A year for games

2011 is shaping up to be a landmark year for the games industry. While last year certainly had some heavy-hitters, it is almost impossible to look at the upcoming line-up for this year and keep your jaw off the ground. It’s that good. Unfortunately, I can’t spend an entire article simply telling you about each and every title coming out, so I went ahead and picked my five most anticipated games of 2011. This is the part where you start saving your money. You’re going to need it.

The Uncharted series is by far one of the most successful new franchises of our current generation, and I simply cannot wait to get my grubby, adventure seeking mitts on Nathan Drake’s next globetrotting romp. This time around, our lady/pirate/mercenary killing, joke-cracking, monster-fighting, treasure-hunting hero is back with his old friend and mentor, Victor Sullivan to discover the “Atlantis of the Sands.” With a revamped graphics engine, new fighting and climbing mechanics and sand, lots and lots of pretty sand, this threequel is setting itself up to be yet another benchmark for platforming adventure games as well as the PlayStation 3. That’s right, this means more awesome jumps and stunts, more amazing set piece, and more twists and turns are on the way. Any fans of the series, gaming in general or Indiana Jones should keep their schedules free and their lust for adventure ready come Nov. 1.

The ending to Mass Effect 2 had me on the edge of my seat. My heart was left pounding and my palms sweaty at the thought of a full on invasion of the oh-so-dastardly Reapers. While details remain sparse on what exactly will be improved (other than the graphics, of course) for the upcoming conclusion to this epic trilogy, one thing is for sure – the battle for Earth is coming and it will be awesome. What does Martin Sheen’s excellently portrayed “Illusive Man” have in store for humanity? What corners of the galaxy will our Commander Shepherd explore next and what crazy new species/characters will he/she meet there? How far will you go to save humanity? And perhaps the most pressing question of all, how radically will our actions shape the story this time around? We should expect all those questions and more to be revealed (hopefully) this holiday season.

Have you ever watched L.A. Confidential and thought about just how awesome it would be to live the life of a 1940’s-era detective? Well, even if you haven’t, you should start, as that is exactly what Team Bondi’s L.A. Noire has in store for you. After nearly five years of development, this open-world cop-drama features a never-before utilized motion capture system known as Motionscan. This system picks up every single nervous twitch, eyelash flutter and muscle movement of the actors face, bringing a whole new level of realism to the game world. Starring Aaron Stanton from Mad Men, you take on the role of Cole Phelps and work your way up the ladder of the infamous Los Angeles Police Department. Of course pure star power doesn’t make a game great (Micky Rourke’s Rogue Warrior, anyone?), but this has a premise that is more than promising. Get ready to solve cases, call bluffs and bust Tommy gun-toting baddies May 17.

Id software is one of the most proven studios out there today. But can the company that literally created the first person shooter do it again with Rage? From what’s been shown so far, the answer is a solid “Boo-yeah!” Although the post-apocalyptic setting phase the games industry is so engrossed in nowadays is getting to the point of redundancy, Rage looks to liven things up a bit with silky smooth animations, devilish artificial intelligence and quirky characters reminiscent of Gearbox’s excellent Borderlands. Not much has been revealed so far, but if the early build is any indication of what this adventure is going to be like, than color me excited (which in this case is a brownish red).

For those of you who have already picked up and fiddled around with a Bethesda Studios game in the last eight or so years, you probably know just how ridiculously addicting they are. The stories may not be the most memorable, the graphics and animations laughable, the voice actors repetitive and few in number, and the world itself riddled with bugs and glitches (most of which are hilarious), the environment and atmospheres Bethesda creates are almost too immersive to turn away from. The fifth game in the series, Skyrim, is said to bring updates and fixes to nearly all of the problems that plagued past iterations. If you have a knack for exploration and the unknown, magic, swords, ghosts and large, lush, open areas where the world is your playground, then this return to the series is just what you’ve been waiting for. It’s a long wait, but look out for this epic Nov. 11.