And so it begins. August is the official kick-off to the Fall shopping season. It’s a well-observed fact that opening round is usually fired off by Madden NFL, and then the flood gates open in September. This year we continue that trend, with some good games to finish off the Summer before school starts around the US. We even have a hardware launch this year, and plenty of digital items to download.
Instant Analysis
Prepare to begin downloading all of your games from now on, or damn close to it. With the launch of the 3DS XL and New Super Mario Bros 2, Nintendo is finally getting its digital gears in motion, pushing for users to download their software more often. First- and third-party games will start popping up in the eShop — some already have — and the distribution structure is now allowing for sale pricing (to some extent). Sony’s Vita has already had day-one downloads of their available titles, and expect this practice to make the transition to consoles rather quickly. Get the hard drives and SD cards ready, the future is going to be all digital.
This month’s premiere game would be Madden NFL 13, since it’s always a massive seller, but the bigger story lies with NSMB 2 and Sleeping Dogs and how they’ll fare. Mario should sell well, pushing Nintendo’s agenda, but Dogs is an unknown, and a big game for Square Enix.
Console & PC Games
Persona 4 Arena – PS3, Xbox 360 – Though it’s not an RPG, P4A takes place right after Persona 4 and follows the cast into a fighting arena. Thanks to co-developer Arc System Works, the game revolves around a great fight mechanic and less button-mashing than others in the genre.
The Last Story – Wii – If there’s any reason to own a Wii this year, it’s been for the excellent RPGs. Created by Mistwalker Studios, TLS is the next in that line, and many consider it one of the best RPGs of this generation.
Sleeping Dogs – PC, PS3, Xbox 360 – What started life as a True Crime game years ago has finally surfaced as Sleeping Dogs. It’s still just as rough as any of the True Crime games could be, with a new setting in Hong Kong added in. Looks huge.
Darksiders II – PC, PS3, Wii U, Xbox 360 – Continuing the adventure of the Four Horsemen, D2 follows lead character Death into the post-apocalypse. It’s the closest we’ll get to an HD Zelda, and it’s even launching on the Wii U.
Legends of Pegasus – PC – It’s labeled as a “4X” game, which essentially means a mix of world-building and strategy. The game is huge on single player campaigning, but the gold lies in the multiplayer.
Transformers: Fall of Cybertron – PC, PS3, Xbox 360 – We absolutely loved this game at E3, and can’t wait to give it a full test drive at home. It may possibly be the best Transformers game ever made.
Port Royale 3 – PC, PS3, Xbox 360 – It’s got pirates and strategy, naval battles and… pirates. You still like pirate games, right?
Ratchet & Clank Collection – PS3 – The collection takes 3 of the PS2’s Ratchet games and gives them a shiny new sheen, and online mutliplayer!
Journey Collector’s Edition – PS3 – If you haven’t played Journey yet, you’re definitely missing out. This collection pairs the game with flOw and flOwer and adds in extra content not found on PSN.
Guild Wars 2 – PC – You’ve read our preview of the game, and know that we’re excited about it. You should be, too.
Madden NFL 13 – PS3, PS Vita, Wii, Xbox 360 – We loved Madden 13 when we played it at E3, as it signals huge improvements for the series.
Portable Games
New Super Mario Bros 2 – 3DS – It’s another 2D Mario game, and they’re always good if not a bit repetitive. Also: it’s another 2D Mario game. And we really can’t have enough of those.
Ragnarok Odyssey – Vita – It’s an action adventure RPG, heavy on classes and character building, and even heavier on pretty visuals. A great pickup for the Vita, with no other major releases this month.
Downloads
Expendables 2 – PSN – It’s a movie tie-in. We think?
Sound Shapes – PSN – Music, plus platforming, plus creation.
Papo & Yo – PSN – It’s an adventure puzzle game that takes inspiration from real-life emotions
Deadlight – XBLA – Another game we loved at E3, and worth checking out for its ambition.
Hybrid – XBLA – A sweet-looking multiplayer FPS
Dust: An Elysian Tale – XBLA – Think Odin Sphere and Muramasa, and you have Dust. But bigger and in HD.
Hardware
3DS XL – Nintendo – It’s the device that the 3DS should have been all along: bigger screen, better feel in the hands, and slightly longer battery life.
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