Games Watch: the 5 best new games coming out in June 2018
Here are the console and PC games that have us talking this month
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Even during the slowest months of the year, you’ll find the release list stocked with literally hundreds of games across consoles, PC, and mobile. It’s madness. Given that, it can be easy to overlook some magnificent game releases amidst the stack, but worry not: we’re here to help. Our Games Watch column points out the five biggest and brightest games on the immediate horizon, and outlines why each seems like it’ll be well worth your time and money. With that in mind, here’s your monthly compendium of the five most scintillating new releases coming before July rolls around. You can thank us later.
ONRUSH – 5 JUNE
Sony’s MotorStorm franchise is sadly in the past, but Onrush looks like the next best thing. In fact, Codemasters’ game was developed by the former Evolution Studios team – the same one behind Sony’s own off-road racing gem. Onrush looks very familiar at a glance, letting you command an array of mud-slinging vehicles in big, beautiful all-terrain stages. But these aren’t straightforward races: you’ll speed and smash to accumulate points, and the game has a strongly team-centric focus. It’ll hopefully scratch that old MotorStorm itch while also pushing the genre forward in the process. Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC
JURASSIC WORLD EVOLUTION – 12 JUNE
Games like RollerCoaster Tycoon and Zoo Tycoon are plenty compelling, but there’s no better concept for a theme park simulation than building your own Jurassic Park – and that’s exactly what Jurassic World Evolution lets you do. It’s a concept we’ve seen in past games, but Evolution goes deeper than ever, letting you bioengineer your own custom dinosaurs, soak in a new narrative featuring familiar characters from the films, and dig into the nitty-gritty details as you try to keep the park running. Hopefully you’ll have more success than they’ve had in the movies so far… Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC
MARIO TENNIS ACES – 22 JUNE
Tennis has been the most reliably entertaining of Mario’s sports ventures, and Mario Tennis Aces for Switch could be the best edition to date. Like the past versions, it puts a cartoonish, over-the-top spin on the racquet favourite, and Aces takes things to another level. Now there are powerful special shots that you can unleash at certain times – which can offer a vast advantage if used properly – plus a single-player story mode should avoid any tedium between the always-entertaining multiplayer battles. We came out of our hands-on testwanting more, which feels like a ringing endorsement. Platform: Nintendo Switch
LUMINES REMASTERED – 26 JUNE
Whether you’re an old fan or a newcomer who can’t quite sort out how to pronounce the title, Lumines Remastered is a must-play for puzzle fans. It’s an upgraded edition of the 2005 PSP original, which arugably trails only Tetris as one of the greatest handheld puzzlers of all time. Lumines finds you dropping little 2×2 chunks of squares onto a board, which you’ll rotate and rearrange to try and pair up like colours to remove large swathes of them from sight. And every few minutes, a new skin and song come in to shake up the style and tempo, making it an ever-evolving treat. It should be especially well suited for Switch, given its handheld origins. Platforms: Switch, PS4, Xbox One
THE CREW 2 – 29 JUNE
The Crew was a solid open-world racer that launched a bit rough, but eventually found its footing and a large audience. With The Crew 2, Ubisoft is going way, way bigger with its concept. In addition to the cars, motorcycles, and trucks of the original game (including expansions), The Crew 2 packs in airplanes and boats as you race for pole position across a scaled-down version of the United States. It sounds incredibly ambitious, much like the first game did back in 2014 – hopefully this one makes a bigger splash right out of the gate. Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC
