10 Games To Look Forward To In July 2018

Another new month, another slate of games to experience. Interestingly, July is looking to be the most barren in terms of brand-new releases that we’ve seen in a while. That being said, whether it’s a traditional epic RPG, the conclusion to an incredible trilogy or an online shooter making a comeback, there’s plenty to look forward to. Let’s take a look at 10 games to play in the coming month.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

The vaunted Captain Toad has finally returned in a port of the Wii U hit. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker isn’t your traditional Mario platformer. It focuses on navigating mazes, discovering Power Stars and outsmarting enemies en route to rescuing Toadette. Though bonus content has been added in the form of Super Mario Odyssey-inspired levels, the bonus levels from Super Mario 3D World have sadly been removed. Regardless, on July 13^th, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker will be out on Nintendo Switch and 3DS, thus ensuring more players can enjoy its brilliance.

Octopath Traveler

Eight playable characters, multiple ways to play and a huge retro-inspired adventure – Octopath Traveler promises a sprawling RPG experience for fans. Developed by Acquire and Square Enix, the 16-bit sprite designs coinciding with HD effects and 3D environments immediately caught our attention. Since then, the development team has promised 80 to 100 hours of total gameplay from side quests to main story missions. Octopath Traveler is out on July 13^th for Nintendo Switch.

Sonic Mania Plus

Bigger, better and more colourful than the first outing, Sonic Mania Plus serves as the physical version of Sonic Mania for Xbox One, PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch. In terms of content, there’s plenty to look forward to. Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel make their 2D platforming return as playable characters with unique moves. Angel Island arrives as a new zone, Encore Mode remixes existing zones with different effects (along with character switching at opportune moments) and boss fights have had their difficulty optimized. Sonic Mania Plus will also be available as DLC to current owners on July 17^th so it’s well worth checking out.

Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2

No, this isn’t the long-awaited Mega Man X sequel but it’s the next best thing. Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2 brings all eight Mega Man X titles together in one awesome package on July 24th. Mega Man X1 to 4 represent the first Legacy Collection while Mega Man X5 to 8 make up the second collection. High resolution filters for the SNES and PS1 titles are available along with various illustrations, music and more from the series. The Day of Sigma OVA, detailing Sigma’s turn to the dark side, and X Challenge for fighting two Mavericks from the first six games at once have also been confirmed. Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2 will be releasing for PS4, Switch, Xbox One and PC.

The Banner Saga 3

Stoic’s epic saga of survival and Viking tragedy will finally reach its thunderous conclusion on July 24^th. The Banner Saga 3 will be available on Xbox One, PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch as players battle the Darkness in the capital city of men, Arberrang. Two caravans must be managed this time on two different fronts. Numerous endings, a new turn counter when embroiled deep in Darkness fights and more await. Whether previous saves carry over or not, you won’t want to miss this.

Red Faction Guerrilla: Re-Mars-tered Edition

Just when you thought we’d forgotten Mars, Red Faction Guerrilla emerges from the ashes with the Re-Mars-tered Edition. Along with the usual open world guerrilla warfare, the Re-Mars-tered Edition will include reworked graphics, better lighting and shadow rendering, post-processing and support for native 4K. Those who own the original Steam release will also obtain the remaster, completely free of charge. Red Faction Guerrilla: Re-Mars-tered Edition arrives on July 3^rd for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.

Defiance 2050

Trion Worlds’ Defiance has had a long history of poor development decisions but looks to bounce back with Defiance 2050. Touted as the next chapter of the online shooter, Defiance 2050 will be free to play with Founder’s Packs for unique outfits, titles and three day early access. The game itself has received changes to its progression, items and other key systems. Launching on July 6^th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC, we’ll see if the franchise can finally find success.

Earthfall

Already exhausted by Warhammer: Vermintide 2 and Deep Rock Galactic, to say nothing of upcoming co-op shooters like Overkill’s The Walking Dead and GTFO? Earthfall may or may not be your thing, as four players fight together against invading aliens. Drop in and drop out co-op, AI bot support and visuals powered by Unreal Engine 4 make for an intriguing experience but how fun will the final release be when it launches on July 13^th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC? We’ll have to wait and find out.

Danger Zone 2

If you’ve pined for the days of old-school Burnout, then Danger Zone 2 should provide that nostalgic kick. Developed by Fiona Sperry and Alex Ward, who created Burnout, Danger Zone 2 will head on to the open road for its vehicular mayhem with 26 levels across 17 different locations in the US and UK. Look for it to release next month on Xbox One, PS4 and PC for $19.99.

Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor – Martyr (Xbox One, PS4)

NeoCore Games’ latest action RPG based on the Warhammer 40K universe hasn’t had the best launch on PC. Nonetheless, the developer has been working overtime to fix bugs, add new content like Global Events and prepare the endgame Warzone area. The Xbox One and PS4 versions were originally delayed but will now be launching on July 5^th. Even if you don’t pick it up at launch, it’s worth keeping an eye on Warhammer 40K: Inquisitor – Martyr’s progress in the coming days.

---