Last year I wrote a post with my wild ideas and predictions of what I would be playing in 2020. Out of the 13 games that I mentioned I have played 3, own one that I haven’t played yet, didn’t pick up one of them, will be playing two this year, and still dreaming about the rest. I wanted to come up with another post similar with my wild ideas, but didn’t know where to start. Lucky for me, there are a butt ton of anniversaries this year. So I want to do a sort of “lightning round” event where I come up with a realistic idea on what we could get, and then a fantasy that would be cool to see. If any of these things do come true, you heard it hear first!
Anniversary Lightning Round
Donkey Kong (40 Years)
Realistic: I’m not sure. Nintendo has kinda let Donkey Kong do his own thing Mario spinoff games outside the Country series. If we do get anything, it will be a surprise to me. Maybe a Game & Watch with the original Donkey Kong on it.
Fantasy: Funky Kong mode enable for all of 2021.
The Legend of Zelda (35 Years)
Realistic: Nintendo is going to try to push out Breath of the Wild 2 this year. I have no doubt we will get it this year (maybe).
Fantasy: A situation like the Mario 3D All-Stars, but it has the GameCube versions of Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, and Four Swords. Bonus points for me if an Oracle Duology ever happens.
Metroid (35 Years)
Realistic: Eh… A lot of people are hoping for Metroid Prime Trilogy on Switch to keep them fed until Prime 4 comes out, but I’m in the kiddie pool on this for now.
Fantasy: Metroid Prime Trilogy for Switch OR Metroid Prime Pinball DX
Dragon Quest (35 Years)
Realistic: They just finished porting XI to all consoles. Unless they can put it on smartphones, I don’t think Square will do much.
Fantasy: DQ9 on Switch and PS4/5 wouldn’t be a bad deal (do NOT do it dirty like you did with Crystal Chronicles)
Castlevania (35 Years)
Realistic: I would make a joke, but Konami has released the older game to current gen consoles. That alone is a miracle no one saw coming.
Fantasy: You know what hasn’t been rereleased though? The N64 games. Do it you cowards!
Kid Icarus (35 Years)
Realistic: There haven’t been any news or rumors about a new Kid Icarus. Don’t hold your breath for anything.
Fantasy: If there is a new Kid Icarus game then it will be a surprise for all. I still need to play Uprising at some point.
Sonic the Hedgehog (30 Years)
Realistic: Sega has reassured us that Sonic’s 30th will have a lot for the blue blur. Sega has been pretty good at listening to their player base and delivering games that they want to play with mixed results. Expect a new 3D game and maybe that Adventure remake.
Fantasy: Look. All I want is Generations 2 with at least 2-3 stages from each mainline game. I will eat that for breakfast everyday.
F-Zero (30 Years)
Realistic: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
Fantasy: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
Civilization (30 Years)
Realistic: Firaxis already has a road map currently for Civ 6. We might get another cool attempt of a spinoff like Beyond Earth, but I don’t see that happening.
Fantasy: Speaking of fantasy, how cool would a fantasy civilization game be? You can pick a different fantasy race with special perks and everything. If this game already exists, please let me know.
Pokémon (25 Years)
Realistic: The Pokemon Company is already on the move with their announcements. There was a trailer for the 25th anniversary as well as a trailer and release date for New Pokemon Snap. I’m sure they have a lot more in store for the rest of the year. On a side note, it is also the 15th anniversary of Diamond & Pearl, so get your expectation hats on.
Fantasy: If I could ask for one thing, it would probably be a new Pokemon Pinball game or rerelease. Those games rule!
Resident Evil (25 Years)
Realistic: Resident Evil 8 is coming out this year. Outside of that will be a treat for fans.
Fantasy: A Resident Evil game from the perspective of a mutant. Instead of fighting, you have to avoid people trying to kill you while you try and find a cure for yourself. Along the way silly things happen to make you evolve and more of a threat to the people hunting you. Done right, it could be better than all the multiplayer games they’ve tried.
Crash Bandicoot (25 Years)
Realistic: Crash seems to have been fully revived now. We just got Crash 4 last year, so maybe some DLC will come to say that they did something.
Fantasy: Crash, Mario, and Sonic at Wrestlemania (Shut up. I know you would play it)
Persona (25 Years)
Realistic: Atlus shocked us with Persona 5 for their 20th anniversary. It feels too soon for a Persona 6 since they are not done yet milking all they can from 5. The rest of the world is getting Persona 5 Strikers, but sadly that is nothing new. Atlus has said that they are working on something, so we will see.
