Monthly Game Guide March

March. It goes in like a lion and out like a lamb. Unless of course, we're talking about video games, in which case it's always like a lion, beginning with an onslaught of video game releases and ending with...an onslaught of video game releases. As always, we at Game Rant will not only detail what our writers will be playing during this month, but the new releases as well.

So sit down, and let us know what you'll be playing this month!

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Game Rant's Playlist

Robert Keyes:

As any gamer knows, March marks the long-awaited end to one of the most gratifying, deep and emotional video game series' ever: Mass Effect. The original game remains one of my favorites of all time and while the sequel left me looking for a better story and RPG experience, ME3 promises to give us the best of both worlds so I'll be investing the 40 required hours for the campaign and perhaps, countless more into its multiplayer, assuming it holds up. We managed to get The Darkness II late so I'll be finishing that up for review as well, quad-wielding my way to victory.

  • Mass Effect 3
  • The Darkness II
  • Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City

Ben Kendrick:

In February I'll be, what's that? It's March? Where the hell did February go? I'm no closer to finishing Skyrim - although I did complete another journey into the night with Alan Wake's American Nightmare. In March, I'm going to to continue punishing myself with the Twisted Metal singleplayer campaign as well as attempting to dominate the leaderboards in the recently released SSX reboot. I also recently picked-up Rocksmith in the interest of dusting off my guitar - and building up some callouses again. That said, the majority of my March gaming will be dedicated to Mass Effect 3 - just like everyone else. I thoroughly enjoyed the multiplayer demo last month and, unlike a lot of the cynics, am actually pretty excited about more co-op - as well as completing part three of my Paragon Shepard story of course.

Jeff Schille:

After a January and February spent playing RPGs non-stop, it's almost tough to think about kicking off March the same way. Nevertheless, I'll be jumping right into Mass Effect 3, just like the rest of the GR crew. I have to admit that the demo left me underwhelmed, but there is no way I'm missing out on the series' final chapter.

I'm not sure it's a long term investment, but I really want to check out Street Fighter X Tekken. Also, it's been too long since I've played a season of Tiger Woods golf, and PGA Tour 13 might be the game to draw me back in.

All that said, if I could play any of March's games right this minute, Journey would be my choice. I definitely have an affinity for "arty" games, and with The Last Guardian nowhere in sight, Journey might own the category this year.

Andrew Dyce:

Who are we kidding, March will be all about Mass Effect 3, at least to start. Having played both previous games and all the accompanying DLC, to say I'm invested in seeing this story come to a close would be an understatement. The demo certainly didn't convince me that every aspect of this game will be flawless, but I'll be happy if the story is worth the wait. With some of my friends picking up SSX, I'll no doubt be hopping online all month to beat their high scores, but Shepard won't have any real competition.

Riley Little:

March is one of the biggest months of the entire year for video game releases. I think everyone I know, and ever will know, will be playing Mass Effect 3. I'll be following suit with these people, and I'm excited to see whether the game can live up to its insurmountable hype. Other than Mass Effect 3, I'm looking forward to both Mario Party 9 and Kid Icarus: Uprising. Mario's ninth party has shown some promise after Nintendo completely revamped the game, but I'm going to be pretty upset if Donkey Kong is excluded from the playable roster once again. As for Kid Icarus: Uprising, I got a brief hands-on with the game early last month, and I've been super excited for the title ever since.

Anthony Taormina:

It should come as no surprise that I too will be playing Mass Effect 3, it's the biggest game of the month and perhaps the biggest game of the year. But besides charting the universe in the new Normandy I plan on putting in some more time with the PlayStation Vita, including checking out Unit 13 the new handheld title from Zipper Interactive, tackling some of this month's hot sports titles like FIFA Street and MLB 12: The Show, and wrapping the month up with some Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City.

John Jacques:

After replaying Mass Effect 2 from one of my old Mass Effect 1 imports, it's safe to say that taking the fight to the reapers in Mass Effect 3 is my top priority for March, slightly above school, eating, sleep and the girlfriend (if you're reading this, just kidding!). The announcement of some leaked DLC has me stoked that one of my predictions turned out to be right, so I'm really excited to delve into the galaxy and see what unravels.

Aside of Mass Effect, I'll probably be tinkering around with Football Manager 2012 during some slower lectures, and might play through some Jagged Alliance: Back in Action to see if it can step up to the plate left behind by TalonSoft. It's been getting some hefty mixed reviews, so I'm really curious to put the game through the paces this March!

Dwayne Holder:

Last month I spouted some nonsense about wanting to play Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. This was before playing the Mass Effect 3 demo and rediscovering my love of that universe. In preparation I may play the final moments of ME2 which I just recovered off an old hard drive. Also while I wait I'll be doing some retro gaming on my GBA SP with Riviera The Promised Land. Old school RPG fans may want to check this out, though the GBA cart (the better version) is a bit hard to find. Luckily it was ported to the PSP.

  • Mass Effect 3
  • Riviera: The Promised Land

Anthony Mole:

March brings upon one interesting item for me: Yakuza: Dead Souls. I'm very interesting in playing the zombie themed spin off, even more so than Mass Effect 3 - though I'll also be spending some time with Shepard Commander come March 6th. I'll be spending most of the month with Hyperdimension Neptunia and my Vita. I've got Prinny: Can I Really Be The Hero and What Did I Do To Deserve This My Lord!? sitting on there. Sumioni: Demon Arts is supposed to come out this month and that's definitely a day one buy for me, as well as the upcoming Motorstorm RC. And if I have the cash, Unit 13 as well. Lastly, I'm very interested in checking out Journey, but I might not be able to get to it until the end of the month.

