Gaming Predictions of the Year (Currently Featuring... Whichever Year It Is Now)

There's no way Metroid Prime 4 is making Yules 2022 sadly.  Or even 2023.

Please continue with the funny responses.  They're great, and the three people so far to have come up with more than two predictions apiece have done exactly no funny options between them/us.

I’ll try a few for 2022.

1. Switch successor’s technical specs and codename will leak this year, but no formal announcements from Nintendo will follow until 2023.

1.9. Switch Online release of Downtown Nekketsu March Super-Awesome Field Day! on September 6th 2023.

2. Breath of the Wild’s sequel will launch in December 2022. Guessing a title? 'The Legend of Zelda: Cheer Up Goth, Have An Irn Bru'.

3. A Metroid Game & Watch will release alongside a Metroid Prime remaster.

4. After Banjo-Kazooie we’ll carry on seeing Rare’s old games appearing on N64 Online, as well as on NES and SNES Online. Let’s say we’ll see Blast Corps, Jet Force Gemini and Banjo-Tooie by the end of 2022.

5. Parts shortages mean console shortages will remain exactly the same problem as they are today. No new PlayStation or Xbox hardware or revisions get announced – and while PS VR2 gets teased for a late 2022 release, it ultimately gets postponed until 2023.

6. Steam Deck to be the year’s undisputed games industry hit. I’m confident it’ll sell somewhere between 0 and 100,000,000 units in 2022.

7. Tekken 8 announced as a timed PlayStation 5 exclusive at E3 time. Sony will host a Roger-themed State of Play in celebration of this.

8. Microsoft acquire SEGA as a second-party developer, again announced at E3. Somehow yet justifiably, Microsoft and SEGA’s first act will be to kill off Nintendo’s Xenoblade Chronicles series.

9. Konami get back into games development, and showcase a new 2D Castlevania for consoles in the style of Symphony of the Night. They might even chuck in a wee Metal Gear Solid remake in there too, like the Bobby Spice Munchy Box.

10. Street Fighter VI gets trotted out to retail late in 2022 while in a messy state, learning none of the lessons from Street Fighter V’s shitey launch.

11. Intellevision Amico doesn’t release in 2022.

12. Unannounced Evercade collections for Epyx, Temco and System 3 release. Follow-up collections for Atari’s PS1 late ‘90s arcade updates (Pong, Centipede, etc), Jaleco Arcade, Interplay, Intellevision, Indie Heroes and PIKO Interactive to be announced and shipped too.

13. FIFA 23 on Switch won’t be a straightforward Legacy Edition. It’ll be your favourite game, remade from the floorboards up and treated with the apathy and contempt it probably deserves.

SEGA one is possible and think people forget how big that would be, as they publish quite a few games and all sorts. Also the Xbox would be Andys favourite system because of Yakuza.

Some interesting predictions there, Cappa. I keep hearing people predict just the first Metroid Prime getting the re-release, rather than the full trilogy. I know 2 and 3 aren't as fondly remembered but it would still be a bit weird to promote the first one only, given the new game is called Metroid Prime 4. Unless the new game is its own thing a la Final Fantasy numbering.

If SEGA end up with Microsoft I'll have to defect back to Xbox. The brilliant things Microsoft have done regarding access to older games - getting SEGA would be like handing them the keys to the vault. They could essentially fill in gaps in their history and have a retro service like Nintendo has. Just dump a load of Dreamcast roms on Gamepass and I'm there.

Konami will definitely do more retro collections. I thought we'd see Yakuza on Switch by now. I reckon Steamdeck will have issues and everyone will remember how great Switch is - in fact Switch will have its best year yet.

Maybe Metroid Prime is a Remake not a Remaster, why not the whole Trilogy?

On SEGA again, like I said could see it happening or could see even more stuff partnered with Xbox, like Humankind & FM22 went straight to Game Pass and so is Total War Warhammer III (I may even play it now) sure those are PC games but hey why not put Sonic Frontiers right into Game Pass.

On older SEGA stuff on Xbox One/Series sure not on Game Pass (You do have stuff from RARE and OG Xbox games such as Fable if ya want some retro stuff in Game Pass) you do have all of these that are compatible:

AvP (360), Altered Beast (MD), Bayonetta (360), Binary Domain (360), Otogi 1&2 (OG), Gunvalkyrie (OG), Panzer Dragoon Orta (OG), Castle of Illusion (360), Comix Zone (MD), Condemned (360), Crazy Taxi (DC), Fighting Vipers (Sat), Garou Mark of the Wolves (Was on DC), Guardian Heroes (Sat), Gunstar Heroes (MD), Ikaruga (Was on DC, I own on Cube), King of Fighters Various (Was on Sat and DC), NiGHTS into dreams (Sat), Persona 4 Arena (360), Phantasy Star II (MD), Radiant Silvergun (Sat), Resident Evil Code Veronica (Was on DC), SEGA Bass Fishing (DC), Golden Axe Collection (MD), Streets of Rage Collection (MD), Catherine (360), Shinobi (MS), Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (360), Sonic Adventure (DC), Sonic Adventure 2 (DC), Sonic CD (MD), Sonic Generations (360), Sonic the Fighters (Arcade), Sonic The Hedgehog 1-3 (MD), Sonic The Hedgehog 4 EPI & EPII (360), Sonic Unleashed (360), SoulCalibur (Was on DC), Monster World Collection (MD), ToeJam & Earl Collection (MD), Vanquish (360), Virtua Fighter 2 (Sat), Virtua Fighter 5 (360), Virtual On (Sat), Virtual On OT (DC) Jet Set Radio (DC), Dead or Alive Ultimate (OG, was on Sat and DC), Daytona USA (Sat)

I make that about 55+ games, and that's without all the Xbox One games that you can play on Series such SEGA Mega Drive Classics for even more retro goodness or Yakuza if you're Andy.

