PCs, handhelds, mobile, console, indies, triple A, free-to-play — the gaming scene gets more diverse and difficult to follow by the day, but thankfully I’m here every week to guide you through what’s happening with games.
As always, I’ll rattle off five games I think you might want to check out this week. Keep in mind, these articles aren’t meant to be comprehensive lists of everything coming out that week so much as a nice rounded tasting menu. So, here are the games you need to know about this week…
This Week’s Racing Game
Need For Speed (Xbox One & PS4, Nov. 3rd)
After retiring from the circuit for a few years, EA is bringing back the Need For Speed series with a full reboot. This Need For Speed is being developed by a new studio named Ghost Games and will have a somewhat darker tone and more of a focus on story than past games in the series. EA hasn’t put a lot of marketing muscle behind this one, but hopefully it’s another good entry in the always solid Need For Speed series.
This Week’s Indie Platformer
Poncho (PC, Mac, Linux & PS4, Nov. 3rd)
Poncho is a cute platformer featuring a little robot who jumps between the game’s many parallax layers in order to progress. Poncho also appears to have a Cave Story-like feel to it, with some colorful characters to meet and storylines to uncover between the bouts of platforming. Here’s the game’s Steam page.
This Week’s Strategy Game
Anno 2205 (PC, Nov. 3rd)
Ubisoft’s Anno games are some of the more underrated strategy titles on the market, combining the empire-management of Civilization with the city-building of SimCity. With Anno 2205, we blast off to the future, and the game looks every bit as solid as part entries in the series. Here’s the game’s Steam page.
This Week’s Catch ‘Em All-A-Thon
Yo-Kai Watch (3DS, Nov. 6th)
Yo-Kai Watch is as big as Pokémon in Japan, because, well, it basically is Pokémon. Except with ghosts! Yo-Kai Watch features hundreds of different ghosts (“yokai” being the Japanese word for ghost), which you battle, befriend and then use to proceed through the game. Yo-Kai Watch is going to be accompanied by a cartoon and the requisite deluge of merchandise, so do the rugrats in your life a favor and get them the game before it’s the hot new kid obsession.
Pick of the Week
Call of Duty: Black Ops III (PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3 & PS4, Nov. 6th)
Well, it’s November, so that means it’s time for millions of gamers to get their FPS fix with Call of Duty: Black Ops III. This time around the entire campaign can be played co-op with friends, and the game’s Zombies mode is larger and more elaborate than ever (at this point it’s too big to be called a side mode). It should be noted that the Xbox 360 and PS3 version of Black Ops III are missing the co-op campaign, featuring only the multiplayer and Zombies modes, so buyer beware.
A packed week as we head into the biggest gaming month of the year. Any games you’re itching to get your hands on that I failed to mention? Hit the comments and let the world know.