Looking ahead in 2017

I was going to take this post to discuss a few of my favorite games from this past year but instead I thought it might be a better idea to look forward instead of looking back so I am going to write about two new games I am looking forward to playing in 2017.

For Honor is a new game in development by Ubisoft that utilizes melee weapon combat and puts you in the role of either Vikings, Knights or Samurai. The three factions are in perpetual warfare with each other and it is the player’s responsibility to bring victory to your chosen faction.

   

The most interesting aspect of the game is its unique combat system. Instead of using basic inputs such as hitting one button to slash and another to do a power attack, the system utilizes the control sticks to mimic something close to real sword duels. It allows for one on one combat to be a guessing game of what your opponent will do next. Move the stick slightly to the write and you will parry an incoming blow, but move it to the wrong side and you will end up like sliced pastrami. To me this is the most compelling part of For Honor. It makes skill a requirement behind combat and not just how fast you can press buttons. For Honor will be released for consoles and PC in February.

 The second game I am really looking forward to playing is Night in the Woods. The game places you in the role of Mae Borowski. Mae returns to his small rust belt inspired home after dropping out of college. He finds things are different then he remembers and strange events begin to creep their way into town. The developers describe it as a game that focuses on adventure, exploration, story and character. While the themes contain very human elements all the characters in the game are animals. Mae himself is a cat and the town is populated by dogs, bears and other familiar animals. The game was not developed traditionally but was in fact funded by a Kickstarter campaign, ensuring that the creativity of the designers and writers were not hijacked by money hungry big game developers.

Night in the Woods caught my attention mostly because of its story and themes. I am a sucker for a game that utilizes the story as the most important aspect of the game and I have feeling Night in the Woods is no exception. Personally I can relate to the feeling of a college drop out trying to find his way in the world and especially that feeling of finding home not the way you remember it. The idea of home is something that many of us chase after as we get older and it seems to be something that becomes more elusive the older we get. It will be interesting to see how the writers develop Mae’s story based on their own experiences. It does not have an official release time yet but they are accepting pre orders and I have a feeling this one will drop in February of this year.

There are many other games I am looking forward to playing this year but these two fascinate me the most. I encourage everyone who reads this to follow the links I posted to their official sites to gather more information. I hope For Honor ends up being a new household name to add to the Ubisoft collection and I hope Night in the Woods ends up with the compelling story of an adolescent trying to find his way that hits home with my own experiences. 2017 is looking to be a good year for new games and new stories.