The Games That Will Make 2013 Awesome

January:
Anarchy Reigns
The long awaited sequel to the fantastically bloody Wii title, Mad World, hits consoles and promises to be even more bloody, more violent, more colorful, more multiplayer, and less waggly.

The Cave
While they're finding ways to spend all 3.3 millions dollars on their Kickstarter adventure game, Double Fine teamed up with Sega to release a puzzle/platformer called The Cave.  If it's anything like their previous titles, it should be just as charming and humorous.

Ni No Kuni: The Wrath of the White Witch
I absolutely love anything that Studio Ghibli churns out. So when I heard that they teamed up with Level 5, creators of the Professor Layton series, to make an RPG with an original story AND a definite North American release date, I nearly entered a comatose state just imagining getting my hands on a game that's dedicated to gameplay just as much as telling a great tale.


February:
Fire Emblem: Awakening
The Fire Emblem series enters Nintendo's newest generation with the apparent return of Marth.  Also you'll get to kill undead soldiers as Marth . . . in 3D!

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

While playing Metal Gear Solid 4, I thought how cool it would be to play a fast-paced action game starring cyborg Raiden. Then Hideo Kojima unveiled Metal Gear Solid: Rising that would have you play as Raiden and would bridge together the events of MGS2 and MGS4. Then nothing. And more nothing. Then it was revealed that the game had actually been canceled! But luckily for us, the fine folks at Platinum Games took up the reigns of the development process and thus the oddly named Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance was born.  The game now looks to take the over-the-top hack n' slash route and while its place in MGS canon is still debatable it looks to be a hell of a lot more CRAZY than that dumb DmC reboot.


Rayman Legends

Rayman Origins was a surprise hit for me back in 2011.  Ubisoft made a cooperative multiplayer platformer that is actually enjoyable unlike those hacks at Nintendo with their New Super Mario Bros. games.  The Wii U exclusive not only looks to bring more of that glorious platform but gamepad elements that actually look fun. A lot more than those Nintendo hacks can pull off. PFFT!


March:
Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon
I have no idea why it took Nintendo twelve entire years to make a sequel to this game but they have finally come to their senses and continued the tale of Luigi's real estate escapades. There will also be an odd multiplayer addition which means 4 times the Luigi!

South Park: The Stick of Truth
I find South Park to be a pretty great show so for me hearing that Obsidian is joining forces with Matt Stone and Trey Parker to make an RPG was pretty similar to me finding out about Ni No Kuni except replace beauty and magic with Crab People and Jew jokes. Although the death of THQ and the game's acquisition by Ubisoft hopefully will not disrupt its release.

TBD:
Pokemon X & Y

Remember back playing Pokemon Red/Blue and thinking to yourself "Wouldn't it would be neat if they made an awesome 3D Pokemon game?"  Well, our childhood dreams have come true with the latest Pokemon generation and it might actually get me to play a Pokemon game since Gold/Silver came out.  I might even be willing to endure all the stupid new Pokemon designs that they've unimaginatively mustered up.


Killer Is Dead
WOAH! It's like it's No More Heroes, mixed with Killer 7, mixed with a little Shadows of the Damned.  Basically, it's everything that defines Suda 51's style wrapped up into one thrilling looking title.

Animal Crossing: New Leaf
When I played Animal Crossing for the Gamecube, I was devoted to that game. I did everything; I collected all the bugs, caught all the fish, paid off my home, designed the coolest shirts, and pitfalled the most annoying neighbors.  I haven't played an Animal Crossing game since then on the count of me not being able to find enough time. So with New Leaf being released on the 3DS, I felt it would allow me to dedicate a ton of time with the game as I could take it anywhere.

Bayonetta 2
With all the butthurt that surrounded Platinum Games' reveal that Bayonetta 2 would be a Wii U exclusive, it's not going to just be about playing a climaxing sequel; it's also going to be fun watching everybody boycotting and hating a game that they can't even play.

Grand Theft Auto V
My favorite GTA game is San Andreas due to the huge map that allowed for maximum exploration, something I enjoy doing more than the actual missions. GTAV brings the game back to Los Santos with Rockstar promising a map bigger than the worlds of GTAIV, San Andreas and Red Dead Redemption combined.

Pikmin 3
How great would it feel to play a Pikmin game with a touch screen, being able to point where your Pikmin will be thrown; RTS style. Thanks to Nintendo, we'll soon be able to realize that feeling.

The Wonderful 101

The Wii U drought ends with Platinum Games' interesting puzzle/brawler that has you control 101 super heroes that form together to create different objects like a sword or a ladder.  Also the main character looks and sounds an awful lot like Viewtiful Joe, perhaps a throwback to Platinum's original gig as Clover Studios.

