From Princess Zelda's own legend to the return of Indiana Jones, the year's end looks stacked with options
Konami; Square Enix; Bandai Namco
Thus far, 2024 has been a strange year for gaming. With a first half populated by a handful of big releases, but mostly dominated by the indie scene doing its best work, many gamers were left looking to the summer months to prop up an otherwise off-year for the industry. But, as everyone knows, it’s the back end of the year leading into the holiday season where most of the biggest blockbusters come through.
But this fall is especially packed, with new releases coming near weekly, and even games like Frostpunk 2 finally arriving after delays bumped it from the summer slate. This season brings multiple remakes of classic titles like Capcom’s Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, long-awaited sequels like Nintendo’s Super Mario Party Jamboree, and even retro-styled revivals of Atari classics like Yars Rising. Of course, massive updates and expansions to ongoing live-service games like Fortnite and Diablo IV are also on the horizon to keep your currently existing daily addictions re-upped.
With such a back-loaded release schedule, it’s likely that many of the year’s best games are still ahead. But based on the list below, the Game of the Year will end up being a cutthroat race.
From spiritual successors to JRPG favorites to wild new takes on famous franchises, these are the biggest, most anticipated games coming out for the remainder of 2024.
Sept. 12
Pop, pop! Lollipop Chainsaw RePop is one of two zombie game remasters arriving this fall in time for Halloween, alongside Capcom’s Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster (out Sept. 18). Of the two, 2006’s Dead Rising is generally remembered more fondly, but that doesn’t mean anyone should count RePop out. The original game, released in 2012, was a wonderfully trashy, Troma-like splatterfest (co-written by Troma alum James Gunn) with a killer soundtrack to boot.
Lollipop Chainsaw follows the story of cheerleader Juliet Starling and the disembodied head of her boyfriend, Nick, as the duo fight for humanity’s survival amid the zombie apocalypse. With overhauled graphics and some modernized controls that should improve its quality of life, as well as a new RePOP mode that swaps out some of the gorier elements of the 2012 release for the squeamish — Lollipop Chainsaw looks to have an newly undead lease on life.
Sept. 26
For Nintendo, 2024 is officially the year of the princess. Like Peach before her, Princess Zelda is finally getting her own solo adventure with The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. And it’s about time. It seems insane, but Echoes of Wisdom marks the first entry in the series starring Zelda as the protagonist, despite the franchise bearing her name for almost 40 years.
In an entirely new story set in an unknown period in the series’ extremely wonky timeline, Zelda is tasked with tracking down and rescuing Link (for once) and must travel to the mysterious Still World to save the kingdom of Hyrule. Although the cutesy visuals resemble 2019’s Link’s Awakening remake, the gameplay looks like a completely fresh take on the Zelda formula. Players can combine different magical abilities for a more strategic approach to combat and puzzling that looks like a fusion between the open-endedness of Tears of the Kingdom filtered through the smaller scale of the classic games in the franchise.
Oct. 8
The latest soup-to-nuts remake of a horror game classic, Silent Hill 2 looks to be a complete reinvention of Konami’s 2001 PlayStation hit. Developed by Bloober Team, the remake was initially met with skepticism from fans, but as more information comes to light about the modern take on the survival horror series, anticipation has hit a fever pitch.
The first major release for the franchise since 2012’s Book of Memories, Silent Hill 2 (2024) looks to be one of two big re-releases for Konami this year, alongside Metal Gear Solid Delta, that aims to bring the once-beloved publisher back into the limelight after nearly a decade on the sidelines. In a perfect world, the game delivers and sparks interest in a full-fledged sequel or new original entry. Until then, it’s best to remain cautiously optimistic about returning to the town of Silent Hill.
Oct. 11
It’s been a good decade for fans of Dragon Ball. Following the launch of Dragon Ball Super in 2015, a sequel to the beloved Nineties series Dragon Ball Z that helped popularize anime in the West, as well as two theatrically release animated movies, the franchise is thriving (with more on the way). The same goes for Dragon Ball presence in gaming, with 2018’s Dragon Ball FighterZ becoming a smash hit on the pro fighting game circuit. But now, an even more exciting game looms large.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero marks the return of the franchise’s most beloved fighting game sub-series, Budokai Tenkaichi, and is the first new entry in 15 years. Unlike the 2D FighterZ, Sparking! Zero is a fully 3D third-person action fighting game that lets players feel like they’re taking control of the anime itself to relive all its greatest moments and create some of their own in custom “what if?” modes. With a roster of over 164 playable characters, including multiple variations of the main cast from ever era of the series, it’s the biggest Dragon Ball game yet.
