2016 is looking to be a great year for Xbox One gaming with a slew of new games on the horizon, and Major Nelson has taken to his blog with a series of posts highlighting the freshest of the bunch, all available from the Xbox Store. Here are all of them in one place.
First of all is Unravel, a physics-based puzzle platformer from developer Coldwood Interactive and published by EA, with beautiful aesthetics and an unique main character. Unravel stars Yarny, a small cutesy yarn creature whose body is made from a single thread of yarn that, well, unravels, as it traverses a Northern Scandinavia backdrop, solving puzzles and performing acrobatic feats with its stringy body. The game is noted for its unique, beautiful environments, heart-warming story, and a complete lack of spoken words reminiscent of Limbo, another unique puzzle platformer.
The second title is Arslan: The Warriors of Legend. Based on the anime (Japanese for “cartoon”) series of roughly the same name, Arslan stars the titular character, who alongside his companions participates in a grand-scale historical fantasy war to take control and become the greatest King. The name KOEI TECMO in the developer section should be a big enough hint on the gameplay for seasoned gamers: Arslan is a beat-em-up brawler where staggering amounts of enemies swarm the player on-screen to be swept away by satisfying combos and special attacks – a specialty of KOEI TECMO, also maker of the legendary Dynasty Warriors among others. The game is all about fan-service for the cartoon’s followers, and authentic visual styles and voice works should make it a must-buy for fans.
Buy Arslan: The Warriors of Legend for Xbox One
Similarly anime-inspired, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is the last game in the Ultimate Ninja Storm series, depicting concluding events from one of the most famous Japanese comics of all time, Naruto. Being the 4th instalment in a long-running series, the game has a more refined gameplay that’s more focused on head-to-head battles and techniques instead of button-mashing. It should still be very accessible however, and the fan-service should be equally as fulfilling.
Buy Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 for Xbox One
Assassin’s Creed, on the other hand, presents a very different flavor of action that caters to the stealth lover, and the new Chronicles Trilogy promises to be another fine addition to the esteemed franchise. As the name implies, the game is actually 3 games in one, with completely different main characters and settings, but are somehow all interconnected. The trilogy also eschew the previous expansive fully 3D environment for 2.5D gameplay without losing any of the beauty the series is famous for.
Buy Assassin’s Creed Chronicles – Trilogy for Xbox One
The last new release is not actually new, but a comprehensive package of a former critically-acclaimed game.Titled Dying Light: The Following – Enhanced Edition, the bundle includes the original Dying Light with several improvements in visuals and gameplay, all the bonus content, in addition to an expansion of the same name. The new expansion promise massively added content with new areas beyond Harran to explore, new characters, weapons, quests, and fully customizable and drivable dirt buggies. The bundle is the definitive version of Dying Light, and should be in the buy list for fans as well as those who’ve missed the frantic first-person parkour-fueled zombie survival action of the original game.
Buy Dying Light: The Following Enhanced Edition for Xbox One
With the variety of these new releases, there’s something for all kinds of Xbox One gamers. The Xbox One is off to a great start this year, and we can’t wait to see what’s coming next on Microsoft’s gaming system.
