March '26 Release Thread

There is quite a bit coming out this month, as is usual for this time of year, though maybe nothing so huge and amazing that it eclipses everything else.


The biggest game this month is probably(?) Marathon. This is the latest game from Bungie, the creators of Halo and Destiny, and is a live service multiplayer extraction shooter. There has been quite a lot of controversy surrounding this game and a lot of people online seem determined to hate it. I can't predict how well it will do under these conditions in a genre that people already have picked favorites in, but it is nevertheless one of the most significant new releases of the year.

This month's "could be big" game is Crimson Desert. Some of you may remember Black Desert Online, an action mmo from South Korea that was particularly well known for its graphics and its character creator. Crimson Desert is taking the DNA from BDO and turning it into an open world single player game instead. This game has been intensely hyped by action rpg fans, but it is also a huge question mark and many have started to doubt it. There's no telling how good it will actually be, but it is worth keeping an eye on.

We also have a big new Japanese rpg to look forward to this month, with Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection. This is a turn based rpg spinoff in the Monster Hunter franchise. While in Monster Hunter you battle giant monsters and use their corpses to create new armor and weapons, Stories instead has you raise monsters to ride and fight with as allies. Different monsters help you in exploration in different ways and it has much more of a narrative focus than Monster Hunter typically does, as you would expect from the rpg genre.


Most games these days are multiplatform, but here are a few PC specific highlights:

The next World of Warcraft expansion, Midnight, releases this month. This is the second game in the "Worldsoul Saga" and continues the story of... whatever is happening in WoW at the moment. I haven't had time for it so I've deliberately avoided learning more, but it's coming out! I know it has player housing because I was seeing advertising for that one feature specifically constantly lately.

While it is technically still just Early Access, Slay the Spire II is probably going to be one of the most significant indie games of the year, akin to Hades 2 last year. Slay the Spire was a simple deck building roguelike in which you would gradually attempt to power up a character as you explored a dungeon consisting of nodes on a vertical map. This is one of those games that was so well received and novel when it came out that its mechanics went on to inspire leagues of other games in the years that followed.

Lastly, PCs are getting a port of last year's Death Stranding 2: On the Beach this month. Much like the previous game, this is a post apocalyptic action adventure game in which you deliver packages to people that have been cut off from society and gradually link them back together again. It features expanded combat options as well as various environmental hazards (rivers that flood, sandstorms, etc).


Odds and Ends:

Nintendo's major new release for March is Pokemon Pokopia. This is a life sim akin to Animal Crossing or maybe Stardew Valley. Instead of an rpg where you battle with Pokemon, you befriend then and build a community, craft, farm, etc.

Life is Strange: Reunion is a follow-up to to Double Exposure from a little over a year ago. This is a narrative adventure franchise in which the protagonist would have some kind of special power, rewinding time, reading minds, etc that helped them overcome a mystery/drama while interacting with an interesting cast of characters. Each game would feature new characters, but Double Exposure brought back the protagonist from the original in an attempt to recapture that first game's audience (later games in the series are not as well liked). It failed. This game brings back another beloved character from the original and is being described as the end of their story.

Finally, I mentioned Greedfall 2 in a release thread last year, I believe, and then it got delayed. The first was an action rpg that is sort of like if Mass Effect was about colonialism. This sequel was shifting to a different combat and game style altogether and was getting pretty negative feedback. I have no idea if they righted the ship and don't intend to research it further at this time, but figured it was worth a mention.


That's not all, but it's all I have the energy to type up. Check the tag below, or feel free to share anything you think is interesting.

Spoiler for March releases:

PC

• World of Warcraft: Midnight (March) - mmo expansion
• Slay the Spire II (March) - deck building roguelike
• Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (March) - action adventure
  
  

Multiplatform

• Marathon (March) - extraction shooter
• Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection (March) - rpg
• Crimson Desert (March) - action rpg
• GreedFall 2: The Dying World (March) - action rpg
• Life is Strange: Reunion (March) - adventure
• John Carpenter's Toxic Commando (March) - fps
• Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf (March) - puzzle platformer
• Scott Pilgrim EX (March) - brawler
• Damon and Baby (March) - action adventure
• The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin (March) - action rpg
• Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake (March) - survival horror
• Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered (March) - action-adventure re-release
• Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection (March) - action rpg compilation
• MLB The Show 26 (March) - sports
• WWE 2K26 (March) - sports
  

PS5


Xbox Series X/S



Switch 2

• Pokemon Pokopia (March) - life sim
• Super Mario Bros Wonder Switch 2 Edition (March) - platformer expansion
  

Is anyone looking forward to any of this month's releases?

Monster Hunter Stories 3 is the only thing I'm really excited about this month. Or I would be if I had played the previous one yet. I know, I know. I say this every month.

Thought about trying the free Marathon beta test/server slam weekend they had recently, just out of morbid curiosity, but I lacked the motivation to actually do it.


PS+

PGA Tour 2K25 (PS5)
Monster Hunter Rise (PS5/PS4)
Slime Rancher 2 (PS5)
The Elder Scrolls Online Collection: Gold Road (PS5/PS4)


Trailers:

https://youtu.be/hWwXSb7dlnQ?si=6DUDRGYkiCdEunJT

https://youtu.be/0V8mt28YVwE?si=b4SSqoyrnh68qoO4

https://youtu.be/f1M_0t2Tayk?si=y9dXkWqP57Zj8UzT


I try not to embed too many videos in each thread, so here are links to a series of deep dive videos for Crimson Desert for anyone interested:

Crimson Desert Features Overview #1 - Youtube

Crimson Desert Features Overview #2 - Youtube

Crimson Desert Features Overview #3 - Youtube

Looks like it was a good month overall. It sort of seems like Crimson Desert might be the winner overall, but it's hard to tell if that's just recency bias or what, as every week had a different new game people were talking about.

