L to M
Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: "Coming Soon"
Lara may be having a terrible time in Rise of the Tomb Raider, but she's back in cheerful adventuring form in Temple of Osiris. This four-player co-op puzzle platformer is the follow up to Lara Croft and the Guardian of the Light, which was an overlooked gem. The game's producer spoke to us about the new engine and the project's expanded scope at E3.
Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: November
Wuh oh! Brainiac's only gone and taken over the universe by shrinking a whole bunch of planets. Batman and the Justice League must travel into the far reaches of space to stop them. So how do Traveller's Tales improve on Lego Batman 2, a super hero game so comprehensive it's roster includes the likes of Gorilla Grodd, Captain Boomerang, and Killer Moth? Easy, you take the fight to space. While the open-world structure has been jettisoned, you'll still get to explore memorable DC locations such as the Bat Cave, Watchtower, Hall of Justice, Hall of Doom, and the Lantern Worlds. There are more nods in this game than one of those dogs you put on the back seat of your car that nods a lot.
Let it Die
Announced for PC? Yes Nope
Release date: November
Gentlemen, pick your weapons. In Suda 51's hyper-violent combat horror, you can pummel foes with spiked bats, burn them with flamethrowers, chop and charge with chainsaws and carve them up real nice with hatchets. The Lollipop Chainsaw and Killer is Dead auteur goes in for a bit of darkly comic grotesquerie, so expect to laugh and wince in equal measure. Well, don't, because it's PS4-only. Boo.
LittleBigPlanet 3
Announced for PC? No
Release date: November
It's upsetting that LittleBigPlanet, the whimsical, colorful tale of the adorable sackboy, has always been a Playstation exclusive. The game is great for multiplayer, and it's bright environments would look amazing on PC, but such is life. There's basically no chance we'll see Sony's flagship franchise on our rigs anytime soon.
Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: TBA
A gorgeous co-op game about piloting a spaceship through a neon gauntlet of spaceborne horrors, Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime has teammates rushing around their circular ship, activating weapons, deploying shields and carrying power to the engines to fend off the horrors of the deep.
Lords of the Fallen
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: Fall
The Dark Souls influence is strong in this action RPG, which prides itself on its difficulty. Unlike Dark Souls, Lords of the Fallen will tell a singular story, with a single antihero protagonist named Harkin. It's also trying to focus on only three classes (warrior, rogue, cleric) and make magic a rarely-used, all-powerful trump card. Very much like Dark Souls, Harkin will fight big monsters through a medieval fantasy environment, with combat that emphasizes timing and mastery of weapon animations. And difficulty. Did we say that already?
Magicka 2
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: Unannounced
Magicka and its spin-off, Wizard Wars, are always reliable for ridiculous, sometimes-buggy fun. As a robed wizard, you command eight elements that can be mixed, matched, and used to cancel each other: if you're on fire, cast water on yourself. If you cast water on something else, hitting it with lightning will do bonus damage. Combine fire and earth to create fireballs. The endless permutations and incredible experimenting power of this system leads to chaotic fun, but the first game's singleplayer campaign was stifled by difficulty spikes . We're eager to see Paradox's latest take on this chaotic magic system. Plus, the economy is rough right now for a wizard. Welcome back, guys.
Mass Effect 4
Announced for PC? Not officially, but almost certainly
Release date: Unannounced
A new Mass Effect is coming. That's about the extent of the information we got out of BioWare at this year's E3, as the project isn't anywhere near being ready to show. The next entry into the Mass Effect universe will not follow Shepard, and BioWare seems eager to launch Mass Effect: The Next Generation as a way to get past lingering fan outrage about the ending of Mass Effect 3.
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
Announced for PC? Nope. But Kojima is on record as wanting to do it, so…
Release date: 1984 according to the trailer, but honestly it's anyone's guess.
It doesn't feel like new Metal Gear footage is quite the show-stopper it once was at E3, but there are still few developers who give better trailer than Hideo Kojima. And by 'better' I mean 'more mad'. Big Boss spends equal parts of this, the director's cut version, smeared in his comrades ashes and in Carrie levels of person unknown's blood. Even by the series' somewhat confused anti-war standards, it's glum stuff. It'll also likely be controversial and a true original—adored by its army of fans and written off an non-interactive wibble by its detractors. As for whether it'll actually come to PC, well, watch this space. I've interviewed Kojima several times, and he was always effusive about the platform. I suspect this might finally be the right time for the franchise.
Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: October 7
It's hard to know why Shadow of Mordor is a Lord of the Rings game, exactly, but the assassination missions that have you carving your way through Orc society run on an interesting network of manipulable AIs. You can use the ghost that possesses you to capture the allegiance of lieutenants and build your own insurgent army within Orc ranks. Between those power struggles, the sneaking and stabbing blends Assassin's Creed's freerunning with the Batman Arkham games' counter-heavy combat system.
Mirror's Edge 2
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: TBC
“Everything we do has to be elegant, minimalistic, and it has to have a certain attitude” says DICE senior producer Sara Jansson in the mini documentary used to show footage from the 'conceptual prototype' for the the Mirror's Edge prequel. And amen to that. Watching Faith traverse the icy white rooftops confirms the studio is staying entirely true to its vision for the series, while clearly remaining conscious of the need to, y'know, actually sell some copies this time. On that note, the combat in particular looks far more fun. She is a projectile,” says James Slavin, audio director, as Faith hoofs some techno goon in the face without breaking her sprint. “Whenever she does hit, she hits quick, fast, and hard, and then moves on.” What the footage also looks is very early, hence the conceptual moniker. We don't expect this one anytime soon.
Mortal Kombat X
Announced for PC? Yes
Release date: 2015
The only game that'll let you burn a hole through a man's face so you can watch his limp tongue flapping around the frame of his skull, Mortal Kombat is bringing its unique brand of hyperviolence back to our monitors next year. Hopefully the story mode will be as convoluted and entertaining as the one featured in the Mortal Kombat Komplete edition.
