The end of summer (September and onward) is my favorite time of year for gaming since the summer is mostly a dry barren for gaming, except for the occasional hidden gems. The Fall of 2017 looks to be jam packed with a bevy of blockbusters. Here’s my Top 5 Anticipated Games of 2017.

1. Middle-earth: Shadow of War

I was heartbroken when Monolith pushed back the release date for their sequel to Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor. I’ve come to accept it since from the time they revealed it to the original August release date there was a very small window to fully polish the title.

With that being said, Shadow of War is the sequel to 2014’s Shadow of Mordor. If you haven’t played it, please do. It was phenomenal. The sequel follows Talion’s journey as he and Celebrimbor raise an army to challenge Sauron.

Monolith looks to build upon what made the original such a good game and expand it in other areas. New to the game is an RPG-like system where your armor now has different ranks (such as Epic). Players can now mount new beasts such as the Drake (a dragon) and armored Caragors. Your dominated opponents now have different abilities such as providing the armored Caragors. You will now participate in new domination-esque battles, in which upon defeating the Overlord, you will gain control of the area and can assign your lackeys to oversee it. The Nemesis system is making it’s return and will look to create more personalized experiences for the players. Monolith announced that your top ally and nemesis will carry over from Shadow of War.

Honestly, I’m just beyond excited for this sequel. Monolith made a smash hit with Shadow of War. They look to be hitting all the right notes with the follow up by keeping what made it so unique, and expanding it with new features. My only concern is that it may get overlooked being released in October.

Middle-earth: Shadow of War releases worldwide October 10, 2017.

2. Assassin’s Creed: Origins

It’s been 2 years since the last major Assassin’s Creed game came out (I’m not counting the Assassin’s Creed Chronicles series as major). Ubisoft has had plenty of time to go back to the drawing board to show us something new, and so far, Origins looks new(ish).

Ubisoft revealed the newest entry at E3 2017, and to be honest, I’m excited, but I’m also holding my breath with this one. The setting is finally in Egypt after fans have wanted it for so long. You play as Bayek, one of the earliest Assassin’s as you find yourself in the middle of the war between the Assassins and Templars. This is going to be a prequel, and hopefully we’ll get answers as to why these groups have been fighting for 9 games (this is the 10th entry in the series).

What we were shown was different. The game now takes on a RPG-esque system a-la Horizon: Zero Dawn; fighting now features hit boxes, you control an eagle (very clever Ubisoft) who can scout out enemies and locals, the mini map is longer present but features a “location based bar” (that’s the best way I can describe it). Those are among some of the basic changes we’ve been introduced to so far.

If you like that mix of Horizon and Far Cry Primal with Assassin’s Creed, then look no further. I’m looking forward to seeing what else the game has in store for us, and maybe this change will reinvigorate the franchise. However, the last time Ubisoft messed around with the formula for an Assassin’s Creed title, it was very messy (see Assassin’s Creed Unity). With that being said, the team behind Black Flag is working on it, so there’s hope for the title.

Assassin’s Creed Origins releases October 27, 2017.

3. Wolfenstein 2: Shadow of the Colossus 

Having never played the series before, I was very surprised at how fun Wolfenstein: The New Order was. MachineGames did a fantastic job recreating the series. After the success of The New Order and the standalone Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, MachineGames is looking to give us a full sequel to the series.

The sequel looks to bring the war back home. After the events of The New Blood, B.J is recovering from his wounds. The Nazis have succeeded and are in control of America. It’s up to you to liberate America from the Nazis. Easier said than done, am I right?

Not much has been revealed about The New Colossus, however, expect to see a return of the popular game mechanics such as dual wielding and the use of cover. From the trailer, the action looks like it’s going to be dialed up even more than it has been in the previous entries.

Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus is set to release on October 27, 2017.

4. Call of Duty: World War 2

Look, I know my final two entries will get me some flak. Just hear me out on these.

As overused as it is in video games, World War 2 is one of my favorite war settings. The simplicity, yet the overall dark nature of this war can create some good stories. Call of Duty is in desperate need of this setting in order to recreate this franchise, after three entries of futuristic nonsense.

I am disappointed that this year’s title is not coming from the loving hands of Treyarch. Instead, World War 2 will come from the institutors of supply drops and weapon variants, Sledgehammer Games (I will not bash Sledgehammer anymore).

Call of Duty has never been known for it’s campaign; it’s about the online features. This year’s entry looks genuinely the same as the past entries; fast paced, run and gun offense, kill streaks, and online rage. Sledgehammer is looking to shake it up with the addition of War, which is a take on Battlefield 1’s Operations mode. This entry will also see the end of the Create-a-Class system, and will be replaced with Divisions. Very interesting move, Sledgehammer. Not much is known yet about the Zombies mode, but I expect them to create some type of story mode for it since some the developers worked on Dead Space.

To see the return of boots on the ground is a welcome sight. What I’ve seen so far looks good, as far as Call of Duty previews goes. Overall, this could be the welcome change fans wanted to see from C.O.D.

Call of Duty: World War 2 releases November 3, 2017.

5. Destiny 2

Again, hear me out on this one.

Destiny was a game of ups and downs. Unlocking that Titan armor piece was exciting, until someone walked by with a better piece of armor. Finding out that the only way to unlock the Vision of Confluence was through the Vault of Glass was a task I sought to complete, until I found out I could only earn the rewards once a week (This was before I created more characters). Playing one of the most hyped games of all time and finding out it had a two hour campaign with no story grinder my gears. Watching the DLC add ons roll out made me mad. Bungie is looking to take another crack at this polarizing series with Destiny 2.

So far, what we’ve seen is nothing new. Shoot and loot is what I call it. It looks the same, but I’m going to try it anyways. I always give people the benefit of the doubt, and I’m hoping Bungie capitalizes with this one. When the formula for Destiny works, it was a really well tuned machine; the gameplay is solid, I love completing raids with my friends, each character feels unique, collecting loot is sometimes an addiction (stupid RNG). The glaring faults are what really burned gamers. Hopefully Bungie can turn it around this time, and with the beta opening up next week, that opinion will be formed sooner rather than later.

Don’t f’ it up Bungie. Destiny 2 releases September 6, 2017.

 

Let me know what your top 5 is in the comments below.