6 Biggest New Games of July 2018

Octopath Traveller
Octopath Traveler

As our youth slowly ticks away and the adoption of corduroy pants edges ever closer, at least we will always have video games. To stave off the obsession with hard boiled sweets, July has some intriguing new releases, though it may honestly be the most “understated” month of 2018 so far.

From a visit to Mars to a dalliance with a simpler time in gaming, here are the biggest new games of July 2018. This is also your reminder that the year is ebbing away and you haven’t accomplished anything you wanted to. Sorry.

 

Red Faction Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered

Release date: July 3, 2018
Platform(s): PC, PS4, XB1

THQ Nordic sure do love to release remasters seemingly just because they can. After two probably unnecessary de Blob re-releases, it’s time for Red Faction Guerrilla to get the same treatment. It doesn’t appear as if the game has had wholesale changes, but why fix what isn’t broken? Funnily enough, it’s your job to break everything on Mars with a whopping huge hammer. There are other aspects to the game, but that’s the one you’re coming for.

 

Shining Resonance Refrain

Release date: July 10, 2018
Platform(s): PC, PS4, XB1, Switch

I admittedly don’t know a lot about Shining Resonance Refrain, other than that it was released in Japan in 2014 for the PS3 and never received a localisation to the West. It’s an RPG developed by Media.Vision of Wild Arms fame and published by Sega, who make a living out of a hedgehog. It looks very much like an old school RPG game, so Tales and Final Fantasy fans should be in their element here.

 

Earthfall

Release date: July 13, 2018
Platform(s): PC, PS4, XB1

I feel like I’ve written “the Left 4 Dead sequel we will never get” about ninety-five times in 2018 so far. Valve’s loss is apparently everyone else’s game with Vermintide 2 already filling that slot nicely, as well as World War Z and Overkill’s The Walking Dead still to come. Earthfall jumps aboard the co-op shooter bandwagon but with aliens. This Early Access title like it could be a lot of fun when it receives its full launch, if nothing else.

 

Octopath Traveller

Release date: July 13, 2018
Platform: Switch

A charming little throwback to the RPG days of yore, Octopath Traveller combines old-school visuals with the contemporary to create something completely distinctive. It’s a turn-based 2D RPG, which means anyone who adored the first six Final Fantasy games are sure to be in their element here. A weird selling point of the game is that it will have no DLC as it’s already the complete package. It releases exclusively for the Switch and already has a demo available on the eShop, just in case you somehow aren’t already charmed.

 

Mega Man X Legacy Collection

Release date: July 24, 2018
Platform(s): PC, PS4, XB1, Switch

Back in the days when video games just wanted to absolutely punish you and make you want to flagellate yourself for your incompetence, there was Mega Man. The Mega Man X Legacy Collection brings Mega Man X, Mega Man X2, Mega Man X3, and Mega Man X4 to this generation of gaming, and with it a whole new bunch of reasons to question your capabilities. It’s available on basically all the platforms, but you’re really going to want it on the Switch, just so you can weep gently at how bad you are as you sit on the toilet.

 

The Persistence

Release date: July 24, 2018
Platform: PS4 (PSVR)

A stealth rogue-like that looks like Event Horizon and System Shock had a baby, The Persistence is one of the most intriguing VR games of 2018. Its developers, Firesprite, have said that they’ve done all they can to make it approachable for players who suffer from nausea with a whole heap of options available to limit it — you may not need those ginger capsules for once. Releases exclusively for PSVR.

 

The Banner Saga 3

Release date: July 24, 2018
Platform(s): PC, PS4, XB1, Switch

If there was an award show for aesthetics, The Banner Saga would sweep the whole lot. If there was also an awards show for games that give you anxiety and guilt, it would also clear house. You must guide a caravan of your people to safety, which also means plenty of tough decisions along the way. Equal parts RPG, RTS, and ethics simulator, The Banner Saga 3 is bound to round off a trilogy of crowdfunding successes in style.

Some of the coverage you find on Cultured Vultures contains affiliate links, which provide us with small commissions based on purchases made from visiting our site. We cover gaming news, movie reviews, wrestling and much more.

Editor-in-Chief