GameCentral readers name the games they’re most looking forward to this year, from Final Fantasy 7 Remake to Resident Evil 3.
As the first Hot Topic of the new year, the subject for this weekend’s Inbox was very simple: what are you most looking forward to from gaming in 2020?
Given the huge number of new releases and the promise of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X there was no shortage of suggestions, although Cyberpunk 2077 and The Last Of Us Part 2 were the clear favourites, ahead of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild 2 and Final Fantasy 7 Remake.
Positive impressions
It’s got to be Cyberpunk 2077. After the genius of The Witcher 3 (which everyone has been helpfully reminded of recently thanks to Netflix) I have full faith in CD Projekt, especially given their zero tolerance policy towards microtransactions and lootbox and general positive attitude. For me personally sci-fi is more interesting than high fantasy too, so that’s a bonus, and everything I’ve seen of the game so far looks just amazing.
There’s still a question mark over the gameplay, as I don’t believe anyone’s played it yet – which is a bit worrying when it’s fairly imminent – but the combat wasn’t that great in The Witcher and that never hurt, so I don’t see it being a problem. Besides, I tend to play these things as a charmer/good person anyway, as I always think that’s more interesting.
There’s tons of other great games of course, and I’m definitely looking forward to Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Doom Eternal, Resident Evil 3, Ghost Of Tsushima, and Zelda: Breath Of The Wild 2 if it comes out this year. And that’s only scratching the surface and doesn’t include hardly anything out in the second half of the year. That’s a lot to look forward!
Rondo
Resident Evil 3.5
Now this is hard Hot Topic. There’s so many great games coming out this year my own worry is that they’re going to start eating into each other’s sales. And pity any smaller or indie games that come out at the same time. That aside we’re almost spoilt for choice and yet I’m surprise to find the one I’m most looking forward to is a remake of a game that wasn’t even that great. No, not Final Fantasy 7… Resident Evil 3!
I loved the Resident Evil 2 remake so much I couldn’t even tell you and I’m looking forward to the new one precisely because the source material isn’t as good. Everything Capcom has said and announced so far points towards them recognising the original’s faults and using it as an excuse to change things up a lot more. Hopefully making this almost a new game, even beyond the graphics.
The separate multiplayer also sounds great and a very much appreciated extra effort that few other companies would make. I can’t wait to see it and play it and it’s out quite soon. I just hope it’s as gory as Resi 2, that was such a welcome bonus!
Dnlm
Marvellous intentions
Almost too much to choose from here but I’m going to avoid the obvious of Cyberpunk 2077 and plump for Marvel’s Avengers. After how great Marvel’s Spider-Man turned out I’m really hoping this turns out well and so far the previews seem to have been surprisingly positive.
I think it’s pretty obvious they were originally going for a Star Wars: Battlefront 2 style lootbox rip-off but what they’d announced after the delays sounds good to me. And adding in new characters and costumes does make complete sense for a superhero game and is something I would be interested in paying small amounts for.
My only concern is that the art style seems a bit bland. Kind of sort of photorealistic but not really. They either need to go full realism or full comic book, but my hope is that some of the costumes will add a more cel-shaded style which would be cool. Either way, looking forward to it.
Macbeth 2000
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Sequel mania
Well, Cyberpunk 2047 (I nearly wrote it as Cyberpuke, not that I think it is likely to be a turkey) [you still got the date wrong, it’s 2077 – GC] and the Final Fantasy 7 Remake are going to win this by a landslide. And yeah, they’ll be pretty interesting alright. Though I am a bit miffed by the fact that – at least initially – Cyberpunk will be first person only and Final Fantasy 7 is not the whole package.
I am more stoked for the arrival of Psychonauts 2 and Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2. I’ll be able to live out all my goth fantasies in Bloodlines (hopefully) and from what little we’ve seen of Psychonauts 2 it should be every bit as inventive as its predecessor. Again, hopefully.
Resident Evil Three-make (ha ha – I came up with it first!) and Persona 5 Royal are almost guaranteed to be great. As ever, the release date of the updated Persona is very odd – sandwiched in-between the behemoths of both Cyberpunk and Final Fantasy! That will probably be one for the discount section…
Gosh, there are some very interesting contenders coming out this year, aren’t there? Streets Of Rage 4 likely in the summer. Then Deadly Premonition 2, probably in the autumn. A friend of mine seemed adamant that Dragon Age 4 would be out this year, I don’t know where she came by that idea but you guys seem sceptical. Hell, even Avengers might be great!
But, if Zelda: Breath Of The Wild 2 comes out this year then everything else may as well just forget it because I would bet my boots on that being the best game ever made.
Happy New Year GC and fellow readers!
