Most Anticipated Games of 2012 – Part Three

Did you enjoy all of 2011’s brilliant games? You did? That’s fantastic. Now forget about them all immediately, and start secreting from your hype glands in frothy anticipation for what’s coming out in 2012. While there’s bound to be some stuff announced later – like the next Call of Duty – here’s our picks of upcoming 2012 games we already know about, part three:

Luigi’s Mansion 2

Finally – a return of the Poltergust 5000! We’ve always had a soft spot for Luigi, though we’re not sure why a man terrified of ghosts has been personally selected to rid giant spooky mansions of their poltergeists. Still, it makes for good entertainment. Luigi’s Mansion 2 promises a game that’s more puzzle-oriented than the GameCube original, it’ll also need a bit more content than its predecessor if it wants to justify a £30 price tag in our App-obsessed world.

DMC

Capcom has let British studio Ninja Theory take plenty of risks with its reboot of Devil May Cry, including a complete visual shake-up of flash-fighting protagonist Dante. We’ve still not seen much of the game outside of a couple of brief videos, but if Ninja Theory can keep the combo-heavy combat system of the series and mix it with the detail-rich presentation they’ve shown in games like Enslaved, then this could end up being something quite magnificent.

The Secret World

Basing an MMO around obscure-but-wonderful point-and-click adventure The Longest Journey might not be the most obvious idea, but we’re glad Funcom is giving it a go – this might be one of the most adventurous MMOs in production right now. Fighting monsters as the Illuminati sounds like a great setup, and Funcom’s insistence on making an action-focused MMO without levelling might be enough to convince the genre naysayers to have a go.

Guild Wars 2

We’ve been waiting for Guild Wars 2 for a long, long time – the game was announced in 2007. The original Guild Wars set itself apart thanks to some excellent PvP modes and a lack of subscription fees, and we fully expect Guild Wars 2 to build on that. Expect a focus on character creation, a swanky new engine, and group dungeons you’ll be ploughing through for ages.

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria

Pandas and Pokemon – has Blizzard gone completely mad, or are they just bigger geniuses than we’ve ever previously realised? This is definitely World of Warcraft’s riskiest expansion yet, as 2012 sees Blizzard forced to compete in the MMO space with EA’s big-budget Star Wars: The Old Republic. If we’ve learnt one thing in the past decade, however, it’s that you’d be foolish to bet against World of Warcraft.

Final Fantasy XIII-2

A divided reception for Final Fantasy XIII left Square Enix with egg on its face, but the studio is adamant FFXIII-2 will make up for its predecessor’s failings. From what we’ve seen so far it’s a game influenced by the likes of Mass Effect and Fable, and Square Enix has packed XIII-2 full of content. There are massive expansive environments, new Live Trigger events, and multiple endings. There’s simply loads going on here, and if Square Enix manages to make it a cohesive experience then we might be prepared to forgive them for XIII.

Soul Calibur V

Namco Bandai has promised that Soul Calibur V (which we absolutely refuse to write as SoulCalibur V, for the record) will be a return to form for the fighting franchise after the underwhelming fourth instalment. The aim is to create a leaner, meaner brawler with a greater emphasis on speed instead of spam. Will it succeed?

Dragon’s Dogma

Dragon Dogma’s director Hideaki Itsuno has said it is a game he’s been dreaming about making since his school days. Our schoolyard fantasy would involve a giant race of superhero crabs fighting off an ancient crime syndicate with a gun that shoots bananas, so it’s probably best that Itsuno’s getting a chance to realise his idea. Dragon’s Dogma looks like a rock-hard Japanese RPG with a few similarities to the achingly-cool-right-now Dark Souls, so we’re expecting good things when it shows up

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

After a protracted in-house development at Kojima Productions, development duties for Rising were shifted to Platinum Games – makers of insane action games like Bayonetta and Vanquish. What does this mean for Raiden’s standalone adventure? Well, Rising is now packed with action sequences and self-referential cutscenes. Since its announcement, Metal Gear Solid fans have expressed dismay at the game looking thematically out of place within their cherished franchise – but the involvement of Platinum Games should be more than enough to get most people excited.

Most anticipated games of 2012: Part 1 | Part 2

Street Fighter x Tekken

Capcom has surely got its money’s worth out of the Street Fighter IV engine by now; Street Fighter x Tekken is the fourth fighting game to use it in as many years, and that’s excluding the ports. Still, that’s no reason to not get excited for it: most fighting fans have been dreaming of the two fighting franchises squaring off since the late 90s. It’s a tag team fighter that takes its rules from Tekken Tag Tournament and introduces an intriguing Cross Gauge mechanic, and we’re definitely looking forward to years of playing online against the inevitable barrage of Ryu and Kazuya tag teams.