games / Columns
The Top 8 Game Announcements Of the Past Week
Image Credit: IO Interactive
Welcome all to another edition of The 8 Ball! I was originally going to conclude with my list of the best Xbox 360 games but since all the showcases and press stuff this week, I figure I should talk about that instead. I’ll get back to the Xbox 360 stuff in the next column. I didn’t watch every thing over the past week, I mainly just stuck with the big three shows, so I’m only drawing from that. I also am excited for Persona 4 Revival but it was such a short trailer, and the voice over cast being jettisoned does kind of put a sour taste in my mouth. Anyway, let’s begin:
#8: Atomic Heart 2
I’ll admit I didn’t play any of the first one. And the way that Geoff called this game a “spiritual sequel” really rubbed me raw, but this seemed interesting. I kind of got a Prey 2 vibe from this game, due to it looking like you might be some sort of bounty hunter. I severely hope the trailer song isn’t in the game, since it is overused, but it looked kind of like a more interesting world than the first one with more alien beings and such. So, let’s hope this one manages to pan out.
#7: Marvel Tokon Fighting Souls
I really want to like this game since it’s very much up my alley. I think my only bit of worry is that it might be too systems heavy for casual players. Arc System Works games are usually convoluted with some mechanics, in one shape or another, that makes it hard for new players to actually get good at them. Still, the art style looks nice, I really hope they just keep the Japanese voiceover work, and it’d be nice if there was a Marvel fighting game that had a good story and a long DLC plan, since Infinite had neither.
#6: Bloodstained: The Scarlet Engagement
It’s more Bloodstained, that’s really enough. It looks very similar to the first game but it looks like co-op, or at least some partner, is with you, so that might be cool. I devoured the first game so having more of this style of game at all is good. A lot of the other Metroidvanias they showed off this year were hit or miss but this one was a definite hit. The only problem is the name, where’s the musical terminology? It should be called “The Scarlet Ensemble”, or “A Scarlet Sonata”, or something cool like that. Come on IGA, don’t let your fans down.
#5: Romeo is a Dead Man
I’m a bit of two minds on this game. The actual intro looked great, and the sense of humor and bits of the story were good. Then I saw the gameplay, particularly the mall bits. It legitimately looks like they just used the mall areas from Dead Rising 1, and not the recent remaster of Dead Rising 1, the old 2006 version of the game. I’m not saying the game needs to be on the bleeding edge of graphical fidelity but a lot of Grasshoper games still look like they are from the Xbox 360 era and that, legitimately, is almost 20 years ago. Still, I’ll give it a shot when it comes out and I hope for it to be a surprise.
#4: Clockwork Revolution
When I watched this trailer, I legitimately thought it was the new BioShock project. Doesn’t it just kind of scream BioShock, particularly a sequel to Infinite? Still, like with Atomic Heart 2, it’s a bright and interesting looking FPS game. I kind of question how scripted it’s going to be, or if it might be a bit more open-world, because having cool time powers like that is always fun. Just look at Singularity if you want to see how. This is a pretty big departure for inXile Entertainment and I really hope it pans out for them.
#3: Super Meat Boy 3D
It never even occurred to me that Super Meat Boy could make the transition to a 3D space. I kind of expected it to always remain a 2D game and for that to be it. But, this looked great. It seemed fast and frantic, with a ton of humor thrown in. It’s good that the perspective also changes occasionally, it’s not just from going left to right but occasionally going up, or various other directions. I’m sure it’ll be filled with secrets for players to uncover also, they are usually good about that sort of thing. I just wish Danny B could come back for the soundtrack.
#2: 007 First Light
Hitman, as a franchise, is one I can respect but was never able to get into. They just felt really deliberate and I couldn’t get the rhythm down for them. So it was a surprise to me to think that First Light looked really good. While it was still a mostly CGI trailer, there were some gameplay bits in it that seemed a bit more action-oriented than the usual Hitman game. It also helps that the protagonist isn’t a largely mute guy, and that he has a personality and sense of humor about the situations he is in. Also, I think having this be about a younger Bond is a good choice; it won’t be tied to any of the movies and can be a bit of a fresh start for the character.
#1: Resident Evil Requiem
Yeah, how could Requiem not be number one? Honestly, I think it’s a bit funny that you are playing the daughter of a character from a game that almost no one has played. What, was Jake Muller too well known, or something? The important part to me, and like everyone else, is the return back to Raccoon City, which is something I never really considered before. From the trailer, it looks like a good chunk of the city has been obliterated but a lot of it is still standing, even if it is a wreck at this point. I’ll be really curious to see if/how this ties back into other Resident Evil stuff, the police station was shown but will any other locations revisited? Will players be able to go back to the Spencer Mansion? Or Gun Shop Kendo? It’s all pretty exciting to see just how much the city has changed in the almost 30 years since players first saw it, and, of course, the thermobaric missile that largely destroyed the place.
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For comments, list which games or news impressed you over the past week and why.
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Top 7 to 1 Xbox 360 Games
