Though some really amazing games have been released so far this year, nothing substantial has come to satisfy the trigger-happy. Well, despair no longer, and hold back that inner rage, because pretty soon the following shooters will hit the shelves and your foes will hit the floor. Well, in-game, that is.
Rainbow Six Siege
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege is a first-person tactical shooter, in which players take control of an operator from the Rainbow team, a counter-terrorist unit. Different operators have different nationalities, perks, abilities and equipment. For instance, an operator named Twitch is equipped with a drone that can stun enemies with electric shock, while Smoke has the ability to detonate poison gases around, which can effectively lower the health of enemies in the affected areas. As a result, the game features anasymmetrical structure.
Each side also gain access to a “Recruit”, whose gears and gadgets can be customized by players to meet the requirement of a match. Players can only play as one of the classes in a match, and cannot be switched throughout. Powerful weapons, like grenades and breach charges are valuable, as their number are limited under the system. Team-work is encouraged in Siege, and players are tasked to integrate their abilities to eliminate their enemies. Communications between players are also encouraged.
Players can plan their attack before a match begins. The attackers have the ability to send drone to detect the environment and to find the enemies and targets they are seeking for, while the defenders could fortify certain areas to prevent attackers’ attack. The attackers can pick from multiple locations to deploy their attacks.
Call of Duty Black Ops III
Call of Duty: Black Ops III takes place in a dystopian future set in 2065, 40 years after the events of Black Ops II. Several countries around the world have developed high-tech air defenses that render air assaults useless. As such, most of the warfare between countries is done by covert operatives fighting behind enemy lines. Science and technology have radically changed both the landscape as well as the future of the human race, with society violently protesting and attempting to halt further advancements touted by scientists as “progress”.
Military technology has progressed to the point where robotics play a main role in combat, and supersoldiers have been developed to fight in the battlefield. Humans have reached the point where they are considered to be more machine than flesh and blood. As a result, there is speculation and fear about an eventual robotic takeover. The game will follow a team of black ops soldiers, like previous installments in the Black Ops series, with supersoldier capabilities.
The campaign, multiplayer and the Zombies mode of Black Ops III have been overhauled. The campaign supports 4-player cooperative gameplay, a customizable soldier, whose gender can be selected by players, and more open arena gameplay that allows players to use multiple ways to complete levels. The Multiplayer introduces a new movement system, a new class system called “Specialists”, where players can pick from 9 different soldiers with different abilities and a new “Gunsmith” feature that allows for weapon customization combinations and also a Camo Designer. Zombies mode also returns in Black Ops III. Zombies will contain story and multiplayer modes, both of which featuring a new XP progression system.
Doom
Doom is the upcoming reboot of the Doom series by id Software following the release of its last title, Doom 3, in 2004. The game takes place on Mars, where the UAC Corporation have been discovering artificial symbols that marked Mars and bring demons from Hell.
Doom is a first-person shooter which has “badass demons, big effing guns, and moving really fast” as key principles, according to id Software executive producer Marty Stratton. The game features a large arsenal of weapons, which can be collected and freely switched by players throughout the game. Many classic weapons, including the super shotgun and BFG 9000, make a return.
In addition, melee weapons such as the chainsaw, which can cut enemies in half, are also featured. Many enemies from the original games like the Revenant, Mancubus, and Cyberdemon return as well, some of them redesigned. As the combat system of the game puts emphasis on momentum and speed, the game allows players to perform movements like sprinting and double-jumping.
Halo 5: Guardians
Halo 5: Guardians is the upcoming ninth installment in the Halo franchise. It is the second game in the Reclaimer Saga and continues the story of the Master Chief. Halo 5: Guardians was formally announced on May 16, 2014 by 343 Industries General Manager Bonnie Ross. Ross describes Halo 5: Guardians as a bigger effort than the preceding Halo 4 in terms of the content and scope of the game as well as the technology underpinning it.
The game’s engine is said to have been completely retooled to take full advantage of the Xbox One’s hardware and ecosystem; according to Frank O’Connor, the engine is all-new apart from a number of core features retained from the previous one.
Halo 5: Guardians is set to feature the largest ensemble cast of characters in any Halo game yet, with both new and returning characters. The primary protagonist of the Halo series, Spartan-II supersoldier Master Chief Petty Officer John-117, returns in Halo 5: Guardians following the end of Halo 4.
It has been noted that John has begun to question all of his former beliefs and has disappeared following the events of “The Next 72 Hours”, a story arc of the comic series Halo: Escalation during which he reunites with his long-time Spartan-II unit Blue Team, comprising Kelly-087, Fred-104 and Linda-058. Halo 5: Guardians marks the in-game debut of Blue Team, who will fight alongside the Master Chief throughout the campaign.
In the beginning of the campaign, set eight months after the end of Halo 4, Blue Team will still be operating under the UNSC, although they decide to go AWOL soon after for an unspecified reason. The second mission, “Blue Team”, has them investigating an ONI research
vessel called Argent Moon, which has been occupied by Jul ‘Mdama’s Covenant forces.
Star Wars Battlefront
Star Wars Battlefront is an upcoming action video game based on the Star Wars franchise. The third major release in the Star Wars: Battlefront series, it is being developed by EA DICE and will be published by Electronic Arts.
Star Wars Battlefront is an action game played from either a first-person or third-person view; players can switch at any time, similarly to the previous games. Players traverse planets from the Star Wars universe, such as Endor, Hoth, Tatooine and the newly introduced planet of Sullust. To navigate the world, players use a variety of vehicles, including both air and land-based vehicles. Battles are planet-based, restricting players from exploring space.
The game’s weapons, characters, gear and abilities are customizable. As new weapons are unlocked, players have the ability to share them with their teammates. Battlefront will not feature iron sights. The game lets players choose to control either a Rebel Alliance soldier or an Imperial Stormtrooper. There will also be playable characters from the films, such as Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker and Boba Fett, as well as non-playable characters, such as R2-D2 and C-3PO.
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 on consoles. The game’s online multiplayer mode supports up to 40 players in one match and 12 multiplayer maps will be available at launch. These maps will feature five locations from the Star Wars universe – Hoth, Tatooine, Endor, Sullust and Jakku.
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