It's always good to know in advance everything coming this year in games. That's why we've prepared a special report with the best games coming in 2016.
Dark Souls III
The Dark Souls series went from cult classic to a public phenomenon. At first glance they seem like action games, like God of War, but when you sit down to play you realize they have nothing in common. The Dark Souls games are extremely difficult but fair. They force you to study the combat system and understand each of your enemies. And when you defeat one of these powerful creatures you really feel like an epic warrior. Dark Souls III promises to be unique in its gameplay, maintaining that slow, more strategic style when fighting enemies. Dark Souls III is being developed by FromSoftware and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on April 12, 2016.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Deus Ex: Human Revolution was one of the most interesting surprises of recent years. It was one of those games you could finish and start again the next day because it changed based on the decisions you made. A masterpiece. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is set two years after the previous title in a cyberpunk version of the Czech Republic, and your mission is to stop a terrorist group. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is being developed by Eidos Montreal and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on August 23, 2016.
Dishonored 2
The best thing about Dishonored was the world: a sort of English city that mixed science fiction with period reconstruction. The city is called Dunwall and it's slowly dying because it's being invaded by a plague that kills people slowly, along with a corrupt nobility that doesn't care about anything. What the Dishonored series has is that it mixes magic and technology with a story you won't forget. Though we haven't seen any gameplay of Dishonored 2 yet, we know you'll be able to play as Corvo Attano, the protagonist of the first game, or as Emily Kaldwin, the little girl you had to save during the story. Dishonored 2 is being developed by Arkane Studios and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One sometime in 2016.
DOOM
This is a name that makes any gamer happy, whether on console, PC, or mobile. We all have that moment when we played this classic for the first time. Unfortunately, the sequels never lived up to it; the last good game is over twenty years old. What we've seen so far doesn't remind us so much of Doom but rather of another classic, Quake, and the era when multiplayer games were for everyone: super fast where your character was a bullet sponge. It seems that this DOOM is going to be a return to the old school, something that could be great or a disaster, we'll have to see. DOOM is being developed by id Software and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on May 13, 2016.
Far Cry Primal
2016 is the year of cavemen. In Far Cry Primal, a title already available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, you are a lone hunter and your goal is to conquer a valley and gradually have your own tribe. In this open-world game, it's very important to understand animal behavior, know the plants, and make your own weapons from bones and wood. It has incredible things like an owl that is the protagonist's pet and that you can summon to see the world from above, and you can also tame different animals to help you hunt and conquer other tribes. It's also important to know that it's not a short game like the expansion Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon was. It's a complete game that lasts as many hours as any other Far Cry. Far Cry Primal is being developed by Ubisoft Montreal and will be available on Windows starting March 1, 2016.
Final Fantasy XV
The new installment of one of the longest-running sagas in history. Final Fantasy XV looks nothing like its predecessors, presenting a change in a very important aspect: the combat system, which is no longer turn-based like in previous editions, but mixes action with strategy. And while nothing has been announced yet, it's possible there will also be a Windows version, especially considering that Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIV came out on PC and did pretty well. Final Fantasy XV is being developed by Square Enix and will be available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Many will wonder if this game will come out this year, especially considering that this title was originally announced ten years ago. For now we know that Square Enix won't release it until it's ready.
For Honor
This was one of the big surprises of E3 2015. Imagine a Call of Duty or a Battlefield but instead of guns you have swords. And not just any swords: you can play as medieval knights, samurai, and Vikings. It's played in teams of four against four where players are heroes with special abilities, while on the battlefield each side has a bunch of computer-controlled soldiers. For Honor is a very interesting bet, a mix of the precise combat of a Dark Souls and the frantic madness of a first-person action game. For Honor is being developed by Ubisoft Montreal and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One sometime in 2016.
