Why We’re Excited About 2013 on 1UP

Over on 1UP, I got to participate in the recent Cover Story “Why We’re Excited About 2013,” an optimistic look at what is to come in the next year of gaming. And for my part, I was able to contribute not one, not two, but four articles to the cause:

Tomb Raider – “Lara Croft’s reboot is exactly what the franchise needs” is admittedly my editor’s words, but just the same, I’m intrigued by this new direction and seeing how things develop if it takes. Is this an all-new approach to Lara? Or is it simply a look at beginning of the journey which takes her to the mover over-the-top video game icon people know so well?

DmC – This one is coming soon– really soon– and has caught a lot of heat from fans up until now. However, taken on its own, it provides an intriguing premise as the very town in which the game takes place is out to get you. And I don’t mean the townsfolk, though they’re probably going to be aggressive as well– I mean the very place itself. Like if Metroplex thought you were being a particularly irritating itch, perhaps.

More than that, though– the game has caught a lot of heat for “what it’s done” to series hero Dante. But the fact is, this isn’t the same Dante– it’s an alternate reality version. A parallel dimension. And I find that particularly intriguing for reasons explained in the article.

Pikmin 3 – I love what I’ve played of this one so far, but I’m admittedly wary of bringing back the time limit of the first game– and so are others. Still, there’s hope that maybe they’ll implement it in a less-harsh manner, or find some other sort of compromise between what we saw in the first and second games.

Star Wars 1313 – This is the one I had the most fun writing about, despite not having much to go on at all– the game is largely a mystery. But based on what we do know, it’s intriguing.

Unfortunately, part of it was cut out, which basically illustrates the way the original trilogy has been pushed aside in favor of the new stuff. I can see why it was cut, but if you’re curious, check out the final piece of art in the book for the Blu-ray release over at Topless Robot.

I’m not the only one who contributed, of course; my lovely wife, Nadia, threw in her two zenny about a few titles as well:

The Last Guardian – “2013” being a stroke of optimism in this case, of course.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 – Remember the whole 1999 kerfluffle in the old continuity? Maybe we’re finally going to get a piece of that action, albeit revised.

Darkstalkers Resurrection – Because sometimes you need more freaks than the jungle guy who learned from electric eels how to shock people.

Of course, there are plenty of other games I’m looking forward to this year that I didn’t get to write about– including Animal Crossing: New Leaf, which Jeremy Parish covered, and numerous others not even listed, such as Rayman Legends and Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon.

And that’s it from the 1UP front for now!

David Oxford

David Oxford, or “LBD ‘Nytetrayn’,” as he is sometimes also known, is a freelance writer of many varied interests who resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

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