Over the years we have seen a trend in the type of games that are being released. Arkham City, Fallout 3, the Assassin’s Creed games, Skyrim, GTA V are all games that have that open world aspect to them. These games allow a gamer much more freedom than a linear game would for example the COD franchise, which only allows you to progress from one level to the next according to the game structure.
Open world game can be defined as games in which a player can explore between missions and maybe even take on side missions while the main story still continues. This year, there are new games and sequels that are based off already existing franchises. Let’s go ahead and take a look…
Assassin’s Creed Unity
Assassin’s Creed Unity is the 7th installment of the now-annual franchise and is the first to be solely released for the next gen consoles. Unity features a new assassin as the protagonist and takes place in the late 1700s during the French Revolution. So we can expect structures like the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame Cathedral to be featured in the backdrop of the game.
This whole open world idea is something that has gotten better as each game has come into being. The highlight of Black Flag was that you were able to navigate the open Caribbean Sea and part take in side activities planted on various islands across the colossal map. And now with the new generation consoles, Unity has the potential to cover some serious open world game ground and maybe even cover a large chunk of France.
Mad Max
The Mad Max franchise is set to make an appearance on the big screen next year which stars Tom Hardy in place of Mel Gibson. Fans can hold themselves by playing the new game which is now just got postponed to 2015. The team behind Just Cause 2 is the same one that is responsible for producing Mad Max. Avalanche Studios did a great job with Just Cause 2 which features one of the biggest open worlds ever and thrilling vehicular combat.
It is said that the game would feature a car called Magnum Opus which is customisable throughout the game but remains the only vehicle you can use. Max can use his unique weapons like harpoon guns and his shotgun while exploring the massive map.
Watch Dogs
Probably the most anticipated game of this year (and last years too). The game is finally set to come out on the 27th of May. The game places protagonists Aiden Pearce in a giant open world Chicago that is fully interactive. You can pretty much hack into anything in this game–peoples phones to get information, traffic lights to cause car crashes and evade the cops.
Watch Dog’s Chicago pretty much remains faithful to the actual city layout, excluding a few landmarks added and removed as Ubisoft saw fit. It still remains unknown whether you can drive vehicles in the game. There is also an online free roam mode, which sounds like a whole lot of fun exploring the city with your friends. But the real treat is going to be the 1 on 1 multiplayer, which basically allows someone to enter another players game and start hacking them without them even knowing.
Batman: Arkham Knight
Arkham Knight, is the highly awaited concluding game to Rocksteady’s Arkham trilogy and is due on the 14th of October only for next-gen consoles. And with a game world 5 times bigger than Arkham City and a staggering 25 times bigger world than Arkham Asylum, Knight is bound to jam-packed with a whole lot of side missions and many Easter Eggs.
With the Joker dead and out of the picture, the other villains are finally working together to defeat Batman instead of fighting amongst themselves. Scarecrow makes a come back after his absence in Arkham City. Arkham Knight’s game world is set in the entirety if Gotham City over several islands. And the addition of the Batmobile means faster travelling around the massive world–which is something we just cannot wait to get our hands on!
Tom Clancy’s The Division
Although there are rumors that this game is probably gonna get delayed to 2015, it still remains on track for this year. The Division marks the first new Tom Clancy series in many years. The game puts players into a “Strategic Homeland Division” after a disease introduced on Black Friday manages to collapse the U.S in only five short days. The game produces an interesting blend of single and multi-player gameplay.
Are there any other games you think should be on the list?
Do let us know in the comments below.
