I’ve been a Sony fanboy since just after Kurt Cobain died, and to this day I still think the PlayStation is the superior gaming console. One of those reasons is that it tends to get some extremely sweet exclusives, though I had to eat crow on that and wait a good long time to finally get to play the second Tomb Raider. Every year I like to look at what’s coming down the pike that I can lord over Xbox users. Let’s do that now.
Horizon Zero Dawn
This action RPG is one of the big new Triple A vehicles that everyone is salivating over. Aloy is an archer who begins traveling her world to rid it of a new empire that uses killer robots to conquer. Think Xenoblade Chronicles meets Lara Croft. It’s definitely a lush-looking title, and promises an incredible story. This one should be on everyone’s list.
Death’s Gambit
Sword and Sworcery aside, I’m not big on the retro aesthetic. I’m of the mind that the gaming medium moved on from that period for a reason, and yet Death’s Gambit reminds me of how bloody much I loved Super Castlevania. This sidescroller looks like the most amazing game I never got to play, with a surprisingly deep combat mechanic reminiscent of Adventure of Link.
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age
For my money, FFXII is the greatest entry in the franchise no one ever seems to talk about, and I’m glad it’s going to reach a new audience with an HD remake. For years American players have been clamoring for access to the International Zodiac Job System expansion, and it looks like we’re finally getting it in this release. If I don’t post any articles for a month, it’s because I’m off playing this.
Detroit: Become Human
I’m cheating here because this was on last year’s list, but Quantic Dream’s latest game never came out in 2016 and I’m still heavily anticipating it. Detroit is a cyber thriller closer to Blade Runner than Quantic’s last game, Beyond: Two Souls, but it still looks like an emotional roller coaster of a ride. Having just replayed B:TS, I have high hopes for this.
Ni no Kuni: Revenant Kingdom
Easily the game I am most excited about is the follow-up to Studio Ghibli’s 2013 entry into the video game world. The new Ni no Kuni looks even more brilliant than the original, harnessing all of the PS4’s graphical power. Plus, it appears that they’ve fixed some of the technical problems in the boss fight camera placements and, one hopes, the set character placement that made level-grinding annoying. Ni no Kuni was the seventh-generation’s version of Chrono Trigger, and it’s nice to see it continuing.
This article appears in Feb 9-15, 2017.