Crimson Desert itself seems a little divisive, perhaps in the same way Dragon's Dogma was. People that just like to explore a fantasy world are loving it, but people expecting a good story or a polished interface seem to bounce off.

Marathon is reviewing extremely well, but there is still extremely vocal hate for the game among the internet community in general. Apparently it's very hardcore and so has a much smaller potential audience than Bungie's other games, which is causing severe backlash.

Pokemom Pokopia also blew up earlier in the month. Maybe it's still big and is just being overshadowed by more popular genres, I don't know. It apparently satisfied that cozy/casual niche that Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley fans enjoy.

Also heard good things about Monster Hunter Stories 3 and Slay the Spire 2, but not a lot. And nothing about several of the other games that came out this month.

Slay the Spire 2 is "just" more of the same. So if you love Slay the Spire, which a lot of people do, then you will love Slay the Spire 2.
I like it personally. It has the added benefit being a game that you can "play on the side" while doing other things. So if you like to watch a show, listen to a podcast or whatever while gaming, then this game is good for that too.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Milton Finkelstein

Slay the Spire 2 is "just" more of the same. So if you love Slay the Spire, which a lot of people do, then you will love Slay the Spire 2.
I like it personally. It has the added benefit being a game that you can "play on the side" while doing other things. So if you like to watch a show, listen to a podcast or whatever while gaming, then this game is good for that too.

---

I really enjoy Slay the Spire - took me a while to figure out what strategies were viable and which cards were just never a good choice, but once you start to understand some of the synergies, the game opens up a lot.

Apparently with StS2, they're trying to reduce the number of "useless" cards, which should open up more possibilities. Heck of a balancing job, though.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Zarbonius

I really enjoy Slay the Spire - took me a while to figure out what strategies were viable and which cards were just never a good choice, but once you start to understand some of the synergies, the game opens up a lot.

Apparently with StS2, they're trying to reduce the number of "useless" cards, which should open up more possibilities. Heck of a balancing job, though.

---

Yea, I haven't played it enough, or at least had a very analytical approach, so I have no idea if they have reached that balance or not. I also don't want to go to Reddit or Youtube to gain insights into the best builds etc. But I do enjoy just playing it casually and getting a tiny bit better each run. :-)

Oh don't get me wrong - for me, 90% of it was trial and error (and dumb luck) more than any sort of analytical approach.

Also, I have only (so far) played Ironclad, so I haven't got a clue about good approaches with the other characters.

I played around with the Necrobinder today and that one seemed very weak. The Doom mechanic being after a monster has had its turn is a real problem.
But it's probably just a matter of playing it some more and figuring how to make it work better - And then being lucky in getting the correct cards early on.
The luck on card rewards is my only issue (currently). It seems like its such a huge factor in being successful. If you at first try to lean in one direction and then just don't get any card rewards that compliments that, then you're just out of luck and may as well restart. I felt that especially with the Silent, trying to either rely on the Poison mechanic or Shivs for instance.

Any way, have you played it Multiplayer yet? If so, how is it?

Haven't tried the multiplayer yet. I'm a very casual player, and assuming many of the other early access players are likely to be a bit more hardcore players, I'm a bit reluctant to try that out. Not that I'm worried about toxicity from anyone else; more that I am aware of my relative lack of skill/knowledge and don't want to ruin someone else's game if I'm screwing things up by playing poorly. (Hellraiser is a hell of a card though - can't see how that won't get changed eventually.)

I did the same thing to some extent with Helldivers 2 and multiplayer options; I just left it set to "friends only" and never joined other players' missions, so I played mostly solo or with friends I knew IRL. Partly that was apprehension about my skill level, but also partly because having kids, I might have to bail out on a multiplayer game on little to no notice.

...and yes, I'm still playing HD2, but now I leave it open to anyone to join, since crashing/quitting/whatever no longer wrecks the mission for anyone else. And since I always start my own mission, if anyone joins me and misbehaves, I can just kick them! ;)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Wool

It sort of seems like Crimson Desert might be the winner overall, but it's hard to tell if that's just recency bias or what, as every week had a different new game people were talking about.

Crimson Desert itself seems a little divisive, perhaps in the same way Dragon's Dogma was. People that just like to explore a fantasy world are loving it, but people expecting a good story or a polished interface seem to bounce off.

---

Judging from sales, the patches, and at least my anecdotal feed, this game looks to have real potential.

Not sure how much longer I'm going to be able to resist pulling the trigger on it.

:grinyes:

Yeah. Crimson Desert is CRAZY.

It definitely has an RDR2 vibe with the exploration, achievements, and quests.

It has a Witcher 3 feel with the graphics, skills, and abilities.

It has a Dragons Dogma / Ghost of Tsushima feel with the combat.

And it has a Dragon Age: Inquisition feel for how utterly ENORMOUS it is, and with the camp missions you dispatch.

I know it sounds like if you try to kluge all that stuff together in one game it would have to be a terrible hot mess.

But this game is AMAZING. And HUGE! I can't imagine finishing it in less than a goddamn year lol.

Highly recommend!