We can look forward to another banner year for the gaming industry with new hardware incoming in the form of the Wii U and the PlayStation Vita as well as a strong slate of games due for release throughout 2012. See part one here. — Lance Harris, TechCentral
Halo 4 Xbox 360
Microsoft is set to kick off a new trilogy in the Halo series with Halo 4 — the first Halo game to be developed by 343 Industries. Super solider Master Chief and his AI sidekick Cortana will both be back, though few gameplay details have been disclosed as yet. Bungie’s sure touch with the franchise will probably be missed now that it has broken free from Microsoft’s hold, but 343 has some strong talent at its disposal including many former Bungie team members who have worked on Halo from the start.
Kid Icarus: Uprising Nintendo 3DS
It has been more than 20 years since Nintendo has released a new Kid Icarus game, so excitement is running for this title among the Nintendo faithful. Nintendo promises a fast and frantic blend of aerial and ground-based combat as angel Pit fights to save mankind from Medusa. There will be an extensive single-player campaign as well as online multiplayer.
The Last of Us PS3
Though the recent announcement of the PS3 exclusive, The Last of Us, caught everyone in the gaming industry by surprise, Naughty Dog has been secretly working on the game for more than two years. The survival-horror game follows a grizzled middle-aged man and a teenage girl with a striking resemblance to actress Ellen Page as they journey across an apocalyptic landscape.
The premise may not sound original, but Naughty Dog is promising an experience closer in tone to The Road and The Walking Dead than to Resident Evil. The third-person action game is sure to be another technical stunner from the studio that created and developed the PS3’s top exclusive franchise with the Uncharted series.
Mass Effect 3 Xbox 360, PS3, Windows
Bioware will bring its space opera trilogy about Commander Shepard’s struggle to save sentient life from the Reaper machine race to a rousing conclusion with Mass Effect 3. The decisions you made in the first two games will carry over to Mass Effect 3 in your save file, allowing you to see how your actions have affected the game’s universe. The action RPG will feature extensive improvements to the combat system as well as a new cooperative multiplayer mode separate from the single-player game.
Max Payne 3 Xbox 360, PS3, Windows
Though Max Payne 3 will not be developed by Max’s creator, Remedy Entertainment, the series is in safe hands with Rockstar Vancouver. Fans were outraged by early concept art of a bald and bearded Max, but Rockstar has since laid fears to rest that its game will stray too far from the noirish tone and style of the story-driven third-person shooter. The slow-motion bullet time and shoot-dodge mechanics will return, and Max Payne will feature a multiplayer mode for the first time ever.
Streetfighter X Tekken Xbox 360, PS3, PlayStation Vita, Windows
Two of the biggest fighting franchises in the world — Namco Bandai’s Tekken and Capcom’s Streetfighter — square off in the ring for the first time. If you have ever wondered who would win a fight between Chun-Li and Nina Williams or Ken Masters and Heihachi Mishima, here’s your chance to find out. Developed by Capcom, Streetfighter X Tekken will feature Streetfighter’s lightning quick 2D combat and attractive inked artwork as well as a massive roster of fighters from both franchises.
Tomb Raider Xbox 360, PS3, Windows
Gaming icon Lara Croft is given a reboot and a breast reduction in a game that takes heavy inspiration from the cinematic reinventions of James Bond in Casino Royale and Batman in Batman Begins. This grittier take on Tomb Raider will explore the life of the young Lara Croft before she grew into the invulnerable, cool as ice fortune hunter we know and love from countless games from the past 15 years. Expect classic Tomb Raider puzzles and platforming, paired with tighter combat and more exploration than the earlier titles offered.
AND THE REST
Late January and early February set the scene for a year of big-name sequels, with the likes of The Darkness 2, Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Soul Calibur V scheduled for release. Later in the year, Prey 2, Ninja Gaiden 3, Metro: Last Light and Far Cry 3 will join the inevitable annual entries in franchises such as Fifa and Call of Duty.
Reinvention and revival of franchises we haven’t seen for a while will be big news in 2012. Tactical classics XCOM and Syndicate are set to be recast in the first-person shooter mould while Hitman: Absolution promises a more a fluid experience than the older Hitman games.
Developer Ninja Theory will offer a Western take on Japanese hack ‘n slash series Devil May Cry while Platinum Games will develop Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance as an action spin-off from the Metal Gear Solid stealth series. And Electronic Arts’ much-loved snowboard game SSX will make its first appearance on the Xbox 360 and PS3.
Truly original games will be in short supply, though Devil’s Third from former Team Ninja honcho Tomonobu Itagaki, Suda 51’s Lollipop Chainsaw and thatgamecompany’s Journey will offer a break from the multitude of sequels, prequels, revivals and reboots.
This could also be the year that we finally see the long-awaited PS3 exclusive The Last Guardian from Sony’s Team ICO. It has been years in the making, made our most-anticipated list at the start of 2011, and is beginning to look like vapourware.
The Vita, Sony’ next-generation portable, also launches in February with a strong software line-up that includes the critically acclaimed Uncharted: Golden Abyss. The Wii U will almost certainly hit the shelves in at least some parts of the world by the end of 2012. We’ll probably hear more about Nintendo’s launch plans for the Wii’s successor at E3 in the middle of this year.
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