Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis: The 15 Most Anticipated Next-Gen Video Games

inFAMOUS: Second Son

Back when Sucker Punch director Nate Fox debuted inFAMOUS: Second Son at Sony’s PS4 reveal in New York, a lot of people took it as a knockout. The visual splendor and spectacle the game has shown since then with its most recent trailer and the possibilities are a whirl to behold.

Be damned, Sucker Punch delivers a game with an “I-have-every-power” type of tune that gamers will enjoy. The oppressive culture that sprang up post-inFAMOUS 2 has some intriguing story lines. Our hope is that there are some more user-generated content alongside the game’s destructive level design.

Bringing back another riveting plot of moral ambiguity, superhuman abilities and side quests is just what the doctor ordered. Are you ready?

Destiny

Sony was filled with potential blockbusters ever since announcing the arrival of the PlayStation 4, but the game many are looking forward to most of all is Destiny. The idea that Bungie, the team behind the Halo saga would now be making a game for a PlayStation console is unfathomable. The legendary developer closed out the February PS4 reveal and instantly created a demand for pre-order receipts.

For those who are still unaware, Destiny is a sci-fi first-person shooter MMORPG with magic. It is a mesh, a hodgepodge of subjects that will surely make gamers have a nerdgasm. It’s the game all of us really wanted. This extremely ambitious project has climbed to the most wanted charts and even made this writer go to GameStop to place his own RSVP. While not too many trailers or details have leaked forward since the riveting gameplay video, Destiny is a game that all curious ones should eagerly turn out to experience.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

Hideo Kojima has done it again! The true nature of his rumored projects was revealed at this year’s Game Developers Conference, where Kojima announced that Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes would serve as a prologue to The Phantom Pain. Together, these two titles form one whole game in the form of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.

In stark contrast to Kojima’s previous efforts, him and the Kojima Productions team will offer the player exciting new ways of traversal and sneaking around enemies. Whether it means taking a plane, flying in a helicopter or riding a motorcycle to the mission area, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain aims to accomplish a “true open world experience.”

Watch Dogs

The next-gen console promise of photo-realism has been fulfilled. In Ubisoft Montreal‘s Watch_Dogs, the level of detail that has been shown in the actual game world is impeccable. This game may ignite the trend of enhancing the design of open-world within the genre. There are a ton of things for anti-hero Aiden Pearce to do to effect the Chicago landscape he inhabits.

Every NPC in Watch_Dogs has their own name, employment (or unemployment), and all-around back story and any of them could be something more than what meets the eye. As Pearce, you step into the shoes of a vigilante who has the ability to hack into any electronic device within the ctOS. Players must utilize different methods to accomplish the goal of assassinating a media mogul named Joseph DeMarco, a man who had been wrongly acquitted on charges of murder.

NPCs have become another source of creative excitement within games such as Grand Theft Auto and Saints Row. It’s looking like Watch_Dog could deliver on that front and more. If it feels like the anemometer level has risen, then you know that this is what next-gen is all about.

Call of Duty: Ghosts

The sixth installment of the popular (still???) first-person shooter developed by Infinity Ward looks to leave critics wondering when they’ll ever fall off. Ghosts will be the first game within the Call of Duty series to be made available when the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are released. The date has yet to be announced. But with word of a new mode called “Squad” rumored to be revealed this time next week, Call of Duty: Ghosts is stacking the deck against its competitor Battlefield 4.

The plot finds players stepping into the shoes of a soldier willing to fight an unseen enemy that has knocked America off as a world superpower. Ten years after the event, remnants of U.S. special operation forces from every branch (see: Ghosts) come together to eradicate all threats to protect the remains of America.

Final Fantasy XV

Despite the current thoughts on Square Enix‘s company, they do have a history of surprisingly pulling the rabbit out of the proverbial hat. Their next effort, Final Fantasy 15, looks to take that graphical limit to the next step and demonstrate just how powerful the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 really are. As the cold war surrounding Lucis ends, the nation Niflheim unexpectedly invades the city, forcing protagonist Noctis and his friends to escape.

Gameplay is a source of entertainment with this latest adventure. Focus will be placed on heavier action, fast-paced sword and gunplay elements, and a level design that hasn’t been seen in the franchise before. Final Fantasy XV will still feature magic spells, powerful summons and great cinematic cut scenes. But this time, director Tetsuya Nomura wants the title to focus mainly “about man in the real world.” The switch to next-gen consoles enable the inclusion of more destructible environments which should also rile up longtime fans of the series.

Now, with the PS4 and Xbox One able to produce the graphics that Square Enix has wanted, have they polished the game enough to make this a stunning purchase?

Titanfall

Developed by Respawn Entertainment, Titanfall serves as the game studio’s inaugural title that will hit right in time of the next-gen gold rush. Believably so, this game carries some understandably high expectations. Luckily, the gameplay footage that has been shown over the convention season has rewarded all those whom are interested.

Set in a sci-fi universe, gamers will take on the role of a soldier with access to an armory of futuristic weapons and gadgets. Keep in mind that Respawn is made up of Jason West and Vince Zampella, the duo chiefly responsible behind Call of Duty‘s success. The mecha first-person shooter will find you armed with invisibility cloaks and jet packs, but the main attraction is the Titans—giant armored mechs that would put Armored Core to shame.

Powered by 60 frames per second on the next-gen consoles, Respawn Entertainment is looking to take lighting, rendering, visibility, networking, and more to a higher level. With no single-player campaign, Microsoft‘s cloud computing for multiplayer and an unique artificial intelligence this Xbox One exclusive is one to keep an eye out for.

