Hitting the Shelves : What's to come in (the rest of) March 2019

One of the greatest things about being a member of the gaming community is that, no matter which platform you call home, things are always expanding. From big studio AAA titles, all the way down to the solo-built indies, libraries are always being added to. What's even more great about it is there's always something for each and every type of gamer. For example, look at the things that we were given in February. Fighting fans got Jump Force, while fans of the first person shooter genre got Far Cry New Dawn and Metro Exodus. Racing fans got to dig into Trials Rising and Dirt Rally 2.0, and even fans of older games got to soak in the re-releases of Steins Gate and Phoenix Wright : Ace Attorney Trilogy.

So, for the rest of the month, here's a few things that are coming out that I'm personally looking excited to. In no particular order...

Yoshi's Crafted World

The eighth game in our favorite dinosaur's self-titled series, sees him and the rest of his kind living peacefully on their home, Yoshi's Island. The highest peak on the island contain's an ancient artifact with numerous gems set in it called the Sundream Stone, which is believed to make anyone's wildest dreams come completely true. Naturally, there are those who want this power, such as Baby Bowser and Kamek who attempt to steal the stone. Instead, they cause the gems in the stone to get rocketed across the world, and now Yoshi and his friends must recover the gems and return them to the mountain top. 

Yoshi's Crafted World actually has a short demo on Nintendo's eShop, so if you can't wait the rest of the time until this one comes out there's a way to get your hands on a sample of it. Much like Yoshi's Wooly World which featured an emphasis on a world and characters made out of wool, and even Kirby's Epic Yarn and the yarn focus, here we see a world made entirely out of cardboard cutouts. 

One thing to note is the first time this game was shown off, it featured a mechanic in which the players could flip the world around and see things from a front and rear perspective. Now, as we near the full release, it appears this mechanic has either been downplayed massively, or is just not getting the emphasis that it appeared it first would. Either way, this looks to be a great addition to this platforming series, and I can't personally wait to get this one in my library. 

The game will also feature Amiibo support, with most Amiibo's granting some sort of alternate costume, while Mario-themed Amiibo's will grant what sounds like special ability costumes, depending on which character is scanned. 

Release Date : March 29, 2019
Available on : Nintendo Switch

Sekiro : Shadows Die Twice

FromSoftware brings us their next title, Sekiro : Shadows Die Twice in just one week from my writing of this. FromSoftware may sound familiar, as it's the studio that brought us the acclaimed SoulsBorne series. And while it has it's differences, Sekiro also appears to carry enough similarities to fit right in with the studios previous titles.

The story follows a young shinobi who was left for dead after his lord was kidnapped, and his own arm was severed. Later, you awaken to find that your once-gone arm has been replaced with a prosthetic by a Japanese sculptor or busshi. The busshi renames you Sekiro, which translates to the one-armed wolf, and you set out with a katana and your new arm to find your lord and get revenge.

Based on appearances alone from the trailers that have been released for it, most of the things that were staples of the Souls games appear to be missing. There won't be any character creation, individual classes, upgrades to equipment, or even multiplayer. Sekiro is said to not even be featuring any role-playing elements.

What it does maintain however, at least based on those same appearances, is the gameplay mechanics from the SoulsBorne games, only with a bit of a tweak. While those games sought to make you chip away at an enemies health, it seems that Sekiro wants you to focus on the poise and balance of an enemy, and once that has been whittled away at, you'll slink in for a single killing blow.

As someone who has only very recently found a love for the Souls games, and the patience to finally try one out, I'm actually excited for this game. I may not be picking it up right away, but eventually this one is going to find it's place in the Honest library and it's gonna be fun.

Release Date : March 22, 2019
Available on : PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One

Other Titles

Assassin's Creed III will be hitting shelves again with a remaster, giving old fans a chance to experience this title once again, or new fans a taste of the Brotherhoood that-was. Featuring new character models, overhauled visuals, and a new graphics engine, the story of Connor and the founding of the USA is releasing on March 29th both as a stand-alone title and an add-on for Assassin's Creed Odyssey for Playstation 4 and Xbox One.




The next iteration of Sony Interactive Entertainment's The Show doesn't appear to bring us too much in the realm of new. Naturally there will be updated rosters and the like, as well as new expansions to gameplay mechanics. One new feature that is being promised is one that's called "Moments" that will give players a chance to recreate iconic moments from throughout baseball history. As always, this title is exclusive to the Playstation 4, and will be on shelves March 26, 2019.





There's some fun stuff coming out the rest of this month outside of the sampling that I've offered here. What are you excited for? And not just this month, but on the horizon in April as well? I'll see you guys in a couple weeks for our next instance of Hitting the Shelves.

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