A quick look at some of the upcoming IP-based games that we’re surprisingly intrigued by
It’s a werid and wild time for video games. There have been many, many downs (corporations, ugh!) but also some pretty incredible highs (Bananza 4 LYFE). When times are tough, game companies know to rely on one thing that never changes: war licensed properties! It’s a doozy of a year with licensed games, to be honest. There are those aimed at kids, those aimed at adults, and those aimed at making us draing our wallets. Some of these circles overlap in the Venn diagram of YOUR FREINDS AT SIDEQUESTING.
We’ve gathered together some of the upcoming games that have been announced and that are piquing our interest, and maybe — just maybe — you’ll be sucked into the land of license like we are.
SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide
Another 3D SpongeBob platformer? Sure! The SpongeBob action games have always done the job when it comes to giving us enjoyable experiences, so a new one built ground up for the newest gaming generation is a welcome sight. The game will launch for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and Switch 2 on November 18.
Fast & Furious: Arcade Edition
Yo, we played that Fast & Furious game in our local arcade A TON. It was a fun game to play against someone, with some Cruisin’ USA feel and missiles thrown in for good measure. Now, the game is being remade for modern players, while keeping much of what made that original experience so endearing: screaming “DEFUSE THE BOMB” at us non-stop. It’s coming to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series on October 24.
Chicken Run: Eggstraction
I looove the work that Aardman does in animation, and it’s weird that only now is the technology capable of recreating their stop motion style into video games. Chicken Run has been a fascinating movie series, so a move into gaming was a natural one. While there was a weird, middling experience that released soon after the 2000 movie, the latest game is a bit more ambitious. Eggstraction is an “action stealth” game set in an isometric view that follows the events of Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget in which the heroes must rescue other fowl before they’re turned into, well, nuggets. Playerfs can control a bunch of the film’s characters as they make their way out of different environments, feathers in tow. It looks silly, but kind of cute. It arrives in October on everything with 1-2 player co-op.
Snoopy & The Great Mystery Club
There’s a new Peanuts game based on Snoopy as a detective, and it looks kind of neat? It stars Snoopy, obviously, as he goes about the town helping solve its little mysteries. Missing football gear? Sure. Homework is gone? Yup! The art is very much in the modern film style, which makes my eyeballs perk up a bit. The game is also full of puzzles and mini-games, because that’s how multi-talented Snoops is. Expect it on October 10.
Nicktoons & the Dice of Destiny
The next Nickelodeon game may be a secret gem. Dice of Destiny is an action RPG that brings heroes and villains across the Nick universe together to do RPG stuff. The huge character list continues to grow, and the associated action looks enjoyable. Oh, and there’s a goofy story that is always welcome. Nickelodeon has done a pretty good job of bringing their IP collection into different genre, from really good fighting games to silly kart racers, and everything in between. Dice of Destiny arrives in Spetember.
Jurassic Park: Survival
This is one we’re really hyped for. When we first heard about Jurassic Park: Survival nearly two years ago we were intrigued as to what the game would entail. Survival and dinos? Sure. Now we know a bunch more, as a behind the scenes featurette gives us a detailed look. The game is set just a day after the events of the original Jurassic Park movie (the good one) and stars actress Payal Mistry as Dr Maya Joshi, stuck on Isla Neblar to fend for herself. Using wits and sneaking she’ll have to watch out for the dinosaurs, which developer Saber Interactive worked closely alongside NBC Universal to recreate to be exactly like in that first film. NONE OF THESE FEATHERY DINOS OF TODAY.
Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival
Oh, wait, a HELLRAISER game? Saber Interactive strikes again with another property that could be ripe for gaming. Hellraiser: Revival stars a character named Aiden who needs to use a weird puzzle box to rescue his girlfriend Sunny from hell. And he has to bargain (and survive) Pinhead’s mysterious and horrific ways to do it. The game is first person horror, so expect a lot of things jumping at us. Sure!
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