What I’m Waiting For – Volume One [From 12/March-2013]

So, I realise I might use the Gaming section of my site quite a lot. And it's true. There are more posts in this section alone than all the others, and that's because gaming is a central part of my life.
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So, one of the things I thought of doing was this. What I'm Waiting For will be a series of articles on two series, and why I'm waiting for the next in them. For this first one, I've chosen two series which, fundamentally, have been going through quite a change.

First, we have Sonic the Hedgehog. This series has been going through a change recently. From the Adventure games, the console games sort of went downhill. We had Sonic 06 (sort of an Adventure game, since it features three selectable character stories) which was the most bugged game in Sonic history (however, I am soon hoping to put this to the test).
 
Then we had Unleashed, which in Japan held the title of World Adventure, despite only having Sonic as a playable character, which had him travelling to different countries. The Sonic sections were highly praised, but the Werehog sections were greatly criticised. But from this came Sonic Colours, the game which broke Sonic from the 'Dark Times' as some moderately dub the previous games.
 
Colours was all that a 3D Sonic game should be, despite having some flaws, mainly with controls. The series people have dubbed the 'Storybook series' don't count. For one, all I'll say is on-rails and leave it at that. After Colours was Generations, bringing back Classic Sonic and older levels from across key games in the entire Sonic series.

Through all of that though, the handheld games never faltered. The Rush games on DS and the Rivals games on PSP are some of the better Sonic games out there. Perhaps this is why there have now been download only games. Sonic 4, bringing the classic gameplay back, has had moderate success, and the mobile games Jump and Dash have also gained a massive following - but since Generations, there has been no retail Sonic game. A recent rumour / report brought forward some interesting facts about what might be the next retail Sonic game.

Many thought a true return to the Adventure series. After all, ten characters with different play functions and twenty cross-character levels might have that effect. Cross-character levels is what Adventure 1 did, after all. But the three acts per level doesn't seem to fit into the Adventure series. There have been no acts in the two Adventure games. Which then led me to another cross-character levels-in-acts game. The Rivals series.

While this is in 2D, with the success of its 2D games, would SEGA risk it by transferring 2D based games to 3D? This essentially gives us a cross-over between Rivals and Adventure. Certain facts of that rumour could have been wrong though, or we could end up with an entirely new game from the rumour.

Whatever comes out of it, I am a real Sonic fan and follower, and have quite a few games in the entire series. Having recently fully completed Generations and running through the Rivals series, I cannot wait for a new game in the series.

Then we come to Star Wars, and even murkier shadow. Force Unleashed 2 comes along, and somehow, it just doesn't feel as good as the first. Rumours of Battlefront 3 are circulating everywhere, and the entire studio of LucasArts has been kept quiet, with the only thing coming out Kinect Star Wars. Then, out of the blue, Star Wars 1313. It looks exactly like what we've been waiting for from a Star Wars game (if you can get around the complete lack of a Battlefront 3).

Rumours though, are all that the Star Wars tale becomes. A report comes through that one game had been cancelled and one had been put on hold around 2011. Force Unleashed 3 has been expected, due to the cliff-hanger at the end of the second. Since there is a two-year gap between the release of the first and second, people expected it in 2012.
 
No luck. Other reports include hiring staff for a first-person shooter, and of course, the leak of the Battlefront 3 footage. The latest report is that Star Wars First Assault was the FPS game that staff were being hired for, and was a predecessor to Battlefront 3. If this game sold, we would get Battlefront 3. The previous report spelt doom for 1313 though. It said cancelled / put on hold.

However, there is a glimmer of hope. The entire of Lucas Film, and with it LucasArts, have been in disarray following the Disney takeover. However, Lucas Film Animation - through Dave Filoni - have stated their new plans and commitments. If the animation and film departments have been sorted out, this can now mean good news for the gaming section as well. We might very well get First Assault ahead of 1313, and a new Battlefront 3 might already be in waiting via a new game engine. And then there was the LucasArts logo on the list of developers at the PS4 reveal.
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As for the statement and the hidden question underneath that of why I'm waiting, whatever comes from LucasArts now has got to be good. Devs have been working away, unsure if their projects will see the light of day, and with the company finishing its new state shift, these projects are sure to be officially revealed soon. Or so we hope.

So there you have it. Two game series, including reasons, of why I'm waiting for them. Any that you people are waiting for?