Favorite new IP of this generation

[Saltyk]

So, I just got back from some chores and stopped at Gamestop to put another $20 on my PS4, as has been a routine and shall continue to be for a bit longer. While there I started talking to the employees about games and more specifically the upcoming launch titles and beyond.

But this brought up a thought. I have inFamous 3 preordered. I'm looking forward to that game a lot. And I realized that the inFamous series is probably my favorite game series from this generation. There are plenty of great games out there, but few actively delivered on my hopes for them as well as those games.

They promised power, a story as a superhero, and the choice of good or evil. And the game gave you that. Few games have I had as much fun just traveling around in. Using Cole's climbing, power-line grind, and static thrusters (as well as the Ice Jump in inFamous 2) to get around is incredibly satisfying. And I've never felt so powerful yet vulnerable in any other game. Was the story great? Not really, but it was interesting and got the job done.

The game was fun. And that's what mattered. Few games have I enjoyed as much from start to finish as I did inFamous and inFamous 2.

So, that's my favorite new IP. What's yours? It doesn't have to be a series, it can be just one game. But it should be a new one and not the continuation of a series. So sorry that one person who liked Resident Evil 6, you'll need to pick a different title.

 

[LaoJim]

I'd say my favourite game this gen was Red Dead Redemption, but I'm not going to nominate it here because it's one of those games that doesn't really need a sequel as it nailed the whole cowboy experience first time round. I would like Rockstar to do more of what they did with RDR by taking the GTA gameplay formula and applying it to different time periods (Ancient Rome, Pirates*, Cyberpunk, Ancient China/Japan etc), just don't think there's any point in doing cowboys again.

*I don't think Assassin's Creed 4 is going to cut it in this respect.

On that basis it's probably a three way tie between Mass Effect, the Arkham games, and Dead Space. All of which have or are likely to have 3rd games that I'm not that enthused about. IP's burn out fast these days.

 

[alphamalet]

IMO the Souls IP is probably the best thing to happen to this gen. A deep and challenging action RPG that offers an alternative to all of the dumbed down games this gen that hold the player's hand at every turn.

Dark Souls is amazing.

 

[porous_shield]

Bastion. I really enjoyed everything about the the world Super Giant Games created and the combat was enjoyable in it's own right. It doesn't bother me that there won't be a sequel to it since it was a contained story and I like those better most of the time.

 

[deleted139124]

DELETED

 

[sextus the crazy]

Probably either The World Ends With You or the Extreme Escape games (999 and Virtue's last reward).

 

[Terminate421]

Borderlands.

Something about the humor behind it is just freakin' great. Also it's great at world building.

 

[ohnoitsabear]

I'd say my favourite game this gen was Red Dead Redemption, but I'm not going to nominate it here because it's one of those games that doesn't really need a sequel as it nailed the whole cowboy experience first time round.

Not exactly. They made a game called Red Dead Revolver for the PS2 and Xbox. The thing is, nobody remembers it because it was kind of mediocre (at least that's my impression having never actually played the game).

Anyway, on topic. This is a very, very tough question for me, because even though there were a lot of games I really liked from this console generation, very few new franchises have stuck with me enough to call them my favorites. Although now that I think about it, I would have to go with Rock Band. The sheer amount of hours that my brother and I sank into those games shows how big of fans we were. I'm super sad that there haven't been any signs of a new one coming out, although I doubt I would be able to spend nearly as much time playing it now as I did back around when they came out.

 

[Miss G.]

Its a toss up between The World Ends WIth You, The Last of Us, and The Puppeteer.

 

[Dyan]

Has to be Dishonored for me. Something about the setting just really gripped me. Honestly Dunwall is probably my favourite videogame setting of all time.

 

[The_Echo]

Probably Dishonored.

I can see a lot of potential in that world. So much so that we could see all kinds of different genres of games being set in it.

 

[CarlsonAndPeeters]

For me, it was probably Assassins Creed. I say was because I feel like the series has kind of been run into the ground at this point. I'm one of the rare specimens who thinks the first game is the best in the series, and its still one of my all-time favorites. But after playing AC3, I think I'm done with the franchise.

Honorable mentions to Uncharted and inFamous. Oh and The Last Guardian (*cries quietly to himself)

 

[Ihateregistering1]

Even though the second game started to add a little too much extra stuff on the side, I really like the world of "Darksiders". It's sort of like 'Dante's Inferno' had a child with "Heavy Metal" and "Lord of the Rings", drawn by Joe Madueira, and we got "Darksiders", I can dig it.

I'll also second (or third) 'Dishonored'. I can't wait to see some of the other lands that you read about in the game in a sequel. It kind of makes me wonder why more game companies don't create games in Steampunk environments.

 

[Gethsemani_v1legacy]

I'll go wit BioShock. So far all three games have nailed both the storytelling and the aesthetics and two of them (two and infinite) have had some entertaining gameplay with a focus on emergent gameplay during combat.

 

[Andy of Comix Inc]

Portal.

I don't have to elaborate on that, I hope.

 

[Extra-Ordinary]

Hoo, that's a good question.
I'd have to say Bioshock.
Followed quickly by Assassin's Creed and Dead Space.

 

[Shocksplicer]

I'm going to say Alan Wake, followed by Dead Space.

 

[Doclector]

Tough call. People like to be pessmistic and say that things were better in the PS2/nintendo64/nes era (delete where applicable) era, and whilst they would be correct that you had to deal with a lot less bullshit back then, honestly, a lot of my favourite games of all time came from this gen. As a fan of epic storytelling and action, the power of the next gen bought with it the ability to make far more cinematic experiences.

Y'know what? Screw the rules, I have an obsession with lists. I'll name a handful.

"Metro" It may only have two games (and honestly, considering the ending to last light, it might be a good idea that it remained that way) but they are two of the most atmospheric games I've ever played. Many post apocalyptic games simply feel like action games with slightly more rubble, but it's not rare in metro that you truly feel like a part of a human race degraded, crawling in mud, struggling just to survive.

"Bioshock" considering the connection to system shock, am I cheating? Bah, I don't care. It's hard to pin down overall what makes these games so special. Really, I think it's great attention to world building, rapture was a waterlogged nightmare, and columbia a fake paradise with horrific crimes just underneath the surface, spiralling out of control. The storytelling is great, the gameplay's great, and the immersion near perfect.

"Saints row" With GTA putting on its big boy boots and going all serious (which was a good move) saints row filled the gap in the market for fun loving destruction. True, the series was never perfect, but it always strived to have personality, and in a gaming world oversaturated with soulless modern war games, that went a long way.