The Biggest Games Releasing in August 2021

The strategy genre is still a major player in the PC space. Sega has done well in that regard thanks to its Total War series. Now the Japanese publisher/developer is playing around in the 4X space (Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate) space with its new IP, Humankind. Just like the Civilization series, this game lets you lead your own underdeveloped society starting from the nomadic age. Over time, you’ll help it ascend through your political and militaristic efforts. Within each era, you’ll get to select from one of 10 civilizations based on actual historical societies and do your best to strive for greatness.

When August comes around, that means another round of digital gridiron action is set to drop. Madden NFL 22 is adorned by Tom Brady and Patric Mahomes, which makes it very clear that this new series installment is attempting to reach GOAT-tier status just like its cover stars. The Dynamic Gameday mechanic makes the onscreen football action look and feel more realistic, Franchise Mode has been redeveloped to offer a better experience, and the superstar players’ game-changing abilities make their return.

2021 sure feels like the year of horde games, doesn’t it? The development studio that gave us Left 4 Dead is putting out a spiritual successor in Back 4 Blood, while Saber Interactive is offering an updated zombie killer simulator in World War Z: Aftermath. Cold Iron Studio is adopting the Aliens franchise for its co-op survival struggles. So the name of the game is this - you and two other A.I. bots or human allies must stay alive while an army of bloodthirsty xenomorphs try to rip you all apart. You can select your soldier from one of five classes during each campaign (which takes place after the entire Alien trilogy). This one looks and sounds like a great time - shooting down those oh-so-familiar xenomorphs with your friends in close proximity sounds like the perfect Saturday night chill session.

Get this - the original King’s Bounty launched all the way back in 1990. And now in 2021, an official sequel is finally in our midst. King’s Bounty II places you within the vast Kingdom of Nostria, where plenty of political strife and turmoil has erupted. Turn-based battles, smart usage of the environment during each intense enemy skirmish, and open-world exploration are elements you’ll be treated to here. It may have taken far too long to get a King’s Bounty sequel, but it's better late than never.

Before development studio Double Fine inked a deal with the Xbox brand, Psychonauts 2 was already shaping up to be an extraordinary sequel. But with the extra financial support put forth by Xbox Game Studios, this trippy platformer got even more time in the oven to realize its full potential. Raz makes a comeback in this long-in-development sequel as a full-fledged Psychonaut with improved “Psi-Powers,” which will have to be relied on during the exploration segments tied to the mental realms of several characters.

Travis Touchdown has returned! And it’s been a long time coming (11 years actually!). His grand return to the town of Santa Destroy goes down since he’s headed into battle against an alien invasion. Travis brings his Beam Katana with him as he attempts to wipe out 10 vicious assassins and their extraterrestrial overseer. When Travis isn’t trying to save the world, he's moving around his town picking up odd jobs and zipping around in his sweet motorcycle known as the “Demzamtiger.” No More Heroes III features all the outlandish hacking & slashing fans have come to adore since the series’ debut.