IncGamers' Most Anticipated Games Of 2011

06 Jan 2011 at 07:48:52 by Staff Writers

There are a lot of games coming out next year, and rest assured, we'll be keeping our hawk-like eyes on all of them. Inevitably, there are some we're more excited about than others, and this is a list of those games. We reckon each and every one of them will be worthy of your close attention.

Let's be honest: there are a fair few games hitting next year that we still don't know much about, but the pedigree of the developer or the prequels hints that we should get something of outstanding quality. Nonetheless, the following list details what we're looking for to, and why.

Star Wars: The Old Republic - PC

We suspect that watching RPG super-studio BioWare's first foray into the realm of MMOs is going to be fascinating, even if The Old Republic turns out to be a catastrophic failure. Thankfully, though, it looks like it's shaping up pretty well. We're most intrigued to see how BioWare are going to fit a full-fledged story with voice acting and moral choices into what is traditionally a story-light genre, but we're also happy to see plenty of emphasis on soloing with AI companions and letting them deal with the crafting while you're offline, if you don't fancy doing it all yourself. With BioWare's typical polish and EA's resources, this might be an MMO that'll stand the test of time.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception - PS3

The Uncharted series, thus far, has always been worth watching. Playing like a more action-oriented version of Tomb Raider, the adventures of Nathan Drake have impressed us massively, last year garnering Naughty Dog our coveted Best Developer award and Uncharted 2 our Game of the Year award. So, saying that we're looking forward to Uncharted 3 is akin to saying that breathable air is a required component for human life: it's a little bit obvious.

We confess that we're a little bit worried about Uncharted 3's sandy setting, but as it's apparently being set in that sort of locale to push the team, we're looking forward to having our doubts smashed. With other promises including improved enemy AI, improved multiplayer and co-op, and the ability to fight multiple enemies at once, we've got high hopes for this one.

LA Noire - 360, PS3

We've been waiting for this for what feels like forever. A recurring joke on the podcast was that every game that ex-staffer Andy Alderson wished for would, before long, be announced or revealed - and sure enough, his desire for an open-world cop game was followed by Team Bondi and Rockstar giving away a load of information on their open-world cop game LA Noire.

Players will take on the role of Cole Phelps in a post-WW2 Los Angeles, with the game apparently channeling every film noir ever made in terms of tone and graphical style. Moral ambiguity and the seedy underbelly of the entertainment capital will be revealed as Phelps investigates a number of cases and rises through the ranks of the LAPD. We're expecting murder, corrupt cops, femme fatales, moral ambiguity, dames worth killing for, a vast conspiracy or two, a truckload of drinking and smoking, some gloriously snappy dialogue, and a whole mess of thick darkness and sharp light. With genuinely jaw-dropping motion capture being used for the faces, we're hoping to get as drawn into this as we did Heavy Rain as we follow clues, track down killers, and expose the bad guys. If we're not stuck into this by the halfway point of 2011, we might start contemplating a murder or two of our own.

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings - PC

The Witcher was one of the surprise RPG joys of 2007, offering gamers of all regions an opportunity to get to grips with Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski's fascinating fantasy world. Part fairy tale, part dark fantasy, The Witcher offered players grey moral choices with consequences so far ahead in the game that you couldn't simply reload and pick another option. Talent-based skill progression and an action-like combat system offered a rather different take to traditional RPGs.

The sequel is looking good. This time around, your choices throughout the course of the game will determine the fate of entire kingdoms - and some of those choices will be time-limited, upping the pressure. The combat system has been upgraded, allowing for different types of strike in the same combo, as well as allowing for more tactical thinking. Perhaps most importantly, CD Projekt RED is building its own engine, which should allow the game to function more as they intend. Roll on May.

Hunted: The Demon Forge

We're liking the look of this one, a co-op fantasy action title from Bethesda and InXile. If you;ve seen the trailers then you'll know that this is one dark and moody game that looks like it's going to deliver some great action.

Described as a Dungeon crawler with FPS style action, we think that this could really excite a lot of players who are looking for a fantasy setting with the pace and excitement of modern day shooter. When we spoke to InXile's Brian Fargo last year, it was clear InXile and Bethesda were looking to plug a gap in the market and Hunted: The Demon Forge with it's co-op and pick up and play style is one to watch,

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