Summer 2016 PC Game Release Preview

Summer 2016 PC Game Releases

Summer is nearly here, and with it comes a batch of new games to play on the PC. From shooters and strategy titles to RPGs and racing games, there’s more than enough than enough content to keep you satisfied over the next three months. Here's a curated list of the most compelling AAA and indie titles coming soon. You’ll see some obvious choices, but there are a few that have some sort of cult following that raised the game’s popularity.

Enjoy.

Stellaris - May 9

If conquering space is your thing, you might want to check out Stellaris from the same team that brought you the Europa Universalis and Crusader Kings series. Players start on their home world with the discovery of faster-than-light travel.

With this newfound technology, you can explore the procedurally generated galaxy to find new planets to inhabit, more resources and more importantly, new races. It’s up to you whether you keep the peace with your new friends or wage war to increase your slice of the galaxy pie, but you also have to manage your domestic affairs to ensure your empire is prosperous for as long as possible.

Requirements

Doom - May 13

If you don’t count the various spin-offs and expansion packs, the last Doom game came out in 2004, and now the popular first-person shooter is back after 12 long years. Id Software is launching the new Doom as a reboot to the franchise. Along with a single-player campaign, you can play various multiplayer modes such as Deathmatch and Warpath. You can also create your own custom levels and game modes with the SnapMap editor.

Requirements (Open Beta)

Homefront: The Revolution - May 17

America has fallen to the North Koreans, and it’s up to you to take back your beloved country. Set in Philadelphia, Homefront: The Revolution presents an open-world first-person shooter, where you use various weapons, tactics and gadgets to take down the mighty KPA organization. Specifically, you can use your Guerilla Toolkit to create bombs for ambushes, hack cameras and drones to use against the enemy, or customize your weapon at any point in the game to take on any situation.

Requirements

Overwatch - May 24

Just like Gearbox Software, Blizzard is also looking to capitalize on the hero-based shooter with Overwatch. With 21 characters to choose from, you’ll fit into one of four roles: Offense, Defense, Tank or Support. The game is primarily focused on multiplayer, so most of your experience will take place online instead of a single-player campaign. An open beta for the game starts on May 5 and ends on May 9.

Requirements

Total War: Warhammer - May 24

The team at Creative Assembly is out with another Total War installment. But instead of a historical-based title, the developers worked Games Workshop to create a Total War experience for the Warhammer fans. Players be able to play the role of humans, orcs and dwarves, just to name a few, in their conquest for domination of the land. The fantasy seems to allow for more depth in various game elements, such as technology research and unique skills for each faction’s major leaders.

Requirements

Mirror's Edge Catalyst - June 7

The long-awaited second installment in the series is nearly here. Once again, you play as Faith as you look at her earlier days in the City of Glass. Unlike the first Mirror’s Edge game, Catalyst is presented as an open-world experience. You’ll still have Faith’s numerous parkour skills as you jump, slide and run your way across the city rooftops. You can participate in online play via the Social Play feature, which allows you to create custom race challenges and get to hard-to-reach locations marked by players.

Requirements

No Man's Sky - June 21

The team at Hello Games is made up of 15 people, and this small group is now putting the finishing touches of one of the most anticipated games of the year. No Man’s Sky puts you in a procedurally generated universe as you explore planets, meet new civilizations and take part in space-based dogfights. In an effort to reach the center of the universe, you’ll find new creatures and planets, which you can name if you get there first.

It’s mostly a game about exploration, and with a gigantic universe set before you, you’ll have to explore every nook and cranny of the stars to get the most out of No Man’s Sky.

Requirements

Umbrella Corps - June 21

Capcom is taking some elements from its popular Resident Evil franchise and putting them into a multiplayer-based shooter called Umbrella Corps. The game features small maps where you and your teammates fight against other players. Numerous zombies infest the map, but they don’t initially go after you because you’re wearing a jammer that makes you invisible to zombies. However, if someone shoots it, you become visible to the undead, making it more difficult to kill enemy players.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms 13 - July 5

Romance of the Three Kingdoms 13 is available on Steam now in Japanese, but Koei Tecmo announced last month that the game is officially coming to North America on the PlayStation 4 and PC. You’ll be able to command over 700 different characters in your conquest to take all of China.

The grand strategy game allows you to build cities, wage wars and conduct diplomacy with various factions. Aside from the Campaign mode, new players can try Hero mode, which serves as a tutorial as you follow historical events in the game. The last title in the series to make it to North America was Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI in 2008, and it was available on the PlayStation 2 and PC.

Requirements

I Am Setsuna - July 19

Aside from Final Fantasy XV and Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness, Square Enix is also publishing a new Japanese RPG title called I Am Setsuna where you follow Setsuna and her bodyguard Endir on a long journey. In addition to the usual elements of a Japanese RPG, it will include an active-time battle system — the same combat mechanics from the Final Fantasy series and Chrono Trigger.