Games

New Game Releases 03/17/26 – 03/23/26

Top Releases:

  • Crimson Desert (PC/PS5/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 19th
  • MLB The Show 26 (PS5/Switch/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 17th
  • MapleStory M (PC) – Releases Mar. 18th
  • Rushing Beat X: Return of Brawl Brothers (PC/PS5/Switch 2/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 18th

Well, we’ve come to the first major slow down of the year, as companies seem to be trying to stay away from the Resident Evil: Requiem and Pokopia (and Marathon, I guess). That being said, we might have our first Clair Obscure-esque sleeper hit of the year in Crimson Desert. Developed by Pearl Abyss, the South Korean team best known for the MMO Black Desert Online, Crimson Desert is their first single-player title and, despite early indications that it might be connected to Black Desert, the game is an entirely new property without any connections to the famous MMO.

Pre-release previews have been glowing, with various outlets praising the game’s massive open world, stunning graphics, and addictive gameplay. I’m very curious how this game will turn out, as I feel like it has been a while since a third person, action/RPG with an original IP has hit big (maybe Black Myth Wukong?). Do I think Crimson Desert will hit the same level of popularity & critical acclaim as Clair Obscur, no, but I think it will be a game that we’re all still going to be talking about at the end of the year.

Crimson Desert (PC/PS5/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 19th

Developed by: Pearl Abyss
Published by: Pearl Abyss

Our other major release of the week in MLB The Show 26, the latest entry in Sony’s long running baseball game series. All of the recent modes will still be available, and you’ll still be attempting to collect players’ digital baseball cards as you attempt to build the best team for online play (and, yes, they will cost real world money). There are, of course, some new features, such as slightly improved controls, up to date rosters, gameplay tweaks to existing modes, and all the latest MLB rule changes. In terms of larger changes, there is now a mode called “Road to Cooperstown”, in which you will take one player all the way from college baseball to, hopefully, a first ballot entry in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

MLB The Show 26 (PS5/Switch/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 17th

Developed by: San Diego Studio
Published by: Sony Interactive Entertainment

In smaller releases, the popular MMO Maplestory M is arriving on PC this week, so I hope you’re ready to lose hours of your life. There is a brand new beat ’em up arriving, Rushing Beat X: Return of Brawl Brothers, a follow-up to the SNES game from the 90’s. According to developer City Connection, the game contains some AI generated flavor text; do with that information what you will.

Rounding things out, we have two titles leaving early access this week. First up is Whispers of the Eyeless, a Darkest Dungeon-esque RPG in which you must manage and lead your cult of minions. Second, we have Dragonkin: The Banished, a hack & slash title that is mixed with a city builder. Steam reviews have the game pegged as “Very Positive”, so maybe give it a go.

MapleStory M (PC) – Releases Mar. 18th

Developed by: NEXON
Published by: NEXON

Rushing Beat X: Return of Brawl Brothers (PC/PS5/Switch 2/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 18th

Developed by: City Connection
Published by: City Connection

Whispers of the Eyeless (PC) – Releases Mar. 17th

Developed by: Venris/Evil Gingerbread Studio
Published by: Anshar Publishing

Dragonkin: The Banished (PC/PS5/Series X|S) – Releases Mar. 19th

Developed by: Eko Software
Published by: Nacon

Ports and Expansions:

  • Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun & Aiko’s Choice (Switch 2) – Releases Mar. 18th
  • Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (PC) – Releases Mar. 18th

In ports, the Switch 2 is getting Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun and its expansion, Aiko’s Choice. The Steam description describes it as “…a hardcore tactical stealth game…”, and it carries a “Very Positive” rating from players. I don’t know too much about this game, but it might be a good game to tide you over until we get a new Fire Emblem entry on Switch 2.

ALSO!