E3 2012 Recap

Wow, what a disappointing year for gaming.  E3 failed to impress by miles. 

Microsoft:

Microsoft opened up, of course, with Halo 4.  Master Chief is shown kicking the ass of some aliens that look an awful lot like creatures from Metroid Prime.  Halo 4 looks pretty fun with Cortana going crazy and all and it gives hope to a promising showcase from Microsoft . . .

BUT THEN NOTHING!

For the rest of the show they don’t present any more video games or at least video games to care about.  We did get some weird cryptic messages from PixelJunk and some 3D Angry Birds but other than that it was just Apps, Apps, Apps, turn your MS devices into a Wii U gamepad, Kinect, Kinect and of course Usher.  They literally “Ushered” in a golden age of gaming with a 15 minute dance off.

They did show Black Ops 2, but I honestly couldn’t care less about the Call of Duty franchise anymore.  It’s scary to think that Microsoft assumes that this is the path the video game industry should take.  Microsoft’s conference succeeded in proving that their first priority isn’t the games, it’s all of the peripherals and apps that they shoved down our throats for an hour.  It was an embarrassment and may God have mercy on their souls.

+Halo Prime
-apps
-Kinect
-1-minute pixeljunk trailer with nothing to go off
-Usher

Microsoft Grade:  D

EA:

Jesus Christ how horrifying, this moment was prophesized by the ancients.  The Doomsday is upon us. How could we let it get this far?  It is our doing, these are our sins.  We must repent.  God will come to reap the sinners.

Crysis 3 looked pretty cool, though

+Crysis 3
-sports
-DLC up the ass
-The Old Republic damage control (haha we all know that game is crap)
-nothing else
EA Grade:   F

Ubisoft:

Now Ubisoft knows how to throw a press conference.  If you ignore the awkward bantering from the host Aisha Tyler, you will be immersed in trailer after trailer, demo after demo of yes, ACTUAL GAMES!!!! 

Farcry 3 looks gorgeous and I’m not just talking about the boob groping.  Sure the gameplay isn’t too unique but the demo did prove that aesthetics and story can take a presentation a long way.  I loved the constant insane banter of the terrorist leader as the player killed hordes of his mercenaries.

Not being a huge fan of Splinter Cell, the demo for Black List impressed me.  It reminds me of a cross between Assassin’s Creed and Metal Gear Solid.  The trailer for Avengers: Battle for Earth showed off a fight between Wolverine & Venom, and Spider-man & Magneto.  Then you see the Avengers atop a building looking on as the Skrull invasion begins.  Awesome.

I was surprised that they had an entire section dedicated to the Wii U even before Nintendo’s conference had begun.  They showed off Rayman Legends which nicely incorporated the Gamepad.  The run through of the church level with that badass version of “Chasing A Dream” had me convinced that I was buying this game at launch.  While the trailer for ZombiU looked promising  it didn’t really do much for me.  It kind of looks like what Ubisoft tried to do with Red Steel for the Wii; showing off the gimmicks while ignoring gameplay.

The big trailer was Assassin’s Creed 3 which had Connor mess up some damn red coats in a beautiful trailer much like last year’s for Revelations.  The demo that followed showed off how AC3 is just like the rest in the series.  It’s not a bad thing it’s just there wasn’t too much that differentiated it from Altair or Ezio’s adventures except it’s in Murrikah now!

Then there was some MLG sort of deal  that I didn’t give a damn about.  But after that was the demo that everyone is still talking about.  Watch Dogs.  The trailer showed some guy using his cell phone to hack the city up!  He hacks the bouncers’ phones so he can sneak in a club then beats the crap out of another one with a baton.  After a bit, he hacks a street light causing a huge crash and a giant gunfight erupts.  He easily takes his targets out while a gas station explodes behind raining embers around the street.  Watch Dogs looks to blend stealth, action, puzzle solving, shooting, open world exploration in a way that made my mouth water.  Watch Dogs definitely takes the prize as biggest surprise of e3.

+Watch Dogs
+Splinter Cell
+Rayman Legends
+Wii U showcase
+Assassin’s Creed 3
+Left the sports and fitness stuff to a quick montage
+Avengers
-awkward host
-not a lot of surprises/most of it we’ve already heard about

 Ubisoft Grade: B

Sony:

Sony offered a mixed bag of goodies for their presentation.  Nothing mind blowing but hey at least they had games (or movies.)  Sony opened up with Quantic Dream’s Beyond, the successor to their 2010 hit Heavy Rain.  It stars Ellen Page as Jodie Holms, a young girl with psychic powers (or a ghost friend I'm not entirely sure).  The trailer was an interesting look into the game but unfortunately it did not show any gameplay whatsoever.  Nonetheless, I’m excited for it.

