Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Release Date and New Nintendo 3DS XL Bundle Dated

January 14, 2015January 14, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Review by Dustin Murphy

With all the news about the New Nintendo 3DS circulating, there is more to be excited about, and Capcom is the one to bring it out. As of today, Nintendo fans can pre-order the Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate New Nintendo 3DS XL bundle and Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate game, which is set to launch side by side with the other announced handhelds on the same day. The new custom-designed system comes with a digital copy of the game, but also a beautiful design that will allow for players to show off the amazing shell the game will be accompanied with.

This time players can join up with a traveling caravan of hunters while taking on hunts that will allow players to see beautiful lands, battle ferocious monsters, and become the ultimate hunter who has become the hunted. For those who want to play alone, can do so, or go online for the first time on a Nintendo 3DS handheld by using the wireless internet of the handheld. With this title, players will get to experience newly enhanced graphics, C-stick functionality, and fully customizable ZL and ZR buttons to add onto the experience. Do note that Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate will be a pre-loaded digital copy that accompanies the bundle.

Haven’t experienced the series or a returning veteran that wants to see how it plays? Starting in the upcoming days, players will be able to try out the games demo when it launches exclusively on the Nintendo 3DS eShop.

About the Writer:

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, MMO’s, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable and can’t be softened by even the biggest names in the gaming industry. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. To follow Dustin, hit him up on Twitter over at @GamingAnomaly, find him on his Google+. Wanna game with him? You can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+ Announced for New Nintendo 3DS XL

January 14, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Review by Dustin Murphy

With the announcement of the New Nintendo 3DS XL getting a release date in North America, it’s not surprising to see some of its exclusive games getting a side-by-side launch. Starting on February 13th of this year, players will be able to take to the skies with this newer version of this series as it takes to the skies with the launch of Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+.

As players take to the skies, players will be able to take advantage of the New Nintendo 3DS XL’s C-stick as well as the newly added ZL/ZR buttons, which will allow for players to take control of their jets, and find themselves having amazing controls of aircraft movement as well as vehicle weaponry. As players fly around with these ultra-realistic aircrafts, they will be able to fly as fearless as every into combat at high speeds while going into 360 accessible combat.

For those interested, Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+ will make way for its first sortie in the Americas on the New Nintendo 3DS XL when it launches on the handheld for 39.99 USD.

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Brandish: The Dark Revenant Now Available on Sony Handhelds

January 14, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Review by Dustin Murphy

It’s been a long time in the making as friends have been rallying for a new release of Brandish: The Dark Revenant for the modern handhelds. As a rather famous dungeon-crawling action RPG title, Brandish: The Dark Revenant has now launched as a digital download for North America on the PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, and PSTV. The title can be obtained through the PlayStation Store for 19.99 USD. With death lurking around every corner, it will be unsurprising for fans to have the game loaded on each of the platforms so that players can explore the lost ruins of Vittoria to hunt down treasures and glory.

“With so many requests for the return of Brandish: The Dark Revenant, we did everything possible to bring the game back,” said Ken Berry, Executive Vice President of XSEED Games. “Nihon Falcom did a standout job bringing the game up-to-date, and both we and they are very excited to deliver this to Western fans with the option to play on the classic PSP, on the PS Vita or on the brand new PSTV.”

As noted in our previous article, the title is an action-oriented reimagining of a cult classic only found in the annals of Nihom Falcom. For more information about the game please visit our article here: Brandish Reimagined for the PSP and PS Vita

This title has been rated “T” for Teen.

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New DLC Launches for Far Cry 4 and Assassin’s Creed Unity

January 13, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Written by Dustin Murphy

Are you a fan of either Assassin’s Creed Unity or Far Cry 4? If so, Ubisoft has launched two sets of DLC. First and foremost is the newest DLC “Dead Kings” for Assassin’s Creed Unity, which has launched as a free download as an apology for the games rocky launch, the DLC can be obtained for free on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Dead Kings takes place after the events that played out through Assassin’s Creed Unity, this time Arno is on a quest for redemption. He finds himself heading into the town of Saint Denis, which back then is known as Franciade. In this town, Arno finds himself moving through the depths of the city, this means he will be exploring the cities caves, catacombs, and perhaps even some of the most famous buildings as he finds the remains of the best-kept secrets that the past French kings have kept. As he uncovers the mysteries within the Basilica, Arno will be equipped with a lantern, a Guillotine Gun, and his trustworthy hidden blade.

