Games to watch out for in July 2020: Ghost of Tsushima, Paper Mario and more!
Either play through a samurai movie or save Princess Peach from an Origami invasion. Decisions, decisions...
Image: PlayStation
This is the one time in your life where you actually get to protect other people by staying in to play videogames. Why not take it? July is packed with new releases of all kinds - from a big-budget samurai game to a big-budget FedEx simulator. It’s a pretty exciting month all in all, so you should be able to find at least one item on this list to get excited for. Let's go down the list!
Marvel’s Iron Man VR (PlayStation VR) - July 3
Marvel fans will likely have a lot of fun taking to the skies in Marvel’s Iron Man, a VR game where players get to fly around and make things explode, superhero style. The story picks up after Ghost (last seen in Ant-Man 2) attacks Tony, in an effort to topple his empire. You’ll have to suit up and fly around in VR, destroying enemies with your twin repulsors and upgrading the Iron Man suit to handle greater threats.
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 (PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch) - July 10
The original Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon acted as an 8-bit companion to Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, for those who craved the retro feel of the old Castlevania games. The game earned lots of praise for getting that feel down pat, but earned criticism for being too short. Well, now we’re getting a sequel! In Curse of the Moon 2, players can slay demons in a new two-player co-op mode.
Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise (Switch) - July 10
I… almost can’t explain this one. The first Deadly Premonition game proved to be polarising for a number of reasons, but quickly earned a large cult following. A lot of people loved its eccentric writing and characters, and the supernatural aspects to its story. The sequel is set in 2019, following Aaliyah Davis, an FBI agent investigating an old case in Boston. Her story will intertwine with that of returning protagonist Francis York Morgan, fourteen years prior to her investigation.
In the words of the top comment of IGN’s gameplay video, “The dialogue is stiff, the sound mixing is terrible, and the framerate is awful… it's perfect.”
Death Stranding (PC) - July 14
Hideo Kojima’s apocalyptic delivery man simulator is coming to PC! After a cataclysmic event (referred to as the ‘Death Stranding’) ravaged the earth and filled it with otherworldly hostile creatures, human society has become fractured and broken. Sam Porter Bridges (Norman Reedus) is given the almost impossible task of bringing everyone back together. The PC edition of Death Stranding will come with a couple of upgrades to the game unseen on consoles - including high framerate support, ultra-wide monitor compatibility and a photo mode. Plus, some weird Half-Life crossovers!
Rocket Arena (PC, PS4, Xbox One) - July 14
Shown off during EA Play Live 2020, Final Strike Games’ Rocket Arena is a rockets-only multiplayer hero shooter. Remember the rocket-jumping mayhem of Soldier gameplay in Team Fortress 2? Imagine that, but an entire game of it. Hopefully, a less rage-inducing one too.
Ghost of Tsushima (PS4) - July 17
Ugh, this game looks beautiful. Sucker Punch Productions’ new open-world game is set during the first Mongol invasion of Japan in the 1270s, and it looks like the Assassin’s Creed: Japan game fans have craved for so long. You play as Jin Sakai, a samurai fighting to free Tsushima Island from an oppressive Mongol invasion led by the villainous Khotun Khan.
Over the course of his journey, he will have to turn to much less honourable tactics to free his island - discarding the precious Samurai values he once swore to uphold. This is one of the last PlayStation exclusives we’ll see before the launch of the PlayStation 5!
Paper Mario: the Origami King (Switch) - July 17
The beloved Paper Mario franchise is making a comeback! The games typically feature an adorably paper-themed artstyle, but this sequel throws origami into the mix. The royal King Olly has kidnapped the entirety of Princess Peach’s castle and recruited Bowser’s army to solidify his claim to the throne. Our favourite Italian plumber is forced to forge an uneasy alliance with his nemesis Bowser, as well as King Olly’s sister Olivia to defeat the usurper king.
According to rumours, this is the first of many Mario-related announcements to come in 2020...
Destroy All Humans! Remake (PC, PS4, Xbox One) - July 28
Destroy All Humans! was basically GTA with aliens, which was a whole lot of fun back in the day. This remake of the 2005 game once again puts players in the shoes of an alien named Crypto, armed with sci-fi weapons and an immature sense of humour. Players can explore six sandbox locations while progressing through the story, and pretty much do whatever they want with Crypto’s diverse arsenal of weaponry. Most of the story and environments have been left unchanged from the original, but an additional lost mission has been added in the remake!
Grounded (PC, Xbox One) - July 28
Grounded is basically a videogame adaptation of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids! This survival game tasks bite-sized players with fending off gigantic insects while gathering materials to build a new life in someone’s backyard. You can craft items and build bases, and play the game in either solo or four person co-op modes. The game will launch in early access on Steam and Xbox Game Preview. Also, there are spiders. Big ones.
Skater XL (PC, PS4, Xbox One) - July 28
Hey, this might help kill some time before those Tony Hawk Pro Skater remakes! Skater XL is a skateboarding game with an emphasis on style, creativity and the perfect trick - but the onus is on you to decide what the latter is. The game prides itself on its controls, and allows players to take to iconic Californian locations to make their mark. I really like the summer vibe this game has got going on.
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