Zombies, Spartans and 22 men getting sweaty together: It must be the beginning of gaming season.
As if you needed more reasons to shirk off homework this semester, here are the heavy hitting games coming out in August and September:
“Madden NFL 2011” – Aug. 10 (PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2, PSP, iPhone)
Let’s face the facts: This game is going to sell millions of copies. It’s the only NFL-licensed football game in town, and it’s being released on nearly every system available.
The previous installment sold nearly two million copies in its first month, according to the NPD’s August 2009 report. “Madden” brings in the money, and the series shows no signs of stopping.
This year’s installment in the annual franchise introduces the GameFlow playcalling mechanic. Essentially, GameFlow is an AI system that automatically handles both offensive and defensive playcalling to streamline the experience, according to IGN. Of course, the option to manually choose a play is still included, but for those of us without a lick of playcalling know-how, GameFlow sounds like a great way for a wider audience to enjoy the game.
“Metroid: Other M” – Aug. 31 (Wii)
Besides jiggling breast physics – yes, you read that correctly – developer Team Ninja is well-known for their brutally difficult, side-scrolling “Ninja Gaiden” series from the NES era. Mixing together a well-known franchise like “Metroid” with the 2D experience of Team Ninja sounds intriguing, and when you throw in the first-person exploration elements of the “Metroid Prime” games, “Metroid: Other M” sounds like a recipe for instant success.
IGN did state some gripes with the game in their hands-on article on August 5, most notably the game’s stiff controls and overeager auto-targeting; however, they did go on to state that “even with some weird quirks the game felt like it will be a really fun and engaging Metroid experience.” Decide for yourself when “Metroid: Other M” comes out August 31.
“Halo: Reach” - Sept. 14 (Xbox 360)
The culmination of over a decade spent in the “Halo” universe, “Halo: Reach” is Bungie’s love letter to the series that made the Xbox a household name, and the loyal fans who supported them on the path to world domination.
“Halo: Reach” is the ultimate package deal: a cinematic, four-player cooperative campaign experience; fine-tuned competitive multiplayer arena; an increasingly difficult survival mode; a full-fledged map editing toolset and a user-friendly screenshot and video capturing and sharing system.
In an interview between Bungie and Xbox360 Achievements in February, Bungie stated that “Halo: Reach” supports up to 60 AI characters on screen – three times more than “Halo 3” – which equates to more epic skirmishes between the player and the invading Covenant forces. With that in mind, you shouldn’t expect Bungie to send off their classic series with anything less than a bang.
“Sid Meier’s Civilization V” - Sept. 21 (PC)
Strategy games are to consoles as comedies are to the TBS network: they often try, they often fail and even the successful ones are only a success in that they don’t completely suck. Strategy games, however, are the PC’s bread and butter, and the turn-based “Sid Meier’s Civilization” games are some of the brightest gems in the genre.
“Civilization V” is all about empire building and resource management. Like “Madden 2011,” “Civilization V” aims to streamline the playing experience. According to Gamespy, to lower the hurdle of micromanagement to newcomers, clickable notifications about resources and research appear on a screen that moves the camera directly to the issue, and advisers appear to suggest further guidance about empire building.
“Dead Rising 2” - Sept. 28 (PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Taking place five years after the events of “Dead Rising,” “Dead Rising 2” follows protagonist Chuck Greene as he rips through seething hordes of zombies in Fortune City, a metropolis reminiscent of Las Vegas.
According to TeamXbox, the amount of zombies onscreen has risen from 500 in “Dead Rising” to a ridiculous 7,000. Now, imagine driving through that mass of insatiable undead beings with a motorcycle equipped with a chainsaw.
One of the biggest flaws of “Dead Rising” was its archaic save system. The player had one save slot to use, a decision that stifled player experimentation.
Equally as frustrating was how far apart the save stations were.
According to Kotaku, “Dead Rising 2” will feature multiple save slots and will have more save stations to aid the player.
And while that still falls short of an auto-save feature, it’s a step in the right direction.
“FIFA 11”- Sept. 28 (PS3, PC, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2, PSP, DS and mobile)
While real-life soccer continually gets put on the back burner in America, its video game counterpart gets plenty of love in the states.
According to The Washington Times, “North America is the [No.] 2 market for the EA Sports FIFA game.”
In an interview with Kotaku.com, Electronic Arts expects the U.S. to be No. 1 when “FIFA 11” releases after Landon Donovan’s game-winning goal against Algeria.
According to EA Sports’ website, “FIFA 2011” implements a new feature dubbed Personality+ that imbues an athlete’s real-life abilities and personality into their virtual avatar. The skill-set of each player is evaluated on over 57 traits and 36 attributes.
This is both good and bad news for soccer purists: While this feature might benefit those in control of Lionel Messi, those using Robbie Findley might find themselves getting consistently dispossessed. You’ve been warned.
