2016 is already racking up to be a pretty damn good year for gaming, but with so many massive releases hitting shelves, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. So, here’s five exciting releases to keep your eye on in 2016:
Yooka-Laylee
Old-school 3D platformers are in dire need in the gaming landscape of today, but Yooka-Laylee is set to change that.
Beginning as a pie-in-the-sky Kickstarter project, Yooka-Laylee garnered some serious attention from gamers who managed to provide more than enough funding for the game.
With some quality pedigree in the development team (with some members being a part of the original Banjo-Kazooie studio, Rare), Yooka-Laylee is looking to be a love-letter to long-time gamers and to remind the new generation of the colourful jumping days of yesteryear.
7 Days to Die
To everyone’s dissatisfaction, local co-op games have become a neglected focus in the gaming industry, but The Fun Pimps’ upcoming zombie shooter, 7 Days to Die, is embracing it fully.
7 Days to Die is an open-world zombie survival game which blends FPS, survival horror, tower defence and RPG – but best of all, it features split-screen.
Online multiplayer modes are also available, but the addition of split-screen “just makes sense” according to the developers. We agree.
We Happy Few
Set in the fictional town of Wellington Wells in a dystopian 1960s England, We Happy Few is a dark and twisted procedurally generated survival game with a difference.
In Wellington Wells, everyone takes a drug called Joy. It simultaneously keeps people happy and under the thumb of the town’s rulers.
Taking up the role of a “downer” – someone who doesn’t take Joy – you have to blend into society, appearing as if you’re satiated with life, while mounting a resistance to topple the town’s oppressive rulers.
Horizon: Zero Dawn
Killzone developer Guerilla Games’ upcoming post-apocalyptic action game Horizon: Zero Dawn is looking to be something quite special.
We haven’t seen much since its E3 2015 reveal, but hopefully we’ll get some fresh details and gameplay soon.
The game relies heavily on its hunting, stealth and combat mechanics in order to survive the harsh environments and giant robotic beasts that looks something like Terminator dinosaurs.
There’s no details about the story yet, but it’s already got our attention.
Mafia III
Mafia III is already blowing away critics who’ve gotten their hands on the game, but we’ve only seen a small snippet of what Hangar 13’s open-world crime drama has in store for gamers.
Mafia III tells the story of Lincoln Clay, who has just returned from the Vietnam War. He’s taken in by the “Black Mob”, but just as he starts to believe he’s found somewhere he can belong, the Italian Mob wipes them out.
Clay vows to have his revenge – and that’s when the car chases, shady dealings, and bloody gunfights kick off.
The game is looking absolutely spectacular and the 1968 New Orleans setting is a refreshing setting for the chaos that’s to unfold in Mafia 3.
Article originally published on MenStuff.co.za.
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