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is coming to PC; can’t wait to see what gross mods people come up with…

Everything else:

Notable Releases from 10, 20, and 30 years ago:

Games:

In notable games, from 2016 we have the Wii U fighting game Pokkén Tournament, from Bandai Namco. A cross between Tekken and Pokémon, Pokkén Tournament first came to Japanese arcades in July of 2015, before getting ported to Nintendo’s ill-fated Wii U console in March of 2016. Gameplay-wise, it doesn’t deviate too far from most other 1v1 fighting games, though it does contain an interesting difference.

Matches in Pokkén Tournament happen on two different play fields. In “Field Phase”, players move their character around an open arena, like a third person 3D platformer. In terms of other fighting games, it is similar to the gameplay of Power Stone. The other play field is “Dual Phase”, in which players are on a fixed, “2D” style camera, fighting in a more traditional way, similiar to Tekken, Street Fighter, Fatal Fury, etc.

Critics praised Pokkén Tournament, calling it one of the best fighting games of the year, and it found itself nominated at both The Game Awards and the DICE Awards in the “Best Fighting Game” category (losing both to Street Fighter V). Players were also similarly impressed with the game, with the title selling over 1 million copies on the Wii U (an impressive feat due to its low install base). When the game was ported to the Switch in 2017, it too sold over 1 million copies. There do not appear to be any plans for a follow-up title, though as we’ve seen with the recent Pokémon Pokopia, The Pokémon Company aren’t afraid to branch out of their RPG world, so let’s keep our fingers crossed that we get another pokémon fighting game one day.

From 2006, we have what is, arguably, the first killer app for the Xbox 360, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Like its predecessors, Oblivion is a massive, open world RPG in which players take on quests, slay monsters, explore dungeons, and (hopefully) save the world. The main plot of Oblivion involves the slaying of the Emperor which, in turn, opens up several portals to the demon world of Oblivion. Players must seek out the illegitimate son of the emperor, as only he has the power to close the gates to Oblivion for good, bringing peace and prosperity back to the kingdom of Cyrodiil.

The team at Bethesda wanted to make sure that Oblivion felt like an upgrade from their previous Elder Scrolls title, Morrowind. To do this, quests were streamlined, with far fewer than were available in Morrowind, though they were felt to be of greater substance. Instead of an endless supply of “fetch quests” and “go kill that thing” style of quests, each one would feel like it was part of a larger story that made players feel like they were shaping the game’s outcome in a more meaningful way.

By moving to a next-gen system, the Xbox 360, the team at Bethesda were able to improve the series’ graphics significantly, an also allowed for all NPCs to be fully voice acted. This, however, lead to some awkward and stilted dialogue, at times, as many of the same lines would be recycled, with the same voices coming out of multiple characters, sometimes at the same time.

Still, Oblivion was highly praised by critics, being noted as one of the greatest games of the year. The size of the game was impressive, as was the amount of things to do an places to explore. Caves and dungeons seemed to stretch on endlessly, with new and exciting things around every corner. Enemies and NPCs had revamped AI, meaning their actions and reactions felt more natural and life-like in comparison to not just Morrowind, but almost any other video game on the market.

At the end of the year game awards shows, Oblivion was named Game of the Year at G-Phoria, G4TV’s annual program, as well as at the Spike VGA’s, beating games like Gears of War, Guitar Hero 2, Okami, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter, Call of Duty 2, Shadow of the Colossus, and Fight Night 3.

In regards to sales, Oblivion was a massive hit for Bethesda and publisher 2K. Almost 2 million copies were sold in the first month, and has lifetime sales of nearly 10 million units. High sales typically mean DLC, and Oblivion was not immune to this new trend. However, Bethesda’s first crack at it was widely criticized, as they gave players the infamous “horse armor” bundle. While the DLC itself isn’t necessarily bad, the cost for said horse armor, $2.50, was outrageous to most players. However, Oblivion was so popular that players still shelled out the dough for it, with Bethesda laughing all the way to the bank.

