2017 has been a pretty dope year for video games, with everything from Zelda: Breath of the Wild to For Honor. That isn't even considering the fact that the year isn't over yet, and we have stuff to look forward to like Wolfenstein: The New Colossus and Star Wars: Battlefront 2. But what are we to do with our lives once we consume every game that this year has to offer? We have all grown attached to our beloved video game franchises, and now we have separation anxiety!
Not to worry, dear readers, those titles are all doing well. In fact, many of them are releasing sequels in this coming year, and somehow this news flew right past many of us. Lucky for all of you that we here at TheGamer desperately want to keep you informed, so that the latest chapters in your favorite titles don't sneak up on you! So with that in mind, buckle up as we blow your mind to the point where you'll ask yourself "Why didn't I know about these?!"
There are games here on every major system including PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. It will be interesting to see how the competition shapes up throughout 2018, as there are certainly a myriad of games that still haven't been announced. We have every reason to believe 2018 could end up being one of the best years in gaming yet.
17 Back In the Saddle Again?
Rockstar games has been pretty sparse with their updates, so nobody would blame you if you didn't know much about this much-anticipated title. Of course, earlier this week Rockstar showed us all a mind-blowing trailer for Red Dead Redemption 2. In it, we learned that the game is, in fact, a prequel to Red Dead Redemption, since Dutch is very much alive. So who are these new bandits?
Unfortunately, at the time of this article, we have no idea. Rockstar promises to tell us more in the next few days, but until then, all we have is speculation. Even the release date is a mystery, since we have nothing more concrete than after April 1. Let's hope the next batch of trailers shed some more light on the whole thing. After all, it has been almost eight years since we last jumped into the saddle!
16 Familiar Country, New Enemies
Luckily for us, Ubisoft hasn't been so miserly with details about this sequel. As we have discussed before, there is no shortage of information about Far Cry 5. You are a Junior Deputy in a land of zealous bigots who control the land, you will be able to control animals a la Far Cry Primal and for the first time in the series, you will be able to choose your gender.
While some people have a less than favorable opinion about this upcoming title, it's hard to deny how cool all those trailers were. Sure, Ubisoft has a pretty bad track record but they have also released some tremendously good games. I'm not saying rush out and pre-order, because we all know how much of a rip-off that is, but maybe we shouldn't write this game off just yet.
15 Let's Hope They Bring Back The Secret Duck Race
Shenmue? What the? What year is it? Shenmue 2 came out waaaay back in 2001 on the, what the, the Sega Dreamcast?! Remember that system? Whoa. Suddenly I feel really old. Anyways, Shenmue 2 was voted the 10th best game of all time by IGN, so the third installment has a lot of hype to live up to, especially considering it was paid for by kickstarter backers.
Even with the huge gap between titles, Shenmue 3 has had its' own hiccups, such as being pushed back from its' original release date. While some people think a pushed back release date is a death sentence, I prefer to think of it as the creators not rushing a game. After all, we have all seen what a mess a game can be. Shenmue 3 has no solid release date as of yet, but it does have a pretty sweet trailer to keep fans tided over.
14 Lightsaber Keyblade, Anyone?
What is going on here?! First Shenmue, now Kingdom Hearts? A quick googling tells me that that Kingdom Hearts 2 came out in 2006, with 2.5 coming out in 2013, so I guess the years in between aren't as bad as Shenmue, but still. Very little is known about this addition to the franchise other than the 2018 release date, but that hasn't done anything to slow down the rumor mill.
I can tell you one thing, and that is that Disney has undergone a lot of changes since the last major game. A few minor purchases, like I don't know, Star Wars and Marvel, you may have heard of them. That's right, forget teaming up with Hercules and Ariel, now we might team up with Rocket Raccoon and Rey. If that doesn't make your inner child happy, take a big step back a re-evaluate what is important in your life.
13 Another Summer At Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp
Alright, now I know I'm being punked. Ashton, come on out! The original Psychonauts was, to put it mildly, the best thing since sliced bread. It was fun and weird, and it has my favorite, creepy easter eggs. What may be the weirdest thing about Psychonauts was considered a commercial failure way back in 2005, despite literally everyone who played it thinking it was amazing. So it was no surprise that the folks over at Double Fine were dragging their feet to release a new game.
