#mixedresults

So 2013 is finally coming to a close and it's time to look back on another weird and wonderful year for gaming. From record-breaking sales to complete franchise failures, developer meltdowns, new console launches and (arguably) some of the best games ever made; 2013 has proved to be another fantastic year to be a gamer. 

But it didn't all start off so well as January would prove to be a typical post-Winter period for games as new releases were pitiful, games were delayed and sales dried-up. It would seem that very few noteworthy games were released, with the reboot of 'Devil May Cry' being the only standout name on a list that included the above average (IMO) 'The Cave' and a re-release of the original 'Hitman' trilogy but now in shiny new HD graphics!! Admittedly none of these games were bad, in actual fact the new DMC proved quite a hit with critics rocking an 85 on Metacritic, but nothing seemed to gain real traction in regards to the fans reception showing that, once again, releasing a game in January is a risk-filled move as the potential of being missed because of a plethora of games from Christmas (and the inevitability of wallets being that little bit lighter) is very high. This would be nowhere more obvious than with the sales of the Wii-U that collapsed in the month of January to under 100,000 - a sign that, on reflection, would being telling of its year ahead as the new console would struggle to recover from a poor launch, despite some excellent games being released for the platform. 

February, however, saw the gaming year kick started into action with the early release of 'Fire Emblem Awakening' to a hugely positive response, selling over 390,000 in the US alone and saving the series from cancellation. However, what seemed like a good start would in actual fact be marred by the disappointing 'Dead Space 3', that under-performed critically and commercially causing EA's label President Frank Gibeau to bring into question the continuation of the franchise. Furthermore, Gearbox's 'Alien: Colonial Marines' released to the fact that it was an utter mess due to an outsourced development and the manipulation of previews and trailers, leading many to question how much faith can we place in pre-release hype? A month that had held so much promise was proved further disappointing with 'Crysis 3' falling flat due to its uninspired gameplay and story that couldn't compensate for its graphical power (this year would seem to be a disappointing one overall for Crytek as the release of 'Ryse' was not met with much praise either). Thankfully Sony, who'd been having a tough time with the poor sales of the PS Vita, let the month of February end on a high note as they announced their PS4 to mass appraisal from fans, developers and journalists alike. Their focus on games, games and more games, played straight into the hands of gamers as they tactically avoided the minefield that is DRM and motion-controls and instead promised a playground where 'indie' and 'AAA' titles could exist alike; as demonstrated by their announcements from the gorgeous 'Killzone: Shadow Fall' to the bat-shit insane 'Octodad'. Sony's announcement, that came surprisingly early, left gamers full of optimism and firmly placed the emphasis on Microsoft to see whether they could match or better this reveal. 

March would appear to be a month that, in the main, started off right where Sony had left - full of positivity and excitement, however not everything would play out swimmingly. The first week was perhaps the most pertinent of the potential for mixed results, as the excellent 'Tomb Raider' reboot hit stores, reintroducing Lara to the modern-era with outstanding graphics, a strong female character (Yes, one of those in games!) and brutal gameplay. But, this first week also saw the release of 'Sim City', a game that cemented many for EA as continuing to be the 'worst company in America' (in reality this is a ridiculous claim) as the always-online requirement and drastic changes to gameplay left many angry at the new ideas and in many cases, unable to play the game. The next two weeks would prove to be tumultuous as well, with new instalments to the 'Gears of War' and 'God of War' franchises failing to entice players due to uninspired changes and, quite frankly, because they were simply 'cash-ins' from Sony and Microsoft to milk their big franchises - ironically though both had weak sales figures. Thankfully though the end of the month saw a new 'Luigi's Mansion' that was received well and, more importantly, the release of 'Bioshock Infinite', a game that almost single-handedly dragged the month of March into that undefinable area of success (money) by being the highest rated game of the year, at that point, due to an incredible story, strong gameplay and a world that was quite unlike anything ever experienced before.