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The common assumption is that the Fall is always the busiest season in gaming. As long as someone has been more interested in the traditional AAA titles and trends, this is largely true. The likes of October and November have typically belonged to EA, Activision, and Ubisoft, with the latest Assassin’s Creed, Call of Duty, Battlefield, or big open-world Sony title landing in close proximity to one another. We’ve been seeing a shift the past few years as more and more titles would get pushed back to January, February, or March. Capcom especially saw major benefits in the early-year release window with Resident Evil VII and, the following year, Monster Hunter World. Given the early releases of Resident Evil 2 and Devil May Cry 5, it seems as if they’re generally making that time of year their home.

Yet it was traditionally the release of a Destiny expansion (or the sequel) that kicked things off in September. It instead feels as if the release of Fire Emblem: Three Houses in July has set the avalanche in motion, and it has just now picked up full speed. Astral Chain and Control within days of each other, with more niche titles Oninaki and Crystar competing with one another. The Iceborne expansion for Monster Hunter World has kicked the season off with Destiny 2 landing the month following. WoW Classic is back to swallowing player souls, Daemon X Machinae jettisons onto Switches next Friday, Link’s Awakening gains consciousness the very following week, and we conclude with a definitive release of Dragon Quest XI S. This does not include an obscure title like AI: The Somnium Files, or the rerelease of Deadly Premonition announced just this week on Nintendo’s Direct presentation.

Wait, did I forget to mention The Man of Medan? The freshly ported Final Fantasy VIII? Or the increasingly tempting Remnant: From the Ashes? There is, at least, a slight calm in October, with Luigi’s Mansion 3 being the only major Switch release all month. The Outer Worlds and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare battle it out on the same day, though I think they’re secure in greatly differing audiences. November crashes in with the likes of Death Stranding, Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order, Shenmue 3, DOOM Eternal, and Pokémon Sword & Shield to steal directly from your wallet.

If the early months of 2020 were far more barren looking, then it may not be so bad. However, the calendar of next year is already being filled up by the likes of rereleases Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore and Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition. New releases such as Yakuza: Like a Dragon, Cyberpunk 2077, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines 2 also occupy that early calendar, accompanied by Trials of Mana and Final Fantasy VII Remake.

We are effectively drowning in riches, and it has only given me reason to confirm my desire to refrain from the next generation for at least a year, if not two. Nintendo’s early struggles of figuring out their hardware are over. They are in full stride, and they have plenty of developers porting titles to their little machine that could. While there’s not much in the mainstream AAA space that grabs my interest, the success of Control and the single-player Metroid-inspired Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order indicate that there may be room for titles that aren’t Games as Service after all. It’s just rather startling that, shortly after I decided I didn’t need to grab every major release, satisfied with those I know I’d enjoy rather than what the common gaming crowd favors, there’s an onslaught of titles that I really, genuinely wish to play.

This is not a time to be cynical about the games industry. We are, perhaps, seeing one of the best years (or collection of years) in a long time. There is something for everyone, and an abundance for those with a variety of tastes and desires.

What are you currently playing? What are you most looking forward to? Feel free to comment below, or send us an e-mail with your thoughts.

Opening theme music by my buddy Brandon, a.k.a. Fallen Prophecy.