Now we all have our favorite games, that we look back on fondly, and hope to see more of it. Some cane be simply new iteration, while others are a direct continuation from where the last game left off. So, we’ve compiled a list of some of this year’s most awaited sequels. Read on to find out more about some of the games we can’t wait to get our hands on!!
1. Just Cause 3 (Q4 2015)
Back again with its own breed of chaos and mayhem, JC3 is set in a Mediterranean island, where players are up against a brutal dictator know as General Di Ravello.
It has been confirmed that the island of Medici is actually the home island of Rico. The map size has been confirmed to be similar to that of the setting of Just Cause 2 with 400 square miles (1,000 km2) being dedicated for the new setting. However, its volumetric terrain has increased to allow more verticality – as a result of this, it is now possible for the player to explore subterranean caverns (a new feature) and to scale buildings more effectively and realistically.
It has also been confirmed that Just Cause 2 ’s signature features – the grappling hook and parachute – will be re-appearing with improved mechanics. The focus on mayhem and exaggerated physics will also remain, along with a new wingsuit. Other game mechanics have also been overhauled and updated, like this new feature giving the character ‘infinite C4’: unlike previous installments that required players to purchase C4; this installment instates this weapon to allow for more ‘chaos’.
2. Homefront: The Revolution (2016)
Players will once again battle the Greater Korean Republic in the United States with Homefront: The Revolution. The game is set in 2029, two years after the events of Homefront and four years into the invasion of the United States by the Greater Korean Republic (GKR).
The GKR has lost the western states which also include Hawaii and Alaska to the Americans, following the Battle of San Francisco. However, the GKR has shifted their control to invade and capture many of the eastern states, with Philadelphia becoming their central base.
The new Philadelphia is a heavily policed and oppressed environment, with civilians living in fear as the Korean People’s Army patrol multiple districts in the city. In the city, a second rebellion is brewing and the resistance grows stronger, being led by protagonist Ethan Brady.
3. Star Wars: Battlefront (November 17, 2015)
Star Wars Battlefront is an action game played from either a first-person or third-person view; players can switch at any time seamlessly. Players traverse planets, such as Endor, Hoth, Tatooine and Sullust.
Developed by EA and its subsidiary DICE, Battlefront runs on Frostbite Engine, which is acclaimed for its prowess showcased in the Battlefield franchise.
Players will be provided a wide array of vehicles, including both air and land-based vehicles. Battles are planet-based, restricting players from exploring space. The game’s weapons, characters, gears and abilities are customizable. As new weapons are unlocked, players have the ability to share them with their teammates.
The game lets players choose to control either a Rebel Alliance soldier or a Stormtrooper. The game includes cooperative missions which can be played offline but does not have a campaign mode. Players can complete the missions both independently and with bots or another player; the game supports split screen. The game’s online multiplayer mode supports up to 40 players in one match.
4. Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt (May 19, 2015)
Developed to be a standalone title for those who haven’t played the previous games in the series, another sequel for 2015 on our list is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. This third title will be the concluding chapter for Geralt of Rivia, the main protagonist of the past two Witcher titles.
With a new other-world army know as the Wild Hunt invades the North Kingdom leaving nothing but destruction and bloodshed, it seems as if the only way of stopping the army is through Geralt. Developers promise no loading screens allowing players to roam the vast world freely.
The setting is more than “30 times larger” than previous Witcher games, requiring players to use a sailboat to some locations and ride by horseback to others. However, fast travelling around the areas of known locations are also possible. The Witcher 3 has been described as “20% bigger than Skyrim”
The fighting system has been completely revamped. Wild Hunt introduces some new mechanics, such as witcher-sense, combat on horseback, and at sea, swimming underwater, and using a crossbow. Additionally, Geralt can now jump, climb, and vault over smaller obstacles.
So, if there’s just one game you play this summer, it has to be Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt!
5. Metal Gear Solid V (September 1, 2015)
The Phantom Pain picks up years after Ground Zeroes. Snake awakens from his coma after nine years has pass when he starts a new mercenary group known as the Diamond Dogs. Taking on a new name, Venom Snake seeks to find and take down those responsible for the destruction of Militaires Sans Frontières.
During the journey, Snake finds Ocelot capturing warriors from past, present and future. Snake must now learn what Ocelot is using these warriors for and stop the organization from creating a new mass destruction weapon.
The gameplay elements are largely unchanged from Ground Zeroes, meaning that players will have to sneak from several points in the game world, avoiding enemy guards and remaining undetected. Included in Snake’s repertoire are binoculars, maps, pistols, assault rifles and explosives.
As in Peace Walker, The Phantom Pain will offer a base-building feature that allows players to develop weapons and items from their home base. Recruitment of enemy soldiers and prisoners has also returned for this purpose, allowing the base to grow through organization.
The game also features online competitive multiplayer.
6. Uncharted 4 (Q1/2 2016)
A Thief’s End takes place three years after Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception. Nathan Drake, a now retired fortune hunter, gets a surprised visit from his older brother Sam whom Nathan believed to be dead. Sam requests Nathan’s help to locate and solve a conspiracy over an ancient pirate colony.