But release it they shall, right on the heels of this years Psychonauts: In The Rhombus of Ruin which was released for the VR. Go on and play that while you wait for the sequel, or you can check out the bombastic trailer. Here's hoping the finished product was worth the wait.
12 No Studio Ghibli, But Still Exciting
As we have mentioned before, Ni no Kuni 2 has been pushed back to a release date of January 19, 2018. Some people may not have even heard of its' predecessor, Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, which is in itself a reworking of Ni no Kuni: Dominion of the Dark Djinn. Part of the reason that the first game(s) were so popular were animated sequences created by none other than Studio Ghibli.
While it may disappoint fans to learn that the newest installment will have no involvement from Studio Ghibli, it is still being developed by Level-5 who have a pretty impressive list of games under their belt. The plot sounds like the usual, charming fare, with something about Cat Kingdoms and Mouse Kingdoms, and a displaced boy king. In any regard, it promises to be an open world adventure chock full of whimsy.
11 A Second Serving Of Meat
What can I say about the original Super Meat Boy that won't sound like the feverish ramblings of a depraved madman? It's a side scrolling platformer with controls that handle like butter. Outside of that, it's about a guy made of meat (who'd a thunk?) saving his girlfriend made of bandages, who has been kidnapped by an evil fetus in a jar. Ok, so the plot is more "Earthworm Jim" than "L.A. Noire" but the point is that if you played it, you loved it.
Super Meat Boy Forever will be created again by Team Meat, the founder of which is the lunatic-genius Edmund McMillan, who helped animate the endlessly playable The Binding of Isaac. The sequel promises more of the same jumping, sliding, dodging and (probably) dying madness that the first one is beloved for.
10 A Whole World For Hunting
The Monster Hunter series is now on its' fifth installment, and has been running strong since 2004. This new and ambitious installment is due to bombard shelves with titan creatures as early as January 26, 2018. The game looks insanely impressive, from the immersive single player gameplay to the awesome character creator, nothing about this upcoming title looks rushed.
This is a title, being developed by Capcom, where it seems really clear that the developers care about the players. First by moving towards consoles to make it more approachable, they then gave a bit of creative control to the fans by having them compete to design their own weapons. It's always nice to see big game companies show that they aren't just interested in a healthy bottom line, and actually care about the final product they hand over to the fans.
9 I Guess There Still Are Heroes
The first No More Heroes was a near perfect satire, with nonsense plot twists, fast forwards through tragic backstories and over the top super moves. Then along came No More Heroes: Desperate Struggle, which pretty much perfected everything great about the first one. This was way back in 2008 and 2010, respectively, so it seems like we are long overdue for a new title from Suda51.
Low and behold, Travis Touchdown is back and ready to raise a little more heck, this time on the new Nintendo Switch. Unconfirmed artwork from the new game is swirling all over the internet, and the trailer looks pretty boss. Sources say that while this new entry will be set in the No More Heroes continuity, they also say this will be something of a "fresh start" for Travis' character.
8 How To Cage A Dinosaur
Remember in every Jurassic Park title how you would see something stupid in the park (why do the cars on the tracks not have an emergency manual drive?) and you would shout "I could design a better dinosaur park while drunk!" Well, now it is totally time to put your money where your mouth is, drinking optional. The folks behind Zoo Tycoon and Planet Coaster are now making a Jurassic World game where you get to design the park.
That's right, now when everything goes wrong and Christ Pratt doesn't save you, this is all your fault. No word on whether you will be on the ground as T-Rex snacks on the various lawyers on the island, or whether you will be watching over this all with devilish glee. The developers promise that every choice you make will lead to new challenges, since as a sweaty Jeff Goldblum told us: "Life Finds a Way."
7 Cracking Good Fun
It has been seven years since we were allowed to unleash a very specific brand of chaos on Pacific City, and we are starting to get antsy. Luckily that hyper specific void is about to be filled with Crackdown 3. While the release has been peppered with issues, going so far as to be pushed from a November 2017 release to Spring of 2018, the game, like its' two predecessors promises to be fun.
The delays aren't all bad, we suppose. The first impressions from people were that it was fun to play but not to look at, so when a company like Reagent Games hears that kind of thing, they take the whole game back to formula. I'd personally prefer to wait for a delayed game than accept a poorly made on time one. Most importantly, and I can't stress this enough, Terry Crews is in the trailer, and that right there is enough of a reason for me to buy multiple copies.
