Fantasy role playing games have made somewhat of a substantial comeback in the last twelve months. The first half of 2011 presented us with The Witcher 2, the ultimate PC-nerd’s RPG fantasy, Two Worlds II, the surprisingly more refined sequel to the mediocre 2007 Two Worlds, and Dragon Age II, the sequel to Bioware’s out-of-nowhere 2009 hit, Dragon Age.
In the latter half of yesteryear, we saw the dark and mystical (and extremely punishing but satisfying) Dark Souls and the RPG epic behemoth that is The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim both bring fantasy and medieval-themed RPGs back to the forefront of triple-A gaming.
This year we have already been treated to the exciting brand new IP that is Kingdoms of Amalur and its impressive God of War meets Elder Scrolls-styled combat and customisation, the second entry of Lightning and (well, now Serah’s) adventure in FFXIII-2, the swan song of the Wii that is The Last Story, and the Enhanced Edition of The Witcher 2 on Xbox 360.
Amid the annual releases of Assassin Creed and Call of Duty, and the newest Halo, Bioshock and Resident Evil, the rest of 2012 looks like it’s going to continue to keep fans of the roleplaying-genre happy and busy, especially for those of us who love our fantasy tales. Take a look below to see what is upcoming.
Dragon's Dogma
With key team-members behind diverse and established Japanese game franchises like the director of Devil May Cry, the producer of Resident Evil and Killer7, and the designer behind Breath of Fire, one wouldn’t assume the Capcom-developed title would go in the direction of a Western-RPG that looks and feels like a Western-RPG, let alone pull it off. But, well, they did.
The impressive team are aiming to make Dragon’s Dogma the ultimate hybrid RPG title, using their action-RPG roots along with taking inspirations from not only their previous works, but other influential Eastern RPGs like Dragon Quest, and adding open-world experiences and character and weapon customisation inspired by successful Western RPGs like Fable and Oblivion. The player is left to create and shape their Hero in appearance, class, weapons and fighting-style, and so on, like most traditional open-world Western RPGs.
MMGN's preview of the title sheds light on the game’s unique take on “socially integrated gaming”. Reminiscent of Dark Souls’s signs, player-written messages and bonfire system, Dragon’s Dogma integrates elements of social and multiplayer gameplay in a non-traditional sense; through its pawn system. Pawns are essentially the game’s party members, except they are unique in that you can create or recruit up to three, customise their appearances and class, and upload them for “hire” so other players can utilise their abilities, experiences and so on in their own game.
With an early access demo of Resident Evil 6 attached to every new copy of the game, you should definitely at least try out the demo or keep an eye out on this intriguingly unique upcoming RPG title.
Release: May 25th, 2012 (AUS and EU)
Available on: Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3
Risen 2: Dark Waters
The original
Risen was praised by hardcore RPG-lovers for its engrossing storyline, impressive graphics and solid voice-acting but had slight criticism aimed at its unnatural combat mechanics. Risen 2: Dark Waters sets to improve upon all of its predecessor's highlights and shortcomings with a unique pirate-themed setting and storyline, improved graphics engine and refined gameplay mechanics.
Developer Piranha Bytes, known for the famous Gothic RPG trilogy on PC, developed both console versions and the PC version of Dark Waters simultaneously from the start of production in response to the original Risen’s Xbox 360 port being inferior.
Release: August 3rd, 2012 (AUS and EU, consoles), April 27th, 2012 (PC, out now)
Available on: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows
Game of Thrones
The Game of Thrones video game is based on author George R. R. Martin’s novel, A Game of Thrones, itself the first in the long-running fantasy epic novel series, A Song of Ice and Fire. Cyanide’s game involves a sweeping original story written in conjunction with Martin, having been written and based on the literature well before the popular HBO TV show was released and popularised, though it has incorporated some iconic imagery, music, likenesses and voices from the show.
The game involves two heroes; Mors Westfold and Alester Sarwyck. Both have two intertwining stories that run parallel to the events of the first book and the first season of the HBO television show, which eventually meets as the narrative unfolds, and may continue in some form in future novels as indicated by Martin.
The player is able to customise the two character’s skills, abilities and attributes, as well one of three classes to give their versions of the characters a unique feel and perspective of the pre-established universe of Martin. The game contains a variety of weapons, armour and kill-moves, and a hectic turn-based combat-system titled the "active-pause" system, which allows real-time combat but also the ability to pause and bring up a radial menu for commands when a bit of tactical thinking is needed. The battle system has been compared to the original Dragon Age and Baldurs Gate and along with player exploration and the freedom to experience the vast in-game world and its characters and lore, Cyanide’s adaptation looks to be an interesting and faithful take on the novels and television series.
Release: June 1st, 2012 (AUS and EU)
Available on: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows
Diablo III
The game that needs no introduction. It has been nearly twelve long years since Diablo II hit the PC, and about four since Blizzard Entertainment announced the third entry to be in development. Taking place twenty years after the unnamed heroes of Diablo II saved the world from the armies of the Burning Hells, it is up to a new generation of heroes to save Sanctuary. The wait is nearly over... are you ready?
Release: May 15th, 2012
Available on: Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X
South Park: The Game
Okay, so technically it’s not exactly a completely medieval fantastic tale, but the game does prominently feature “class” systems which are heavily based off of Cartman, Kyle and Stan’s The Lord of the Rings outfits and role play manners from the infamously hilarious 2002 episode, “The Return of the Fellowship of the Ring to the Two Towers”.
Fans of the show as well as RPGs should watch out for this faithful and promising adaption of the television license, which is being developed by Obsidian Entertainment, a developer well known for their faithfulness to RPGs and their narratives and continuity.
Release: TBA, Q1 2013
Available on: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows
What upcoming RPG release are you looking forward to the most? Has there been any heavy-hitters left out of the list? Tell us below.
By Nathan Misa- - Bio
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