It’s been an overwhelming year for video games — and it’s not finished yet! October and November are rammed with games from across the genres releasing on an almost daily basis. We’ve even had some titles delayed until next year to escape the madness, like the Alone in the Dark remake starring Jodie Comer and David Harbour, and some delayed indefinitely, such as Ubisoft’s FPS XDefiant, which risked being dwarfed by Call of Duty Modern Warfare III’s potential return to form.
Alongside a bunch of new releases, there are also some redemption arcs taking place. Add in some backlog and you’ve got the question – are there too many video games? The answer is NO! But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I’m finding it difficult to fit in everything I want to play. Having a full-time job and real-life responsibilities makes me yearn for the days of “study leave”. You all know what I’m talking about.
In a bit of a change of pace, I thought I’d cover what I’ve been playing and what I hope to play soon. Whether or not I manage to get through all of them is a different story.
Super Mario Bros Wonder – The Mario on drugs patter is a bit played out online but it’s clear to see why. Mario Wonder looks incredible. The last pure 2D Mario (New Super Mario Bros U) looks so sanitised and generic. Wonder looks the opposite. Nintendo rarely misses when it comes to Mario gameplay, so the combination of the look and gameplay of Wonder means it’s one of my most anticipated games of the year.
Spider-Man 2 – I loved Insomniac’s first Spider-Man game and the sequel being more of the same while adding Venom and other classic characters means I’ll most likely enjoy it just as much if not more. Web swinging is the most satisfying thing you can do in an open-world game. I’m slightly concerned at how the open world will play out, as I enjoyed the grind of it which ended up being most people’s biggest gripe with the original. I hope there’s still a lot of optional busywork to do.
Alan Wake II – It will be very difficult for Alan Wake II to fumble the top spot in my Game of the Year list. It’s a game I’ve been waiting years for and I’m still in a little bit of denial that it’s happening. I’ve been avoiding watching too much gameplay but from what I’ve seen (and read) it looks incredible. Survival Horror has become one of my favourite genres and mixing Alan Wake with it is a perfect recipe. I just hope Barry is safe and well.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III – I make my disappointment in Modern Warfare II no secret. Sledgehammer has reverted almost all of the decisions Infinity Ward made and after playing the beta, Call of Duty feels like Call of Duty again. With a Campaign that includes some free-roam missions and a new Treyarch Zombies experience, Call of Duty will once again have me in the palm of its hand.
I had the pleasure of writing down some of my thoughts on the experimental new Zombies mode—and some of the criticism surrounding it—for Gfinity. This was my first freelance gig, and I’m really happy with how it turned out. You can read it here: Modern Warfare 3 Zombies revolutionises a legacy of undead FPS (gfinityesports.com). Thanks to Jesse and the Gfinity team!
Sonic Superstars – Releasing so close to Mario Wonder puts Sonic in a bit of a weird position. I have a lot of nostalgia for the Sonic Advance series and get similar vibes from Superstars. From what I’ve played so far it’s been fun, but the price tag was very steep for a 2D Sonic. Certainly not high on my priority list at the minute but one I’m likely to return to.
World of Horror – I’ve been anticipating World of Horror since discovering a Switch port was on the way but I have trying to keep myself in the dark as much as possible regarding how the game works. I know that there’s rogue-like elements and the art style looks right up my street, but apart from that I’m going to be going in blind. Really interested to see how it all works and hopefully one that I can pick up and play for a short period compared to some of the other mammoth games on this list.
Halo Infinite– I played a lot of Halo Infinite at launch but 343’s sluggish approach to live service meant that there just wasn’t enough there to keep me — and many other players — around. A lot of changes at the studio, both in management and direction, has meant the game finally seems to be turning its fortunes around. The implementation of Forge has increased the amount of content available tenfold, with forge maps now being part of matchmaking. Being able to still access all of the previous battlepasses also means there’s a lot of gear to grind for with no deadline. I can play when I want, and know that anything I’m working towards will be there when I’m ready to unlock it. More live service games should do this.
Cyberpunk 2077 Starfield wasn’t quite doing it for me. While I enjoyed some aspects, the space simulator stuff wasn’t quite what I expected. I was looking for quest after quest of interesting characters, dialogue, and gameplay choices. Starfield does have these things, but the game feels too bloated. I’ll definitely return to it, but…
I decided to give Cyberpunk another go since I never got around to sending away my copy for a refund following its disaster of a launch. It’s giving me everything I wanted from Starfield without the bloat. So far I’ve spent 20-30 hours on it and haven’t even accessed the Phantom Liberty DLC stuff yet. It could’ve come at a better time, but I’m loving it!
EA FC 2024 – EA’s first football title without the FIFA licence is mainly as expected. However, cross-play has finally come to Pro Clubs, which has allowed some of my pals to reach across the console divide and finally shake hands. Pro Clubs is something I’ve come back to time and time again for roughly fourteen years at this point — it’s tradition.
That wraps up my list for now. There are likely others I’m missing but I’m off to get cracking on some of these games!