The strangeness of 2020 continues into July, though one would naturally expect this month to be a less interesting one in terms of new videogame releases. As folks continue to weather the challenges of keeping their distance during this pandemic, they’re having to look for new game diversions in the aftermath period of another significant game’s release: The Last of Us Part II, which stirred up a lot of controversy for the bleak directions hijacked by its narrative.

Couple that with summer’s natural encouragement to go outdoors and the chronological lead-up to the unveiling of next gen’s new consoles, and we’re smack dab in an awkward zone, one where only the bravest of titles would choose to jump into the gaming sphere. Luckily, there are such brave, idiosyncratic souls out there – though more proportionately on the Switch, which isn’t going away anytime soon – who have plowed through the obstacle course of delays and next-gen interests to show up in Summer 2020.  Let’s check ‘em out.

Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing In Disguise — July 10

One of the most perplexing yet oddly satisfying games released during the last generation of consoles, Deadly Premonition remains a niche curiosity for those interested in survival horror … and the TV show Twin Peaks.  In sideways and intentionally noncommittal ways, the game serves as an obvious homage to David Lynch’s TV series from the ‘90s: a surreal, deliberately esoteric murder mystery featuring an FBI special agent whose investigation of the murder of an 18-year-old girl takes him down the path of the supernatural.

Control issues, dated graphics, and insistent weirdness taken into account …? Deadly Premonition is pretty great, and will be getting a sequel exclusively on the Switch this month, likely sharing vague similarities to Twin Peaks: The Return in how a new murder mystery will entwine with the original and with protagonist Francis York Morgan.  Borderlands-like rendering of 3D models allows Deadly Premonition 2 to feel updated yet similar to the original in the surreal open-world atmosphere.

F1 2020 — July 10

In some fashion, British developers Codemasters have been making racing games for over three decades, and it’s because they’ve continued a pursuit for refinement and excellence. Granted, aside from a few stray games here and there, the company has recently stuck to a few brands instead of the versatility and experimentation of their previous years — their bread and butter franchises: GRID, Dirt, and F1 – and they continue to rack up accolades for their work.

Their racing games have the mainstream appeal of the genre with the niche focus of the style of vehicle being piloted, which in a way narrows their competition. F1 2020 marks a particularly intriguing installment from Codemasters, as the content within was designed as if certain races took place that have been postponed due to the pandemic, which could offer F1 fans a unique opportunity to enjoy what was missed with the authentic pro racing teams.

Get F1 2020 at Amazon

Paper Mario: The Origami King — July 17

When most people think of Mario, they likely think about the standard platforming games of spread across many, many decades … and not of a role-playing experience. Those have been around for nearly a quarter-century now too, though, starting with Super Mario RPG on the SNES and transitioning into the well-regarded Paper Mario series that makes sure to show up at least once on each Nintendo format. Paper Mario: The Origami King brings the concept to the Switch, telling the fateful story of malevolent kings and enemies who must put differences aside to battle a greater threat.

Intelligent Systems are bringing back traditional action combat aspects to the Paper Mario franchise, instead of the gimmicky experiments found on the Wii iterations, though early rumblings indicate that the role-playing aspects (i.e. leveling up) have been further reduced. Whether fancied-up graphics and a new “wave” cutaway fighting design against multiple enemies are enough to fill that void shall be determined soon.

Get Paper Mario: The Origami King at Amazon

Ghost of Tsushima — July 17

Remember when it was revealed that the folks behind the Sly Cooper line of video games would be developing an urban open-world experience based around superhero powers, and it turned out pretty good? The transition to the Infamous franchise offered something new from Sucker Punch productions, and their line of games always maintained an enjoyable and polished level of quality in the free-roam action subgenre, even if they remained just out of reach from widespread popularity.

The developers are boldly shaking things up again, though, now moving to Japan in the late 1200s for yet another open-world endeavor: Ghosts of Tsushima. Unlike Infamous, this game aims for grounded realism and the essence of historical accuracy as a samurai battles against enemy forces during the Mongol Invasion of the 13^th century, forcing the character to retrain themselves in combat against a superior foe. A combo of stealth and straightforward dueling will drive the visceral combat, veiled in a grim war-torn atmosphere.

Get Ghosts of Tsushima at Amazon

Destroy All Humans! — July 28

Man, look, there’s no telling what any aliens that ARE up there are thinking about us after this year, but it probably isn’t anything good. Don’t worry: the remake of Destroy All Humans! isn’t interested in any additional commentary on the human condition in these trying times, still transporting the player-controlled alien Crypto to late-‘50s America for his invasion.

