Time management is an ongoing struggle for everyone at Centre. Between classes, extra-curricular activities, and social lives, it’s hard to find time to just relax.
Gamers though, somehow manage to find that hour or three to play our favorite video games, sometimes foregoing a night out or that reading our professor assigned in class last week, to squeeze in time with a few rounds of playing.
With next-gen consoles, such as the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4, on the market for almost a year now, video game developers are getting into the swing of this console generation, with several blockbuster games already released, and several more that are scheduled for the rest of the year.
Below are just a few of the games that will come out before the semester is over; just in time to ruin your GPA.
1. Master Chief Collection (Xbox One)
For over a decade, the Halo franchise has almost singlehandedly dominated the first-person shooter genre. The first title, Halo: Combat Evolved, made the Xbox into the platform that it is today and was the original Xbox’s flagship launch title.
Its follow-up, Halo 2, was held up as a masterpiece, especially for its simple, yet addicting, online multiplayer option.
For years following, its creator, Bungie Studios, released several entries into the series, selling millions of copies of each game, while receiving exceptional reviews each time.
Now, almost 14 years removed from the original game’s launch, Microsoft is collecting all of the Halo games that feature iconic protagonist Master Chief onto one disc for the Xbox One. Fans can play all four games, with enhanced graphics and frame rate.
The biggest selling point of the collection, however, is the completely rebuilt Halo 2.
Bungie completely rebuilt the game’s graphics onto the Xbox One engine, making the game look like a brand-new next-gen game.
While some fans worry that the games might lose the charm that made them so much fun when they first debuted, developers calmed fans’ fears by explaining that all of the games’ original codes stand intact; to the point that any glitch found in the games (think super-jumps in Halo 2) are present in the Xbox One versions of this game.
In a time when several brand-new, next-gen games are slated for release, a collection of four games dating back to 2001 is one of the most talked-about and anticipated releases this year.
2. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (Multi-Platform)
Another year brings another Call of Duty. In a time when game journalism can run rampant with bias and bribery, games often fall victim to their own hype.
However, Call of Duty managed to provide gamers with a consistently well-made product. While several gamers gripe (and rightly so) about the games’ predictability, a game always releases to favorable reviews from critics; a feat that is easier said than done.
This year’s entry into the series is titled Advanced Warfare, and seeks to up the ante within the cinematic department, something for which the series has been well-known.
On top of adopting a futuristic time period, actors, such as Kevin Spacey, have lent their likeness to the game in the hopes to deliver a more engaging, thrilling story to fans.
In terms of actual game play, fans can expect the same features and feel to the game that made it so popular in the first place. Zombies and Call of Duty’s heralded multiplayer returns, with new maps, weapons and other features.
3. The Evil Within (Xbox One, PS4)
The survival horror genre is faint ghost of what it once was. Older series such as Resident Evil have strayed far from the original feel of survival horror games, in favor of more action-oriented gameplay.
The Evil Within aims to restore the genre to its former glory. Taking the role of a detective, the player must investigate a supernatural and grim world, all the while dodging monsters and villains out to get them.
Harkening back to the older survival horror games, ammunition for weapons is scarce, and the player must use stealth and the environment to survive.
Make no mistake about it—this game punishes players for their mistakes. Even on normal difficulty, reviewers have commented on the sheer number of times they died before figuring out a level.
Several critics who played the game have commented on the mix of horror styles within the game. Critics praised the game for towing the line between the eerie and the grotesque.
The player could be haunted by apparitions in one segment and chased by a crazed killer in the next. The game borrows influences from several different horror genres, but, according to critics, manages to sew them together into one cohesive and terrifying experience.
4. Assassin’s Creed Unity (Xbox One, PS4)
Much like the Call of Duty series, the Assassin’s Creed series is one one of the poster children for an annual model, releasing a new game each year. Like Call of Duty, gamers criticize the series at times for its lack of innovation and repetitive features game-to-game.
However, Assassin’ Creed Unity marks the series’ first solely next-gen game. Following the trend of placing its story within a significant time period in history, Unity is set in France during the French Revolution.
In terms of game play, there does not appear to be any dramatic overhaul; just the same parkour and combat-based game play that made the series loved by so many.
Unity does however introduce a four-player coop into the game’s story, something previously unheard-of within the Assassin’s Creed series.
Developers also promise that gamers can play with different styles of combat, choosing weapons and fighting styles that fit their own preferences.