COMMENTARY | Typically the first couple months of each year are slow in terms of exciting video game releases. Major releases are usually scheduled for a summer or fall release, meaning the three months following Christmas don’t offer much to get excited about. This year however, thanks to the release of Xbox One and the Playstation 4 as well as some the release of a long awaited title, gamers have plenty to look forward to this spring.
South Park: The Stick of Truth
Having released a series of less-than-stellar officially-licensed games in the past, South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone have been directly involved in the role-playing game’s development from the start. The pair created a brand new story for the game which sees players take control of “new kid” as he engages in an imaginary battle with characters from the show.
Developer Obsidian Entertainment has worked in the title for more than two years and the few videos and pictures released so far show that the game actually looks players are controlling an episode of the hit TV show. Fans of the show have waited for years for a proper game about the show and this appears to finally be that game. The Stick of Truth hits Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC on March 4.
infamous 4: Second Son
After creating two hugely successful infamous titles on Playstation 3, Sucker Punch will present infamous: Second Son for the Playstation 4 on March 21. Set seven years after the conclusion of inFamous 2, this game features a new main character, but the same open-world exploration that made the first two entries in the series a success.
While not appears to have changed about the core gameplay, it will be interesting to see if this game will live up to the standards set by the two previous entries as its debuting on a new system.
Titanfall
The market for first-person shooters seems to be growing despite an overwhelming amount of titles being released in the last few years. Still, Titanfall will make a serious impact on the gaming world when released in March.
Developed by the minds that created Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Titanfall is a futuristic take on the FPS genre. Instead of controlling just a human, players have the ability to also control “Titans” which are heavily armored machine walkers. Titanfall features no single-player mode as the game is online multiplayer only and is exclusive to the Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC.
At the annual E3 convention, Titanfall won six E3 Critic’s Awards and provide something fresh for gamers who are tiring of the Call of Duty and Battlefield franchises. Titanfall will be released for Xbox One on March 11 and Xbox 360 on March 25.
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
A prequel that will actually offer more game play options and controls than previous Metal Gear entries, Ground Zeroes will actually offer players an open world experience for the first time in the series’ history. Gamers will once again control Snake as he conducts a special-ops mission in Cuba.
Unlike previous entries, games will also be able to choose the order in which they complete missions while still being able to follow the story arc of the game. Ground Zeroes will also serve as the lead-in game to Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.
