Games of March 2011

The mercury brings with it a plethora of games that are guaranteed to heat up your PC, console and wallet up big time.

Crysis 2 (Xbox360 PS3 PC)

I make this look good

Crysis made a name for itself with its drop dead visuals and beefy system requirements but besides the whole cosmetic angle, it was also a solid shooter at heart. It allowed players to tackle a particular situation any way they seemed fit, courtesy of their gazillion dollar nano suit. With Crysis 2, developer Crytek are sticking to the same fundamentals, only now the action has moved to New York City.

Dragon Age II (Xbox360 PS3 PC)

Blood baths FTW!

After Dragon Age’s critical success, BioWare felt they needed to rope more people into their “Dark Gothic Fantasy” and so Dragon Age II sports a faster, action game vibe. They’ve also tweaked the control scheme to make it more accessible to the console crowd, but at the same time, PC purists will be able to enjoy the game the conventional way.

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (PC)

Does that tickle?

We’ve already proclaimed our love for Brotherhood in our review. Now that very same game is coming to the PC and best of all, it’s going to ship without Ubi’s most annoying DRM.

Fight Night Champion (Xbox360 PS3 iOS)

Nighty night

EA are planning on revitalizing the Fight Night series with Fight Night Champion, a game that’ll defer from previous games in two ways. For one, it’ll provide a more brutal depiction of boxing so expect more blood and guts to fly around the ring. And more importantly, FNC will boast of a full-fledged, rags-to-riches-esque story mode where players punch their way to a title shot.

Motorstorm Apocalypse (PS3)

Last one is a rotten egg

Navigating real world racing locales in million dollar super cars is fine and all, but at times you just want to let loose with an over-the-top, balls to the wall racer. Motorstorm Apocalypse looks like that racer. As a contestant fighting his way through the Motorstorm festival, players must overcome fierce competition and the forces of Mother Nature herself, to survive this post apocalyptic racing game.

Need for Speed Shift 2 Unleashed (Xbox360 PS3 PC iOS)

2 close 4 comfort?

If games like Gran Turismo 5 are a bit too hardcore for you, Need for Speed Shift tread the fine line between sim and arcade, offering players a driving experience that did not frustrate. Keeping that ideology intact for the sequel, developer Slightly Mad have expanded on certain gameplay elements like night time races, an in-helmet camera, AutoLog and lots more.

Yakuza 4 (PS3)

Chopping fools to death

Most people perceive the Yakuza series as Japan’s answer to Grand Theft Auto. Yes, it does give you an open world to play around with but unlike GTA you can’t just drive/ride around and run people over. Gunplay too is pretty non-existent in this series, and pretty much all the combat is relegated to melee attacks. Still, if you have the patience for all things Japanese, the Yakuza series offers a mighty fine story line and an inside look at the entire Japanese culture.

Homefront (Xbox360 PS3 PC)

I’m coming Uncle Sam

Joining the million shooters releasing this year is Homefront, a modern day military shooter where in the near future, a hostile Korea invades America. While the plot and the game’s single player campaign sound like gigantic clichés, we’re pretty stoked about the game’s large scale multiplayer that’s reminiscent of the Battlefield series.

**Top Spin 4 (Xbox360 PS3 Wii)
**

Pistol Pete’s smashing onto your screens this month

Top Spin 3 was one of the best tennis sims around, but some couldn’t handle the controls and realism the game brought to the table. So, after a two-year hiatus, 2K Czech are bringing out a sequel that’ll be more accessible, which sounds like very bad news for those who enjoyed the realism of the previous games, but they’ve promised to keep the sim aspect intact as well. How they will do that is anyone’s guess, but with a new My Player mode and full PlayStation Move support, Top Spin 4 should interest quite a few people who are looking for a fun sports title to play this summer.