Surprises are great, aren’t they? Especially the ones you really didn’t see coming, which is an increasingly harder thing to pull off in this modern age of social media. Let’s not spoil too many, but here’s to at least one or two of the following come to pass at some point this year. Bear in mind, these are completely made up and are highly unlikely … or are they?
SPYRO’S RETURN (AND MORE CRASH)
Activision hit pay dirt with their Crash Bandicoot revival on PS4 and a betting man would put money on a follow-up reveal or two coming real soon. The biggest of which will hopefully be the return of Spyro the Dragon, with a remastered collection exclusive to PS4 featuring the first three games in the series. There are plenty of gamers out there who are mad keen for a Spyro revival, and the success of Crash Bandicoot’s N. Sane Trilogy has put that nugget of a possibility into the heads of many.
Meanwhile, both the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch will finally receive the N. Sane Trilogy as the PS4 exclusive period comes to an end. An even bigger surprise than that? How does a ride on Yoshi as an exclusive Nintendo Switch bonus sound?
Want one last surprise? Activision will throw out a few teasers about a possible, brand new Crash Bandicoot. One can hope, and at this point why wouldn’t they?
EA REVIVES DEAD SPACE
EA had a bad 2017, that much is obvious. To appease the masses, there’s always plenty of IPs in the back somewhere they can dig up and bring back to life. Such a move would have one mad sting to it, given former creators Visceral have since been closed down, but Dead Space 4 is a prime candidate for most unexpected reveal of the year. Given the response to Resident Evil 7 and the growth in first-person horror, whichever studio gets the gig will adjust the franchise to a similar view instead of the familiar third-person perspective, because EA is great at jumping on the bandwagon of ideas and making them their own.
But just as EA’s E3 presentation comes to a close? Bam, Half-Life 3 confirmation, Portal 3 follows, and suddenly Dead Space becomes the next Prey and is quickly forgotten in the madness that follows.
MORE UNLIKELY REMASTERS
Spyro aside, there’s plenty out there that a number of studios would be keen to get their hands on, so that shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. It’s the games that get the remastered treatment that might be. So how about throwing a few names on the wall? Let’s start with Syphon Filter, another Sony owned IP that hasn’t seen the light of day since the PSP but could return, given the recent announcement of a MediEvil revival. Speaking of MediEvil, or something of the sort, Capcom’s continued work on HD remasters could bring across Castlevania: Lords of Shadow to 4K consoles.
For a few curve balls, remembering there was a Bubsy sequel just a few months ago, it’s hard to go past fellow mascot hero Cool Spot. Meanwhile, given the fan response to Sonic Mania, Sega will bring back Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine and, last but not least, another 10 Sonic games we never wanted.
In all seriousness if someone does read this and wants to make a few dreams come true, let’s get on that Warcraft 2 remaster, yeah?
DISNEY ALTERS ITS STAR WARS LICENSE DEAL
Given the response to Star Wars Battlefront II and the cancellation of a much anticipated open world game, Disney will surprise everyone by announcing the abrupt end to their agreement with Electronic Arts, following that up a few months later with a number of new license agreements with Nintendo and Ubisoft instead. Absurd as that may sound, a changing of the guard would allow a studio known for their quality open world games to finally live up to that potential, while fans will go ape over a possible Rogue Squadron revival on the Switch. It’s a win-win given the problems that have surrounded the brand over the last few years, so perhaps this won’t just remain a pipe dream.
Disney then confirms that LucasArts will return in a larger capacity, pulling a complete 180 with a new focus on various concepts we’ve been waiting on or were originally left behind. Hello again, 1313. We missed you.
CROSS-PLATFORM PLAY FOR ALL
Sony so far hasn’t come to the party when it comes to cross-platform play between all the major platforms. That all changes in dramatic fashion when, surprise, the heads of each major console brand stand as one on stage during Sony’s E3, hold hands in solidarity and reveal that the world is one and Overwatch players can complain about healing to each other no matter where they play.
Some wise techs also come up with some fantastic ways to reinvigorate classic brands in the process. Minecraft spreads to a whole bunch of new platforms, including Atari Jaguar and 3DO, with a unified matrix allowing players of all ages, consoles and creeds to play together. It’s the face of a new generation, standing as one against hatred and console wars and brings ever loving peace and amazing content for all. Soon every other medium hears the call, as the Marvel cinematic universe comes together with DC, Star Wars and Star Trek create a new movie franchise together and The Walking Dead cast travels back in time to stop the whitewalkers.
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As funny and somewhat unlikely a lot of these surprises are, we’re at an age where anything is possible. What are some of the most outlandish, crazy surprises you’d love to see over the next year? Let us know in the comments down below.
Published: Jan 4, 2018 11:00 am