Players will also get to experience rather familiar and well renowned faces such as Napoleon and the Marquis de Sade during this adventure. Arno will also have a chance to encounter a new enemy faction, which is mindset on desecrating the catacombs. Their name? The Raiders. For players whom want more than just a side story, they will also be able to embark on completing side quests such as new Murder Mysteries, enigmas, and even new co-operative missions where players can join forces for a heist and a special Brotherhood mission. In both the single-player and cooperative mode, players will be enabled to unlock new weapons, gear, and outfits that will carry over between both the base game and Assassin’s Creed Unity, but do note that the purchase of the full title is required in order to enjoy the new content.

Second up is new DLC that has freshly launched for Far Cry 4 called “Escape from Durgesh”. In this DLC, players will be finding themselves in a new challenging trial to escape. This means players will be finding themselves against the clock and challenge others for the top spot on the leaderboards. Let alone will there be a story available outside of the new challenging time trial that has launched for Windows PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One as of today.

For this new DLC where the story comes in, players find themselves once more as Ajay accompanied by the absolutely silly Hurk. This time they have been taken up to the northern region of Kyrat after having been stripped of weapons, tortured, and even held prisoner in Yumas rison. As they are headed to extract, players will be able to complete a few challenges that have been set forth for them by the absolutely tyrannical and insane Pagan Min in order to acquire weapons and upgrade gear before taking on the Yuma forces in a final stand-off. Think that’s all? Players can join friends or fly solo as they attempt to escape from Durgesh Prison in order to test their true survival skills.

Players will need to learn to arm themselves, look for secrets, and even take notes of where enemies are and you may even ask why that is necessary; this time around, there is not a set of checkpoints to start from. Players will find themselves restarting the game if they die, which will test their knowledge and skills obtained in previous missions. Do you have what it takes to extract, take the leader boards, and even survive to see the upcoming DLC’s? Find out today. For Season Pass holders, the DLC is now ready for download via the in-game menus. For those who do not have the Season Pass, the DLC can be obtained for 9.99 USD or the season pass can be purchased for 29.99 USD.

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Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires Gets Pre-Order DLC and Cinematic Trailer

January 9, 2015January 9, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Can’t get enough of raiding other enemies forts and ravaging their forces as you search for glory, loot, and respect among your generals? Koei Tecmo has announced another reason to once more return to the Warriors titles with this updated version that will see new pre-order bonus DLC’s from GameStop and EB Canada when it launches on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on February 24th, 2015.

The DLC included will have three DLC sets:

Special Costume Set: Special costumes for Date Mashamune, Guan Yinping, Guo Jia, and Tenko.
Edit Armor Set 1: Special Armors for Male Characters
Edit Armor Set 2: Special Armors for Female Characters

Along with this news, Koei Tecmo has also released the Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires opening video, which can be seen below as it demonstrates new characters Xun Yu as well as new weapons. Players will get to witness the new character who is from the Wei Kingdom and favors the weapon known as the “Formation Rod”, which supports his title as a brilliant strategist that gives important advice, which received him the nickname “King’s Gifted Adviser”.

With the new title, players will also get to choose new favored weapons for nine of the games well known characters. Deng Ai will obtain the the “Revolving Crossbow”, which can be used for long and short-ranged attacks and can fire multiple bolts at once. This will make him deadly to enemies whom seek to corner him and think they are capable of taking him out. The game will also see Guan Suo obtaining “Sabatons”, which will allow him to focus on knocking enemies in the air while he sends a few swift kicks to their bodies. Though to counter this we will also see Lianshi get her “Mandarin Duck Hooks” that will set her up for short ranged attacks that follow through with fierce speed. We’ll also see Liu Shan get the “Dragon Column”, which is known for its special attacks as well as its counter attacks. Meng Huo will get “stele”, which forms into a palm tree in order to match with heavy attacks, Sun Quan will get “Flame Blade”, which is a well rounded flaming sword that follows through with fast attack speeds at both a distance and near. Wang Yi will get “Emei Pierces”, which is short in reach, but follows through with devastating multi-attacks.

To follow through players will see Yueying get a “Bladebow” and Xiaoqiao get “paired Fans” in order to create devastating tornadoes across the battlefield. Will you be able to master these powerful new favored weapons as you fight through a campaign that features 83 different and unique characters? Or will you create one of your own that will feature newly implemented customizations to both the character and horse? Not to forget banners and “normal” officers that players will choose from as they trek through China’s vicious and war filled history.

Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires can be purchased on both the Playstation 4 and Xbox One at 49.99 USD while Steam users and PlayStation 3 users can obtain the titile digitally for 49.99 and 39.99 USD respectively. The game has been rated “T” for Teen.

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Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart Gets Street Dated

January 8, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Written by Dustin Murphy

For fans of the Hyperneptunia series, it’ll be hard for the anticipation to stay at an all time low as the series prepares for its first strategy game. With pure excitement for their newest entry, Idea Factory International has announced that the title will be releasing in both physical as well as digital formats on February 24th for North America and for our friends in Europe on the 27th of February in stores and digitally on March 4th. This title as known, will be exclusive to the PlayStation Vita, where the series has found success for fans new and old to the franchise.

In addition to the news, we’ve also received a few new screenshots of the game, which displays the characters in the main hub, the “Sim Noire” mode, which is where players will be buying furniture as well as upgrading it, but also open up new scenes between the player character and Noire. Think that’s all? It also demonstrates the games new key features as the game prepares for its launch.

Official Key Features Released by Idea Factory International:

A Moe Army Awaits! You ain’t never seen the CPUs like this! Lead them in their first-ever foray into strategy RPG gameplay, taking on enemies in a whole new way. You’ll fight off hordes of enemies in turn-based strategy, dodging laser beams and flaming pits, and using dangerous environments against your enemy.

Link up with the “Lily System” The more often characters are in battle together, the higher their bond becomes. Activating the “Lily Boost” grants special stats and abilities, while “Lily Points” can be used to activate ultra-special moves and even goddess transformations. Don’t be shy to build up those battle relationships and seal it all with a kiss!

Check your Status! All kinds of funky things can happen in the heat of battle and characters can be hit with status ailments that are both boon and burden. You can get pixelated, zombie-fied, or even turned into a block of tofu! Some status changes come with their own benefit and cost, so keep this in mind during a fight.

Item Customization! You’ll get tons of replay value with so many ways to boost your gear’s stats! The more enemies you defeat, the more items you can get to customize your gear in whatever way you see fit. Let the great experiment begin!

Livin’ the Noire Life! Life’s not all about grid-based battles. Sometimes Noire just wants to relax at home, and with the “Sim Noire” mode you’ll be able to do just that! Customize the place by buying furniture and accessories with in-game points, and make Noire feel like the goddess she is. She’ll also get to go out with friends and build up her social level!

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Brandish Reimagined for the PSP and PS Vita

January 8, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Review by Dustin Murphy

How often do you hear about a PSP game getting released in North America these days? The answer is almost never. as of today, XSeed Games, well known as a publishing brand of Marvelous USA, Inc., has sent out a little surprise for us all to enjoy. As of January 13th, 2015, North America will be seeing the digital release of Brandish: The Dark Revenant, which will be released with compatibility for PlayStation Vita owners.

