I grew up on Role Playing Games, and whilst I don’t have as much time to play them due to that pesky adulting and writing, I still get excited for games and try to keep up with the latest gaming news. There are some fantasy games on my radar that I’m super hyped for and will need to take a week off work and writing just to play!
Here are five fantasy games that I’ll be giving up my life for:
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Confession time; I’ve never played a Fire Emblem game! I grew up on the SEGA side of the great console wars, so apart from the Zelda series (which is absolutely fantastic) I’m still late to the party when it comes to Nintendo titles. I adore my Switch, and I simply love strategy RPG’s like Final Fantasy Tactics, Valkyria Chronicles, and the old Shining Force games on the MegaDrive/Genesis. I’m sure I’ll feel right at home with Fire Emblem. The art style and combat system appeals to me, and I’m excited to make Three Houses my first foray into the Fire Emblem world.
If you’re picking it up, which House will you choose? I’m going for Golden Deer!
Shenmue 3
Possibly the least fantasy of my most eagerly awaited fantasy games, if you’ve not heard of the Shenmue series, you’re missing out on one heck of an experience. The original Shenmue was released on the SEGA Dreamcast back in 1999 and was ahead of its time. Part walking-simulator, part gacha-collector, and with a fighting system based on the Virtua Fighter beat ’em ups, Shenmue created a whole authentic world inspired by the real-world locations of Yokosuka in Japan. A second game came out and ended on a cliff-hanger, and was never concluded.
The Shenmue games became something of a cult classic and fans have been petitioning for a sequel for years. Their dreams came true as Shenmue 3 was announced at E3 in 2015 and is due for release soon! I’m excited to see where the story of Ryo Hazuki will end.
Pokémon Sword and Shield
As stated above, I came to the Nintendo party late. However, when I went to University, EVERYONE was playing Pokémon. And I mean everyone! I quickly got up to speed on my Pokémon hunting, and when Pokémon Go came out, I joined Team Instinct and had great fun stalking Pokémon in cemeteries. Honestly, the early days of Pokémon Go were the closest humanity ever got to world peace. Whilst I won’t call myself the biggest Pokémon fan, I did go to see Detective Pikachu in the cinema and loved every second.
There are two things which excite me about Sword and Shield. For one, it’s the first proper Pokémon game on the Switch and lets face it, the Switch was made for Pokémon. The other thing is this Pokémon is set in Galar, a world inspired by Britain! As a Brit, I’m looking forward to seeing how a fantasy Britain will be represented.
So what’s your favourite Pokémon? I’m a grass type fan.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake
I’m a Final Fantasy fan! Final Fantasy VII was my first Final Fantasy and I still remember the first time I played it. Whilst I consider Final Fantasy VIII to be MY Final Fantasy (and there’s a remastered version of that coming soon too, wahey!), FF7 will always have a special place in my heart, and I consider that and Zelda: The Ocarina of Time to be the greatest video games ever created. So naturally I am obsessed with the Remake. I actually did like FF13, despite its criticisms, but couldn’t get on with FF15 because the story was lacking for me, and Final Fantasy to me is all about story.
From what I’ve seen of FF7 Remake, it’s got everything I loved about the original and more. Some people may be put off by the episodic nature of the new version, but if it means they expand on areas like Midgar, then I’m happy. I enjoyed Advent Children, and it feels like FF7 Remake is going to be the ultimate love letter to Final Fantasy 7.
What’s your favourite Final Fantasy? This can be a controversial question!
The Elder Scrolls VI
And here it is, my favourite game series of all time. I’m a MASSIVE fan of the Elder Scrolls and other Bethesda games like Fallout. I played Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim until my disc literally snapped in half. I’m talking thousands of hours here, both on console and PC, because once you start modding your Skyrim you can’t go back.
There hasn’t been much information on the next Elder Scrolls yet, and it’s going to be a way off, but rumour states the game could be set in Hammerfell. This seems legit to me based on the short teaser trailer above, the font of the logo, and the fact that in Skyrim, it was Hammerfell who fought against the Aldmeri Dominion, so if Bethesda are sticking to the same narrative theme, then we could be fighting off some bigoted high elves.
I’m especially excited for a potential Elder Scrolls set in Hammerfell because this will mean deserts! I love me some deserts! The Hammerfell sections of The Elder Scrolls Online were my favourites, naturally.
What upcoming games are you excited for? Special shout out to other games I can’t wait to play: Cyberpunk 2077, The Outer Worlds, the western release of Phantasy Star Online 2, and the sequel to the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
