5 Dream Shatterers
Tom Clancy’s The Division
I said:
From what we’ve seen, The Division is a nice looking multiplayer shooter. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to have a creative bone in its digital body. Generic squad based shooters are a dime a dozen these days, and I don’t see anything here to set The Division apart.
What happened:
The game got delayed… A lot. The Division is still missing in action with a current release date on March 8, 2016. Don’t get too excited yet though, there’s still plenty of time to delay it again.
The verdict: The Jury Is Out
Battlefield Hardline
I said:
Let’s be honest here and say that Battlefield 4 was a complete nightmare. A disaster. It was beyond broken, and EA dropped the ball on fixing it about 17 times. Hardline looks narrow in scope, and generally derivative. Another (sad) nail in the series’ coffin.
What happened:
Hardline landed with a resounding meh in the industry. Although it received positive scores – 80 from us, 71 on Metacritic – it evacuated the scene quicker than teenagers bailing on a party when the cops show up. Does an extremely short tail count as a fail? Not really, and it was at least functioning. Our own Lucas had this to say:
Battlefield: Hardline is a Battlefield game in every sense of the word. The campaign is still not worth anything near the asking price, it has some annoyances and it’s meant to be played with friends in a squad. Just like BF: Vietnam and BF: 2142, it does not reinvent the wheel, but it does enough unique things to be called its own.
The verdict: Miss
Homefront: The Revolution
I said:
The Revolution has changed hands a number of times (publisher and developer), and is ultimately based on a game that kind of sucked. The open world aspects look interesting, but with so many cooks stirring the pot this game could, and most likely will, be a real bummer.
What happened:
We’re still waiting for the revolution to happen, with a vague release date of 2016. Homefront has been suspiciously absent from trade shows and the public eye lately, so it’s impossible to say how things are progressing.
The verdict: Hung Jury
Super Mario Maker
I said:
By rights, this should be the killer app that makes people buy a WiiU. Nintendo has so far been tight lipped about the specifics of making your own Mario levels, but rumblings about limits on layout, size, and sharing have me extremely skeptical about this game.
What happened:
I screwed up bad on this one – Super Mario Maker is an absolute delight. Although sharing levels is a nightmare, and there ARE limitations, making Mario is still a treat. We scored it 85, while Metacritic says 88. Our reviewer Royce wasn’t wrong when he said:
If you really sit down and take a good long look at the big picture, Super Mario Maker could go down as the greatest Mario game ever made.
The verdict: Miss
Quantum Break
I said:
A cover based third person shooter with time manipulation powers. Doesn’t strike me as the most interesting start. A live action TV show is planned to accompany the game – because that’s been super successful in the past, right? Gameplay is mostly unknown quantity at this time, but I’d be hesitant to preorder this one.
What happened:
Delays happened. Quantum Break is now pegged for April 5, 2016, and some gameplay bits have started to leak out. It looks slightly more unique than I thought last year, but I’m still cagey about this outcome.
The verdict: Mistrial
How Did I Do?
3 Hits, 4 Misses, and 3 delayed games – I could have done worse, but considering that the games that got delayed are still likely to be bad… It’s a score I can live with, but one I’ll look to improve on in this year’s instalment of Video Game Crystal Ball. Look forward to that in the coming days! Have something to add? Get at me on Twitter!