There are a lot of games to be excited about this year. Games like BioShock Infinite and Grand Theft Auto 5 have been showered with praise since they were first announced and have been steadily racking up pre-orders. Not every big release in 2013 is so eagerly anticipated, though. Some are downright dreaded.
There are a lot of reasons why a game is dismissed right off the bat. Maybe the publisher said something stupid or offensive. Maybe it's a sequel trying something radically different. Maybe the hero has the wrong hair color.
Most of the games you think look like shit will turn out to be shit. Pessimists tend to have a better batting average than optimists. However, here's a list of five games that have been crapped on since they were announced but might end up surprising you.
DmC: Devil May Cry
The controversy surrounding Devil May Cry's reboot comes down to two words: Emo Dante. DmC: Devil May Cry creates a new storyline and redesigns the main character of the series. Dante, once a seasoned demon hunter with long white hair and a trenchcoat, became a short-haired teenager. His coat is also much less fashionable. The horror!
The debate over Dante's new appearance overshadows the similarities between DmC and earlier games. Dante might be an emo teenager here but he still pummels demons with vicious sword and gun combos. Players are still ranked on their style, encouraging them to make their combos as long and varied as possible. If you're obsessed over the old Dante, note that Emo Dante's hair turns white whenever you enter Devil Trigger mode.
The first reviews released thus far have been very positive. Gamers who decided they hated the reboot as soon as they laid eyes on teenage Dante might insist that Capcom bought these review scores. However, we'll see what the truth is later this month when the game launches.
Splinter Cell: Blacklist
Ubisoft only have themselves to blame for Splinter Cell: Blacklist's mixed reception. The first gameplay footage they released played up the action elements of the game rather than the stealth. Sam Fisher shot up groups of enemies at a time and even called in an airstrike. It made long-time fans of the series think that Blacklist was a pure third-person shooter.
In reality, the game looks like it's going to be a mixture of action and stealth in the style of Splinter Cell: Conviction. In fact, it's more of a stealth game than Conviction because it reintroduces features such as whistling to get guards' attention and hiding bodies. Some many mourn how Splinter Cell is no longer a "pure" stealth series but it seems like you can play the game like that if you wish.
Blacklist also brings back the "Spies versus Mercenaries" multiplayer from Double Agent. One team takes on the role of spies who must sneak around the map and complete objectives while the other team takes on the role of heavily armed mercenaries. The fact that Ubisoft brought this mode back suggests that, even though they've added all these action features to attract new players, they remember that stealth is the key element of the series.
XCOM
Many X-Com fans wanted to see the dormant strategy series return, but no one wanted a shooter. The most recent game in the series, X-COM: Enforcer, was a shooter and was awful. The reaction to the announcement of XCOM, another FPS, was immediately negative. 2K president Christoph Hartmann didn't help matters by stating that strategy games aren't contemporary. With XCOM, it seemed like 2K was simply cashing in on the series' name.
XCOM actually doesn't look all that bad, though. Some of the most recent gameplay footage showed it's not just some mindless shoot 'em up. Instead, it's a tactical shooter in the vein of Brothers in Arms. Players assemble a squad of agents, manage their progression, and direct them in combat.
If you want a true X-Com game with the base management and turn-based strategy of the older games, then you can play this fall's XCOM: Enemy Unknown. The XCOM shooter may ever be as beloved as the strategy games but it doesn't deserve scorn. It will allow players to experience the battle against extraterrestrials from a more personal perspective. It seems like an interesting supplement to the strategy series, rather than a cynical attempt to milk the X-Com brand.
Dead Space 3
Dead Space 3's big new feature - two-player co-op - is its most controversial. Many fans think that the series is abandoning its roots and becoming another money-grubbing shooter franchise. The introduction of a cover system has just made the "Gears of Dead Space" jokes even easier.
The thing is, though, Dead Space was never a horror series. It's always been action with occasional scary moments. There's no survival horror tradition to betray. Isaac Clarke never ran around a mansion with three bullets in his pocket and an ink ribbon. Since the first game, he's been an armor-clad killing machine with military-grade weapons. When he needs more ammunition (he never does), he can buy more at the store.
DS3 has everything that made the previous games so damn charming: Necromorph ambushes, enormous bosses, dismemberment, and so on. The presence of a second player isn't going to ruin any of that. It might just make the action - the series' focus - even better.
Elder Scrolls Online
The Elder Scrolls series has traditionally been a single-player series. Elder Scrolls Online, however, is an MMORPG set in the universe. As you've seen from the previous games in this list, breaking with tradition is a surefire way to piss off fans. Since the game was announced, there's been an ongoing debate over whether it's a legitimate Elder Scrolls game. The troubled life of Star Wars: The Old Republic, another MMORPG spawned by a single-player RPG series, is fresh in everyone's memories.
ESO seems to retain many of things that fans love about the series, though. For example, there's a heavy emphasis on exploration. You won't just go to a hub town and grab a bunch of quests. Instead, you're encouraged to wander and make adventures of your own in the various ruins and caves throughout the world. Public dungeons and Daedric invasions give you opportunities to team up with strangers on the fly; you won't sit in a capital city saying "LFG" in chat for an hour.
The game also seems like the best opportunity yet to experience Elder Scrolls' lore. Unlike the single-player games, ESO isn't limited to a single province. You'll be able to explore various regions of Tamriel, some of which have never appeared in a game before. You can finally see what Summerset Isles or the Black Marsh looks like.
