Octopath Traveler– July 13th, 2018
Console: Switch
As you might have guessed from the name, Octopath Traveler follows the storylines of eight different characters wandering the continent of Osterra. After you choose your starting character it’s up to you to explore the world and find the remaining seven potential party members in the various towns spread across the map. Each character has their own story with customizable skills and a turn-based play style as you take on dungeons and quests. From first impressions, one of the game’s strongest aspects is its unique Hi-Bit artstyle, and its call backs to traditional JRPG character sprites but with a background of high definition environments.
We Happy Few – August 10th 2018
Console: PS4, Xbox One, PC
We Happy Few started as a Kickstarter project, an increasingly familiar trend in the world of indie gaming. In an effort to be as transparent as possible, the game has been an early access Windows title since July 2016, but has shifted from rogue survival to narrative-driven gameplay.
Players will be immersed in the 1960’s within the fictional English city of Wellington Wells, where all inhabitants are addicted to the hallucinogenic drug ‘joy’ that keeps them in blissful ignorance about the truth of their world. A callback to the early 2000’s dystopian trend, We Happy Few comes across as a distinctly British take on Bioshock, calling back to the game both stylistically and through heavy environmental story elements.
There are three playable character options, each with a personal quest line that motivates them to stop taking ‘joy’ and catch the attention of the masked police force. An intriguing mixture of quirky 60’s nostalgia and Brave New World paranoia, We Happy Few will hopefully be an exciting addition to its genre.
Spider-Man – September 7th
Console: PS4
With the success of the MCU, a new generation of Marvel superhero games seems an obvious and fan-approved move. Spider-Man, as one of the most recognizable cross-media properties, was an obvious choice and coming off the success of Tom Holland’s portrayal cinematically, a timely one.
Peter Parker has been Spider-Man for over eight years in the game’s storyline, allowing players to jump right into a fully powered character instead of an overdone origin story. The villain lineup so far includes The Scorpion, Electro, Vulture, Rhino, Negative Man, and the highly anticipated appearance of Kingpin.
As any Spider-Man game fan knows the most crucial element of gameplay is the web slinging, especially in an open world. Insomniac games were very aware of this from early interviews and the consensus from the E3 2018 demo is that they nailed it. Combat seems to follow the superhero go-to of Batman: Arkham Asylum with combo chain brawling as well as a progression system to allow for more complex attacks as you level in the game. Rumors are also swirling that playable characters might include Mary Jane Watson and Miles Morales.
Red Dead Redemption 2 – October 26th, 2018
Console: PS4, Xbox One
Set before the first game, RDR2 will take place in 1899 during the height of the taming of the Old West. Players will play as Arthur Morgan, a debt collector for Dutch’s Gang of bank robbing outlaws, lead by the man himself Dutch van der Linde. Morgan is set to be a tougher and grittier version of the first game’s protagonist John Marston. These traits can only make the game’s core components of train heists, shootouts, and highway robbery that much more interesting.
One of the most praised aspects of the original was the gun combat, critical for a game where you play as a gunslinger. New additions include the ability to fan a firing pin, emptying all the bullets in your cylinder for major damage, and a quick draw mechanic to pull a gun without firing. Returning players will be happy to know that Rockstar has promised plenty of Easter Eggs for fans of the original and several beloved characters are likely to be given a second life.
Fallout 76 – November 14th, 2018
Console: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Fallout 76 follows in the most recent series entries by being a first person shooter, but this iteration is all about multiplayer. Solo play is an option but the game seems to be designed around surviving with friends out in the wasteland rather than roughing it on your own. While there is supposed to be some kind of main quest, the marketing thus far has focused heavily on being a lite survival game. It takes the familiar fallout mechanics of weapon degradation, radiation levels, and energy but with higher stakes. The promise right now is that there will be no human NPC’s in the game: every human you come across in the massive map will be another online player with NPC robots in charge of quest-giving. Player versus player can be turned off for a more friendly game style but Bethesda has hinted at a bounty system, incentivizing players to take out someone who might have a large number of kills under their belt. Preordering the game will give you access to the beta but as of right now no date for beta launch has been given. Confirmation has also been given by Bethesda that Xbox One players will have first access.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – December 7th, 2018
Console: Switch
The fifth standalone title in the Super Smash Bros series, Ultimate will feature reworked versions of every single character featured in any of the previous games. New fighters are being added such Ridley and the Inklings from Splatoon. Newcomer Daisy is going to be an ‘echo fighter’ of Peach. (Echo fighter being a new term for characters who have the almost identical moves as the characters they echo. Daisy was originally a repaint of Peach and has now become her own fighter.) Fan favorite stages will be returning such as Big Blue, Spirit Tracks, New Pork City, and Shadow Moses along with new stages like Great Plateau Tower from Breath of the Wild. Mechanics being added include a much shorter final smash which gets rid of the long drawn out animations and multiple new items like a fake smash ball and black hole.
