It’s already proven to be an eventful year in the gaming world. We’ve not only seen Nintendo unveiling their new console and Resident Evil 7: Biohazard showing off some terrifying VR horror, but there was another sneaky release from the Pokémon franchise too.
And there are plenty more gaming delights due to come in 2017. We’ve already shown how the sequel to Star Wars: Battlefront will provide some interesting single-player options, but there are many other highlights for gamers.
Perhaps the biggest gaming release of the season will come on 21 March when BioWare unleash the keenly anticipated Mass Effect: Andromeda for Xbox One, PS4 and Windows. This is widely predicted to rack up around three million sales within its first week due to the sci-fi adventures in the open-world environment that will hopefully be a little more action-packed than those found in No Man’s Sky!
Another big console title that’s due to strike the PS4, Xbox One and Windows in the coming months is For Honor. This will be released on Valentine’s Day, but that’s the only romantic aspect of the game, as it looks to update the fighting genre with all manner of horrendous weapons and historical characters such as vikings, knights and samurai.
Of course, it’s not just console gamers who are being treated to some big hits, as there’s plenty to look forward to in the mobile gaming realm. In March we’ll be able to play the Power Rangers: Legacy Wars real-time multiplayer fighting game, and gamers are already getting their heads around Nintendo’s latest mobile release, the intriguing Fire Emblem Heroes.
Thankfully there are plenty more traditional entertainments in the mobile gaming realm with the likes of mobile roulette games getting a facelift, whilst Collect or Die is the latest retro platformer that uses basic stickman graphics to great effect.
But it’s still the augmented and virtual reality trends that promise to deliver perhaps the most exciting gaming news in 2017. Whilst augmented reality horror games like Night Terrors might not be for everyone, it’s clear that the latest range of consoles will seek to make full use of virtual reality technologies.
So whether you’re speeding around a virtual racetrack in Project Cars 2, annihilating your enemies in the John Wick Chronicles VR first-person shooter, or just waiting for that first virtual reality casino game, it looks like there won’t be a shortage of gaming options in 2017.
