Games That Will Definitely Be Overhyped in 2019
Anthem
Anthem has obviously been commissioned by EA with the express purpose of competing with Activision’s Destiny franchise. Its multiplayer shared-world-shooter design shares some big similarities on paper, and so too does its sci-fi setting.
Anthem’s big point of difference, of course, is the whole Iron-Man meets Avatar thing, which totally wowed audiences when it was first revealed back at E3 2018. The Javelin suits, as they’re called, look set to allow players to enjoy a freedom of exploration and movement that’s a cut above Destiny, and the environments themselves are absolutely gorgeous.
What’s more, Anthem’s being developed by BioWare, the team behind Mass Effect and Dragon Age, two franchises beloved for their compelling stories and deep lore. There’s a big expectation that BioWare is going to be able to weave in a strong narrative to the multiplayer experience in a way that Destiny has never really got spot on.
In fact, there’s big expectation all around. EA is in desperate need of a win after the saga of Star Wars Battlefront II and the lukewarm reception to Battlefield V, and BioWare also needs to get back to winning ways after Mass Effect Andromeda failed to live up to its own share of hype.
If you ask me, that makes for a perfect storm of overhype that’s almost certainly going to boil over at launch. Anthem might prove itself a very good video game, but any project as ambitious as this one is going to have its detractors.