10 video games to look out for in 2012
Matt Hawkins 
Many will agree that 2011 was an absolutely mind-blowing year, as it pertained to electronic entertainment at least. You had a metric ton of high quality, AAA titles that actually lived up to the hype (like Skyrim, Skyward Sword, and Arkham Asylum to name a few), franchises that were able to successfully reinvent themselves, which is usually impossible (if Mortal Kombat isn’t the comeback story of last year, I don’t know what is), and hell froze over with the release of Duke Nukem Forever at long last (sure it sucked as expected, but at least we all had a great laugh).
So 2012 is going to have to work overtime to compete. Thankfully, a number of titles on the horizon indicate that there’s a decent chance that this year may in fact top the last one. Here are the ten best bets.
10 Max Payne 3
Rockstar Games has been on a winning streak for the past few years, and their latest looks to maintain that stellar track record. Granted, what everyone REALLY wants is still Grand Theft Auto 5 at the end of the day, most will still find themselves quite happy with the third installment of a franchise whose return visit is also well overdue. Though it’ll be interesting to see how everyone reacts to today’s fancy tech melding with classic, tough as nails gameplay. Enough to remind everyone of how truly easy they’ve had it.
9 Snake Eater 3D
Yes, it’s yet another 3D remake of an older game on a platform that desperate needs some worthy original titles. But aside from the fact that Metal Gear Solid 3 is still one of the best games of all time, it’s a safe bet that this latest edition will be completely retrofitted to feel like it was originally created for the handheld since day one, because that’s just how the folks behind MGS (Kojima Productions) roll. Basically, expect the 3D to be used to enhance gameplay and not just some silly gimmick.
8 DmC
When the fifth Devil May Cry game was announced, a reboot of the franchise, sans the creator and in the hands of Brits, everyone was somewhat concerned. Then, when it was revealed that their new take on Dante was clearly inspired by Twilight, everyone got pissed, and justifiably so. But once gameplay footage began trickling, everyone pretty much shut the hell up. At a time and age in which it’s becoming damn near impossible to create a walk around and hack and slash both legitimately stylish and fun looking, Ninja Theory has seemingly done the impossible.
7 Diablo 3
It’s been over a decade since the last installment of the beloved (and grueling as hell) dungeon crawling, hack and slash. Since then, its creators, Blizzard Entertainment, has managed to redefine PC gaming as a whole, mostly via World of Warcaft. And thanks to the trillions in the bank that have resulted, a number of much waited and demanded sequels were finally realized, with Diablo 2 being the very last one on that list. So expect the same hardcore gameplay with all the eye and ear popping production values that will rival a Peter Jackson production.
6 BioShock Infinite
For those care, yes, the brand new BioShock will contain all that moral and political mumbo jumbo from before. Though you won’t be asking yourself to either snuff or save ghastly little girls, protected in bad-asses in hulking diving suits, nor running around underwater. Instead, you’ll be high in the clouds, in yet another city of the future, as envisioned by people in the past. One that’s connected by rails that are essentially roller coasters, so coupled with all that with the same tight as well, free-roaming, first person RPG antics and you’ve got another potential winner on your hands.
5 Metal Gear Rising
What, another Kojima creation on the list? Yup. But as noted once before, this is not your father’s Metal Gear, and it’s most certainly not Solid anymore. The game that at one point was dead and buried has been born anew. As a result, its sneaking mission threads have been shed (much to the chagrin of many) in favor of a purely balls out, ridiculously violent experience. Basically, the folks who essentially created the modern hack and slash genre as we know it today are working on this thing. And combined with the cinematic prowess of Team Kojima, you’re basically getting the summer blockbuster of video games that even Hollywood is unable to produce for themselves these days.
4 Fez
For those into indie games, very few have built up as much anticipation (nor infamy) as Fez. In development for seemingly forever, and by basically just one person, it was rebuilt from scratch at a certain point (it won an Independent Games Festival award in 2008, and again this year, for basically being two different games in each instance), leading many to honestly believe that it would never see the light of day. The most interesting thing is how its first appearance has since inspired many other to create their own platformers to play around with perspective in M.C. Escher-like ways. Will the original be the best when all is said and done. Word on the street is yes.
3 Halo 4
Of everything on this list, the brand new chapter of the Halo saga is the great unknown. Despite the fact that some of the folks at 343 Industries, the franchise’s new handles, have some first-hand experience, it’s just going to seem flat-out weird to have another proper entry sans Bungie. Sure they did a great job putting Halo Waypoint together, but good luck trying to follow up one of the most cherished trilogies this side of Star Wars (plus the two follow-up titles, that actually managed to hang). Even worse for them is how the second trio of whatever is always a huge disappointment. The shift towards less shooting and more exploration could either be bold new move to either completely validate the effort or damn it to hell. But it’s not like folks want 343 Industries to fail, so fingers are crossed.
2 Lolipop Chainsaw
As mentioned before, the Japanese video game market is in a state of crisis. None of their countrymen are playing games as much anymore, so they’re looking towards the West for dollars and sense. But whereas we used to eat up whatever they served, us Americans have stepped up to plate and doing pretty damn well in the game making department, thank you very much. So does one do to get noticed? Boil thing down to its barest essentials. People in the US like cheerleaders, right? Check. They like zombies, right? Check. Chainsaws? Check. Never before has a game looked to be such a potential train wreck still contained the possibility of being loads of fun. Though it’s being made by the folks behind No More Heroes, some of the best games this generation, so there’s actually a great chance that it will exceed all expectations.
1 The Last Of Us
Naughty Dog gave PS3 owners (and everyone else) the one game that, after all is said and done, best defines modern video games today, plus illustrates how far electronic entertainment has gone. So, after giving the interactive Indiana Jones that everyone has wanted since the 2600, via Uncharted, what does one do as a follow-up? Give a much-needed shot in the arm in the flailing zombie, survival horror genre. Not much has been revealed, but what honestly needs to be said? It’s going to be gorgeous as hell, its characters will be better defined that pretty much anything you see in the theaters or on Neflix these days, and it will play brilliantly. It’s been their baby for years and it’s going to show. It just might be the system’s final hurrah, and a damn fine one at that.
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