Another month, another rash of game releases. February 2018, like other short months in recent year, is set to be one of the slower months for the year but if you’re a gamer, you know that slower doesn’t mean that there’s a lack of quality about.
We’ve collected our picks for the best new gaming titles to launch in February 2018. Whether you’re sporty and combative or exploratory and contemplative, or somewhere in the spectrums between, we’ve got something that’ll tickle your gaming… bone? That’s a thing, right?
EA Sports UFC 3 (2 February)
There are some days when you just want to hit someone but you’re not allowed to do that. It’s not considered polite to clock someone in the beak. Instead we can go home and fire up EA Sports UFC 3 and use all manner of mixed-martial-arts fighters to work out our frustrations. Virtually. It’s never a good idea to have to remove a controller from a TV screen.
There’s a new story mode, Snoop Dogg as a guest commentator (first Call of Duty, now this?) and of course, a whole lot of kicking people upside the head coming to UFC 3. We’ve been known to use previous outings from this title as a party game — it’s always amusing to make fun of the person who talks big and then walks into a one-punch knockout.
Shadow of the Colossus (6 February)
This is the second time that this remake has taken place, the first being for the PlayStation 3 but The Shadow of the Colossus — originally launched on PlayStation 2 — deserves all of the extra attention. The game itself, from start to finish, was an amazing, if emotional, ride.
Why spend more on the PlayStation 4 release? Because Sony’s gone all out on the visual overhaul, bringing it right into line with the current generation of gaming visuals. Vague polygons have been replaced with detailed textures, lighting and particle physics have been vastly improved, and… wait, are we really sure this is the same game as the one first seen in 2006? Has somebody checked?
Platform: PS4
Bayonetta 2 (16 February)
One of the best reasons to own a Wii U was the exclusive launch of Bayonetta 2, the sequel to Platinum Games’ third-person action title starring the very same attitude-filled witch. In the first game Bayonetta deals with her missing memory and in the second she takes a trip to a very special mountain with a young sorcerer in order to save her friend Jeanne. Oh, and to save the entire world. Again.
The revamped version of both the first game and its Wii U-only sequel are heading to the Switch in the month of February. If you only pick one game from this list for February, make it this one. And a Switch. And then keep an eagle-eye out for the Switch-only Bayonetta 3.
Platform: Switch
Fe (16 February)
Fe is something a little different from EA but not surprising, considering it comes from the company’s EA Originals department — basically the gaming giant’s indie publishing arm. Players take on the role of a young fox cub er… thing with the ability to recruit assistance from other wild creatures who want to see the land liberated from the clutches of the Silent Ones. You know, that old chestnut.
Imagine taking the palette from Furi, pairing it up with a touch of Okami, a spot of Journey and just a touch of old school Spyro the Dragon and you’ll have some idea what Fe has in store for players in the shortest month of the year.
Platform: PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Metal Gear Survive (21 February)
Metal Gear Survive hasn’t had the best reception since its announcement, mostly due to the departure of Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima from Konami at around the same time. That said, Metal Gear Survive is shaping up to be a riotous collection of bonkers multiplayer base-building and zombie killing.
The early response to the beta and the way that gameplay is shaping up (seriously, smashing hordes of zombies with a huge hammer and setting Dungeon Keeper-worthy traps? Were do we sign up?) but we feel that this one might have gotten better traction out the game if it wasn’t shoehorned into the Metal Gear universe. Hopefully microtransactions don’t come along and crush this one like a bug.
Platform: PC, PS4, Xbox One