[[2025 Games]] So when I wrote these [[Games I'm Looking Forward to in 2024|last year]] I was worried that I'd be let down by my choices, as I was burned hard by version from [[Games I'm Looking Forward to in 2023|2023]]. But it wasn't too bad, for the most part! Let's try and go 2 for 2! ## Freedom Wars Remastered I never in my life would have thought that this would happen. Don't get too excited, alright? This is a 7/10 Vita game, which will probably make it a 6/10 console game, and the Monster Hunting genre has progressed vastly since it came out. But it's so entertaining to me anyways. I love the wild plot and the movement and the character customization. I will be there no matter what. ## Dynasty Warriors: Origins A tragic irony for me is that I've always loved the **Dynasty Warrior** *spinoffs* more than the baseline titles. KT seems to understand this, because **Origins** feels like a breath of fresh air for the Musou genre. It looks so good, and is a perfect balance of chaotic-yet-controlled. It's also optimized like pure velvet for PC, which is just unheard of for this company. Can you do that with the next Shibusawa title y'all? I don't want **Nioh 3** sitting at Mixed reviews on Steam again. ## Avowed I have no real love for Obsidian's **Pillars** series - not because of distaste, but I am simply not that into CRPGs. They don't have that [[Goopy Goblin Gamer Brain|goop]]! However, I do love to see a game that tries to contend with **The Elder Scrolls**, and I like what I've seen of **Avowed**. The FPRPG is a shockingly narrow genre given **Skyrim**'s popularity, so I'll take a new entry any day. ## Monster Hunter Wilds It's **Monster Hunter**. There truly isn't much to say here. ## Suikoden I&II HD Remaster It's nice to see Konami show a pulse again. Between this, the **Silent Hill 2** remake being better than I think anyone expected, and the **Metal Gear Solid 3** remake looking phenomenal, they're on a bit of a hot streak. I'm most excited for the **Suikoden** collection though, because it's a series I never got around to as a kid with limited spending opportunities. I'm excited to find out if the game's actually as good as Schrierererer says, given he won't shut the fuck up about it! ## Xenoblade Chronicles X You can throw your Wii U out now! Thanks, Nintendo! So cool of them to include this Robot RPG with Sawano's best soundtrack[^1]. I can't wait for people to have no idea what they're getting into with this one. If you think you're getting the usual fare from the Xenoblade trilogy, you're going to be sorely dissapointed. But I *did* mention the giant robots, so you should still be excited! ## Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves The original **Fatal Fury** is the first game I ever learned how to do a full combo in. The **Fatal Fury** t-shirt I own is one of the first ones I bought from Fangamer. I love the mechanics, especially how it contrasts against **3rd Strike** - I am a coward, so tapping back to perfect block instead of walking forward fits my style perfectly. All this is to say that I'm locked in waiting on **City of the Wolves**, even if I'm terrible at SNK games in general. Here for a good time, not a long time, you know? ## Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 I really hope this is good. I hope it avoids the usual Xenophobic pitfalls of "trying to fix JRPGs". It's a pretty looking game and I like JRPGs, so if it sticks the landing I could see myself enjoying it. Only time will tell though. Call it a tentative excitement. It helps that it hits that "AA" sweet spot that I've been enjoying in gaming lately. ## Capcom Fighting Collection 2 **CAPCOM VS SNK 2**!!! **POWER STONE WITH ROLLBACK NETCODE!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAH-** ## Pokemon Legends: Z-A **Pokemon Legends: Arceus** was the first mainline Pokemon game I've finished since **Pokemon Gold**. The **Legends** series is the most excited I've been about Pokemon in a long-ass time. The fact that we *didn't* get a Pokemon release in 2024 makes me even more excited, as it means that Game Freak might be taking their time with the series for the first time since...*checks watch*...well, ever, really. This could really be a winner with some polish. ## Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma I can't believe **Rune Factory** not only continues to exist, but is now getting *spin-offs*. And this one looks great! It has some town-building that reminds me of **Dark Cloud**, and it looks significantly more pretty (and polished) than **Rune Factory 5**. I will follow this series anywhere and get dozens and dozens of fun out of it, and I'm pretty sure **Guardians of Azuma** will continue the trend. ## Bleach: Rebirth of Souls Anime fighting games are.......well. You know. But **Rebirth of Souls** looks like it might actually have some sauce! There's some real *intent* behind how the game works, given what I've watched in footage and read from the developers, who seem intent on doing a good job. If nothing else, it'll have a Takeharu Ishimoto soundtrack attached to it! --- That's everything I can think of at the moment! What are you excited for in 2025, games or otherwise? Hit me up on [BlueSky](https://bsky.app/profile/taniyn.quest)! [^1]: By his own admission, by the way!