Fall Gaming Preview: The Season of Gaming Returns in Time for the Holidays

Companies often aim to release new products in the fall so that there’s a steady supply in time for the holiday season. Here’s a look at the very best that developers have to offer.

DESTINY (Massively Multiplayer Online First Person Shooter, September 9): Destiny is one of the only new intellectual properties on this list. It is the first new project by developer Bungie, a company that is extremely famous for making the first three Halo games. This time, Bungie is back with another sci-fi shooter with newly-created RPG elements. The most exciting aspect of Destiny is its integrated multiplayer. While doing nothing but exploring the vast world, players can view and interact with other players in real time, helping each other with missions or just experiencing the game alongside strangers. All of this is possible with no forced matchmaking; interaction can happen just by playing the game. Gameplay is extremely varied in between levels, as players race to find certain armors in order to rank up past the default.

HYRULE WARRIORS (Hack-and-slash Action Adventure, September 26): Nintendo has made a bold move with Hyrule Warriors. It is not a canon Zelda game, but rather a spin-off in the form of the incredibly popular Japanese series, Dynasty Warriors. Hyrule Warriors’ insane combat system allows players to destroy dozens of enemies at a time, while maintaining their captive bases and fighting dangerous bosses. A major highlight of this game is the wide variety of character selection. Rather than restricting players to only play as Link, the main protagonist of the Zelda series, Hyrule Warriors is the first Zelda game to offer multiple playable characters as the game’s impressive roster includes characters from even the most obscure Zelda games. Hyrule Warriors is also the only game on this list coming out for Wii U, which enable it to use the Wii U’s gamepad for a variety of features. The gamepad offers Off-TV play, which allows players to play the game entirely on the gamepad, without the use of a TV.

ASSASSIN’S CREED UNITY (Third Person Open World Stealth, November 11): Ubisoft is back with yet another Assassin’s Creed game, this time set during the French Revolution. After the extremely successful Assassin’s Creed IV, Ubisoft plans to improve the formula once again, this time creating a more expensive, realistic world, thanks to the new graphics capabilities of the Xbox One and Playstation 4. Players can anticipate hundreds of rendered civilians in the game, as well as yet another improved combat system. This reinvented combat system will create even more variety in weapons and assassination animations, centered around a new hidden blade called the Hidden Crossbow that creates many new possibilities of gameplay. This is the first Assassin’s Creed game with multiplayer, so you can annoy your friends with Les Mis references online with up to three other people.

COD ADVANCED WARFARE (First Person Shooter, November 3): The yearly Call of Duty returns yet again with Advanced Warfare. The Call of Duty franchise has been extremely popular throughout the years, making more than 360 million dollars with each release. This time, a new developer is at the reins: Sledgehammer Games is in charge of this year’s release. Sledgehammer Games also previously worked on Modern Warfare 3, but this is the first game they’re producing by themselves.  Set in the year 2054, it’s Call of Duty’s turn to combat the future. To fit the theme, Advanced Warfare has implemented rechargeable guns, as well as a new informational display. They also seem to be implementing futuristic technologies, such as cloaking and advanced robotic tanks that will surely change gameplay.

SUPER SMASH BROS FOR 3DS (Four Player Fighting, October 3): Arguably the most-anticipated game on the 3DS, Nintendo’s casually-competitive fighting game finally makes its debut on a handheld system. Smash Bros for 3DS pits virtually every Nintendo mascot in a chaotic arena filled with special items and unique movesets for more than 50 characters. From Super Mario to Shulk from 2012’s Xenoblade Chronicles, the character list is diverse and nearly every Nintendo game is properly represented. Despite the hectic gameplay, the attention to detail in this game is insane, as every character is a perfect recreation of their original series. Whether you play in a wild four-player arena, or in a one-on-one-serious-competitive battle, Smash Bros delivers. Nearly everyone can find something to love in this game.

POKÉMON OMEGA RUBY and ALPHA SAPPHIRE (Role Playing Game, November 21): The long-awaited remakes of the Hoenn region are finally about to be released, after months of speculation and hints. Fans of the series have been patiently waiting for remakes of the original Ruby and Sapphire. The fantastic designs of the Pokémon as well as the addition of two stats, Special Attack and Special Defense, greatly reinvigorated the series back in 2003. Now with the addition of Mega Evolutions of fan-favorite Pokémon such as Gallade and Sharpedo, and a 3D-rendered overworld, Game Freak once again breathes new life into Pokémon. Players can explore what used to be nothing but sprites and pixels in an entirely new world. With the newly introduced Pokébank, transferring your old Pokémon has never been easier.

HALO MASTER CHIEF COLLECTION (mid-November): Not to be outdone by Nintendo, Microsoft also plans on releasing an entirely-remade version of the incredibly popular Halo series for their new Xbox One. The collection will include the first four Halo games, all completely remastered for Xbox One. Players can re-experience Mater Chief’s journey against the Covenant in 1080p HD and in a silky smooth 60 frames per second. Fans of the series will be happy to note that all gameplay will remain unchanged, save for the newly CGI-animated cutscenes of Halo 2.  The Halo series has been praised for its original storyline and defining the First Person Shooter genre, all of which will be enhanced in the collection, due this November. Also included is a beta key for the all new Halo 5, coming later next year.