So what makes this game just that interesting that it’s getting released on both fan favorited handhelds? Brandish: The Dark Revenant is at it’s core a action-oriented dungeon crawlers that will send players immersing themselves within this third person real-time title. With dungeon walls rotating around the characters, it’ll promise to keep players on their feet. Let alone will they also be experiencing gameplay that Nihon Falcom became well known for by their highly-acclaimed franchises such as Ys and The Legend of Heroes. The title will follow their rather well known formula of puzzles, RPG elements, fighting monsters, and avoiding traps across 40 sprawling floors of monsters and the beforementioned troubles. Players will be taking on the role of swordsman, Ares Toraernos as he takes on his arch-rival, Dela Delon, who’s interested in making his life all but a living heck as she escapes through each maze while trying to collect the bounty on Ares’ head.

With being re-imagined, this 90’s classic title will be returning with new graphics, animations, new maps, puzzles, traps, even smoother gameplay, but none-the-less featuring changes to the music, bosses, and more. Think that’s all? Players can unlock the new “Dela Mode” once completing the Ares campaign, which will let players take on the role of the of the villainous sorceress herself. That experience comes with harder maps, enemies, and even more traps that are crueler than before.

For those wanting to experience this digital download can grab it on the PlayStation Store for 19.99 USD on both PSP and PS Vita when it launches. The game has been rated by the ESRB as “T” for Teen since it features violence, blood, suggestive themes, partial nudity, mild language, and use of tobacco.

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Destiny: The Dark Below Expansion Review – A Dark Pit of Nothing

January 8, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Review by Dustin Murphy

Pros:
-New weapons, armor, and appearance changers
-Slightly Expanded Story About the Hive
-Vanguard ROC Playlist Helps for Light Level 26+

Cons:
-Short enough all missions were completed in about 3 hours
-New gear from Vanguard and Crucible requires reputation marks
-Overpriced Expansion
-The Raid Outshines The Expansion’s Content

It’s hard to say that I’m not a fan of Destiny in some form or another. With having all three classes sitting near max level, it’s hard not to mention this, and the fact that the game has been heavily updated since the last review, but this time around it’s not about the past content, but about new content. Recently Bungie released the games Expansion I: The Dark Below (19.99 USD without season pass). This expansion itself focuses upon one of the most eerie enemies of the lot; The Hive. These creatures are what many would call ravenous dark-dwelling demon-spawn that just need wiped off the face of the galaxy. Fortunately that is a statement that stands true.

The content released starts out at level 20 (realistically; you need to be much higher to actually complete the content) through the games new vendor Eris Mourn. She is reluctantly one of the few characters that have managed to make their way from the deepest pits of the Moon and survive tell a tale that is spine-chilling were we to actually be in the Destiny universe. As players take on her missions, which are given to them like bounties, players will find themselves taking on enemies with unimaginable power and difficulty, which will truly test their skill. Some of these missions include removing a characters capability to double jump or even glide depending on your class, and limiting your evasiveness. This means teamwork was definitely put into design when the content was probably drafted over a few of the developers meetings. Unfortunately they forgot one very important thing in all this; we want to see new areas, not revamped old areas.

Much like the base game, players will be seeing a lot of the areas they are quite familiar with, minus the fact a few of them have been altered to fit in with the newly released content. While playing through the content, it was interesting however, to see places like inside of the Warmind Rasputin, to visit some of the old areas that have hidden enemies that are exclusive to the DLC’s story hidden away in a corner. It was because of content like this that the “expansion” or “DLC” in many ways felt alive, but just not alive enough this time around.

Once players have unlocked some of the missions towards the end of Eris Mourns bounty line, players will get to visit a new and truly devastating boss by the name of Omnigul who serves as one of Crota’s “generals”. With her fierce presence as a Wizard based enemy, it’s not surprising to see how hard she was, which made her fight all, but fun. That’s not to state that her constant phasing to new waves didn’t help ignite this tid-bit of interference. To many, this fight will resemble “Phogoth, The Untamed”, but with more Wizards, Knights, Acolytes, and Thrall’s of both types that just seek to literally eat your characters face rather than say hello to your character. With this strike being as hectic as it was, it was time to walk away, find a new one that didn’t feel like a prolonged mission with an absurdly annoying end boss. So it was time to visit the Expansion’s second new strike by the name of “The Undying Mind”.