6 Hath No Fury
Seven years ago audiences were treated to the epic battle between heaven and hell, where they took on the reigns of one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. As War, we fought our way towards the truth of what destroyed humanity, uncovering a plot full of betrayal. Two years later, we kicked butt as Death in a desperate gambit to prove our brother War's innocence. Now, in the year 2018, we take up the mantle of yet another Horsemen, that of Fury.
Darksiders 3 looks to be everything its' predecessors was, and more. Fury looks to be a pretty interesting and fleshed out character, and seeing her in combat is nothing short of breathtaking. The smart money says that Gunfire Games and THQ weren't just sitting on their hands this whole time, and have polished a game that will expand the Darksiders mythos in new and exciting ways.
5 This Time There Are Boats
So a lot of you probably read that title and instantly groaned, seeing as how so many people hated the "online only" aspect of The Crew. I'm with you, that's a pretty stupid way to release a game. But we all have to concede that the open-world was pretty cool, and how hard is it to make a quality racing game?
Sure, Ubisoft has a bad track record, but Ivory Tower seems to have listened to our complaints. They've designed a game that can be played offline, and there hasn't been a hint of the dreadful micro-transactions. Plus, as you may have guessed from the image, you can even use boats and planes. Keep your eyeballs peeled for this hopefully better installment hitting shelves March 16,2018.
4 Switch Out Your Pokémon
You may have noticed that we are obsessed with Pokémon. In fact, we've already discussed some wicked rumors about the upcoming console RPG title. So while we have no clear idea what exactly it is that is coming out in 2018 from Game Freak, we can be certain it is going to be epic. With sprawling open worlds seeming to be Nintendo's niche lately, what with Breath of the Wild and Mario Odysssey, it kind of makes sense that the next Pokémon game would be a sprawling RPG. Either way, we recommend you stay glued to TheGamer.com in order to find out any updates that might pop up.
3 Will Konami Survive?
Let's get the elephant in the room addressed right away; Konami moving forward with Metal Gear Solid without Hideo Kojima is the stupidest thing since Greedo shooting first. Kojima had a genuine and insane vision, walking the line between intense melodrama and glaring satire. To reduce the intense and confusing world of Metal Gear down to a survival action horror mash-up is somewhat insulting. This could be any zombie game in the world, and they just slapped a MGS skin on it.
That being said, it could be fun. The trailer is nothing special, seeming like a jumbled mess, but it might have merit. Zombie games are fun, survival games are fun, Metal Gear is fun, so come early Spring 2018, let's see if those soulless corporate machines at Konami are able to save this train wreck.
2 Bigby Hates Loose Ends
I firmly believe that Telltale Games can do no wrong. They have adapted some of my favorite franchises, be it Batman, Back to the Future, Game of Thrones, or Jurassic Park, Telltale has a flair for finding the right nostalgic buttons to push. So I was surprised when my favorite episodic series of theirs turned out to be the beautifully stylized Wolf Among Us. Based on the Fables series of comics, the story follows Bigby Wolf, a newly humanized and reformed Big Bad Wolf, as he is the Sheriff of Fabletown. This wonderful detective noir thriller was fun from beginning to end, weaving together a convoluted mystery, based both on hard facts and surreal magic. The season ends with the mystery being solved, until Bigby pays slightly closer attention, and realizes he just has more questions.
Those questions are posed to be answered in Season 2 of The Wolf Among Us. All Telltale has promised us is a 2018 release date, but that's enough to keep me glued to my screen. If you can't exactly wait for the ambiguous date to be announced, we can recommend reading the series of graphic novels, as both the artwork and stories are mesmerizing, with fully fleshed out characters and completely realized storylines.
1 A New Kind Of War Needs A New Kind of God
Does a reboot count as a sequel? For the sake of the article, let's just say yes, it does. It's not like Kratos hasn't had enough sequels in his own rambling, nonlinear storyline. So if anyone was sick of seeing the Ghost of Sparta sulk about his family while throwing chains all over Olympus, we have good news! He seems to be in Valhalla now!
There's so much information out there already about this hot ticket title, it's going to be hard to talk about all we know. The release date is uncertain, but we have seen some serious footage. I'll admit I was getting tired of the old series, it becoming formulaic, and Kratos seemed to abandon any story arch he ever had at the start of each new title. Hopefully, a new game, where he has his own son in tow, will give the character and the programmers some new directions to stretch out Kratos' absurdly muscular arms.