Oct. 11
Created by Katsura Hashino, the director of beloved Japanese RPGS like Persona 3, 4, and 5, Metaphor ReFantazio caused a major stir when it was announced during an Xbox Games Showcase in June 2023. Considered a spiritual successor to the Persona series, with similar gameplay mechanics and gorgeous anime-inspired veneer, the game offers existing fans more of what they already love and newcomers a fresh entry point for a brand-new franchise.
Set in the medieval fantasy realm of Euchronia, which serves as something like a mirror dimension to our own modern world, ReFantazio looks to swing big on the same kinds of reality-bending and philosophical themes that made Persona such a hit. Rolling Stone went hands-on with a version of the game at this year’s Summer Game Fest and walked away impressed by how accessible its fast-paced role-playing combat can be, wrapped in an intriguingly bizarre story.
Oct. 25
As autumn approaches, it’s once again time for another Call of Duty. Released annually like clockwork, the franchise has grown somewhat stale in recent years, although it hasn’t impacted its player base as the free-to-play live-service Warzone keeps the franchise marching on. Modern Call of Duty games now serve a different purpose, mostly as story and content updates for their larger ecosystem that are more interchangeable than meant to be played in perpetuity.
But Black Ops 6 offers more than iterative updates. Returning to one of the most popular sub-series in the franchise, its single-player campaign continues the twisty, conspiracy laden plot from previous entries — now with one hundred percent more Margaret Thatcher. But the biggest change is a monumental change to the core design with “omnidirectional movement.” In short, players are no longer bound to the restraints of just aiming forward and can now pivot their view in full 360 degrees while running, laying, or even jumping to recreate the fluid dual-pistol gunplay of a John Woo movie come to life.
With the new mechanics being applied to all aspects of the Call of Duty platform in both Black Ops 6 and Warzone, it fundamentally changes the way everyone will be playing the game across the board, and may just be the leap forward the long-running franchise needs to stay fresh.
Oct. 29
Cozy mysteries are back! The fourth installment in the Life is Strange series was announced earlier this year with a major surprise, bringing back the first game’s protagonist, Max Caulfield for a direct sequel rather than pushing forward with an all new story like its predecessors. The story follows an older Max who, after learning about the murder of her friend Safi, discovers her time-bending abilities have evolved to allow her to jump between realities — specifically to an alternate timeline where Safi remains unharmed.
Like the other games in the series, Double Exposure will be released episodically in multiple shorter installments, each serving as individual chapters in the overall story. And while the original game’s story had two different endings depending on what choices the player made, Double Exposure won’t force one canonical path, allowing audiences to organically follow whichever path they decide is their preferred ending to build on.
Oct. 31
After a tumultuous development cycle that began in 2015, Bioware’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard appears poised to become a reality. The first game in the popular RPG series since 2014’s Inquisition, many are hoping that the game will be a return to form for the once-celebrated developers after missing the mark with its other big role-playing franchise Mass Effect with the tepidly received Mass Effect: Andromeda in 2017. The prolonged work on the game has been a point of concern, with Veilguard publicly undergoing multiple shifts in creative direction and even a full-on title change from its first big reveal in 2022 as Dragon Age: Dreadwolf.
Like Mass Effect or even last year’s Baldur’s Gate 3, one of the core elements of the Dragon Age series is the player’s shifting relationships with their companions, which often results in tough decisions that deeply impact the direction the story takes — and who makes it through to the end. After positive buzz surrounding hands-on demos at Summer Game Fest, the general perception of the game is looking brighter, but players themselves will find out soon enough if it lives up to the pedigree of its older installments.
Nov. 7
After partnering with Ubisoft for a pair of successful real-time strategy games with the Mario + Rabbids series, which had some light RPG elements, Nintendo has recently been more open to revisiting the role-playing genre as a whole. With 2023’s Super Mario RPG and 2024’s Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Nintendo offered remakes of fan-favorite oddities that served as a primer for their first new Mario RPG in years: Mario & Luigi: Brothership.
Mario RPGs stand apart from most of the company’s other games, often being a playground for a more satirical or self-referential take on the franchise. The Mario & Luigi series is no different, following a more comedic take on the adventures of the plumber brothers with classic RPG mechanics. The first new game in the series in 2015’s Paper Jam, Brothership leads the franchise into the modern era with lush 3D graphics and turn-based combat that both looks and plays distinctly from any current games in Nintendo’s portfolio. Following the success of the superbly bonkers Super Mario Bros. Wonder (2023), the company looks to be keen on its new messaging: Make Mario weird again.
Nov. 15
Somehow, it took 14 entries in the Assassin’s Creed franchise to finally get around to including ninjas, yet here we are with this year’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Although it’s the first game in the series to feature feudal Japan as its historical setting, Shadows primary narrative continues the sci-fi story of the millennia-old feud between the Assassin Brotherhood and the Templar Order which sends players back in time using “genetic memory” to experience the past firsthand.