With Naughty Dog’s creative and writing directors of the Uncharted series, Amy Hennig and Justin Richmond, no longer with the development studio it was a mystery as to what this meant for the future of Uncharted 4. June of last year, Naughty Dog’s co-president Evan Wells revealed that The Last of Us game directors Neil Druckmann and Bruce Straley will be officially taking over Uncharted 4 with a release slated for this year.
Naughty Dog outlined the game’s plot as “his greatest adventure yet and will test his physical limits, his resolve, and ultimately what he’s willing to sacrifice to save the ones he loves.”
7. Halo 5: Guardians (October 27, 2015)
A new colony war breaks out in the galaxy but its not up to Master Chief to save the day? Halo 5 takes place after the events of Halo 4 when a new war breaks out but this time our beloved Master Chief is missing. Players this time around will take on a new character, Spartan Locke, in which your task is to locate and track down Master Chief.
Additionally, a Halo television series being produced by Steven Spielberg is set to release in conjunction with the Halo 5 release.
A multiplayer beta was also released for testing, which has received positive response, which was to be expected given the series’ reputation for how well it delivers on online competitive modes.
Little more is know at this time about the game, though it is definitely a game which will define the future of the Xbox One.
8. Arkham Knight (June 23, 2015)
Said to be the concluding chapter for the Arkham series, Batman: Arkham Knight makes a spot on our list. The game features Gotham a year after the events of Arkham City. With Joker now dead, civilians feel safe and crime dramatically decreased until several of Batman’s greatest foes team up to take down the bat. Now Gotham hosts just criminals making the Gotham police outnumbered which means Batman is to once again save the day and return order.
Gamers can expect a larger map and new gadgets like the Batmobile to travel around the city. Many of the gadgets and the gameplay elements from the previous Arkham games return, including the grapnel gun, line launcher, batarangs, the countering system and detective vision.
Arkham Knight’s Gotham City is approximately five times the scale of the open-air Arkham City prison in Arkham City. The game takes place in the center of the city, which is split into three island areas, with various districts such as the neon-tinged Chinatown, and the industrial shipping yard.
The game will not feature a multiplayer component, as Hill explained: “This is a single-player game. There is no multiplayer. Right at the start this was our vision. It’s going to take all of our effort for all of this time. We don’t have the time to do multiplayer. [The team plans] to focus on making the best single-player experience we can. We don’t feel that it needs a multiplayer element.” Which is just fine, given the disappointing multiplayer mode in Arkham Origins.
9. Rise of the Tomb Raider (Q4 2015)
Lara Croft got her big reboot back in 2013 with Tomb Raider. The game showed off a younger inexperienced Lara Croft learning to survive and adapt to the adventurer that she’s meant to be. With Rise of the Tomb Raider, the game takes place after the events of the first title as Lara Croft is dealing with her trauma issues while having to go on yet another big adventure.
In order to prove she is not insane Lara becomes obsessed with finding the truth behind myths around the world. Rise of the Tomb Raider follows Lara Croft and Jonah Maiava as they search Siberia for the ancient city Kitezh, built by the Grand Prince of Vladimir in the 13th century, which Lara believes holds some truth behind immortality. In a race against Trinity, a well funded organization interested in the supernatural, Lara must survive against humans, animals, and the environment in order to find the truth behind the myths and become who she was destined to be.
The in-game environment will include a weather system that both human and animal characters can react to and a day-night cycle. For example, to create a hardier winter coat Lara must hunt a wolf which only comes out during a specific time of day and specific weather condition. Lara can swim which will add to Lara’s mobility and combat tactics.
10. Final Fantasy XV (TBA)
This is the fifteenth main installment in the Final Fantasy series (duh), and forms part of the Fabula Nova Crystallis subseries, which also includes Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Type-0.
It is a heavy departure from previous games, providing a darker atmosphere that focuses on more realistic human characters than previous entries. The game features an open-world environment and action-based battle system similar to the Kingdom Hearts series and Type-0, incorporating the ability to switch weapons and other elements such as vehicle travel and camping.
The game takes place in a world similar to modern-day Earth. The nations of the world once waged war over control of the world’s crystals, and all but the nation of Lucis have lost theirs and regressed to medieval societies. Noctis Lucis Caelum, Crown Prince of the kingdom of Lucis—having gained magical power from a near-death experience—is driven from his home when the empire of Niflheim invades Lucis on the eve of the final peace negotiations between the two nations. Now on the run with his companions, Noctis begins to work towards defeating the forces of Niflheim and rescuing the crystal from their control.
11. Fable Legends (2015)
A new Fables game is set to release this year known as Fable Legends. The game is set over 100 years before the events of the original trilogy. Over five characters are available to play through, with four being hero types and last being a villain type.
Each character comes with their own unique abilities and skill sets making how players progress through the game differently. Since there is no heroes guild yet, completing the game will require the help of the different heroes combined by either the AI or through multiplayer.
The villain player controls the nature of the quest the hero characters embark on, such as where enemies spawn, how aggressive they are, when the boss will come lumbering out of its lair, when to bring down an impassable portcullis or lay a trap to separate heroes from each other to thwart them. The Villain has a certain amount of “creature points”, which he uses during a setup phase to plan his strategy.
So, that’s it folks, and it’s quiet a bunch of games to be looking forward to. Let us know which ones are your favorites, and if we missed any. (Sadly, there’s still no Half-Life 3) For more on the latest in gaming, keep checking back at GamingCentral!
