25 Games I’m Looking Forward to in 2016

Happy New Year!

It’s time to start planning what games you’re going to invest in this year. I’ve compiled a list of all the games I’m personally looking forward to. There’s going to be some games missing that you may be excited about, but hey, this is my blog!

I won’t include any VR-only games or games that are on the fence with a 2016 release date. The reason I’m not including VR games isn’t because I’m not excited about any of that (I’ve already owned a DK2 unit and I’m a strong believer in our current technology with VR), but it’s because I just don’t want to. If I did, 100 Foot Robot Golf would be at the top of my list.

No Man’s Sky (PC/PS4) (Trailer)

No Man’s Sky is a giant space exploration game from the studio behind of Joe Danger. This project is the complete opposite of what Joe Danger is, so it’s going to be interesting if they can pull it off. The key feature I like about this game is being able to find a planet that’s never been discovered, scan all of it’s details including plant and monster life, but also name it whatever you want. I plan on visiting Butt Planet as much as I can.

Horizon: Zero Dawn (PS4 Exclusive) (Trailer)

Monster Hunter 4 was as close as I came to getting into monster hunting games outside of Pokémon. But Pokémon is fun (to me) due to collecting things and leveling up several monsters. Horizon: Zero Dawn looks like a Monster Hunter game made in the west. There’s a graphic fidelity that looks gorgeous and has me questioning the wizardry behind their art team. But ultimately we play video games to have fun, and the game looks like a blast to play.

Persona 5 (PS3/PS4 Exclusive) (Trailer)

This might be the biggest game coming out this year simply because I’m in love with the series. If you’ve never stumbled onto a Persona game, it’s a weird treat. It’s an anime story of high school teens trying to stop some type of evil presence with the help of their summoned personas, or monsters. It’s a story-heavy game that fulfills two types of games: turn-based role-playing and friendship sim. It almost feels like a mature Pokémon game with it’s collecting.

Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 (PC/PS4/XB1) (Trailer)

As simple as the original game is, it’s a lot of fun to play and due to the aesthetic style and use of colors, it’s a beautiful game to admire. While it’s practically an easier to play Battlefield game, it still has a lot of debt and “unlockable” goodies to have. I have high hopes for the sequel to be even better.

Dragon Quest Builders (PS3/PS4 Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

Minecraft is a pretty big hit and in Japan, so is Dragon Quest. Dragon Quest Builders combines the crafting and survival of Minecraft with the JRPG giant, Dragon Quest. The fun, blocky look of Minecraft has been overhauled to look almost like it’s copying the style of 3D Dot Game Heroes. So what makes this game more special than Minecraft? There’s some story and a much better combat system. What’s going to keep it from beating Minecraft? The brand name and lack of multiplayer.

Street Fighter V (PC/PS4) (Gameplay Trailer)

The new age of heroes is coming February! For the first time that I’m aware of, Street Fighter console gamers will fight against PC gamers. I’ve already played the beta a little bit so I know what kind of quality it is. It’s a visual step-up from Ultra Street Fighter IV. The new characters (and old) look fantastic. I’m not a pro at fighting games, but I always enjoy playing them.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (PC/PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

Deus Ex is one of the best at combining role-playing, stealth, and action. The cyberpunk theme and dystopian future setting puts it in a pretty unique category since not enough games use these perfect video game settings. Adam Jensen is also just a cool character. He didn’t ask for any of this, but we did. The one fear I have is they try to change something like they did with the boss fights in Human Revolution. The game was easily one of the best titles on last generation but tarnished by annoyingly bad boss battles. Let’s hope they’ve learned their lessons.

The story sounds pretty great too. Jensen works for a company as an augmented (cyborg) counter-terrorist that deals with global terrorism. He also deals with shadow governments and corporate corruption, or the Illuminati. The game takes place two years after the events of Human Revolution. Man is divided against the augmented humans and terrorist are running afoot. If they keep a general formula going as they did with Human Revolution, this may be a game of the year contender.

Final Fantasy XV (PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

If you bought Final Fantasy Type-0 Remaster, then you probably have playing the XV: Episode One demo that was included. I thought it was going to be difficult to care for another Final Fantasy after the direction of XIII. But they managed to make a Final Fantasy combat system that feels great to play. Sadly, it’s not turn-based but the new action combat system feels really fun and fluid within the world. You still get a sense of Final Fantasy with creature encounters, but without the spinning world effect.

