Once again, another crazy week of new releases is upon us as Nintendo prepares to unleash their next Mario title, Bethesda releases their second game this month, and Ubisoft brings back Assassin’s Creed from its hiatus. It’s This Week in Games and if you were worried about the holiday season lacking anything to strip you of your money, your worries are very much gone.
It goes without saying that Super Mario Odyssey is probably the biggest game coming out this week. If you don’t own a Nintendo Switch yet, this might end up being the game to bring you on board. With the new character of Cappy (Mario’s hat), Mario now has the ability to throw Cappy at almost anything to take control of it. It’s weird, unique, and exactly what Nintendo is good at. Every time I see this game in action I just want to smile at how insane of a gameplay mechanic that is for Mario, but with a Rabbids crossover having happened earlier this year, nothing is too absurd for Nintendo right now. Nintendo Switch fans will be able to get their hands on Super Mario Odyssey on October 27th.
And then there’s Assassin’s Creed: Origins. No, it hasn’t had as long of a break as Mario, but it has been a while since we have gotten a main entry in the popular Ubisoft franchise. Origins brings players to Ancient Egypt so they can rummage through tombs and climb pyramids during the Ptolemaic period. There are plenty of reasons to get excited about Assassin’s Creed: Origins, not the least of which being that it is set before every other game that has been released so far. By having its setting be in Ancient Egypt there’s actually a lot of freedom for Ubisoft to write its own fictional history and make some huge revelations. The gameplay has also been revamped and hopefully that means less tailing missions. Oh, and Eagle Vision is now just you using a literal eagle to see things. I think that’s pretty neat. You can play Assassin’s Creed: Origins on PS4, Xbox One, and PC on October 27th.
As if the 27th wasn’t stacked enough, Bethesda is coming in with their very timely release of Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. Developed by MachineGames (who did 2014’s The New Order), this is the game I will be picking up immediately. Expectations are high in this fight for American freedom, as BJ Blazkowicz heads a resistance in his home country of the United States to combat the Nazi regime that has invaded Western shores. Joined by a cast of freedom fighters and some returning characters, Wolfenstein II is aiming its sights right at the current political climate and might actually be one of the most important games to come out this year. It’ll be available on October 27th for PS4, Xbox One, PC, and in 2018 it will launch on the Nintendo Switch.
Hey, did you enjoy playing Destiny 2 on consoles? Well, let all your PC friends know that it’s out on PC on October 24th. You’ll only be able to play it on Blizzard Battle.net, which might still be a controversial choice for some, but I think the game justifies whatever hoops you have to jump through to play it. The PC version will feature native 4k resolution, uncapped framerates, and an adjustable field of view. You can check out our review of the console version if you’re still not sure whether Bungie’s shooter is right for you.
Also available on almost everything is Just Dance 2018 which comes to the Wii, Wii U, Nintendo Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, and PS4. Ubisoft’s popular dancing game has always been a huge hit commercially, and older generations of consoles keep getting the latest game because it just makes financial sense. Featuring over 40 tracks and over 300 through Just Dance Unlimited, Just Dance 2018 seems like a hit at any party when it releases on October 24th.
If you’re not into the big tentpole releases, there are plenty of smaller games coming out as well. Road Rage from Maximum Games will likely please fans of Road Rash when it comes out on October 24th for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Meanwhile, those who enjoyed 2016’s Yomawari: Night Alone for the Vita and PC will be pleased to find Yomawari: Midnight Shadows is being released by NIS America on the 24th for PS4, Vita, and PC. Metroidvania fans who want some crazy visuals will be hard-pressed to find something better fit for them this week than Nightmare Boy from The Vanir Project and published by Badland Games. It releases on October 25th for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Relive a two-decade long war between Rome and the city of Numantia in the turn-based strategy game, Numantia which comes out for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on October 25th as well. Finally, if you are a fan of Star Ocean: The Last Hope, it has been remastered for PS4 and PC with full HD and 4K support and will hit its respective platforms on October 28th from Square Enix.
That’s it for this week’s games, but I don’t know how much more of a beating anyone’s bank account can take after the past couple weeks. And of course, next week a flagship franchise releases its next entry so stay tuned and let us know in the comments below which game(s) you’ll be picking up this week!