The featured image for this post is AI generated. For some reason ChatGPT insists on giving my image a beard and moustache
I recently posted about the games I’ve been enjoying so far this year. But there are a number of upcoming titles that I sense will replace these on my ‘favourites’ list for 2024.
Lists are fun and fairly easy to write, so here goes: my list of games expected in the next six months or so that I’m looking forward to.
What kind of games do I like?
My taste in video games generally leans towards single player or co-op role playing games with fairly deep stories and interesting characters to interact with. I also tend to like games with good graphics and where most of the characters have voice acting to go along with them. Take a look on this site under the ‘games‘ category to get a sense of the sorts of releases that tickle my fancy.
These preferences mean that many of the games I like are large, big-budget affairs. So my the games I like might not suit you if you are looking for strange indie darlings no one has heard of. Most of the games I’m looking forward to are probably on a lot of wish lists.
Now on to my list!
Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Release date: November 15, 2024
Assassin’s Creed is a long-running series going back seventeen (!!) years. I’ve played most of the entries in the franchise, but not always with great satisfaction. The games in the series have tended in more recent years to sprawling open worlds filled with hundreds of quest markers most of which lead to a samey interaction. Some of the entries are just a bit too much skinner box and not enough game.
But I was quite pleased with the much tighter and well-written Assassin’s Creed Mirage that was released a year or so ago. It truly felt like a return to the games original form: good stealth sequences, an intriguing story, and interesting characters to interact with.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows appears to be built around a similar skeleton. Less open world, more ‘bespoke’ story line set this time in feudal Japan. Unlike Mirage, in this release you have the choice of playing either of two characters: Yasuke, a black samurai based on a lightly documented historical figure; or Naoe, a female shinobi or ninja.
Both characters are immediately appealing to me and allow two drastically different approaches to the game. Yasuke will focus on aggressive combat whereas Naoe will focus on stealth. I will likely play as Naoe as I like the sneaky style of play.
There is a bunch of ridiculous controversy over the character choices in this game stirring around the gaming community. Apparently the choice being ‘limited’ to only a black man or an asian woman is too ‘woke’ for some people. Screw those people is what I say: they have no place in the kind of gaming community I want to be part of. I hope they crawl back under whatever rock seems most likely to squash them out of existence.
Star Wars Outlaws
Release date: August 30, 2024
Oh no- two Ubisoft games have made my list in the same year: I must be a corporate shill with no taste- woe is me!
Okay, the above line is a bit of a joke, but truthfully I am not a big fan of Ubisoft. They’ve done some pretty gamer-unfriendly things over the years, and then there was that whole toxic corporate culture situation they seem to have had going on. That being said, if they make a game I want to play I’m not going to dismiss it because of their past behaviours.
Star Wars Outlaws is a game I want to play. It is likely to be a bit too action oriented for my tastes, but I’m not against such games if they have an intriguing story to tell.
Outlaws is about a part of the Star Wars universe I’ve always found appealing: the part without so many Jedi warriors and Sith, where folks like Jabba the Hut, Greedo, Han Solo, and Lando Calrissian make their home. I want to experience more of this dirtier and more unsanitary part of Star Wars, and it seems like this is what Outlaws is intended to focus on.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Release date: October 31, 2024
Ohhh, l love me some Dragon Age! It has been far too long since I enjoyed the scathing critique of my choices from Morrigan or heard one of Varric’s bad jokes. In fact, it has been ten whole years since Dragon Age: Inquisition: no wonder I’m excited to enjoy more time in this world.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard apparently has some technical gameplay changes versus the older entries that are described in some of the release materials. The main change I’m a most skeptical of is the move towards a more ‘action oriented’ real time combat. But I’m optimistic based on some of the material I’ve read that the ‘tactical pause’ feature will work well.
Avowed
February 18, 2025
Obsidian has a tremendous track record for producing RPGs with engrossing stories, enjoyable quests, and intriguing characters to interact with. They’ve done incredible things across multiple story universes including Star Wars, Dungeons and Dragons, and Fallout. They’ve also created their own highly enjoyable settings. If Obsidian has a new game coming you can be sure that I will check it out, and Avowed is on its way.
Avowed is set in the same universe as Pillars of Eternity (PoE). I played both previous games in that universe quite happily several years ago. Avowed promises some changes in graphics with a move to support both first and third person perspectives as opposed to the strictly isometric view provided in PoE.
I’ve been waiting for Avowed since it was first announced about four years ago. I realize that the release date is actually in 2025, but I am definitely already anxiously waiting for this one.
I’m on the fence on Outlaws. I fear there is a bait and switch about it being “open world” as so many previews look very “corridor”. I also have the challenge of being into Once Human still and that hasn’t dropped off yet for me.
I don’t disagree, Heartlessgamer. I suspect I’m just coming at it from a different perspective: I don’t really expect Outlaws to be truly ‘Open World’ which might be why I’m looking forward to it 😉
I like well-made open world games, but Ubisoft’s template for such games is basically “have a big map icons representing hundreds of nearly identical tasks”. From that studio I’d rather have them focus on a more curated story. If I get 20 or 30 hours of enjoyment out of such a game purchase I’m quite happy.
I haven’t tried Once Human yet. I’m not really a big survival game person, and I haven’t really been interested in MMOGs lately. I might check out Once Human some day, but I generally find trying to play a group game as a single player is not particularly fun.
I’m so excited for Veilguard and having a combat system more catered to my desire!
Of the games on my list Veilguard is probably the one I’m most looking forward to: but I must admit that combat is not the part I’m most focussed on.
What aspect of the combat system specifically are you looking forward to, Emily?
It’s more action based as the tactical part was always a challenge for me. Plus the companions are intriguing and I suspect lots of monsters to fight!
Interesting perspective, Emily! I generally like more ‘tactical’ combat so I have time to organize and plan out actions- with pure action I find I start to just repeat actions over and over as I don’t have time to think.
But I’m hoping the ‘tactical pause’ will give us the best of both worlds 🙂
I’ve played a few Assassin’s Creed games and enjoyed Black Flag the best. What I don’t like about the franchise are the subplot elements about the Animus and the things going down in our current timeline. I feel they’d be better games if that element was purged. I suspect I may be in a minority on that, though.
I doubt you are in the minority, Roger! I’m not a big fan of the ‘current’ timeline aspects of the AC games either.
But they have reduced the ‘Animus’ elements so much in the most recent entries that they are essentially non existent. I didn’t notice anything in that vein in Assassin’s Creed: Mirage for example. Mind you, I sort of ignore those scenes so maybe I’m forgetting something from that game.