Top 10 Upcoming Games of 2011 - Part 2

5 - Max Payne 3

Okay, reports are still kinda vague as if it's even going to be released this year, but even on the off chance that it is - it needs to be in my top 5. The first two were among the most fun I've had in video gaming, and the gritty film noir style was something that I hadn't seen done in videogaming making them a refreshing new take on third person combat.

The third sees Max getting a little older and I dare say, even more synical. The game is now set in Sao Paulo, a far cry from the original games'  dark, gritty streets. However, as long as the game retains the series' trademark gameplay this is a set to be another brilliant game.

As there are no MP3 videos out yet, so here's just a taste of the gameplay you can expect.

 

4 - Diablo III

So we're in the same boat as Max Payne here, no-one really knows if Diablo III will make it out this year, but good god it had better!

11 years after what many call the greatest hack n' slash of all time, Diablo III is almost upon us. Retaining the same gameplay as its predecessors, minus a few tweaks such as "picking up" health/mana rather than potion chugging - this game is destined to be good. Really, when has Blizzard ever done us wrong?

The game contains five classes, Wizard, Witch Doctor, Demon Hunter, Barbarian and Monk and will undoubtably have a huge online following akin to Diablo II. I really, cannot wait.

3 - The Elders Scrolls V : Skyrim

I tried so very hard not to get caught up in the hype for this game after how disappointed I was in Oblivion. Don't get me wrong, it was a fantastic game but after seeing demonstration videos showing off the amazing "radiant AI" system they had in place. It made Oblivion looks like a real, living place... but then the game was released, and well.. it was more like this..

Regardless of that disappointment, the game was still very enjoyable - the world was huge and the gameplay fun. If a few niggling things can be fixed in Skyrim then it's going to be fucking amazing... and this time I won't buy into the hype.. much.

2 - Mass Effect 3

Very little has to be said about this. The past two have had one of the most engaging storylines in gaming (im a sci-fi nut) and gameplay to boot, match that with legendary Bioware characters and voice acting and you can see why they've been such a success.

The third and final chapter is the trilogy is bringing the fight back to Earth and I cannot wait to see what happens! Infinately more enjoyable than Dragon Age, Mass Effect shows that modern action RPG's can be just as fun as the isometric text heavy RPG's of the past.

It will be interesting to see how they tie the ending of the last game into the start of this, but hey - they've done it before - why shouldn't I trust them? Bring it home Bioware.

See my number 1 after the jump!

1 - Portal 2

Portal - the tasty little meat between in the delicious sandwich that was the Orange Box. Mixing ground breaking gameplay with a wicked sense of humour - Portal was an instant classic.

With Portal 2 nearly upon us, one few questions remain - can it retain the same humour and gameplay over a full length game? How is the Source engine going to hold up with a new full game after all these years? Recruiting Steven Merchant to voice your sidekick is an interesting decison, but im sure the infinite wisdom of Valve will shine through and with TF2 still looking amazing (mainly due to it's great art direction) I'm sure Portal will look great.

The new biggest feature is the full length co-op campaign which looks like it will seriously change up the gameplay - 4 portals AT ONCE!? Holy crap. This will be fun.



2011 looks like it will be a great year in gaming - Enjoy!