Science fiction is a genre not too dissimilar to horror, in that it tends to consist of an ocean of embarrassing turkeys, with a few gems that shine through. But oh, how they shine! There’s nothing quite like a good science fiction movie to get you thinking about how the concepts on screen could translate to real life.
Video games are possibly a much better arena for these ideas to be thrashed out, particularly with the moral dilemma features that a lot of progressive games tend to include these days. Now that the next-gen consoles have set sail, sci-fi enthusiasts can expect a host of exciting, thought-provoking titles coming their way.
Titanfall
Call of Duty won universal acclaim for its lightning-fast game engine that pretty much set a new standard for any kind of shooting game, which is why sci-fi fans around the world rejoiced when Titanfall was announced: a full-on sci-fi extravaganza with giant mechs, designed by the folks who brought you Call of Duty.
Players will be able to control giant mechs that can run on walls, among other things. The game cleaned up at the E3 2013 reveal, winning 60 awards.
Pre-order from GAME
Wolfenstein: The New Order
The famed franchise is back, with a new title scheduled for release later this year. Set in an alternate 1960s where the Nazis won World War II and took over the world, players will take the role of William ‘B.J.’ Blazkowicz, who must launch a counter-offensive against the Nazi empire.
The game will feature players infiltrating Nazi strongholds and battling hordes of Nazi enemies, using their own steampunk-style weapons against them.
Pre-order from Amazon
Watch Dogs
Watch Dogs’ release has been delayed once, and sci-fi lovers are waiting with bated breath for its release this year. It’s an open-world sandbox game, similar to Grand Theft Auto, where the player takes the role of a super-hacker who attempts to infiltrate and shut down a slavery ring.
As Aiden Pierce, the game’s hero, you’ll be able to hack into just about anything in the game’s open world setting: bank accounts, cars, pretty much anything you set your eyes on.
Pre-order from GAME
Alien: Isolation
Fans of the Aliens franchise were heartbroken with the deeply flawed release of Aliens: Colonial Marines, one of the gaming industry’s biggest disasters in years. The next game based on the franchise is taking a completely different take on the source material, it would seem. Isolation is actually based on the first film, rather than the action-packed sequel that all the games so far have been based on.
The game will focus on being a survival horror game as opposed to action-horror. Players will take the role of Ripley’s daughter, as she attempts to find out what happened to her mother on the Nostromo. The trailer looks extremely promising!
Pre-order from GameStop
Sci-fi seems to go through cycles, and it seems that 2014 will be a promising year for both sci-fi films as well as games. Let’s hope that the trend continues into the next few years!