Gears of War 4
Here we have an Xbox One exclusive. Gears of War is, along with Halo, Microsoft's great treasure, and this fourth installment has many changes. Gears of War 4 has new characters, a new studio to make it, and they already showed us five spectacular minutes at E3. The video has all the action we expect from this series and that way they have of making you play in almost total darkness. You never know what's behind each door. What is it about Gears of War that differentiates it from other action series? In one word: Brutality. The enemies are wild beasts that go at full speed, and in no other game do you feel the impact of bullets like in this one. It's ultra violent and ultra fun. Gears of War 4 is being developed by The Coalition and will be exclusively available on Xbox One at the end of 2016.
Hitman
No numbers and no subtitles. The name is like that because it's a return to the roots for the series. In this game, the important thing is to find creative ways to assassinate people. The levels are six times bigger than any of the levels of Hitman: Absolution (the previous game) and each one can have up to three hundred characters. It's a game that rewards your creativity. It's also a prequel that tells you the beginning of the story and, most importantly, it completely ignores that movie that came out a few months ago that we all want to forget. Hitman is being developed by IO Interactive and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One starting March 11, 2016.
Horizon Zero Dawn
Post-apocalyptic cavemen against robot dinosaurs! This game is Sony's big bet for PlayStation 4. Another survival title that mixes prehistory and science fiction. It's a very ambitious game that invites you to explore its entire world in detail and use the parts of those dinosaurs you kill to create your own technology: weapons, traps, and various types of protection. It's surprising that this title comes from the studio Guerrilla Games, which for years have been dedicated almost exclusively to the Killzone saga, but it could be that with Horizon Zero Dawn they find a franchise that gives them a decade more of games. Horizon Zero Dawn is being developed by Guerrilla Games and will be exclusively available on PlayStation 4 sometime in 2016.
Mafia III
The first Mafia was excellent, one of the first great open-world games, but the second was somewhat of a disappointment. Visually it was incredible but it gave you a huge city where there was nothing to do. Do we have faith in Mafia III? It seems the setting is very original with a New Orleans city in the late '60s. Now instead of being part of the mafia, you play a Vietnam veteran who comes to avenge the death of a friend. Mafia III is being developed by Hangar 13 and will be available on Windows, Mac, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One sometime in 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/2HMxHfIxQfcMass Effect: Andromeda
The Mass Effect series remains relevant as one of the best of the previous console generation. And although we know almost nothing about this fourth installment, fans of role-playing games can't wait for it to come out. Andromeda is the beginning of a new trilogy. The protagonist is no longer Shepard, the enemies are no longer the Reapers, and according to Electronic Arts, the story is set in a completely different galaxy. The game will continue to have the elements of the saga we love: tactical combat, exploration of different planets, and endless conversations with all kinds of aliens. Mass Effect: Andromeda is being developed by BioWare and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One at the end of 2016.
Mirror's Edge Catalyst
Do you remember Mirror's Edge? It was an excellent game that came out in 2008 created by EA DICE, the same studio as the Battlefield series. But this is not a military game but a futuristic action adventure that tried to convey the dynamism and acrobatics of parkour in first person. It had two big problems: first, it was very short, and second, the movement was incredible but the combat was a horror. EA promised they are changing both things. Now the melee combat will be more varied, and instead of a linear adventure it will be open world. Mirror's Edge Catalyst is being developed by EA DICE and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One starting May 24, 2016.
No Man's Sky
Sony announced it in December 2013 and since then we've been amazed. No Man's Sky is a space simulator that, in theory, gives you an entire galaxy to explore. The planets are generated based on mathematical formulas so it's impossible to find two alike. Everything in sight can be visited. You can travel between planets, search for minerals and sell them, upgrade your ship, also explore on foot, and combat with other ships. You can do many things but what they haven't explained yet is what for, if it has a story, or how exactly the multiplayer mode works. Maybe this year we'll find out. No Man's Sky is being developed by Hello Games and will be available on Windows and PlayStation 4 starting June 2016.
Overwatch
We've been mentioning new projects from big studios, and Overwatch is one of the most ambitious. A first-person action game that comes from none other than Blizzard Entertainment, and that name is a guarantee of quality with titles like Diablo, StarCraft, and Heroes of the Storm. But this is a genre they've never done before, and it seems to mix everything that's been working for them for a while: cooperative team play, a cartoon-style visual, and a huge number of characters to choose from. There are already some lucky ones trying the game on Windows and they say it will be the big surprise of the year. Overwatch is being developed by Blizzard Entertainment and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One starting in the second quarter of 2016.