Sony then failed to impress with their demo of Sony All-Stars Battle Royale.  There was absolutely nothing new other than the reveal of Nathan Drake and Big Daddy.  As much of a fan as I am of the Super Smash Bros. series, I can’t seem to get myself excited for this title.  It just appears to be a blatant copy that lacks the charm of the Smash series and it’s going to take a lot more hype from Sony to get me interested in this game.

The gameplay for The Last of Us showed a lot of what the game is about; surviving in a dying world as you and your partner work together to keep on surviving to the next day.  The dialogue is plentiful and the action is perfectly balanced with moments of silence as you assess the conundrum of whether or not to enter a decaying hotel despite the dangers that lie in wait.  The demo succeeded in building hype and I’m actually looking forward to more news regarding it.

Then there were 15 minutes of Move story book nonsense that no one could seem to get to work just right.  The mediocre presentation ended with a demo of God of War Ascension which was underwhelming to say the least.  The demo showed off Kratos generically fighting off goat and elephant men in his usual fashion.  Now, God of War 3 started out with the epic punishment and brutal death of God of the Sea in one of the greatest video game intros of all time.  Then we go to him having trouble fighting a man sized elephant.  Yeah, my hype level has hit an all-time low.

+Beyond
+The Last of Us
-Sony Smash Bros.
-God of War Ascension failed to impress
-Move story book time!
-No news on how they will save the Vita from its inevitable death

Sony Grade:  C

Nintendo:

I’ll be honest, I was fan-boy levels of hyped going into Nintendo’s conference and the intro didn’t disappoint.  Miyamoto did an adorable skit about Pikmin and voila, they showed the first video of Pikmin 3!  The beautiful environments, those adorable Pikmin, that Wii U gamepad integration, it was all there.  Yes, Pikmin 3 quickly became the star of Nintendo’s conference especially since nothing else worthwhile showed up.

The only other good game they showed was New Super Mario Bros. U with its gorgeous backgrounds and familiar gameplay.  Unfortunately nothing new came to the show.  No surprises at all.   No Star Fox/Metroid crossover rumor.  No big first party titles to get everybody amped for the Wii U.  Nothing.  They even pushed aside the 3DS conference for the next day to show off the Wii U games but there was no point since they spent half the conference talking about how cool Nintendo Land will be and it is obviously not.  I don’t need a ten minute tutorial on how to play a mini-game.  I knew how to play in the first 20 seconds they showed it. Yet, they kept beating it into our brains as if they wanted so hard for us to like such a crappy concept.  No I didn’t like it so stop talking about it please.

Reggie then came onto the stage and said “Now let’s finish with . . .”  WITH WHAT?  A SURPRISE!?!?!?  YES PLEASE REGGIE!!!  “One more walk through the theme land that is Nintendo Land.”  And all it showed was fireworks.  Nothing else.  My heart sank.  I was devastated. I didn’t think I could look at Nintendo the same way again.  It was the MOST disappointing conference at e3. 

What boggles my mind is that they had an awesome third party game called Project P-100 which is an insane blend of Pikmin and Viewtiful Joe made by Platinum Games.  And they didn’t show it until after the conference!!!!  That would have fit perfectly in their hour of show time but I guess they couldn’t cut out a little Nintendo Land time for a game that could have possibly saved their presentation.

The Wii U comes out this holiday and yet Nintendo refuses to bring out their A-game.  I don’t understand it.  They have almost nothing to look forward to with the launch of the Wii U except for Pikmin 3, Rayman Legends, and New Super Mario Bros. U.  As much as I like Batman: Arkham City, I will NOT buy it again for the Wii U.  Everybody who is interested in the least bit in Arkham City or Mass Effect  3 have already bought it and played it.  Nintendo offered little to nothing to in these ports.  They didn’t even explain how Assassin’s Creed 3 or Darksiders 2 will be better on Wii U.  If the fans want the same game without buying a whole new console they’ll buy these games for the system they already have.  It’s a dangerous path Nintendo is taking and I just hope they can make it out on top in the end. 

+Pikmin 3
+Reggie’s body was ready
+New Super Mario Bros. U
+Wasn’t bad enough to deter me away from getting a Wii U
-Nintendo Land
-3DS pushed aside
-Didn’t explain how the ports will be better
-No surprises
-No Zelda/Metroid/Star Fox/ F-Zero/Donkey Kong or anything
-They don’t know what they hell they’re doing with the Wii U

Nintendo Grade:  C





Overall e3 Grade:  C