Whatever 2021 brings, we’ll see some treats for gamers
ANEW year brings fresh hopes and a tentative optimism for what lies ahead. It also means a wealth of brand new games. Whatever else 2020 brought, it saw the release of some great titles - including the troubled Cyberpunk 2077, the last big title of last year.
So what does 2021 hold? Well, we’re invited to revisit Little Nightmares next month, and discover fresh new horrors with Resident Evil as 2021 progresses.
More importantly, Master Chief has a new outing due towards the end of the year.
Here’s just a taste of what’s in store over the next 12 months.
HORIZON: FORBIDDEN WEST PS4, PS5
EXPECTED: TBC 2021
A SEQUEL to 2017’s Horizon Zero Dawn, this game promises new lands to explore, and new mechanical enemies to fight.
The trailer for this postapocalyptic open-world adventure was jaw dropping, the stunning environments giving tantalising glimpses of where the action takes place.
Similar to the corruption that made the machines more aggressive in the first game, there’s a new threat to the world – a red fungus which appears to drain the life out of its surroundings. This title promises to really show the quantum leap in gaming the PS5 can offer.
RESIDENT EVIL: VILLAGE PS5, Xbox Series X, PC
EXPECTED: TBC 2021
THE tenth major instalment in the RE series, Village picks up a few years after where Biohazard left off.
Continuing with the first-person perspective of Resident Evil 7, Village is set in Europe and sees protagonist Ethan’s life turned upside down by the arrival of Chris Redfield, an unexpected, yet familiar face.
Teasers for the game raised more questions than answers – the biggest of which was, will this game be introducing werewolves to the franchise?!
FAR CRY 6
PS4, PS4, XBOX ONE, S/X, PC
EXPECTED: TBC 2021
INTRODUCING the Caribbean island of Yara (a fictional take on Cuba), which is simmering with revolutionary tension, Far Cry 6 introduces President Anton Castillo, played by the superb Giancarlo Esposito (star of Breaking Bad, The Mandalorian, and The Boys), who holds the island in an iron grip.
With a revolution at hand, I assume you’ll play a key role, with battles taking place across Yara.
Expect lots of shooting, stealth action, and stunning environments.
HALO INFINITE
XBOX X/S, ONE, PC
ANTICIPATED: Late 2021
THERE are many reasons to be excited for Master Chief’s new outing, not least as Infinite will be a ‘spiritual reboot’ for the entire Halo franchise.
Microsoft is clearly determined to make this the best it can, pushing back the game’s release from November 2020, to late 2021.
Infinite will be the third chapter of the ‘Reclaimer Saga’ with Master Chief playing a more central role than in Halo 5: Guardians.
Supposedly much more open world than previous titles, developers are also taking full advantage of the new consoles to create a game that’s ‘several times larger than that of the last two Halo games combined’.
Whatever plans you might have had for later in the year, I’d clear them.