“The Undying Mind” was probably the most interesting of the two newly added strikes. This one focused upon the Vex once more, which have seemingly not been entirely wiped out with the death of Atheon being a faucet to that occurrence. This time players are once more battling off hordes of enemies inside of “The Black Garden”. The fights as well as the dungeon design are unique, thoroughly thought through, and well implemented as each encounter felt unique, difficulty, and at times like a puzzle due to the enemy types that appeared within each battle. There were moments where players would feel exposed, weak, and left out in the open as enemies spawned in from behind, in front of, and beside fire teams in order to devastate them and ultimately cause a wipe. As highly unexpected as it can be, this seems rather intentional within the levels design as well as built around difficulty.

But the strikes unfortunately are hard to really even cover as they are much like any other strike. Players will fight through a few pools of enemies, move on, dispatch more enemies, and fight a boss. One boss is destroyed, move on, and once more encounter a batch of enemies. This is what lead the fire-team I was with into the expansions big focal point; Crota’s End Raid.

The raid itself is where the Expansion does truly shine. Due to even the PvP mans, while cool, are still lacking and may not interest those who are die hard for PvE. Stepping foot into the raid delivered a sight that differentiated from the games basic formula. Once in the raid, the fire-team as well as myself were exposed to a very dark, dreary, and uneasy place. The Crota’s End Raid decides to open up with a bang. Players will fall into the center of the Moon, hit rock center, and become acquainted with the very dark, very hard to pass through, and punishingly difficulty “Lamp” portion of the raid. With players being limited on maneuverability due to this portions debuff “Weight of Darkness”, players will find themselves trying to move from lamp to lamp while fighting off endless waves of Thrall’s and Ascendant Thrall’s so that they don’t die from either being mauled to death of simply blown up. This portion of the raid was probably one of the most interesting portions as players will find themselves working on a strategy that works best for themselves, but also the firing squad they are part of. The problem? This formula is used consistently through the raid. Each fight is a puzzle in its own as players will find themselves pelting down Ogres, Knights, Shriekers, Thralls, Wizards, and even Thrall themselves. Each of the fights will provide fire teams with having to think on their feet, and constantly be on the go. Here is where communication, tactics, and even the capability of taking notes comes in hand.

Overall, the raid outshines the rest of the content as players will learn each fight comes with a heightened sense of urgency. Some such as the Death Singer will provide teams with a very limited time on how quickly they must kill enemies, but also how well coordinated each kill must be. This also goes to say, weapons, skill, and even a proper build will become tested as players will need to find a medium ground and balance between each of the classes, but unfortunately this is where players will find the height of “The Dark Below” as players will find it overall lacking in content, excitement, and reason to continue forth for those who do not raid.

With all the good designs being thrown into “Crota’s End” it’s hard to really feel excited about what will be coming up in the future expansion “The House of Wolves”, which is slated to release sometime this year. I hope for the sake of that expansion we see a thorough launch of new zones, new missions, new armors, new weapons, and even a rather fun batch of new strikes and hopefully two new raids as this marks the last DLC of this season pass and possibly the last bit of content to launch for Destiny until we see Destiny 2 since it’s already in early development.

So the final question comes down to one thing at the end of this review. Is Crota’s End worth the 19.99 USD or 34.99 USD for the Season Pass? For those who are the casual gamer, it’s hard to really justify the spending of your money since the massive amount of content that this expansion has lies heavily within Eris Mourns short quest line and excessive reputation farming, but the almost necessary requirement of at least experiencing the raid more than once to really feel the money’s worth has been placed in a good spot. The answer is? If you are looking for higher replay value for a casual gamer, this is definitely not an expansion for you unless you PVP.

Review Score: 5 out of 10

Reviewer Note: The review version used was not supplied by Activision or Bungie and was purchased at our own accord and is based off the PlayStation 4 Version. However, we did not state or remark towards overall game performance, but rather content of this Expansion.