Fantasy: Bring Persona 1-3 to PC. I’ll buy them like 4 Golden and then not play it, but I’ll buy it!
Super Mario RPG (25 Years)
Realistic: See F-Zero
Fantasy: Mallow for Smash
Tomb Raider (25 Years)
Realistic: It has been some time since Lara’s last adventure in 2018’s Shadow of the Tomb Raider. I have no clue what’s in store for the capable adventurer, but an adventure in 2021 may be unwise due to the pandemic.
Fantasy: A point and click adventure style Tomb Raider game. It may not be what the core audience wants, but I think it would be a nice change of pace until the next blockbuster hit.
Nintendo 64 (25 Years)
Realistic: Nothing. If Nintendo did anything it would come as a surprise for both us and them.
Fantasy: A N64 mini or start releasing N64 games on the Switch Online Service. As long as it has Star Fox 64 I’m good.
Halo (20 Years)
Realistic: Halo Infinite would have been nice, but the title also indicates how long you will have to wait for it. The Master Chief Collection was completed last year, so if anything you may see rereleases on the Xbox Series X.
Fantasy: Halo Battle Royal (Shut up. You would play it)
Devil May Cry (20 Years)
Realistic: Nothing foreseeable. DMC V was recently ported to PS5, so nothing special that I can tell.
Fantasy: DMC X Resident Evil. DMC started off as a Resident Evil game, so bring back the concept and see what happens.
Advance Wars (20 Years)
Realistic: Why do I hurt myself so much? War never ends, but Advance Wars ended in 2008 and it would take discovering oil in Switch games to bring it back.
Fantasy: At least Advance Wars 1, 2, & Dual Strike collection….
Golden Sun (20 Years)
Realistic: On the subject of pain.
Fantasy: Filling in the cliffhanger from Dark Dawn. I will take anything at this point. A sticky note from the director with how the series ends will be enough closure for me.
Wii Sports (15 Years)
Realistic: Nothing. You can’t even play real sports outside right now, so why pretend to do it virtual.
Fantasy: Switch Sports. Why is this not a thing?
The Elder Scrolls IV and V (15 & 10 Years)
Realistic: It will be the end of an era if Skyrim was not on PS5 or XBSX (it pretty much already is). Elder Scrolls online is getting Oblivion gates added so that is neat.
Fantasy: The official Todd Howard mod update. He just turns everything into Skyrim. Oblivion HD would also be pretty neat.
Bastion (10 Years)
Realistic: Supergiant’s first debut game was my first indie love. The world and gameplay was so interesting to me that I wanted to try and complete everything. It has shown its age lately since playing Hades. I don’t expect Supergiant to do anything for the game, but any surprises would be nice.
Fantasy: When playing Bastion recently, I found that the game is still great, but could benefit with some improvements. An anniversary edition of Bastion could speed the game up a little bit and improve some of the weapon’s speed. My only real request in an enhanced edition, but if they found other things to add to it I would be gracious for it.
Dark Souls (10 Years)
Realistic: We just got a remastered version of Demon’s Soul. What more do we want? From Software is probably hard at work with Elden Ring that anything new to the franchise will come years later.
Fantasy: A version of Dark Souls 1 that plays like Dark Souls 3.
Overwatch (5 Years)
Realistic: The yearly anniversary event might be interesting this year. Until Overwatch 2 comes out, I don’t think any more interesting content will be coming out like new heroes or game modes.
Fantasy: Overwatch 2 is actually done and they release it this year.
Stardew Valley (5 Years)
Realistic: Stardew Valley still amazes me to this day. Version 1.5 was released on PC recently and console players will get it later this year. It has been a while since I finished it, so maybe it will be the perfect relaxation tool I need in the future.
Fantasy: This game does not require any fantasy ideas from me. It has delivered what I want in a farming simulation game and it continues to deliver.
Whew. That was a long strike of lighting.
Please don’t get mad at me if none of these wild predictions come true. Blame yourself for giving into false hype. Keep your expectations low and keep an open mind to experience new things. If any of these do come true, then I take full credit and your heard it here first! If there are other anniversaries happening this year that I did not cover, you can leave a comment and I’ll give my opinions there.
Now if you excuse me, I have to go back to counting the days without a Nintendo Direct.
Thanks for reading,
DanamesX
Tales From The Backlog 