Goodbye, March; hello, April. This month marks the end of the so-called “death quarter” (for wallets) in the world of video games, where we have had a bunch of releases that would compete for the Game of the Year (GOTY) award. The list is extensive, although the most notable ones are Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Persona 3: Reload, Helldivers 2, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Dragon’s Dogma 2.
But just because we have left behind the “quarter of death” doesn’t mean that all the good stuff is already out. 2024 is shaping up to be “one of those years” where the gaming industry unleashes all its arsenal, with 9 months full of releases that will keep you busy and will cause a great bleeding in your bank account. Below, we list 4 that you definitely can’t miss. You’re welcome, or I’m sorry.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl
If there is a game that deserves to win an honorary award at this year’s The Game Awards just for the horrible journey that its development has been, that is STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl, created by the Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. The development of this highly anticipated sequel to a PC cult classic has gone through all kinds of calamities, including a fire in the studio’s offices and the Russian invasion of Ukraine itself, which took the life of one of its developers.
First announced in 2018, STALKER 2 will once again take us to Chornobyl (also known as Chernobyl), in a universe where the explosion of the famous nuclear power plant had completely extraordinary and unforeseen consequences (even more so than in reality). If everything goes according to plan and there are no (other) issues in the coming months, STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl will be released on September 5th of this year on PC and Xbox Series X|S, and will be part of the Xbox Game Pass catalog from day one.
Metaphor: ReFantasy
The new intellectual property from Atlus, the company behind the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei sagas, left us all speechless at the past Summer Game Fest. With a very similar aesthetic to the latest Persona games, but with its own soul, Metaphor: ReFantazio is possibly one of the most anticipated games of this year for RPG genre lovers.
At the moment, Metaphor: ReFantazio does not have an exact release date, and the studio has only said that it will be released at the end of 2024. First announced under the codename Project Re: Fantasy, the Studio Zero title will incorporate mechanics from other Atlus games, such as turn-based combat and social simulation. It will be available for PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Xbox Series X|S.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
Konami surprised us all with the announcement of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater at the PlayStation Showcase 2023, where they also announced the release of Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol.1. With a name that could tie your tongue if you say it several times in a row, the remake of Metal Gear Solid 3 will feature the original voices and will once again put us in the shoes of Naked Snake, who would eventually become the legendary Big Boss.
The reason for this remake is simple: it is the fans’ favorite Metal Gear Solid. And Konami seems to have hit the nail on the head, as the public’s reaction to the first trailer released was very positive. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater will be released for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, although the exact release date is not known, other than that, in theory, it will be in 2024. Will it end up being pushed to 2025?
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Yes, I know; I’m hurting myself with this. But this is the one, I swear. Hollow Knight: Silksong is, without a doubt, the The Last Guardian of this generation. The sequel to the magnificent Hollow Knight, one of the best metroidvanias of this generation, was announced on February 14, 2019, and a subsequent Xbox conference listed it as one of the video games that would be released in the first half of 2023.
And this was the plan, until certain complications in the development, Hollow Knight: Silksong had to postpone its release, which is now expected for the first half of 2024. If everything goes well and the gods are merciful, the highly anticipated video game by Team Cherry will be released for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox One. Really, it’s coming out this year. We trust.
