The Fall season for video games is always stacked, with a little bit for every game to enjoy. Our team takes a look ahead to what they’re most excited to play!
Just as we did with the movie side of things, today, we’re taking a look at the upcoming video games releasing in the last part of 2021. From shooters, to strategy, and everything in between, there’s a whole lot to look forward to. Even so, we forced our gaming team to limit themselves to just FIVE games they’re most excited to play through the rest of the year:
[Editor’s Note: Our staff contributed their picks BEFORE Gamescom, which revealed a couple titles have been pushed into 2022.]
Jordan
Guardians of the Galaxy – Though I never could get myself into the Avengers game that launched last year, everything I’ve seen from the Guardians of the Galaxy game looks like exactly what I’ve been wanting. Between the gameplay, the RPG aspects, and ability to make decisions that affect the game, it looks like a ridiculously fun time. Almost like a Mass Effect, but with superheroes we know and love. Sign me up!
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp – My hype for Advance Wars making a return knows no bounds. These were some of my favorite strategy games when I was younger, as they managed to deliver on a legitimate, and deep, strategy experience on the go. Wargroove on the Switch was a fantastic substitute, but it’ll be great to see the franchise return. Hopefully these remakes will reignite interest in the series and eventually bring us brand new Advance Wars games!
Riders Republic – I’m, generally, not big on sports games, but I absolutely love extreme sports titles. On top of that, I REALLY enjoyed Ubisoft’s Steep and felt it had much more to offer than what people thought/expected. Riders Republic is essentially a follow-up to that title, though it feels like they’re marketing it for what it is a bit better this time around. With the addition of new sports, there should be something for everyone to enjoy!
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl – It shouldn’t be very shocking to find the latest Pokemon title make it onto my list, but I genuinely can’t wait to get my hands on these. Diamond and Pearl on the DS were the Pokemon titles that got me back into the franchise (having really only played the originals before that) and sucked me in completely. As such, I’m eager to see how it holds up, and what the new changes will bring to the table.
Jurassic World Evolution 2 – Gamescom confirmed the Jurassic World park builder will arrive this November, and based off the gameplay I’ve seen, my body is ready. While the first game had some issues, the various expansions improved the overall experience and it looks like the developers are hitting the ground running with this sequel. I’m excited to get the chance to see some “story” that happens beyond the last film and play around with the new dinosaurs!
Matt
Kena: Bridge of Spirits – I don’t know if there are enough words to describe my excitement for Kena: Bridge of Spirits. From the moment it was announced, this Dreamworks Animation-looking game has been at the top of my most anticipated list. Everything that’s been shown in later footage be if gameplay, concept, story, and otherwise has only heightened my excitement. I don’t anticipate it being a very long game but I do hope it’s as enriching as it looks.
Deathloop – I’ll admit that when Deathloop was first announced, I wasn’t all that impressed. The concept seemed cool, but it felt like it might be overly repetitive. However, the most that’s come out about the game, it really does feel like a 80s-90s James Bond inspired game – credit to S0LEB for pointing that out to me. You can go in guns blazing or sneak around in an effort to eliminate all the targets responsible for keeping you in a time loop. That right there already sounds pretty cool. I’m not sold on the online feature of being invaded by friends and online players to ruin your game, though. Feels too much like Watch Dogs in that aspect and I hated that feature. I’m intrigued to see how they navigate it.
Lost Judgment – Let’s get this out of the way. Judgment is a significantly underrated game. The Yakuza series gets all the love, as well it should, but too many people slept on Judgment. I’m thrilled that SEGA and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios greenlit a sequel. In this sequel, the world is expanded to include both Kamurocho and Ijincho. Plus, the murder mystery in this game appears to be darker and more dangerous than what we witness in the first game. I can’t wait!!
Metroid Dread – SAMUS IS BACK! Wow that’s so exciting to write. It’s been far too long since we’ve had a Metroid game. So long that I’m pretty sure most kids think Samus is from Super Smash Bros. Thankfully, Samus has a new planet to explore in what looks to be a rather haunting experience. Plus, they’re going back to the traditional 2D style that made the series famous. It’s gonna be so good!…hopefully
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy – I have gone on record several times in saying that Square Enix knocked it out of the park at E3 2021. One of the biggest reasons why is the opening announcement of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. No one could’ve possibly seen this coming, but I’m so glad it did. The game follows the Guardians on a brand new original adventure that’ll take them all over the system meeting and fighting some of Marvel’s great interstellar characters. The humor is everything you’d expect from these characters, the action looks really fun, and the replay ability is definitely a highlight as your choices lead to different outcomes. It’s a choose your own adventure game I can’t wait to play!
Rob
I’m not really looking forward to any games right now. I am looking forward to getting an actual freakin console though! My number one wanted console is the PS5, I’ve been buying them since the first one and the fanboy in me will continue buying them. Of course due the scarcity of being able to get my hands on a PS5 this is the first year I’ve ever contemplated even getting an Xbox.
So naturally finding a Xbox Series X is also as hard to get my hands on just like the PlayStation. I’d even go as far as to get the newer Switch OLED model that releases later this year but with my current luck I probably won’t be able to get one of those either.
