2023 Predictions - The Bear and Badger

Vela

I'm curious to see what people expect from the next 12 months in gaming. Not so much from a "what will come out" or "what will be goty" (but do that if you want); but where that might intersect with or diverge from your own interests.

Most anticipated games
1 Tears of the Kingdom - I'm hopeful that this will be as engrossing as botw was, with lots to discover and a sense of wonder from my end.
2. Pikmin 4. I want to know how the rubber ducky gets home.
3. Yakuza Ishin.

General predictions
1. Steam deck 2 will be irresistible
2. Virtual reality will continue to be an out of reach luxury in a hostile economy
3. Switch 2 not announced but there will be a project name circulated and semi plausible specs and features "leaked"
4. Street fighter 6 will be massive and on par with fortnite/pubg
5. Half Life sequel gets unveiled
6. Bob finally writes the perfect haiku, causing all art simulation AIs to surrender unconditionally.

I'll still be playing streets of rage 4 despite all this.

Kow

Death and destruction.

Kow

Oh, you mean games?

Kow

Death and destruction.

acemuzzy

Classic three-post Haiku from Kow

Hodge360

Could you expand on this please:
. Street fighter 6 will be massive and on par with fortnite/pubg

I saw something about open world but haven't gone any deeper. Will it be FTP?

Moot_Geeza

Vela wrote:

3. Switch 2 not announced but there will be a project name circulated and semi plausible specs and features "leaked"

Plausible, but eventually proven to be fanciful compared to what we actually get.

Vela

Hodge360 wrote:

Could you expand on this please:
. Street fighter 6 will be massive and on par with fortnite/pubg

I saw something about open world but haven't gone any deeper. Will it be FTP?

There's a better than even chance that I am talking out my arse here, but given it seems to be targeting the esport market which is currently unoccupied in the fighting genre, and you now have regular cross platform options including PC, xbox and PS I just thought that the time is right.

Diluted Dante

Unless it's F2P, I doubt it.

Moot_Geeza

Tears of the Kingdom to reach the run up to launch with its major secret still under wraps - i.e: it's not just the same Hyrule with more verticality, there's something massive and awesome about it that we don't know yet. Like TIME TRAVEL or a Flipside Hyrule or an underground dark world or massive sky dungeons that slot on top of the map once vanquished or something. Plus it won't maintain its fps target of 30 and DS will lol.

Dark Soldier

Moot_Geeza wrote:

Tears of the Kingdom to reach the run up to launch with its major secret still under wraps - i.e: it's not just the same Hyrule with more verticality, there's something massive and awesome about it that we don't know yet. Like TIME TRAVEL or a Flipside Hyrule or an underground dark world or something.

Or microtransactions

Moot_Geeza

More Ninty predictions:

The gap between reveal and release for the next proper 3D Mario will be quite short. Like 4mths. And the game will bang.

Metroid Prime 4 won't happen and someone will be sad about it on a Direct. By way of apology, the Prime collection will release at the end of the same Treehouse showcase, at 50% off for 48hrs (£27.49).

Diluted Dante

Moot_Geeza wrote:

Tears of the Kingdom to reach the run up to launch with its major secret still under wraps

On launch day we discover that it's a pachinko machine.

monkey

The next Mario will be a launch title for the Switch 2. It will need the extra horsepower to realise its open-world concept which will follow the Bowsers Fury template. A big, open, go anywhere space with mini worlds. It and the new console will be announced in Q3 2023 for release in Q2 2024.

monkey

Another next-gen launch title Nintendo will announce will be Switcheroo. A motion game with baffling mechanics that no one wants but will still sell bucketloads.

monkey

And F-Zero.

afgavinstan

- Despite strong reviews and heavy marketing, EA will drop the ball on this year's "EA FC" with Fifa hurriedly putting together a deal with Visual Concepts who bring out Fifa 2K24. Its a horrible buggy mess but the naming confuses enough folk to make a dent in EA's market share. EA & Fifa eventually make up.

- SF6's open world brawler mode thing will be my goty

- Xbox release a GP "Puck" for tvs.

- Activision deal gets torpedoed once and for all

monkey

Fresh from the success of Atari 50, other companies will rush out their own compilations. Sega 50 will be outsourced to a third-party, be stymied by corporate interference and be a disappointment. Nintendo 50 will be a NES and Gameboy rom dump, have some pdf instruction manuals, cost £60 and get a 10 in Edge.

Dark Soldier

Resi 4 Remake will be the best game ever made

Moot_Geeza

I only know the basics in fairness, but I still can't understand why resistance to the Activision deal couldn't be squashed by tough titties.

Yossarian

I’ll be surprised if the Activision deal doesn’t go through, TBH.

equinox_code

i was trying to think who would be crowned Flounce 2023, and i think i'm going to go for mk64. I can't give a reason- it's just a feeling- and this isn't intended as a dig.

unless of course he reads this, in which case i have ironically altered the course of history.

hylian_elf

Didn’t think he flounced? Thought he posted very recently. Somewhere.

Dark Soldier

Yeah mk has never flounced

Moot_Geeza

YET.

hylian_elf

He almost flounced when we moved to here, didn’t he? We got the ignore button because of him.

Monkey and Brooks mostly got to him I think. “Here comes the hero”. Brooks is a hero, guys.

LivDiv

Vela

Odds of a new console platform? Steam deck has shown that a mature library on PC can be easily adapted for portable/tv use.

Maybe Apple's rumoured game device might turn up. Probably only need to be a base for an iOS device to dock to.

monkey

VR rumours aplenty around Apple. They’ll probably do a beefed up Apple TV that acts as a multimedia hub. Then controller, headset etc sold separately.

davyK

I'll likely be playing shmups and little else apart from some retro and local MP Switch fare.

Hope I can chalk up at least one more shmup 1CC.

LivDiv

1. Starfield will be a mess and not offer much more than Skyrim in space.
The people will love it when they eventually get their hands on it in November.

2. Nintendo will do nothing interesting with hardware or big IP except Zelda.

3. MS will expand cloud into more areas.

4. Towards the end of the year some solid rumours of a PS5 Slim will start to emerge. MS will stick to their current form factors but with some different coloured Series S consoles, Orange/teal/mid grey.

Howdy, Stranger!

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