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The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D Limited Edition Is Possibly Sold-Out

January 6, 2015January 6, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Written by Dustin Murphy

Selling out faster than it was made available, Nintendo released today, a limited edition pre-order for The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D bundle, which features a Skull Kid figurine. This collectible edition would have been unique for many of the franchises fans as the game has become a bit of a landmark after the success of it and Ocarina of Time’s success, it’s no surprise that fans new and old to the series have clamored on for a re-release of the title(s).

While the Limited Edition was available for a very thin window, the edition released for 49.99 USD and has found itself launching on the same day as the basic copy of The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D. With no release date in the very near future, fans would be establishing themselves with a highly in-demand item and preparing for one of the most anticipated games of 2015 as well as for the Nintendo 3DS handheld family.

Much like what happened with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, fans will find themselves with once more following in the footsteps of a game that has been updated with 3D graphics and new game features. Some of the features may include updated game handling, control schemes, but also accessibility to content never-before-seen.

Due to how in-demand the game was, we’ve reached out to Nintendo to find out if they will be making more copies available for the Limited Edition or if what was made available is all that there was. Stay tuned as we wait to hear back from a Nintendo spokesperson. In the mean time head on over to the official website for Majora’s Mask 3D: http://zelda.com/majoras-mask.

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Blast Away the Game Review’s Most Anticipated Games of 2015

January 3, 2015 / Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Written by Dustin Murphy

Last year we saw a bombardment of upcoming titles, some of them continuations to franchises, and others being entirely new IP’s that we’ll see coming up in the not-so-far future. Among these titles are many that have truly peaked an interest and even grabbed the attention of media outlets, but also the fans alike, which speaks for these games. For this list, we’re taking my most anticipated games for 2015.

10. Evolve

Evolve by Turtle Rock Studios has been a game that has caught the attention of many. The game itself is set to be a 4v1 pvp based title. The game will be pitting a team of 4 players as the hunters versus a player who plays – you guessed it – the monster that the four will be hunting in a tension filled pvp atmosphere. This atmosphere seeks to push players to test their skills in teamwork and their skills with communications. With the hunters getting to choose classe roles such as Support, Medic, Trapper, and even Assault, it will be interesting to see how the game unfolds as player choose to play each of their classes

9. Persona 5

With Atlus being silent about Persona 5 – aside from what we know from the trailers as well as the red and black colour theme they have set forth – we don’t know much of what is going on. Our assumption shows that our main character will be a young man who is struggling or possibly bored with his adventures in life thus far, and seems to be either a college, High School, and or even an employee at an office. The game seems busy when the trailer that was revealed not long ago had shown the protagonist in a rather busy Japanese city, again the setting itself is even unknown, but it seems that maybe the setting as well as the theme will have to do something with the image of the desks with ball and chain hooked to them.

We’ll have to wait and see what Atlus has to say for the game that is slated to release on both PlayStation 3 and Sony’s next generation console only known as the PlayStation 4. It has not been stated if Persona 5 could see itself get another launch for the PlayStation Vita and PlayStation Vita duo. Though if the past releases say anything, things could be looking up, and handheld gamers may just have to wait it out a small bit before a release happens.

8. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

While not a huge fan of the Uncharted series, it’s hard not to say that the franchise is well written, acted, and rather convincing as a well rounded franchise. With Nathan Drake finally showing up on the PlayStation 4 from the trailer we got to see at E3, it’s only suspecting that we’re going to see him older, in more trouble than ever, and fighting for his life once more. This time it looks as if the franchise could be seeing all loose ends get tied together, and Nathan Drake finally hang up his coat, lay down his pistol, and call his days as a treasure hunter, thief, and adventurer over.

With only what we know from the trailers and what little information leaked, it will be interesting to see how Nathan’s family dynamics work out as his older brother enters the picture and could possibly set up a rather nicely built background behind our charming protagonist.

7. Halo 5: Guardians

Halo has been a series that has always had an intriguing storyline as well as systematic character development. After the events that unfolded within the two intertwined storylines for Halo 4 – Spartan Ops Season 1 and even the main campaign; the game series has shown a bit of a darker side to itself. With the Spartan IV’s becoming a new ordeal, we see an interesting weave of storylines taking place. One specifically being Doctor Katherine Halsey having sided with a renegade group of Covenant, and even a new height to the story behind the Prometheans, the Flood, and anything else that could go horribly wrong.

