The arrival of next-gen consoles introduced new life in the gaming industry. The premise is simple, with new consoles comes along the expectation for new titles. And while Sony and Microsoft made plenty of announcements worthy of hype, most of them were delayed into the not-so-near future. That means that, truly, there isn’t enough exclusive content in either platform to justify purchasing one, however, 2021’s second semester looks promising, for all gamers. Here are some upcoming titles for your enjoyment:
12 Minutes
Platforms: Windows, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One Release: August 19, 2021
This upcoming title is an interactive thriller that tells the story of a man trapped in a time loop. While sharing a romantic evening with your wife, a mysterious cop invades your home, accuses your wife of murder, and beats you to death. Of course, you come back before the incident time and time again, while you attempt to change the outcome of the evening.
The game looks beautiful, and unique with its top-down birds-eye view. 12 Minutes isn’t only the name of the game, but the actual real-time counter of the interactions. Starring James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley, and Willem Dafoe, expectations regarding voice-acting, and script are very high.
Metroid Dread
Platforms: Nintendo Switch Release: October 8, 2021
Metroid Dread is the latest entry of the Metroid franchise, the game was originally scrapped somewhere in the mid-2000s, but now it is officially revamped and set for release. The title will take players back to the 2D platformer origins of Samus and the Metroid creatures. Yoshio Sakamoto the game’s creator stated that this new journey will take players to the end of Samus story arc, which fans of the critically acclaimed series can look forward to in the next couple of months.
Halo Infinite
Platforms: Windows, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One Release: TBC 2021
Microsoft’s pride and joy makes a return in 2021, the game which was meant to be a launch title was delayed and now is rumored to be released for holidays this year. As the sixth game of the franchise, Halo Infinite will see Master Chief once more as the protagonist, on what has been advertised as his greatest adventure to save humanity. While there has been some controversy surrounding the game’s visuals, Microsoft always invests heavily in their Halo titles, and with the most powerful console in recent memory at their reach players can expect a spectacle. In addition to that, Microsoft will offer the game’s multiplayer portion as free-to-play, potentially creating an interesting competitive scene.
Back 4 Blood
Platforms: Windows, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One Release: October 12, 2021
What is being deemed as the spiritual successor to Valve’s critically acclaimed Left 4 Dead series, is probably the best zombie-slaying title we will get this year. The original Left 4 Dead creators are behind the new title, meaning Back 4 Blood will probably deliver everything we loved about that franchise in next-gen fashion, which isn’t a bad thing. Even if the narrative isn’t extremely fresh and original, if we get the action-packed, frantic co-op, humorous energy that is present on early trailers and gameplay reveals, we are in for a treat.
Deathloop
Platforms: Playstation 5, Windows Release: TBC 2021
Arkane Studios in partnership with Bethesda is responsible for one of the most anticipated titles of the year. Known for their Dishonored games, mainly for their creative level-design and innovative game mechanics Deathloop is a brand new IP, that tells the story of Colt, an assassin who’s looking for a way out of the loop.
In a way that is reminiscent of The Legend of Zelda’s: Majora’s Mask, players have to take out eight targets before the game reset, with the protagonist retaining its memories. Death Loop looks visually stunning, and gameplay has shown that different approaches and combat styles can be used to achieve your goals. If that isn’t enough a multiplayer game mode is available where players can take the role of Julianna, another assassin that is interested in keeping the time loop going which means stopping Colt by any means necessary.
Marvel’s Guardian Of The Galaxy
Platforms: Windows, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One Release: October 26, 2021
This group of misfits quickly became fan-favorites after their introduction into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with their ever-expanding popularity comics, collectibles, and general media presence grew. Developed by Eidos-Montreal and published by Square Enix, this title will be a single-player action-adventure game, where players assume the leadership of the squad as Starlord. This self-contained game has the opportunity to deliver something unique and entertaining, and if the reveal trailer and scarce details of the story are any indicators of success, Square Enix might have another home run in the near future.
Dying Light 2 – Stay Human
Platforms: Windows, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One Release: December 7, 2021
Techland’s established itself as one of the best – if not the best developer of zombie-apocalypse, survival horror, action RPG genres. Dying Light was such an astounding success that it was hard not to imagine a sequel somewhere down the line, thankfully we got to enjoy their new game before Christmas. Dying Light 2 will be four times bigger than its predecessor while boasting over three thousand new parkour animations, new zombies, and mechanics as well. If this entry is superior to the first one in terms of gameplay, technical achievements, and enjoyment chances are this will rank among the best zombie titles ever made.
Honorable Mentions
Of course, there are countless titles coming out aside from the ones mentioned above, but those are probably the biggest unreleased titles of the year. However, here are some other noteworthy titles:
- Psychonauts 2 – August 2021
- Kena: Bridge of Spirits – August 2021
- Life Is Strange: True Colors – September 2021
- The Gunk – September 2021
- Stray – October 2021
- Super Mario Party Superstars – October 2021
- Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl – November 2021
- Forza Horizon 5 – November 2021
- Little Devil Inside – TBD 2021
- Solar Ash – TBD 2021
