A number of Triple-A video game development companies recently announced their major game releases for 2019. These are four of the major releases:

“Kingdom Hearts III” (Jan. 29)—an action-RPG set in the worlds of Disney and Pixar movies. It is set to release on XBOX ONE, PC and Playstation 4. While these games may not appeal to everyone, freshman Edward Tindell is excited for the other things the year can bring.

“I’m looking forward to more ‘Fortnite’ skins and ‘Battlefield’ downloadable content,” Tindell said. “I like to play video games until my mom yells at me.”

“Animal Crossing” (early 2019)—a simulation game where the player controls a virtual town of animals. The game will be released exclusively for the Nintendo Switch. Nintendo recently offered a mobile version of the series in 2017.

“The Elder Scrolls: Blades” (March 31)—an action-adventure game set in a medieval world filled with dragons is planned for release on all major consoles, PC and mobile devices. “The Elder Scrolls” series has not released a new game since “Skyrim” in Nov. 2011, which sold over 30 million copies to date. Sophomore Justin Frye thinks the game is a smart move for Bethesda, the developer, to regain players and critics’ trust after a critical release was received negatively.

“I think this will help change the direction that Bethesda is going in,” Frye said. “It’s good for them to realize that nobody likes the direction they are going in and they are making bad choices.”

“Shenmue III” (Aug. 27)—an action-adventure game set in the 1980s in China following Ryo Hazuki as he tries to avenge his father’s death; the game comes after an 18-year break in the series. After earning over 6 million dollars from a Kickstarter campaign, Sega, another developer, allowed Yu Suzuki to direct the game. Sophomore Eric DeVries believes that people who want to get involved in the series should start at the beginning with “Shenmue 1.”

“Players can get their own feel for the game and experience how it plays out by themselves,” DeVries said. “They should try to find the first game instead of watching someone play the game.”

While these are not the only games coming out this year, they are expected to set the standard for other  games in the future.