Black Forest Games are taking on a daunting task in remaking the fan-beloved game from Pandemic Studios, the label also responsible for the original Star Wars: Battlefront games who were famously shut down and absorbed by EA, and it looks like their playing it smart and safe by sticking close to the source. Yet, that isn’t to say that Black Forest won’t be making some changes, as they’re reincorporating scrapped material from the original release and tying in new game functions, such as a feature that lets players lock onto enemies. Destroy All Humans! will, oddly enough, be available on Stadia at release, yet won’t be on the Switch for a while.

Get Destroy All Humans! at Amazon

This month, we’re also seeing the release of the sequel to Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon, arriving on July 10, while a smattering of decent ports and remasters are also slipping into the mix.  The surreal puzzle adventure Catherine is getting the Full Body treatment on the Switch once July 7 comes around, PC players will get to play Death Stranding on July 14, and the Samurai Showdown Neo Geo Collection will be hitting the major consoles on July 28.  And yeah, NASCAR Heat 5 will come rolling in on the same day F1 2020.  

July’s Video Game Releases Sneak In Offbeat Titles Before Next-Gen Hoopla

Microsoft has been stuck in a slump of passable monthly freebies for its Xbox Games With Gold subscribers for quite a while now, almost as if they’ve run out of available options.  These past months would have been a great time to get aggressive with the quality of their titles; instead, they’ve stayed very low-key by offering games that draw little attention to their service. Here’s what we’ve got this month: a platform game whose sequel was a Games with Gold title several months ago; a coffee shop simulator; a legacy Xbox title that’s getting an HD remake next month; and a side-scrolling airplane shooter. Instead of dazzling subscribers by digging into their high-profile back of tricks with tons of other substantive titles, they’re going light and passive once again, marking yet another shrug-worthy month. Let’s take a closer look, though.

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Xbox One

Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse (June 1-30)

The Shantae series of platformers has a richer, longer history that one might expect, dating back to 2002 with its eponymous debut on the Game Boy Color. Since then, the property has bounced around between platforms – mostly on Nintendo devices – but has ultimately found a comfortable home on most consoles, beginning with a port of The Pirate’s Curse. Controlling the half-genie, hair-whipping Shantae, players navigate through colorful and moderately challenging platform levels as Shantae pursues the origin of Dark Magic that’s plaguing Scuttle Town and beyond. With a gameplay style not unlike a combo of Castlevania and Mega Man, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse sends its hero across multiple islands and through dense, lovingly crafted levels rendered with beautiful retro graphics.  The limited difficulty and borrowed concept might not fully satisfy the most hardcore or experienced platform players, but Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse conjures plenty of magic for the rest.

Coffee Talk (June 16 – July 15)

Visual novels, or other types of dialogue-based adventures, push the boundaries of the videogame platform by drawing players into unique storylines that justify this absence of traditional gameplay. Coffee Talk takes that concept perhaps a bit too far: those who play it become a barista at a coffee shop, which prompts them to converse with customers, make latte art, and check in on social media.  Luckily, there’s a deeper hook to the game, in that the characters who come into the coffee shop are of the mythical variety … so you’re conversing with elves and werewolves about their personal problems instead of humans. Both critics and players seem to agree that the Coffee Talk experience has a narrow audience focus, on those who are both interested specifically in visual novels and are comfortable with a slower, leisurely pace even for the subgenre.

Xbox & Xbox 360

Destroy All Humans! (June 1-15)

Couldn’t possibly imagine why Microsoft has made the original Xbox version of Destroy All Humans! available as a free download this month.  It can’t possibly have anything to do with generating buzz for the remake that’s coming out next month, can it? Those are pretty big shoes to fill, though, as the love and attention that Pandemic Studio poured into the Destroy All Humans franchise – among others – has transformed the defunct studio into the stuff of legends.  The original Destroy All Humans! got the concept down as soon as it arrived, dropping Crypto-137 onto a peculiar version of Earth to rescue his compadre, Crypto-136, who has been wounded and captured by the government. The humor behind these stereotypical aliens interacting with our world, and our world covering up whatever destruction he unleashes in his rescue attempt, is delightful … and the action remains some of the most zany and engaging to come out of the PS2 era.

Sine Mora (June 16-30)

The pickings are slim when it comes to arcade-style airplane games, which can be surprising considering the longstanding popularity of titles like R-Type and Ikaruga that lend themselves well to that concept. Sine Mora taps into that idea with a slight fantasy twist, crafting an alternate steampunk-ish world of unpredictable states of the Earth’s crust, talking animals, planes that can operate just as well underwater … and the nuclear bombardments on the verge of happening. A side-scrolling, 2.5D shoot-‘em-up, Sine Mora feels exceptionally retro in its graphical presentation and control scheme, but the artistic polish and overarching attitude of the created world give it a unique edge.  While some genre fans may take umbrage with the fact that the perspective is horizontal instead of vertical, both critics and players seem to agree that the thrill and the rewarding difficulty’s there for Sine Mora to take flight.

Xbox Games With Gold for June: A Weak Retro Brew