.

It was the company's first show since buying Bethesda, the massive game development company, for $7.5bn (just over £5bn). The two companies announced a new series coming in 2022, Starfield.

As well as that, Microsoft showed off games like Forza racing and a Pirates of the Caribbean expansion for Sea of Thieves. They also announced a new version of ultra-realistic flying game Flight Simulator, including bringing it to Xbox.

Mario + Rabbids again

The Mario + Rabbids mash-up was a surprise success for Ubisoft and Nintendo on the Switch

One of the big announcements earlier in the show as from Ubisoft. They announced another collaboration with Nintendo with a sequel to Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle.

The original mash-up saw Nintendo's iconic Super Mario characters mixed with Ubisoft's Rabbids in a turn-based tactical game. The 2017 release was enormously successful and fans can look forward to a sequel in 2022.

Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope will also be a Nintendo Switch exclusive. This time, the adventure will leave Mario's Mushroom Kingdom and take players off to space. The inspiration comes from another Nintendo classic, Super Mario Galaxy, meaning characters will move from planet to planet throughout its levels.

Avatar - if the films don't get you the game will

The reveal of a game based on the 2009 Avatar film was a surprise closer to Ubisoft's conference

There was a surprise reveal of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora which excited many viewers.

Several sequels to the 2009 film are headed for cinemas over the next few years, and fans finally got to hear about the video game tie-in with the franchise.

Originally announced in 2017, their has been little information released about it since then.

The first-person action-adventure game was shown off through an in-game trailer, highlighting next-gen visuals but with few details of what the game's style would be.

Ubisoft said the game would be "new, standalone story" in which players play as the Na'vi, the blue-skinned alien natives of the planet Pandora who were the heroes of the original film.

The game is due for release in 2022, which is when James Cameron's sequel to the original film is currently scheduled for a Christmas release.

Time to Rock[smith] out

Along with a new Just Dance for 2022, Ubisoft also announced a new Rocksmith title.

The game allows players to hook up a guitar to their PC or game console and learn to play guitar by following along with official recordings.

The original game required a cable to connect a guitar to the computer, which many players felt did not work well.

The new version, Rocksmith+, also includes a phone app that will allow acoustic players - or electric guitar owners using an amplifier - to use the game through their phone's microphone. Rocksmith+ will also have more features such as a chord mode for beginners and community help videos.

But the game will be a subscription service costing £12.99 a month, the company said, in line with them selling it as an educational tool rather than a game.