Tom Clancy’s The Division

Announced during Ubisoft Massive‘s E3 2013 press conference, the Tom Clancy brand will be in full-exposure mode when the next-gen season begins. The company, which also boasts Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag and Watch_Dogs in their roster, casts gamers as members of an advanced military force. As this new age band of brothers fight to maintain order in a pandemic-stricken New York City, The Division boasts an exciting new way to play a video game.

Along with the usual AI enemies and NPCs you might expect to stop you from your goal, other squads of players will populate the open-world environment. At any time along your story, you can join a group or attack them for supplies, XP, and possible trophies. This idea of contributing to a game at any moment, even through a smart device, is but only a trend that will become larger within the gaming industry.

Inspired by “Operation Dark Winter” and “Directive 51,” real world events are used to imagine how society has become fragile and complex. As a member of the Strategic Homeland Division (SHD), it is up to you to stop the “Black Friday” virus threat and do whatever it takes to save what remains in the massive multiplayer online game.

You’ll have some time to figure out what you’re plan of action is, as Tom Clancy’s The Division drops Q4 2014.

Killzone: Shadow Fall

Guerrilla Games hopes that their sixth installment of the popular Killzone series will hit home with audiences. The first-person shooter is one of the main titles to be made available upon the PlayStation 4’s release. Set 30 years after the events of Killzone 3, life for a Helghast has amounted to ruins, however, the war still rages on. The Interplanetary Strategic Alliance (ISA) allows Helghast refugees to resettle on planet Vektan. Separated by a large security wall doesn’t help ease any tension these two nations have, as the Helghast and the Vektan quickly head to a “Cold War” confrontation.

Weapons like the M82 Assault Rifle, the stA-18 pistol and the stA-52 Assault Rifle are said to make a return to the game. New weapons like a hybrid sniper rifle/assault rifle can be seen in both of the gameplay videos that are online. Also making its interim appearance is the OWL, an advanced hovering attack drone used by the Shadow Marshals. It can attack enemies, be used as a zipline, can shield you and can even hack terminals.

Be sure to pre-order this title or purchase as PS4 bundle. The Shadow Pack includes three exclusive skins for the OWL combat drone, the MP Spotlight Move (a special victory taunt), and the Killzone: Shadow Fall Official Soundtrack.

Knack

If having an array of weapons isn’t quite your thing, Knack could be just the welcome change needed among the other next-gen titles. Developed by SCE Japan Studio, this action-platformer features colorful environments, anime-inspired visuals, and gameplay reminiscent of Namco‘s Katamari Damacy.

Players take control of the titluar creature, who can absorb thousands of objects to grow to the size of a building and then drop them all to shrink down again. Knack can even take on different forms and gain new abilities, depending on the objects you pick up. The concept is great enough to work, especially when utilizing the new Unreal Engine 4 to beef up the console. Oh, it helps that Mark Cerny, lead architect of the PS4, is the game’s director.

Project Spark

Billed as a “game maker” exclusively for the Xbox One, players use the Kinect and SmartGlass app to build environments with mountains, rivers, and towns in part using voice commands. Players can also create events, like inter-character battles, and craft items and objects that can be shared with other players. Whether you started from a blank map or a pre-designed level, the tools are there to customize the topography, add plant and animal life, and program behaviors for specific objects.

Although this title is aimed at gamers interested in level design, Microsoft has, after all, created a title that will entice the casual and hardcore players. If you could add anything to this game, what would you do?

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

CD Projekt RED have surprised the gaming industry with their wildly popular The Witcher action role-playing game. The third title in the series, based on books by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, features the conclusion of protagonist Geralt of Rivia. His quest in a living open world that’s “larger than any other in modern RPG history” will be a marvel to behold.

Set in Skellige Archipelago, an area that is part of an environment that is 30 times larger than previous Witcher games, this RPG will require players to catch a sailboat or ride horseback to gain access to certain levels. For those who aren’t into the scenic routes of gaming, fast traveling for the areas of known locations will also be made possible.

The Witcher 3 will feature no loading screens, opening players up to a vast and rich visual texture that will be made available sometime to gamers in 2014.

Battlefield 4

EA is plotting its comeback with more installments of their popular sports titles, but diehard EA fans are clamoring for Battlefield 4. After making several changes, the game boasts the addition of dual-scoped weapons, including a few with different firing modes. You can also “spot” targets-marking them on the map for your crew to either suppress or eliminate. The destruction mode advertised and the featured “Siege of Shanghai” map will be the source of initial glee as the U.S. Marine Corps takes on the People’s Liberation Army.

In the single-player mode, you play as a member of Tombstone Squad—you and your crew must carry vital intel from Baku, Azerbaijan with enemies in hot pursuit. With so much political distress going on in the real world, you may want to cast your vote early for Battlefield 4 because it looks like it will be sold out as soon as it’s released.

Deep Down

No, it is not related to Capcom‘s Dragon’s Dogma role-playing game franchise! Early this year at the PlayStation Meeting in New York, Yoshinori Ono (Street Fighter) revealed that Deep Down will be the title to utilize their new Panta Rhei engine.

A cross between The Elder Scrolls and Dark Souls, the title, which is still in development, finds an armored warrior battling a medieval fire-breathing dragon. Choosing to skip the E3 festivities, the role-playing adventure will make its playable debut at the September 2013 Tokyo Game Show.

Here’s to it doing well, and becoming a must-have on any gamers list!

Media Molecule’s Next Game

Media Molecule’s genius comes in extreme waves. From their insanely popular LittleBigPlanet series to their latest PlayStation Vita effort, Tearaway, this company has created a movement that is built around originality and sharing. Although specific details such as a name have yet to be announced, the video above highlights the 3D sculpting enabled by using the Move controller.

You can enjoy the brief in-game demo, which features a series of puppets being controlled by the Move controllers, above.

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