There is little question that nearly every hardcore Sonic fan out there plans on grabbing Unleashed the day it hits shelves come November, but it’s surely not the only title that has gained the attention of the gaming community. November has always been known to be a month for popular releases (you know, sucking us dry in cash, all in the name of the ‘Holiday Season’) and we thought it would be worth checking out the Blue Blur’s competition come Q4 2008.
1. Gears of War 2
Maybe you haven’t heard of Gears of War… Maybe you have - but we’re willing to bet on the latter. Gears of War 2 is the sequel to the blockbuster which has sold nearly 5 Million copies worldwide, and which also overtook games like Halo 2 in regards to the number of players on Xbox Live.
Oh, is your memory starting to return to you? So you have heard of it? Well, based on what’s been shown from Gears of War 2 so far, chances are you’ll be hearing a lot more about EPIC’s newest title come November when it’s scheduled for release. Heck, it’s already won several awards like IGN’s Overall Best Shooting Game and Best Graphics Technology of E3 2008 and we’re still 4 months til release.
2. Rock Band 2
Rock Band 2 will probably be one of the top Rhythm/Music games of November (or the top of it’s class PERIOD), but likely only for those willing to cough up an additional $200 for the second installment of the series. We’re all for awesome social, party style games where we can pretend to be rockstars performing our favorite songs, but all the hardware is starting to take a toll on our savings… and where the heck do we store all the old equipment? Our closets, garage and trunks can only hold so much!
3. Final Fantasy XIII
It’s exclusives like Final Fantasy XIII that keep bringing more and more gamers to the PS3, and make the mouths of 360 & Wii owners alike water for… Wait - you mean to say FFXIII isn’t a Playstation exclusive?!
In case you missed it, during a strange turn of events at Microsoft’s Press Conference at E3 2008, Square Enix revealed that the newest in the Final Fantasy series would indeed be released both on the PC and Xbox 360 alongside the PS3. As if the name Final Fantasy doesn’t speak for itself already, think about what a multi-platform launch will do for the title in terms of sales.
It’s been pointed out that it’s highly unlikely FFXIII will be released Nov 2008, or 2008 at all as Gamespot reports.
4. Prince of Persia (2008)
Recent installments of the Prince of Persia have been so well crafted, that some consider them to be the best adventure games ever developed, while The Sands of Time was recepted so well that it holds one of the top ratings for any Xbox, Gamecube or PS2 release.
The new Prince of Persia is certainly taking the series in a new direction, and it’s hard to say just how well the game will do at this point. That said, it’s definitely got the attention of many PS3, 360, and PC gamers out there.
5. Tomb Raider Underworld
Tomb Raider’s been around since the mid 90’s, where it first made its crater like impact on the gaming community - influentially, and as a gaming icon. Besides being one of the most revolutionary games in terms of graphics and gameplay, it’s also one of the first franchises to feature a heroine rather than the typical male protagonist (though admittedly, the game has been critisized for a sexist portrayal of it’s main character to appeal to a young male audience).
With 12 years of success behind the series, and a huge following of core gamers, Tomb Raider Underworld will surely be a hit this November.
Did we miss anything? What other games are you looking forward to?
@David Leggett: Thats ok! Only mario outrunning sonic upsets Tailsthehedgehog!!! You do brilliantly with this site anyway theres always atleast one new thing each week.
Cant wait for the next few months then!
Does Gears of War even sell to the same people that buy Sonic games?
Well, werehog is just a pun. A play on words. You know…it’s like a werewolf. Except he’s a hedgehog. This isn’t a literature thesis or a scientific analysis of an animal’s species. This is a video game name for a non-existant creature. But technically, Sonic is antromorphic so he’s already a human-hog.
I really can’t stand the horrible grammar in all of these posts… not the replies, but the initial posts themselves. “What other games are you looking forward too?”. “…the Blue Blurs competition…”. I mean, seriously, how can you guys live with yourselves for putting this **** on the internet? Beyond that, I’d be willing to bet that it’s your fault SEGA now officially refers to Sonic’s werewolf form as a “werehog”. In case anybody doesn’t see the problem with that, “were-” is the prefix for human, so the proper name would be “hedgewolf”, which sounds much cooler anyway. And what’s up with the bashing of Sonic’s recent games? The two “Adventure”s were some of the best Sonic games ever… Sonic has huge potential as a fully 3-D franchise.
