Every one of these days is going to offer so very, very much.
About a year ago I sung the praises of the month of June right here on Vagrant Rant, mentioning a handful of promising entertainment media releases releasing that month that made it a truly exciting time to be a fan of movies and videogames. Well, quite frankly, the 2013 edition of June smashes the 2012 version on promise alone. My word, look at just ten of the things that will be available to us this month (in chronological order):
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The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages/Seasons
OK, so this one technically isn’t a June thing, but given these two well regarded Gameboy Color games will be releasing on the Australian 3DS eShop on the last day of May, it’s pretty safe to say that fans will be playing them throughout June. I’ve never had the pleasure of playing the pair but if they end up being half as good as Link’s Awakening, which I also experienced first on the eShop, I will be a very happy chap.
Remember Me
While my anticipation for this one has been dented a little by some mixed early previews, it still looks plenty interesting and unique enough to be worth a try. The idea of hacking into and modifying memories in an action game seems fresh enough and lowered expectations do sometimes have the effect of making something more enjoyable. I’ll post my thoughts on this here site regardless.
E3
The 2013 showing of the Electronic Entertainment Expo is positively set to explode. As far as the gaming world is concerned, there hasn’t been a time quite this exciting in recent memory. Microsoft has promised to reveal a ton of actual games for its upcoming Xbox One console and Sony is poised to strike back with more juicy PS4 details. There will be plenty of worthy sub-stories, such as what Ubisoft plans to do with Obsidian’s upcoming South Park game, and after all that is over Nintendo will be revealing their new 3D Mario, Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros games. This is seriously one of my most anticipated shows in years.
The Last of Us
At this point I feel like this game has been promoted endlessly for a very long time and I’m pretty tired of waiting to play it. Friends of mine insist it isn’t for me because I don’t mix well with scary games, but it just looks so damn atmospheric and pretty and it’s made by Naughty Dog! I struggle to think of ways that this game can fail to live up to the hype. I’ve been wrong before, but gaaahh I just want to play it.
Animal Crossing New Leaf
I haven’t really gotten into an Animal Crossing game since 2005’s DS title Wild World. I skipped the Wii version from a couple of years ago because I believe the strength of the series is in its portability. So I was always going to be excited about another portable entry in the franchise, but in this one you can design pants! And swim! And put up fences! And get the townsfolk to bend to your whims, cause you’re the mayor! Can’t wait.
Despicable Me 2
Three of the movies I listed on my 2013 most anticipated list will be releasing in Australia on the same day: June 20th. This is possibly the one that has me most excited at the moment, as the first Despicable Me was a film that made me laugh uproariously and also choke up (the ending, people), which just isn’t that easy to do anymore. Let’s hope that Pierre Coffin, Chris Renaud and company can achieve a similar outcome once again.
Monsters University
When was the last time you went to see a Pixar movie not sure about whether it would be good enough or not? After Brave‘s polarizing reception last year the mega studio is heading into uncharted waters with the general public. However, it’s doing so with a bunch of characters that rank among its most beloved, so it just may return to more universally pleasing form with Monsters University (Although if you ask me, it’s weird that Pixar is even in this position, given that last year hardly anyone was willing to actually call Brave a bad film).
World War Z
Early opinions on this film have been leaning towards the positive and I’m not afraid to admit I’m keen to see it on the whole “Brad Pitt + Zombies” equation alone. Even though fast zombies are like the scariest thing ever, this movie seems to be playing the big action blockbuster card more than the cheap scares one and it just might pull it off. Hopefully.
New Super Luigi U
Although the gloriously all-green, limited edition retail release of this game won’t be hitting Australian shores until late July, the downloadable version will arrive on June 21st. So if you own and enjoy New Super Mario Bros U for Wii U, you will be able to download this game-transforming DLC, which overlays a whopping 80 entirely new levels onto the world map and adds a new playable multiplayer character. A somewhat refreshing offering from Nintendo, one might say.
Man of Steel
Australians will have to wait a week or so after the USA gets to see Man of Steel, probably as revenge for our earlier Iron Man 3 release, but I can scarcely think of a better way to round out the month than with this much-hyped blockbuster on June 27th. The final trailer revealed last week is just so impressive, promising plenty of action to go with all the introspective character-building that the initial trailer showcased. And I’ll be reviewing it right here on Vagrant Rant.
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