The question now is? What will happen with the Master Chief, Cortana (is she really gone?), and even the Spartan IV team we saw within Halo 4? We’ll have to wait it out and see where Microsoft goes from here.

6. Street Fighter V

Late 2014, Capcom and Sony announced a magnificent team up that will allow for a molding of the PlayStation 4’s power and the power of PC gamers in order to bring Street Fighter V to move once more towards the edge of PC and Console interactivity. This announcement was a splendor to many when Capcom announced that Street Fighter V and Ultimate Street Fighter IV on next gen consoles, is an exclusive.

With the games having been a fan-favorite world wide, we can only assume that the exclusivity may not be permanent, but instead a timed ordeal. If not, this is one exclusive that could move many fans to either PlayStation 4 or picking it up through Steam. Aside from that announcement, Capcom has been pretty quiet on what will be going on with Street Fighter V and who will be in the roster, but all that can be said is – Prepare to Fight.

5. Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain

Hideo Kojima and the team over Fox Hound Studios are renowned for delivering some of the best stories in the world. Their latest endeavor continues a foray into a world that has become a war machine, one that Big Boss must deter from another devastating attack from various foes, but one in particular – Venom Snake – has set Big Boss in a Hell bent path to avenge the fallen men and women he swore to protect.

With his base now gone, alliances seemingly broken, and Big Boss without his arm, we can only assume that him and Miller will be seeking a war unlike any we’ve seen yet within the games franchise.

4. Xenoblade Chronicles X

The Wii U has been a console that has been plagued by a lack of games. Granted it has had a few in-house solid hits, it’s third party support has been all-but-flourishing. Thanks to their third party developer Monolith Soft, we’re going to see the world of Xenoblade Chronicles once more revisited. This time the game will be backed by the Wii U’s stronger hardware as well as HD output.

Even as a JRPG, it’s no surprise the anticipation for this game has stacked up due to its massive open-world and deep story knocked some contenders such as Batman: Arkham Knight and even Halo 5: Guardians back a few spots on our most anticipated list.

3. Bloodborne

When Demon’s Souls launched on the PS3, it was surprising to see a game that was so hard, so unforgiving, and even damning players the way it did. In turn, a spark was ignited, and players once more wanted to be punished, beat up, and kicked aside like a rag doll only to come back for more. This time; it’s just changing the paint-job and looks to be even more painful. With Hidetaka, Sony, and the team at From Software once more collaborating, we can only say that we’ve been impressed as players have once more felt their breaths taken away by beautiful and compelling gothic settings, but also the dark, dreaded, and demented appearance the game has taken.

We can only say one thing to this – Prepare to Die.

2. The Order: 1886

Whilst the teams over at Microsoft has been working hard with their exclusives such as Halo and Quantum Break; Sony has been rather busy throwing some gas on their own fire just to make it burn brighter, and so far it has been working great. The Order 1886 has revealed itself to be a supernatural thriller. With vampires, werewolves, and we can only guess what else running around London, we can only guess what The Order: 1886 looks like it will have a lot to offer for those who want a mix of supernatural and the once more late 1800’s feel of an alternate time-line based London under their chin.

1. The Legend of Zelda

This was one of the best announcements of 2014. One that sent many fans, writers, and even gaming new-comers into a rally. While Nintendo and designer Eiji Aonuma have remained silent, it seems that a lot of the games base idea has been released in regards to game play. Seeming that the game will once more return us into a rather large open world, which seems much larger than past titles, the game is beautiful, with rather lively and lush environments. We can only say this towards Nintendo – we want more.

Did any of these games make your top 10 list for this year? If not, let us know what your list is like! We’re always excited to see what others are highly anticipating and our team, without a doubt, wants to hear about it – so let us know in the comments here on our website, our community pages, or even on our twitter!

About the Writer:

Blast Away The Game Review

A little bit of news, a little bit of reviews, and bit of games from around the world for you.

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