PlayStation 3

You may have snuggled up to the PlayStation 3’s younger more powerful counterpart over Christmas, but that doesn’t mean that there’s not still life coursing through Sony’s former flagship format’s mechanical parts. With its successor readily available on store shelves, the all-seeing eye of the media spotlight has been silently whipped away from Ken Kutaragi’s overengineered box of black magic – but that doesn’t mean that there’s not a lot to look forward to. In fact, with third-party blockbusters such as Destiny and Watch Dogs also due out on the machine, you may yet argue that the PS3 has the best software lineup of any of its platform peers. Just take a look at these upcoming escapades to see what we mean.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

It’s not the Symphony of the Night remake that your pointed teeth may be yearning for, but MercurySteam’s take on Konami’s classic macabre-‘em-up has very much taken on a role of its own. Partially inspired by Kratos’ underworld adventures, anti-hero Gabriel Belmont is back with a pastier face and a lust for blood. After the previous instalment’s gob-stopping conclusion, we’ve been itching to further our battle against Beelzebub – and this looks like it’s going to fulfil all of our Satan slaying needs. Recent reports have suggested that the release’s semi-sandbox setting will augment the campaign with a Legend of Zelda-esque structure. We’re licking our crimson lips in anticipation.

Dark Souls II

Dark Souls II

In an age of linear level design and reduced difficulty tiers, it’s impressive that From Software’s outrageously successful Dark Souls series exists at all. Building upon the success of Sony’s own Demon’s Souls – which required the resources of an external entity to even hit Western shores at all – the previous iteration in this hard-as-nails franchise went on to become one of the surprise success stories of 2011. Despite being helmed by a new director, this sequel promises more of the same tense dungeon crawling action as its predecessor, albeit in a slightly larger and prettier world. There’s some speculation that creator Hidetaka Miyazaki may secretly be working with Sony on a new title for the PlayStation 4, but until that’s revealed this should prove a worthy snack for your masochistic side to chew on.

Earth Defence Force 2025

Earth Defense Force 2025

Ants are a pain at the best of time, but they’re even more of a nuisance when they’re the size of skyscrapers and equipped with acidic spit. The sequel to Sandlot’s long-running third-person shooter, this camp co-operative excursion will find you picking off creepy crawlies like there’s no tomorrow. A handful of selectable character classes, a bunch of new bugs, and a wildly inconsistent frame-rate aim to make this the best worst game that you’ll play in 2014. It may not have the looks of The Last of Us or the responsiveness of Vanquish, but no one ever said that saving the world from insect invaders would be pretty.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII

It’s taken an entire generation, but Square Enix has finally figured out how to make high-definition towns. Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII scraps the linear structure of its predecessors, and opts for something a little more freeform. Alright, you may have to stomach the incessant whining of franchise ‘favourites’ Snow, Hope, and Vanille, but outside of the bad voice acting and even worse script there appears to be an entertaining romp here, and it’s all anchored by a Majora’s Mask-esque mechanic that finds our pink-haired protagonist forced to save the world in just 13 days. We hope that we can leave some of the characters to rot.

South Park: Stick of Truth

South Park: The Stick of Truth

A game that’s been in development for so long that we’re still not expecting it to hit its early March release date, South Park: The Stick of Truth is the first video game in the classic Comedy Central series to have close input from creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. An old-school role-playing adventure tailor made by Fallout: New Vegas developer Obsidian Entertainment, the title promises to take you on an epic quest from South Park Elementary to South Park Saviour. Rendered in the cartoon’s customary cut-out style, this is likely to prove a tantalising treat for fans of the snowy show. That’s if it ever comes out, of course.

Have you unplugged your PS3 to make room for your brand new PS4, or kept it hooked up while you wait for all of the abovementioned upcoming games? Have you decided to stay away from the next-gen device while you clear out your backlog, or are you juggling multiple machines like some form of console clown? Never stop playing in the comments section below.

Which PS3 game are you most looking forward to in 2014? (65 votes)

  1. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 217%
  2. Dark Souls II23%
  3. Earth Defence Force 20256%
  4. Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII20%
  5. South Park: The Stick of Truth18%
  6. Other15%

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