I agree with inaudible Sonic does well in america and customer interest is growing in europe (about that I just don’t know why!!??)
@Jerbba: What the hey? They just featured the Ghostbusters game for the Wii and DS in the latest issue of Nintendo Power, and apparently they had some people doing promotion for it during Comiccon! …well, it isn’t being cancelled, so don’t worry. They’re just delaying it until 2009 to find a new publisher because Activision doesn’t want it. >____>;;
Still, I think Sonic Unleashed will do fine, all other competition considered. Sonic has always sold decently well in America. I mean, in Japan, the series isn’t all that popular (even if they keep getting all the cool stuff!)…Sonic Rush Adventure only sold…I think 16,000 units in its first week? >___>;;
@Maddok: Lawl same here. I don’t feel like wasting 300 or something dollahs for a new system for the game.
The only games besides Sonic Unleashed that I’m looking forward to are Wario Land Shake It, and Animal Crossing City Folk.
…Maybe I need to buy a 360.
Too bad I’m broke.
@Final Rush: I wouldn’t say that we’re starved for information (On the contrary, we’re quite full of of it).
As I’ve said before, we are a Sonic Unleashed Blog, and while we will do all that we can to remain the most dependable source out there, we will publish other tidbits as well. Will they necessarily be Sonic related? No. Will we still try to give our audience a good, insightful read that spawns conversation in our community. Of course.
@TailstheHedgehog: It’s really ok to agree with him (and I hope I don’t come off upset to either of you - I’m just clarifying a few things). I’ve stated several times that I’d like to broaden the scope of Camp Sonic to encompass more in the Sonic, SEGA, and Gaming universe. As trivial as it might seem, deciding WHAT to write about is a really tough choice, and one I’ve been contemplating for the past few months. You may notice more changes in the near future where we seem to progressively offer more and more topics of interest through our Blog.
And in regards to the Black Knight - At this point, I still have little intent to write about it.
@Chaos Blast: Yea lol
Man, I gotta get Sonic & PRINCE OF PERSIA!
IM DOIN IT! lol
I’m not really a Gears of War or MK or DC or Tomb Raider or Final Fantasy fan.
I’ll prolly get Guitar Hero 4 also
(just the game though.)
I agree with tails who has subsequently (whatever that means) been turned into a hedgehog
Sonic got big competition but he out rules them all!
Crazed bunny alika playing sonic
I reckon gears will be sonics greatest compitition. Not that it will matter to people with brains in their heads. Even if it IS good sonic is OBVIOUSLY the right choice.
@David Leggett: Sorry dave I’ve gotta agree with Final Rush. I know you’ve said this is a purely SU dedicated site but there is plenty more to talk about when it comes to the little blue blur. Not every little thing about every little in the sonic world but it would give the site more to talk about.
@Final Rush:
Or you could just wait until the next update?
What about Fable 2, Banjo Kazooie Nuts and Bolts and Mirror’s Edge?
@David Leggett:
Is this update really necessary? It sounds to me like CampSonic’s starved for updates now that everything’s calmed down after E3.
To tell you the truth, you’re probably better off just posting regarding Sonic & the Black Knight in the mean time, seeing as it’s receiving more attention than Unleashed right now.
@David Leggett: I’M WEARIN’ YUR PIN DUDE!
THX AGAIN!
LittleBigPlanet really is one of the most talked about games.
My personal favorites also include Mirrors Edge, Banjo Kazooie, Mushroom Men, Resistance 2, SOCOM Contfontation, LastRemnant, Infinite Undiscovery, Farcry 2, Wario Shake it, Prince of Persia, Tomb raider Underworld, alot I am forgetting right now.
…We’re screwed. SU has NO CHANCE against Gear of War 2 and Rock Band 2.
…I’m still buying SU though… X3