[MORE WRITE-UP SOON, BUT UNTIL THEN, HERE’S THE LIST!]

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (PS4 Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

Cuphead (PC/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

Mirror’s Edge Catalyst (PC/PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

Nier Automata (PS4 Exclusive) (Trailer)

Ratchet & Clank (PS4 Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands (PC/PS4/XB1) (Trailer)

The Last Guardian (PS4 Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

Doom (PC/PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

Pokkén Tournament (Wii U Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

XCOM 2 (PC Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam (3DS Exclusive) (Trailer)

Yakuza 6 (PS4 Exclusive) (Trailer)

Dark Souls III (PC/PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

God Eater 2 (PS4 Exclusive) (Gameplay Trailer)

Mafia III (PC/PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

Shadow Warrior 2 (PC/PS4/XB1) (Gameplay Trailer)

The Legend of Zelda (Wii U/NX <-maybe) (Gameplay Trailer)

Man... just going down the list like that, I think we're in for another great year in games.

Oh, Cuphead. The Witness is less than a month away.

I'm excited about the Banner Saga 2 coming out. And a bunch of KS games like Ghost Song, TimeSpinner, and of course, Night In the Woods.

Man, I forgot about Cuphead too. The only one I'm REALLY looking forward to is Amplitude, which I guess is sort of already out and that probably says more about me than the games on this list.

Torment: Tides of Numenera is probably at the top of my list, closely followed by X-COM 2 and Persona 5.

Ooh, I thought Night in The Woods wasn't coming out 'till 2017. I really like how that looks.

@d_w: I am excited for Banner Saga 2's soundtrack as much as I am the game. Last game, despite it's issues, was a real treat.

Yeah this year'll be expensive, won't it. I'm kind of hoping that the NX will be a 2017 thing just to save some stress on my bank account.

Well, half of those games won't come out this years; so, that will cut the list down considerably.

Still don't believe The Last Guardian will actually come out this year. Not even certain Horizon Zero Dawn will, seeing how recently it was announced.

That said, super excited for No Mans Sky (don't know why I believe this is coming out but not the other two), The Witness, The Division, and the Oculus Rift. The two pack-ins announced for the Rift have all but sealed it as a day 1 purchase for me.

@glottery said:

You might be right. I've heard them talking about shooting for next december.

I keep looking back at how great 2015 was, but man... looking at that list just makes me realize I really need to finish my backlog because 2016 is no slouch.

I like this post and your easy links, well done. But I'm gonna pretend Mass Effect: Andromeda is coming out in 2016, ready to iterate on the perfect game that was ME 3.

Really? I was thinking the exact opposite.I think there are lot of games that show great promise, but nothing that is a sure bet.

The thing that I'm most interest in is E3. I'm really hoping for some Cyberpunk 2077 info and a Bioware (Edmonton) Star Wars game.

Nice looking list and great picks overall. I don't have any excitement for Pokken since I hear that is a DBZ Budokai style game and I don't enjoy that style of fighting game. I also didn't enjoy the Shadow Warrior reboot so I don't care about the sequel. PvZ isn't my thing also but other than those three I'm excited for the games you picked as well.

For me personally, I play Russian Roulette every night hoping for a Tekken 7 console release in 2016 but other than that I'm looking at Dark Souls 3, Persona 5, Street Fighter V, Cuphead and Resident Evil 0 HD as potential GOTY candidates.

I have my doubts of FF15 and Nier Automata being out this year but if Nier is then I'm more excited for that than anything I've ever been excited for in my life.

If Nier's out this year along with FF15 and Mass Effect Andromeda (and of course Persona 5) then I might never leave the comfort of my monitor/television until 2017.

Yeah, there's always a chance that any or even all of these games bomb (I have my doubts on Doom, but HOLY SHIT LOOK AT THAT CACODEMON), but I'm staying optimistic for the time being.

And yeah, as every year, I can't wait for E3. I'm super curious to see what Nintendo's been cooking up, and if Sony will have a price point set for PSVR. If nothing else, this year should be really interesting.