Bethesda followed-up Oblivion with the even more successful Skyrim, ensuring that The Elder Scrolls would be remembered as one of the greatest video game franchises of all-time. A remaster of Oblivion would arrive rather suddenly in 2025 to great fanfare, with a Switch 2 version slated to arrive in 2026. As for the next entry in The Elder Scrolls, well, despite being announced in 2018, development did not start until 2023, with conservative estimates pointing to a 2028 release.

From 1996, we’ve got the classic PC strategy game, Civilization II (in Snagglepuss voice: Sid Meier’s, even!). Like its predecessor, and subsequent sequels, Civilization II tasks players with creating and maintaining a thriving civilization through all of human history; from the days of primitive tribes up to the point where we either launch ourselves into deep space or obliterate one another in a nuclear holocaust.

I won’t go into too much detail about all the differences Civilization II had in comparison to its predecessor, but the main changes were that the game was now played in an isometric view, as opposed to top-down, and the computer players AI was significantly improved, leading to more surprising moments and tougher battles.

Civilization II was a massive hit for developer MicroProse, moving over 1 million copies by 1998, and over 3 million by the end of 2001. A strong modding community helped keep the game among the best selling PC games of its era, and kept a sequel from coming out until 2001. Civilization II was also a big hit with critics, who called it one of the greatest games of not just 1996, but one of the greatest of all-time.

Movies:

In notable films, 2016 gave us 10 Cloverfield Lane, a unique sequel to the original Cloverfield from 2008. While the films do not seem to connect to one another, they are both set in the same universe. In 10 Cloverfield Lane, a young woman is injured in a car accident after learning that multiple American cities appear to be under some kind of attack. Knocked unconscious from the car crash, the woman wakes up in a bunker, held captive by a middle-aged man who claims that the air outside is poisoned. The woman, the middle-aged man, and a younger man, all live together, tenuously, in the bunker, with their loyalty and trust in each other slowly breaking over the course of the film.

With a strong endorsement from critics, 10 Cloverfield Lane went on to gross over $100 million at the box office, despite coming in second to Zootopia in its opening weekend. While it would receive any Academy Award nominations, it was recognized by several “genre” award shows, including a nomination for Best Film and a win for Best Actor (John Goodman) at the Fangoria Awards. Meanwhile, the film cleaned up at the Saturn Awards, winning Best Thriller Film, Best Actress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Best Supporting Actor (Goodman), and was nominated for Best Editing.

A third film in the franchise (yet again, not a direct sequel but “connected”) called The Cloverfield Paradox was released in 2018, which loosely ties to the other two films. A fourth film was ready to go but, at the last minute, was turned into a stand alone film called A Quiet Place. An actual fourth film is, supposedly, in pre-production, but all news about it has dried up and it seems to be stuck in development hell.

From 2006, we have the movie V for Vendetta, a dystopian action film written & produced by the Wachoskis, and directed by James McTeigue (a well respected assistant director given his big break). Based on the graphic novel by Alan Moore, the film follows a young woman who is caught up in a conspiracy for revolution by a masked vigilante known as V.

While the film was a commercial success, earning nearly $135 million at the box office and sending sales of Guy Fawkes masks through the roof, critics weren’t as hot on V for Vendetta. While it wasn’t hated, and most critics agreed it was a stunning looking film that spoke to the political climate of the day (which, in hindsight, was far more palatable that what we have in 2026), it just wasn’t very, well, good, either.

Personally, I really enjoyed the movie but I can see how messy it is, particularly when you know the behind the scenes chaos with the recasting of V, the disowning of the film by Moore, and the “did they/didn’t they” direction of The Wachowskis vs. McTiegue. At the end of the day, V for Vendetta is a perfectly acceptable film that screams “2000’s”, acting as a perfect encapsulation of the political turmoil and the edgelord-conspiracy-theory-machismo that most dudes in their late teens & early twenties projected.

From 1996, we have the film Executive Decision, in which Kurt Russel must save an airplane from terrorists. While the film is a perfectly fine popcorn flick that is almost instantly forgettable, it is made notable for prominently featuring Steven Segal in promotional materials before killing him about ten minutes into the movie.

