2016 looks to be a bumper year for gaming, with lots of great upcoming titles on both consoles. Here we’re going to list our top picks month-by-month, so you can plan out your gaming year somewhat. If you’re looking for something to play now, we’ll be listing the most recent top release at the top of the article, while games without fixed dates are lurking at the very bottom.
While the PlayStation 4 has taken a lead in sales in the current generation, it has been the Xbox One that stands out in terms of exclusive titles. With Sony’s internal teams misfiring or being delayed, Microsoft has built up a decent library of titles, though nothing quite console-selling, bar the excellent multiplayer in Halo 5, has yet come to its aid.
This year looks potentially strong for Microsoft again but at present there are too many titles with vague ‘2016’ release dates for our liking. We’ll have to wait to E3 to see if we’re actually going to get to play the likes of Gears of War 4 and Crackdown 3 this year, or whether we’ll be forced to wait yet again. We’ll be at E3 to find out, so follow our coverage there.
February
(17th) Rocket League
Would Rocket League ever have been made without Top Gear’s now-famous football game with Aygo cars? We think not. Already hugely popular on PC and PS4, Rocket League has proven itself to be a pro gamer staple in just a few short years since its original release - as the brilliantly titled 'Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars'. Easy to pick up but incredibly hard to master, with constant rewards in the form of custom car bits and bobs, Rocket League is mouth-wateringly addictive and breathlessly fast-paced. An essential buy in February.
(23rd) Far Cry Primal
Remember when prehistoric epics were a regular experience for moviegoers? Us neither, but Ubisoft is trying to turn the clock back to the sixties when grunting specimens with spears were all the rage. Ubisoft is very proud of having a gun-free Far Cry and the series certainly needed mixing up after a couple of samey outings. However, with Ubisoft’s usual giant map of icons to engage with and the use of animals and fire as key weapons (both of which featured in recent Far Cry games as well), we’re not yet convinced that this will be as radically different as it first appears. That said, we’ve hugely enjoyed the last couple and there isn’t much competition for your time in February. But be quick because in just two weeks ...
March
(8th) The Division
Everyone’s been banging on about The Division for years now. With many others, I was demoed the game at E3 two years ago and it looked pretty polished and playable back then, so god knows what’s taken so long. Griping aside this once ‘next-generation’ poster boy is finally being released and it’s set to be the biggest time-sink of the year. A third-person shooter with heavy RPG elements doesn’t quite do it justice, as it shares a lot of its DNA with Bungie’s Destiny. That means seamless single-to-multiplayer transitions, heavy co-op elements and lots and lots of lovely loot to grind. The setting is a little NRA fantasy, with a devastated New York that needs cleaning up by heavily-armed civilians. But despite that, I’ll see you online from the 8th. Read more in The Division article.
(11th) Hitman
Coming so soon after The Division looks like a crazy move for the usually cold-and-calculating Hitman but it’s more complicated than that. The new game in the long-running assassination series is being split into episodic chunks, each one centred around a location and high-profile target, each ensconced in a huge sandbox area with around 300 NPCs in huge crowd scenes. Additional content will be released throughout the year, plus players will be able to design their own contracts for other to take on.
April
(29th) Quantum Break
There’s only game to consider this April (unless of course you have a PS4 as well) and that’s the much-hyped Quantum Break. This time-bending shooter gives you a wide range of powers that will literally leave your opponents standing still. Your temporal mastery also allows you to traverse dangerous environments in platform-puzzle sections. On top of all that, Quantum Break is a game for the HBO-Netflix age, as the action is interspersed with high-quality TV segments, that vary depending on your choices in the game. Arguably the biggest, most exciting new game on Xbox One this year. Read more in our Quantum Break breakdown.
May
(13th) Doom
Returning to its roots, the rebooted Doom takes all the gore and action of the original and brings it smack up to date. This feels distinctly different from most modern shooters, there’s no cowering in cover, instead you have to keep on the move to stay alive, and be even more aggressive than your demonic enemies in order to triumph. The multiplayer takes a similar old-school approach, even including health that doesn’t regenerate. I’m eager to take a step back in time and into hell in May.
June
(21st) Overwatch
With Team Fortress 2 aging there’s been an opening for a new team-based shooter to take the crown. Overwatch comes from Blizzard and draws from the design crack that is MOBA. Highly-character based, the first person shooter gives players the opportunity to specialise in their favourite heroes and learn every nuance of their highly-varied skillsets. This, Blizzard hopes, will create an exciting and varied meta-game as teams try to outmanoeuvre each other before the first shot is fired through character choices. It could become the darling of competitive gaming but Blizzard is also making sure it stays accessible too.
August
(23rd) Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
The long-running Deus Ex series is back with this direct sequel to 2012’s Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Expect more of the same in terms of an awesome cyberpunk feel, fantastic upgrades for your agent and a complex plot of shadowy conspiracies in which you get to make big choices as to the outcome. This time around combat has been reworked heavily, to create gunfights that are as fun and tactical as the sneaky approach, plus there’s still lots of security systems to hack and turn to your will. When summer gets too much, pull on your virtual mirrorshades and head for the shadowy world of Deus Ex. read our full Deus Ex: Mankind Divided preview for more details.
No date confirmed
There’s a bunch more titles that are tentatively pencilled in for a 2016 launch date. However, the developers and publishers haven’t yet announced a date more exact than a year. Some of these may get dates at the E3 show in June, while other will almost certainly drift into 2017.
Exclusive
Gears of War 4
Halo Wars 2
ReCore
Crackdown 3
Sea of Thieves
Cross-platform
Destiny 2
Dishonored 2
Final Fantasy XV
Battlefield 5
Mass Effect Andromeda
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