Most Anticipated Games of 2011 – Part I

2010 was a massive gaming year! With big releases like StarCraft II, Civilization V, Mass Effect 2, Bioshock II, and Dragon Age Origins, the gaming industry was pretty much in party mode. You just can’t go wrong with games like these. Then there were a couple of surprises too, like Amnesia: The Dark Descent, which broke several records and gained God-Mode status from the critics. same thing with Just Cause 2. These games, not being from big publishing houses or studios, yet achieving top status, show how fast the gaming industry is growing. While the entire world was living in uncertainty due to the economic recession, the gaming industry was growing at massive rates, and, ironically, has now emerged as a massive multi-billion dollar industry, most of it coming during the time of recession.

No longer are high-profile producers and artists associated with just Hollywood. The gaming industry is attracting top talents for their production stages, proving how much money these guys have. Pundits are anticipating that the net worth of the gaming industry will engulf the net worth of the music and movie industries “put together’ by 2015. That’s HUGE. The amount of revenue the gaming industry generates is overwhelming. The console sales, the MMORPG subscriptions, the retail game sales, and now, another huge addition to the industry, the iPhone games, a new sector completely pawning revenue wise.

Plus, we look at the scope of this industry. There are still many unexplored regions where the gaming scene still hasn’t broken through. Take India, for example. People do play games, but just a select few in the cities. There’s big potential in the 1.6 billion people here. Then there’s Africa, where I’m sure the developers are planning 10 years in advance. So there you go. In the future, expect this industry to be a staple part of our regular lives.

So, now it’s 2011, and once again, there are big games to be launched, and the anticipation is as high as ever. I’d like to make a list of the games I anticipate the most. This entire feature has 12 games and is divided into 2 parts, with 6 games each. I’m sure this list is not enough; this year too, there’ll be many games that surprise us and beat expectations, but who knows.

So here we go.

12. DUKE NUKEM – FOREVER

Well, the protagonist of one of the longest running series of games. The first one launched in 1991. Remember playing those Duke Nukem games in DOS? I do. Yes. The last PC version was Duke Nukem: The Manhattan Project, which was released in 2002. Now that Duke Nukem Forever is set to launch in May 2011, there is a 9-year gap between the two franchises. 9 years! And well, we have been waiting impatiently all these years.

Duke Nukem created an image in the gaming industry. That maverick cigar-smoking, shotgun-blasting, one-liner-obsessed attitude is all we remember him for, plus those feisty bombshells he chases—all too stereotypical and all too great! The game has been ridiculed by the press as Duke Nukem: Forever in Development, “the longest game ever in production,” and “an elaborate in-joke at the expense of the industry.” Initially set to launch in 2006 (!!), the press gave it massive media coverage, but its developer, 3D Realms, always fell short of its release. Well, now it’s final. Really, it is. And we’ve been waiting. And let’s hope it’s worth the wait!

11. DOTA 2

I did a write up on Dota 2 on this blog recently. DOTA, a mod of Blizzard’s Warcraft III, made by Icefrog, gained immense popularity and is played by millions around the world, including myself. Its competitiveness is what makes it so special, plus it’s one of those rare RTS games that get “that” competitive and fast.

What makes Dota 2 special is that Dota never really was a game. It was just a mod. And now Valve’s taken over and is making a full-swing “action RTS’ game, Dota 2. Also, Valve doesn’t have any experience with RTS games, so I’m definitely watching out to see how Dota 2 will turn out.

Will it have the same fast paced competitive spirit as Dota? We’ll have to wait and watch. It’s scheduled to release on Q4 2011.

10. DIABLO III

Most of my blog readers would have already figured this out, I’m a sucker for those Blizzard games. And as we all know, Diablo is the game that “made” Blizzard what it is today. Diablo II, although a 10-year-old game, is still being played by the masses and has a dedicated fan following. This is the thing about Blizzard. They build games that last. for years and years. They design them in such a way that even newer releases from other game makers seem shadowed by their games. StarCraft and Warcraft prove this point again. All of these Blizzard games spell Quality.

Blizzard always releases sequels 10 years ahead of their previous version. They don’t work on as many games as EA, Atari, etc. And that shows in their games. Their games have the most stable and balanced engines, without any nuances. plus the support they give to their games. Diablo II, which was released in 2001, received its latest patch in March 2010. That’s 10 years of support. Even Microsoft doesn’t give that sort of support to Windows, which obviously has an exponentially longer shelf life.