As the name of the film implies, the U.S. President must make an “executive decision” about the fate of the airplane. In order to stop the terrorists from doing…whatever…he must order it shot down. However, Kurt Russel and his buddies are still alive and on the plane, unable to contact the Pentagon and inform them that they can still save the day; I’ll let you guess how it ends.

Critics didn’t really love the movie, though it is considered “Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes. Generally speaking, though, most critics were not impressed, feeling that Executive Decision was just a poor imitation of Die Hard. I saw this in theatres with a group of friends and I just remember being really surprised that Steven Segal died so quickly and how hot Halle Berry looked.

Albums:

In notable albums, 2016 saw the release of ColleGrove by 2 Chainz. This was supposed to be a joint release with Lil Wayne but issues with the record label kept Wayne’s name off the record, and he’s only noted as a featured collaborator. It reached #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and was a modest hit with critics, who said the gruff, cynical viewpoint of 2 Chainz was complemented nicely by Wayne’s more bombastic and free spirited attitude.

From 2006, we have Everything All the Time, the full-length debut album from indie rock group Band of Horses. While it was a hit with critics, it didn’t manage to hit the Billboard Top 200, though it did reach #25 on the Heatseekers Chart. While they would find greater success on subsequent releases, the album’s two singles, “The Funeral” and “The Great Salt Lake” were alternative radio hits, with “The Funeral” single selling over 2 million copies.

From 1996, we have the album Tiny Music… Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop, the third full-length release from rock band Stone Temple Pilots. Recorded at a time when tensions in the band were high due to singer Scott Weiland’s heavy drug use, it’s a miracle that we got Tiny Music at all. Still, the recording went much smoother than it did for the bands previous album, Purple, and it took the minor experimentation on that record to a whole new level.

While there were still some “rockin’ grunge tunes” on the album, like “Tumble in the Rough”, many of the songs veered closer to 70’s glam rock, indie pop, and even bossa nova. Critically, Tiny Music was a bust, with most rock critics calling it an embarrassing collection of half baked songs that had lyrics as deep as a kiddie pool. The very cool, very hip website Pitchfork scored it 0.8 out of 10 and called it one of the worst records of the year.

Meanwhile, the general public seemed to be in love with the record, pushing it to #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and turning the songs “Big Bang Baby”, “Lady Picture Show”, and “Trippin’ on a Hole in a Paper Heart” into chart topping alternative radio hits. Over time, the reputation of the album grew, particularly as audience tastes changed, with the experimentation of Tiny Music was appreciated by music buffs and other musicians. Personally, Tiny Music is among my all-time favorites, and is preferable to Purple (though I love it as well).

Tiny Music came into my life at just the right time, with its soft, dreamy songs touching that new sensitive portion of my heart as I pined over girls, while the hard driving songs spoke to the aggression of my changing, adolescent brain. It felt cool to like Stone Temple Pilots in 1996, they were one of the few grunge bands that actually felt like they could survive the incoming punk movement, through their wild experimentation and “fuck it” attitude towards music. Hey, maybe they were the real punk rockers.

Pokkén Tournament (Wii U) – Released Mar. 18th, 2016

Notable Film Release: 10 Cloverfield Lane – Starring John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and John Gallagher Jr.
Click here to watch the trailer
Notable Album Release: 2 Chainz – ColleGrove
Click here to listen to the album

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PC/Xbox 360) – Released Mar. 20th, 2006

Notable Film Release: V for Vendetta – Starring Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Rea, and John Hurt
Click here to watch the trailer
Notable Album Release: Band of Horses – Everything All the Time
Click here to listen to the album

Civilization II (PC) – Released Mar. 1996

Notable Film Release: Executive Decision – Starring Kurt Russell, Halle Berry, John Leguizamo, Oliver Platt, Joe Morton, David Suchet, and Steven Seagal
Click here to watch the trailer
Notable Album Release: Stone Temple Pilots – Tiny Music… Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop
Click here to listen to album

This is arguably my favorite song on all of Tiny Music:

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