Persona 5
If you like cult games, here's one of the most anticipated: Persona 5, the sequel to a PlayStation 2 classic loved by anime fans. This series is great but not very well known in the West, because its games are very long, difficult, and were never translated into Spanish, although with this installment everything can change. Visually it's incredible; in anime it's higher than ever, and with the fifth installment Persona might come out of the cult game box and become a legitimate success like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt did last year. Though this title is not a continuation of the other games. All Persona games have in common that they are set in the present, more precisely in Japan, and it's about teenagers who have the ability to summon demons (the famous Personas) to help them. Persona 5 is being developed by Atlus and will be available on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 at the end of 2016.
Quantum Break
It's not just Sony that bets on new franchises; Microsoft returns to Remedy Entertainment, the creators of Max Payne and Alan Wake, for a truly original proposal. Quantum Break is a third-person action game very much in the style of Max Payne, but it tells its story through a television series that updates as you play. The game will include digital episodes that tell a parallel story, complementing that of your character based on the choices you make. Quantum Break is being developed by Remedy Entertainment and will be available on Windows and Xbox One starting April 5, 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/d4or8YE-6P4Rise of the Tomb Raider
It's true, Rise of the Tomb Raider came out in 2015 but exclusively for Xbox One. It recently came out for Windows, and near the end of 2016 you'll be able to play it on PlayStation 4. The future is the definitive version, so we'll tell you everything good about this title. First, everything that the Tomb Raider of 2013 did well, this one does better. The world is much more open and gives you the option to explore it however you want. The combat is improved, and the weapon crafting and upgrading system is the most complete seen in an action game. Also, Lara Croft is a great protagonist and the supporting cast is incredible. In short: an amazing game. Rise of the Tomb Raider is being developed by Crystal Dynamics and will be available on PlayStation 4 at the end of 2016.
The Last Guardian
Without a doubt, the most anticipated game by Sony fans. It was announced at E3 2009 for PlayStation 3 but then it was delayed a thousand times and finally comes out this year for PlayStation 4. They say it comes out this year, so we'll see. It still looks impressive. The creator is Fumito Ueda, who previously made the brilliant Ico and Shadow of the Colossus. The Last Guardian seems to be in the same vein with large levels where you have to solve puzzles in the company of that huge monster named Trico. It's clear that now that it moved to PlayStation 4 it's taking advantage of the technology but... what if instead of being the classic we were all expecting, it's a disappointment after so many years? Let's hope not. The Last Guardian is being developed by genDESIGN and will be exclusively available on PlayStation 4 sometime in 2016.
Tom Clancy's The Division
Here we have another game that has been talked about for a couple of years but that left us fascinated with the possibilities it offers after trying the beta. Tom Clancy's The Division is a multiplayer game set in the near future where a virus has devastated the human population. Your role is that of an agent who has to find the origin of the virus. The game is divided into two types of areas: clear zones and dark zones. In the clear zones you play with friends and against AI-controlled enemies, but in the dark zones you can also fight against other players. A classic third-person action game that promises. Tom Clancy's The Division is being developed by Ubisoft Massive and will be available on Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One starting March 8, 2016.
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Microsoft has Gears of War. Sony has Uncharted. They are games with a lot in common: third-person action, great characters, and excellent multiplayer modes. While the Uncharted series seems more like a movie, where sometimes you feel like you're watching while the game plays itself, Sony admitted that previous games didn't give you much freedom, so for this fourth installment they're going to open it up much more to play it your way. At E3 2015 they showed a demo of a chase through the streets of India. They played it twice and both times they chose different paths. It's clear it's much less scripted than the previous ones. Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is being developed by Naughty Dog but now those in charge are the creators of the brilliant The Last of Us. More guarantee of quality you can't get. The game will be exclusively available on PlayStation 4 starting April 26, 2016.