Now, coming back to Diablo III, obviously, it belongs to a special genre that many developers have dared to explore, and if they have, they have failed. The “hack and slash” gameplay, which is the heart of the Diablo series, is still going to be the main arc in Diablo III. Well done, Blizzard! With all these new technologies, Blizzard has still stuck to its roots, and this is why we respect it so much. I’ve been following the release of Diablo II ever since it was announced in 2008, and now it finally looks set to be released. Blizzard still hasn’t announced any official release date, but the industry predictions are that it’ll be launched in 2011. If it doesn’t (looking at Blizzard’s history with release dates), it is going to be a huge disappointment for the fans, but I’m sure that’ll only ante-up the anticipation.

All in all, watch out for Diablo III. It’s going to be mega! Plus, with all the focus on art and music Blizzard puts into its games. They’re really onto something here. No screenshots have been released yet, so we really don’t know what to expect. adds to the element of suspense.

9. MORTAL KOMBAT (2011)

The Mortal Kombat series goes down as the BEST versus fighting game ever! It’s got a great storyline to back it up, great characters with great personalities and uniqueness, and a great set of unique moves for each character. I swear, Mortal Kombat 4, even when played now, pawns all over games like the Tekken and Street Fighter series.

The last pure Mortal Kombat versus fighting game was Mortal Kombat 4, launched in 1998. That goes a long, long way back. With the other versus games, you get bored with the repetitions, but not with MK. MK 4 had superb graphics, superb “set-and-setting,” and the way the moves and animations were choreographed is unbelievable. The way a character performs a fatality, with the blood spilling on your screen, just sets you on an adrenaline rush. It’s been a long, long wait for the next Marvel versus Capcom fighting game.

The reason I like the MK series so much is because it is not easy. You really have to go deep to learn all the moves, and they’re difficult, really difficult. I played MK4 for many years, and I have to admit, I only know how to perform fatalities with just 3 characters. Also, the MK games have 3D battlefields, which takes the fighting experience to an entirely new level. The voice acting is brilliant again, setting the perfect vibe. Watching Sub-Zero perform an ice move with the ‘GET OVER HERE’ shout is an epic gaming moment, easily among the greatest. What a game! I just can’t stop talking about it, and I could go on and on.

Also, I owe a lot to this game. This is one of those games that really bought me into the gaming world.  I can never forget that phase I was in when I was playing MK4.

MK 2011 is set for release in April 2011. The only negative I can have against this is that it’s only being released on the PS3 and the Xbox 360. Ever since Midway, the original developer of the MK, went bust, the licenses were bought by NetherRealm Studios, which has never made any PC games. I enjoy playing on the PC more than on the consoles. I’ll do an article in the future on why I like the PC for video gaming more. It’s a real letdown for MK 2011 in that way. No PC??? You must be fu**in’ kiddin’ me!

8. MAX PAYNE 3

Psychological thrillers, a genre of their own, were mastered by the Max Payne series. Both Max Payne games have been excellent, story- and action-wise. Also, Max Payne introduced and mastered the concept of bullet time in video games, now copied by so many games out there. Its Matrix-style action sequences are great, backed by great weapons and great graphics. One really gets involved the with ‘dark’ story theme of Max Payne. The in-game music adds to the “suspense” atmosphere.

Now, Rockstar announced Max Payne 3 some time ago, and finally it’s set to launch in 2011. Broken, shattered, and battered Max Payne is now back, totally revamped, both looks and attitude wise. If you’ve played Max Payne 2, you’ll be aware of what Payne went through. losing his wife, and then his S&M (Sadist and Masochist) girlfriend, Mona Sax. A cop by career, the LAPD  chucked him out, and he’s alone without any backing, still looking to take revenge on the murderers of his wife and Mona.

Max Payne 3 is the first game in the series not developed by Remedy Entertainment. Also, the writer of the series, Sam Lake, is not involved with MP3.

According to Rockstar’s Sam Houser, they are starting a new chapter of Max’s life with the game. “This is Max as we’ve never seen him before, a few years older, more world-weary, and cynical than ever.” Since the last game, the press release states Max has left New York behind and has “drifted from bad to worse.” The press release then goes on to say Max has been double-crossed in this new city, and he is searching for the truth and a way out. The game will be set in Sao Paolo, where Payne is working in the private security sector for a wealthy local family, 12 years after the events of the second game.

