Ni No Kuni
After the appalling atrocity that was the shoot ’em up adaptation of Nausicaa: Valley of the wind on the NEC PC-6001, Studio Ghibli got a bit gun shy about licensing their films out to other media. That drought has ended, with the first studio Ghibli game to see the light of day in nearly thirty years coming in 2012. Japan already have Ni No Kuni, but the lush animations associated with Studio Ghibli won’t be hitting western PS3s until sometime next year.
The Last Guardian
Ico and Shadow of the Colossus are two of the most celebrated games of the past decade, and this is in no small part to their emotionally evocative visuals. The Last Guardian has seen a few delays, but this makes the anticipation all the greater for Team Ico’s first project for the PS3. Expect some properly breathtaking visuals with this one.
Fez
This rather curious indie game and upcoming XBLA title seems like little more than a retro looking platformer at first glance, but the perspective shifting gameplay of Fez is mind-blowing when you see it in full motion. Though it isn’t the most technically impressive of games, the use of visuals in Fez has already earned it awards for its visual excellence and innovation.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier
Live action trailers are all the rage for shooting games at the moment, and Ghost Recon; Future Soldier cemented its place in this practice with an awesome live action trailer you’ve no doubt seen already. The recent gameplay footage we’ve been seeing looks promising too. Though it isn’t as gritty and dark as previous entries to the series, the animations are smooth as hell and the stealth camouflage looks awesome.
Far Cry 3
The original Far Cry impressed us with its open environments, and the sequel took things further with awesome fire and wind physics. We can only imagine from this track record what Ubisoft have in store for us in Far Cry 3. The jungle looks better than ever in Far Cry 3, casting it as a potential step up for environmental rendering in gaming.