DMR
GC: Dragon Age 4 will be lucky to come out at all; it’s certainly not going to be this year.
A new era
2020 seems like a year to start the next generation of consoles off. The possibility of revealing what we will be using over the next few years is intriguing in regards to software usage like discs, etc. being a thing still, or is the streaming or downloading of games era taken over? Or will that be the generation after next!
Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Resident Evil 3, Cyberpunk 2077. The games I have just mentioned are possibilities of PlayStation 5 releases and as much as I want to play them ASAP, they will be better on a new console which does pose a problem. I definitely don’t want to have to get a game twice if I can help it.
This current generation of consoles are so good that the above games will play fantastically on them, but the amount of storage is something that I hope the next generation can get sorted in the first batch of new console releases. I don’t know, maybe a two terabyte console! I mean if the Sky Q box can do it then a console which needs to store a load of 40 to 60 or more gigabytes of gaming power is a must have for sure.
Whatever happens, like maybe Beyond Good And Evil 2 being revealed in a near complete state of completion or possibly not, I am sure the exciting upcoming months ahead will surely not disappoint us gamers. Every year that goes by the more surprised and pleased I am at the rise of the gaming norm, which has turned from a niche and cult following fanbase to one of the biggest entertainment mediums of all time. Would we have predicted that in the middle of the 1980s?!
Alucard
GC: Microsoft has made it very clear that streaming will be nowhere close to taking over in the new generation.
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Halfway to three
I know it’s not something most people are going to be able to experience but personally I’m most looking forward to Half-Life: Alyx. It may not be Half-Life 3 in name but in every other sense it seems to be exactly that, including the fact that it’s a breakthrough in new technology.
Just watching the trailer, I’ve never seen anything like this and having a VR and a decent PC already I am almost counting the days till it’s released. I just hope that Valve’s abilities haven’t dulled with lack of use, especially given how so many who worked on the original must’ve left by now.
Jackson
Big four
For me there’s four games I’m really looking forward to in 2020. I have three pre-ordered on Amazon, I plan on getting a collector’s edition of another when/if one gets listed dependant on whether it’s a statue, and not a headless half-naked woman.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake
The original is my second favourite game ever, so I’m pumped for this. And having seen the gameplay videos on YouTube, it looks like Square have nailed it. (Question to you GC – do you know if it’s still being released episodically? I hope they dropped that idea.)
Dreams
This looks absolutely amazing. I’m not very creative myself, I simply don’t have the patience, but I loved playing other people’s creations in LittleBigPlanet, so I’m sure Dreams will be even better given just how many possibilities there are.
Resident Evil 3
Final Fantasy 7 Remake is my second fave game of all time and Resident Evil 2 is my third. And Resident Evil 3… I didn’t think much of it at all in the 90s. It felt rushed, empty and a massive disappointment after playing Resident Evil 2 over and over and over in the lead up to its release. I have confidence I’ll enjoy the remake far more than the original though, given the last remake was easily one of my faves of 2019. So hopefully I’ll finally have some love for the Jill vs. Nemesis entry, it was while watching the new trailer I realised I couldn’t remember a single thing about playing the original apart from setting fire to a rope on a gate, and hiding in a pub’s kitchen. But yet I could walk you through Resident Evil 2 from memory and likely still know where every single item is to this day.
Dying Light 2
The original Dying Light was the first game I really sunk my teeth into when I bought my PlayStation 4. I remember being blown away by the graphics – standing on top of the building you’re based in, looking at what must be miles away and seeing things clearly was amazing. The game surprised me with how good it was too. It doesn’t ever seem to get mentioned as one of the games of the generation but for me at least it certainly is. Might not be near the top but it’s in there. The Following was one of the best DLCs I’ve ever bought too. The sequel looks like it’ll be even better so I can’t wait, I just hope they have the same composers back as the soundtrack was excellent, it had a real 70s Romero vibe to it.
A lot of the other big games don’t really interest me. I didn’t really enjoy The Last Of Us, perhaps because I played it so late and had heard so many people talking about how amazing it was, but I found it a bit of a chore. Took me over a year to actually finish it I think, rather than helping to save Ellie I was willing her to get eaten she annoyed me so much, so I couldn’t care less about another one. Cyberpunk 2077 looks great but it’s the kind of game I get bored of within a few hours so I’ll pass on it. But I’m sure it’ll still be a lot of people’s game of the year, just not my thing. I could never get into The Witcher 3 either despite it clearly being a top quality title. Saying that though I might give it one last go sometime after watching the Netflix series.
Anyway, happy new year GC, and to all the readers.
Lost-Sock-
GC: Final Fantasy 7 Remake only takes place in Midgar and will need multiple other games to complete the whole story.
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