Press releases also state that Payne went through an alcohol-fuelled depression stage, which explains his weight gain and his don’t-give-a-shit dressing sense.

With the plot of Max Payne 3 taking a totally different turn compared to its successors, there is a lot of anticipation. It’ll be interesting to see how the game plays out. The new tropical look and feel, compared to the cynical New York cold and dark vibe of the previous games of the series, brings an entire new dimension to the game. The game is being built on Rockstar’s RAGE engine, which, as we’ve seen in GTA IV, is a deep engine that performs extremely well. Very advanced. It also contains an embedded Bullet Physics system, taking game physics and wall shattering to a new level.

The attention to detail even in the previous Max Payne was way ahead of its age, and I remember when I installed MP2 on my PC, I was surprised by how well the game ran at full settings, even with my then mediocre PC setup. The bullet physics of MP were something new for that day and age and had never been seen before in any game.

Some sources say Max Payne 3 might be delayed up to 2012, but let’s just hope we see it in 2011 itself. This is one game I am really, really looking forward to playing. And usually, once I finish a campaign game, I never touch it again. But I’ve finished Max Payne 1 and 2, two times, because the story telling is really awesome and makes you want to go through the experience again and again. The first time you play Max Payne, it’s like a rollercoaster ride where you’re too busy with the action. The second time you play it, it’s for understanding and a more “absorb”-oriented gameplay. The comic-art storytelling style with Payne’s monologues in the background really sets a different vibe, not seen in many games.

7. CRYSIS 2

Well, well, well. What do we have to say here now. Who in the world doesn’t know about CRYSIS? And most of us haven’t even played the game, but many still rave about it. Crysis, a futuristic first-person shooter, took PC gaming to new heights, gameplay-wise and, most importantly, graphics-wise. This game impacted the industry in a way no other game has. Crysis showed us graphics no one ever saw, let alone imagined, before. Crysis was single-handedly responsible for driving the sales of high-end graphics cards from nVidia and ATI. And if my memory serves me, I recall that at the time when Crysis was launched, even the best GPUs couldn’t run the game at full settings. Even now, after 3 years since its launch, it is my estimation that only 0.05% of PCs are capable enough to just “run” Crysis.

The impact of Crysis on the industry was so huge, it started a full-fledged 1v1 graphics card war between ATI and nVidia. The gaming industry owes a lot to Crysis. Crysis is also responsible for bringing down the prices of high-end GPUs substantially. Many, including me, bought new systems just to play Crysis. And I’m not talking just graphics here. The gameplay mechanics themselves are totally next-gen. The AI is as smart as smart can be. Play on Hard difficulty, and the North Korean soldiers will start speaking to each other in Korean, making it difficult for the player to understand what they’re planning. Even in graphic card and CPU benchmarks right now, running Crysis is considered the most demanding reference point. And it’s been 4 years since it was released!

Then comes the nano-suit. It’s so futuristic it makes everyone go “oomph.” The nano-suit concept was never seen in video gaming before and is a new element to video games that was done so well by Crysis, most reviewers were just lost for words to describe the experience.

Crysis, initially, was only released for the PC, since the consoles were not equipped enough with the fire power to run Crysis. It took 2 years for EA to port it onto the XBOX 360, with both graphics and AI stripped down substantially.

Now, Crysis 2 is set to launch on March 25th, 2011 on all platforms. Crytek has optimized the game to run on the maximum number of systems possible. The requirements of Crysis 2 are similar to those of Crysis 1. The demo for Crysis 2 is releasing on the 1st of March, which is not far away. Crysis 2 is set in New York City. The nano-suit and the weapons are said to be as futuristic as ever.

I am of the strong opinion that Crytek drifted away from the “jungle” set and switched to a city-like map, to make the game less demanding on system resources. It takes a whole lot more processing power to render trees and shadows and water, which are dominant in Crysis 1, than to just render buildings. This is why the system requirements of the next-gen game are current-gen. Plus, for EA to really achieve maximum sales, they need a strong console port, obviously. Mainly because a vast number of PC gamers are pirates (NOT ME!), achieving sales solely depending on PCs for such a big game won’t balance the books.

I’ll say this, Crysis 2 will be one of the biggest releases of 2011, but, we have to wait and observe, will it still effect the industry the same way its predecessor did?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

This is the end of Part I. The next 6 games of this supplement will appear on this blog in a week’s time.