We all know the big hitters this year, the games you've been waiting to play since their announcements at the likes of E3 and GDC over the past couple of years. We've had Mass Effect 2, Heavy Rain is fast approaching as is God of War 3, Halo Reach, Final Fantasy XIII , Splinter Cell and many more but what about the games that could turn out to be another "Dead Rising" or "Crackdown"?. Games low on the radar that could turn into huge profit and critical acclaim by surprising many by its qualities, here is a short list of games I think could potentially make that grade.
1. Split/Second - Xbox 360/PS3/PC
Not much actual gameplay has been seen of this "Michael Bay" style racer. Think Need for Speed Shift meets Armageddon with sublime visuals, solid framerate and appealing multiplayer. Gran Turismo 5 is the racer this year most car fans wait impatiently for and understandbly so although Split/Second could provide an alternative alongside it or as first choice for those who prefer a racer with more concentration on the action rather than simulation.
2. Transformers: War for Cybertron - Multi
It's about time we had a decent or above average Transformers video game, the last two efforts have fallen short by a long way to meet any requirement of enjoyable video gaming. To be fair to the developers who worked on Transformers & Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen they had a silly deadline to meet the cinema release of both films (I always believe a movie video game should be released with the DVD/Blu Ray to give the developers more time). High Moon Studios have had time and with that time they have, according to early previews used it well. Gears of War meets Optimus Prime? I wouldnt rule it out just yet.
3. StarHawk (rumoured) - Playstation 3
Sequel to the excellent online third person shooter Warhawk, StarHawk is strongly rumoured to have been in development for over two years with an element of sci-fi. Warhawk still has a large community despite the Halo's and Call of Duty's of this world which is some testament to the quality of the original. With Project Director Dylan Jobe hinting at a sequel and big improvements to go with it, I wouldnt be surprised if StarHawk turned out to be a really appealing experience for those who have to yet to feel the wrath of the Tow Missle.
The Xbox version of Final Fantasy XVI has failed to enter the platform's top 20 paid games list, indicating weak launch sales performance.
If it ain't on gamepass, they ain't interested.
Great job MS for training most of your player base to not want to actually buy games, maybe SE will realise releasing FF on xbox isn't somehow going to help them match their exaggerated sales targets. Hopefully remake fairs better, probably will on Switch 2 at least.
No game, especially a AAA one, deserves strong sales after taking years to arrive on a platform and still asking the same price as everywhere else. You can’t just ignore a platform for that long and then expect people to be excited by the release. That cycle came and went already, there is no hype for it anymore.
Either you're all in from the start or you're not. This lazy, bare-minimum approach of tossing out a late port and calling it a day shouldn't be rewarded. If you're not willing to respect the platform, don't bother showing up at all.
But the formerly exclusive Xbox games like Forza Horizon enjoyed great sales on PS even after years past their initial release.
Your references to deserving and "shouldn't be rewarded" implies that gamers are buying games based on some moral platitude that simply doesn't exist in practice.
Gamers buy games because they want to play them.
Nah, it implies how it should be. If gamers weren't the dumbass consumer class around, being played like freaking dumbass because they can't get over the hype for a freaking second and think if that purchase even make sense.
This is EXACTLY why they wouldn't and shouldn't bother im the first place. I can't remember which FF game launched on Xbox with the Switch and Playstation version and ONLY did 4% sales on Xbox. So lets not pretend these sales would have been better because if you believe that you are absolutely delusional
"Either you're all in from the start or you're not. This lazy, bare-minimum approach of tossing out a late port and calling it a day shouldn't be rewarded. If you're not willing to respect the platform, don't bother showing up at all."
Weird. How come you don't say the same about Xbox studio games that show up some YEARS/DECADES later as well?
Sea of Thieves
Grounded
Forza Horizon 5
Pentiment
Hi Fi Rush
Gears of War
Mostly at full price and selling well. Oh right doesn't fit your BS narrative
Survival Kids tries and fails to rekindle an old Konami franchise by bringing it to the Switch 2, but ends up leaving it stranded and to fend for its own.
Fast Fusion delivers frenetic, futuristic racing at a budget-friendly price.
Out of all my PS3 games, WarHawk has received the most play time, and is the only one I have 2 copies of (I have 2 consoles). Unlike most games that come and go, I find myself still going back and playing it on occasion. I hope StarHawk will be as good. If you haven't played WarHawk, your missing out!
Every few years they announce another transformers game that is not part of the movie adaption, they usually never turn out good hopefully this one is better than ok (7/10).