This time around, players will control two distinct characters with Naoe, a nimble female shinobi, and Yasuke, a more physically strong samurai based on the real-life figure. The inclusion of a Black samurai led to a minor controversy online, but the game’s true fans are likely to thrilled to see the combination of samurai and ninja abilities both fully represented in gameplay through unique protagonists, while staying true to the game’s fictionalized takes on historical figures that are essential to its DNA.
Nov. 20
Another game releasing this fall after years in the making, Stalker 2 was originally announced in 2010 before undergoing a cancellation and subsequent revamp. Although re-announced in 2018, development paused once again due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, forcing many of the creators at the Kyiv-based studio GSC Gameworld to put work aside to serve in the war for Ukraine, with others continuing remotely after fleeing to Prague. But many stayed in the studio’s headquarters, where the threat of missile strikes loomed large.
The long and, at times, tragic road to Stalker 2’s release appears to be nearing its end. For a game set in a fictionalized version of Ukraine torn asunder by nuclear war, the real world threats the developers faced mirror the horror stories their work portrays. For the team at GSC, the release of Stalker 2 is more than just a game launch, but potentially a form of catharsis to see the project to fruition.
Dec. 6
In a year where Overwatch knockoffs have struggled to find success, only one has managed to gain traction in its pre-release beta tests, and that’s Marvel Rivals. A 6v6 third-person hero shooter, the game plays like a Marvel-flavored take on the competitive genre that manages to capitalize on the strength of its IP and fan-favorite characters to elevate it beyond its peers.
Leaning into its class-centric systems, Marvel Rivals emphasizes teamwork in its objective-based gameplay by assigning different heroes like Iron Man and Hulk different roles in combat like “duelist” and “vanguard,” giving each a specific purpose on the field that’s easy to learn for newcomers. By selecting the right combination of heroes, players can maximize their effectiveness in matches with a system boost called “Dynamic Hero Synergy.” With destructible environments based on famous comic book locations, and the promise of many new characters to come, Marvel Rivals looks to be the new breakout shooter of the year and, thankfully, will be free-to-play at launch.
Dec. 9
There’s been numerous Indiana Jones games over the years, though few have left a memorable impression. The first big Indy game since 2009’s Lego Indiana Jones 2, Bethesda’s Indiana Jones and the Great Circle doesn’t have a very high bar to clear, but based on everything shown thus far, there may be reason for genuine excitement.
Developed by MachineGames, known for the stellar modern entries in the Wolfenstein series, The Great Circle is a first-person action game that promises a combination of edge-of your-seat action and complex puzzle solving that are at the heart of every good Indy adventure. With a team featuring industry veterans who worked on 2004’s The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay — widely considered one of the best movie franchise tie-in games ever — the potential for The Great Circle to transcend a lazy IP-grab is there. Combined with a sure to be charming performance by Troy Baker (Joel from The Last of Us) doing his best Harrison Ford impression, the stage is set for the dashing archaeologist’s return to gaming.
Release Date TBD
The second remake for Konami this year, Metal Gear Solid Delta marks the first sign of life from the once-venerated stealth action franchise since its creator Hideo Kojima’s departure from the studio following 2015’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. A modern reimagining of 2004’s Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, considered by many to be the peak of the franchise, Delta brings the jungle-bound spy games of the original to current generation hardware with a new coat of paint.
Although there’s some quality-of-life updates, much of the remake’s gameplay looks to hue closely to what made Snake Eater a masterpiece the first time around. Controlling Naked Snake (who is different from Solid Snake from other Metal Gear games — it’s a whole thing), players must sneak their way to survival through dense jungle environments and firefights with over-the-top villains the series is known for. With its creator working on his own new series Death Stranding and fully divorced from the Metal Gear world, it’s hard to say whether the success of Delta will push Konami to make new installments of the series under different leadership. For now, this may be the best we get; but that may just be good enough.
Release Date TBD
Following Astro Bot, Lego Horizon Adventures looks to be the second big family friendly PlayStation game in the brand’s recent resurgence. It’s also seemingly out of the left field as an adaptation of Sony’s own more mature original IP Horizon being totally reworked to fit a kiddie aesthetic. But with the original game’s developers, Guerilla Games, at the helm, Adventures remains true to the spirit of its world in look and feel even as its open world action goes smaller into little Lego-sized chunks of gameplay.
Retelling the events of 2018’s Horizon Zero Dawn, Adventures follows the Lego game mold of sending up the source material in self-referentially comedic ways, with series lead Aloy (Ashley Burch) poking fun at her loner personality and the silly sci-fi jargon of her post-apocalyptic life. Based on our hands-on experience with the game, it manages to neatly translate the series’ signature stealth and archery mechanics into something simpler, but with enough complexity to satisfy fans old and new. As the first ever video game franchise to be turned into a Lego-fied version of itself, Lego Horizon Adventures may be a sign of the future of multiple new spin-offs for Sony.
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