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

7. Tekken 8 announced as a timed PlayStation 5 exclusive at E3 time. Sony will host a Roger-themed State of Play in celebration of this.

Forget Roger - bring back Gon.

Also, I've got strong reservations about Konami doing anything other than rereleases of old titles, especially considering their start to the Castlevania 35th anniversary celebration was to launch a range of NFTs.

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

1. Switch successor’s technical specs and codename will leak this year, but no formal announcements from Nintendo will follow until 2023.

This will definitely happen, five or six times, it's just that the leaks will be bollocks.

Belting set of predictions there from Cappa. The parts shortage is another reason why I'm not expecting a Switch Pro this year.

masofdas wrote:

Maybe Metroid Prime is a Remake not a Remaster, why not the whole Trilogy?

Does Metroid Prime really need a full remake? I'm struggling to think what they would change. No, I think it's just going to be Nintendo being Nintendo, and remastering just the one game for baffling unexplained reasons. (I'll buy it anyway incidentally. Metroid Prime is my fifth favourite game ever: the other two wouldn't make my top 100.)

All they need to do to Metroid Prime is whack in some gyro aim options (maybe even flick stick) & I'd be very happy. Obviously a trilogy pack on Switch would be great too but that might force them into a bare-minimum approach?

Buskalilly wrote:

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

1. Switch successor’s technical specs and codename will leak this year, but no formal announcements from Nintendo will follow until 2023.

This will definitely happen, five or six times, it's just that the leaks will be bollocks.

Good point! Maybe scrap that prediction then. Come the end of the year, every Marcus Sellars will be rustling up supposed specs and leaking pictures of prototypes that they sneakily photographed when Shigeru Miyamoto personally invited them round to his work.

I’m already thinking that my Metroid Game & Watch one might be wrong. Nintendo just released artwork for Kirby’s 30th anniversary, with a new badge and everything. That’ll be Nintendo’s big thing this year.

Metroid's anniversary was the same year as Zelda's, I think. Metroid Dread was the 35th anniversary "thing"

The_Jaster wrote:

All they need to do to Metroid Prime is whack in some gyro aim options (maybe even flick stick) & I'd be very happy. Obviously a trilogy pack on Switch would be great too but that might force them into a bare-minimum approach?

I'm expecting bare minimum to tell the truth. Gyro aiming at a push.

I've seen upscale jobs done through emulation online of the 3d Metroids & they honestly look great so if we consider that bare minimum then it might not be as bad as we'd imagine. Also not sure why you think it'd be a push for Nintendo to do gyro aiming though when the trilogy had wii remote aiming in 2009.

EDIT: Look at how good Metroid Prime Hunters looks for example.

At that point I'm just being cynical about Nintendo's past efforts. SM3DAS and its, to put it politely, 'light-touch' approach to remastering still sticks in my craw.

SM3DAS wasn't a remaster though, that's the thing. Considering the trilogy was released as a package on the WIi U for like $20, I'd like to think a full-price Switch version would be more akin to TPHD.

Mentioning Metroid Prime Hunters, I wouldn't playing that with a twin-stick pad instead of a D-Pad and touch screen!

I don't blame Balla it is Nintendo we could get anything from them and I wouldn't be shocked either way a full on remake or quick poet with either costing £50.

----

Buskalilly wrote:

Mentioning Metroid Prime Hunters, I wouldn't playing that with a twin-stick pad instead of a D-Pad and touch screen!

Yeah that'd be great but I'd only see that popping up if the Prime Trilogy remaster was being done by Nightdive studios as they'd likely at least throw in the multiplayer it had.

Buskalilly wrote:

SM3DAS wasn't a remaster though, that's the thing. Considering the trilogy was released as a package on the WIi U for like $20, I'd like to think a full-price Switch version would be more akin to TPHD.

Wasn't TPHD also not that much of an uplift from the original too? (Own it, never played it )

Most of the textures were replaced and the lighting engine was upgraded. It's fundamentally the same game, but it was a significant HD upgrade. The problem is just that the art style was never that good to begin with.

That last bit's definitely true. Anyway, I tend to think of anything that only mucks about with the visual fidelity as a fairly basic remaster, which may not be fair to the lighting fellows but I expect at least some gameplay improvements! (Wolf Link amiibo is nice but doesn't count.)

masofdas wrote:

15. Kingdom Hearts IV is teased BINGO

Here's the trailer, might get to play it by 2027

We might be going to Endor, Andy