Becky
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl: As someone who missed out on the chance to play Diamond or Pearl when i was growing up, I’m beyond excited to get to play either one in just a few months. I’ve been crazy about Pokemon for years and these remakes are a dream come true for me, since they give me the chance to finally live out my Pokemon master dreams.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga: I admit it, I refuse to give up on the idea that we will see LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga released this year. Until such time as the release date is announced to be in 2022, I will hold out hope that the game is coming this holiday season. I love the LEGO games and the LEGO Star Wars games in particular have been really fun to play, and I remain excited to see how the stories have been reworked for this new edition. I’m also really glad it’s not the same levels remastered for a new game.
SOLEB
Deathloop (PlayStation 5, PC) – Sep 14, 2021
Arkane Studios has been known for making some of the top mind-bending games, but their newest IP “Deathloop” takes the cake when we speak about mind-bending action. In this game, you play as Colt, an assassin trapped on the time-looped island of Blackreef with the task of taking down eight key targets. This might seem like a simple task, but you must always remember if you die your journey starts all the way over at the beginning of the day.
You won’t only have to go head to head with these targets and their lackeys, but also face off against a very skilled assassin named Julianna Blake. Her only task on the island is to stop you from killing the eight key targets. What will make this aspect of the game more interesting is your friend can join your game as Julianna at any point in time, giving you a larger challenge than normal.
This concept has been used in games before, but if there’s any studio that can get this task done, it would be Arkane Studios. With Bond like art style, Classic action music, amazing powers, and some badass gone, this game is a must have for any FPS action adventure fan out there!
Far Cry 6 (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia, PC, Mac) – Oct 7, 2021
Back 4 Blood (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC) – October 12
Battlefield 2042 (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC) – Oct 22, 2021
Dying Light 2 Stay Human (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC) – Dec 7, 2021
Katy
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl: I will forever and always buy a mainline Pokemon title and that’s been a fact since 1998. I am doubly a sucker for the remakes — from Kanto and now to Sinnoh. I’m not going to lie when I say that Gen 4 was historically my least favorite generation, but I am ready to give it a proper shot on November 19.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits: I am among many at Cinelinx stoked for Kena. I was hooked at first sight between gorgeous visuals and intriguing mechanics, and have been enamoured every time it’s been included in showcases through the years. It’s been delayed a couple of times and my fingers are crossed its September 21 release date is set in stone.
Monster Harvest: This adorable pixel-art merge between Stardew Valley and Pokemon caught my eye ages ago and is set to launch on August 31st. I am a sucker for both farming sims and monster-taming games so it’s a no brainer I’ll be picking it up when it releases at the end of the month.
Shin Megami Tensei 5: I played quite a lot of SMT4 when it launched in 2013 on the 3DS even though it was my first entry into the series. Atlus Games has a great track record with RPG franchises between Persona and Etrian Odyssey and with titles under their belt like Catherine, Radiant Historia and Dragon’s Crown, I have no doubts that SMT5 will be worth the wait when it launches on November 11th.
Dustin
Far Cry 6 – I’ve been wanting this game for a long time now, one of the best series that Ubisoft has left and I can’t wait to see where the team goes with the franchise. I was so disappointed when the delay happened, but I guess it gave me something to really look forward to at the end of the year. It’s honestly probably the one game that really wanted me to get a next generation console, and finally we are getting our hands on it.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits – The only game I’m more excited than Far Cry to get is Kena, and it’s by a small unknown studio that could be going in any direction. However it’s extremely hard to overlook just how breathtaking this game looks every single time they show it off. Not just visually, but the animations, the presentation, everything just feels perfect and I get so pumped every time it’s shown. I’m disappointed it so far is not listed as a physical release, I feel that is a huge missed opportunity. This game needs to be in front of people at GameStop and major retailers, and I’m absolutely ready to hand over a bundle of money for some type of special edition.
Tormented Souls – The game comes out next week for PS5, so I’m just in time here! If you haven’t already, check out the demo they released and see why I’m so excited. The game is literally an old school style horror title, like old Resident Evil games. And I don’t mean that in any negative way. The game is designed to be like this and they did an absolutely perfect job at it. It looks amazing, but also has a nostalgic feel to it along with great horror elements blended all throughout. It’s been a long time since a demo totally sold me on a game, I’m so happy they released it. (Note it releases next week on PS5, and in October for PS4 and other consoles. It’s again a small studio so they needed to split their time on each.)
Dying Light 2 – If this game actually releases as planned later in December I think we have a potential Game of the Year winner. The game is big in scope, every time they talk about it they need to break down just one aspect. I love that, I love the idea that there is so much more to do in this world that already has a ton of stuff to do. The gameplay looks awesome, and the traversing of the city looks absolutely thrilling.
Edge of Eternity – A small game again that I believe is on PC already, but it’s coming to PS5 later this year. I love open world JRPG games, the only real downfall is the turn based combat. I’m a button smasher that loves action, but it still looks like a thrilling story and over 50 hours of gameplay to be had, so it’s probably a game ill be sitting in for a long time when it releases.
Honorable Mention: Deathloop, alright it looks interesting…. Even though it’s an Xbox studio making it….. Inside joke here.