  • Yakuza: Dead Souls
  • Mass Effect 3
  • Journey
  • Hyperdimension Neptunia
  • Prinny: Can I Really Be  The Hero
  • What Did I Do To Deserve This My Lord!?
  • Sumioni: Demon Arts
  • Motorstorm RC

Matt Rowland:

I'm taking an entire week off from my day job to play Mass Effect 3 when it's released. As a huge fan of the franchise, Commander Shepard has become somewhat of a fictional icon for me, to the point where I don't even customize his appearance (I know, I'm in the minority here). Commander Shepard won't be my only focus however, as being a huge baseball fan, MLB 12: The Show is a must play. If there is any time left between those two games and my continual obsession with Skyrim, I might check out Mario Party 9 for the Wii as my son gets more into "traditional" games (as opposed to Wii Bowling).

  • Mass Effect 3
  • MLB 12: The Show
  • Skyrim
  • Mario Party 9

Curt Hutson:

Mass Effect 3.

  • Mass Effect 3

Brian Sipple:

Seeing as though the last 25 days of March will be a contest of how well I can keep my life together while handling the release of Mass Effect 3, I've made plans to front load the first 6 with any and all non-gaming related activities. That should buy me a week or two. Afterwards, I'm prepared to make the necessary concessions, but I don't doubt it will be worth it.

It looks like publishers have similar plans, as most have (wisely) fled from Mass Effect 3's release knowing their sales depended on it. It will be interesting to see if Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2 and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 manage to make a mark towards the end of the month, but as far as I'm concerned, the attention BioWare's opus will be receiving is very well deserved.

  • Mass Effect 3

Dave Rudd:

Real life keeps getting in the way of my full gaming enjoyment! I will, however, make sure to find time to continue leveling my Smuggler in SWTOR. As a WoW veteran, taking some time away from Azeroth and digging into the lore of the old Republic has been a great time so far. I am also planning on playing some SSX when it finally hits store shelves this month. I am a huge fan of the previous entries in the series and have been waiting for this one for a long time. ME3 is on my radar, though not too highly since I never finished either of the other games in the series. I always tend to get bored halfway through, but I am holding out hope that the third one will keep my interest.

  • The Old Republic
  • SSX

Game Rant's Most Anticipated Game:

Mass Effect 3

Mass Effect 3 Most Anticipated Game Rant

Duh.

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March 2012 Video Game Releases

Based on US releases, all dates subject to change.

Week of March 5th, 2012

  • Nicktoons MLB 3D (3DS; March 6th, 2012)
  • Motorstorm RC (Vita, PS3; March 6th, 2012)
  • Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 (Vita; March 6th, 2012)
  • Crush 3D (3DS; March 6th, 2012)
  • Country Dance Kinect (March 6th, 2012)
  • Blades of Time (PS3, Xbox 360; March 6th, 2012)
  • Supremacy MMA (Vita; March 6th, 2012)
  • The Sims 3: Showtime (PC/Mac; March 6th, 2012)
  • Mass Effect 3 (PS3, Xbox 360, PC; March 6th, 2012)
  • Unit 13 (Vita; March 6th, 2012)
  • Street Fighter X Tekken (PS3, Xbox 360; March 6th, 2012)
  • Mario Party 9 (Wii; March 6th, 2012)
  • MLB 2K12 (PS3, Xbox 360, PC, Wii, DS, PS2, PSP; March 6th, 2012)
  • MLB 12: The Show (PS3, Vita; March 6th, 2012)
  • Naraba's World: Labyrinth of Light (DS; March 7th, 2012)
  • Naraba's World: The Mysterious Palace (DS; March 7th, 2012)
  • I Am Alive (Xbox 360; March 7th, 2012)

Week of March 12th, 2012

  • Hard Reset: Extended Edition (PC; March 13th, 2012)
  • Xia-Xia (DS; March 13th, 2012)
  • Planet Crashers (3DS; March 13th, 2012)
  • Journey (PS3; March 13th, 2012)
  • Top Gun Hardlock (PS3, Xbox 360; March 13th, 2012)
  • Silverlicious (DS; March 13th, 2012)
  • Warp (PS3, PC; March 13th, 2012)
  • Birds of Steel (PS3, Xbox 360; March 13th, 2012)
  • Yakuza: Dead Souls (March 13th, 2012)
  • FIFA Street (March 13th, 2012)
  • Silent Hill: Downpour (PS3, Xbox 360; March 13th, 2012)
  • Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Storm Generations (PS3; Xbox 360; March 13th, 2012)
  • Tales of Grace f (PS3; March 13th, 2012)

Week of March 19th, 2012

  • DiRT 3: Complete Edition (PS3, Xbox 360; March 20th, 2012)
  • Let's Ride: Best in Breed (3DS; March 20th, 2012)
  • Paws and Claws Pampered Pets Resort (3DS; March 20th, 2012)
  • Go-Go's (DS; March 20th, 2012)
  • Shogun 2: Fall of the Samurai (PC; March 23rd, 2012)
  • Kinect Rush: A Disney Pixar Adventure (Xbox 360; March 20th, 2012)
  • Armored Core V (PS3, Xbox 360; March 20th, 2012)
  • Resident Evil: Operation: Raccoon City (PS3, Xbox 360; March 20th, 2012)

Week of March 26th, 2012

  • Global Ops: Commando Lybia (PC; March 27th, 2012)
  • Tropico Trilogy (PC; March 27th, 2012)
  • Combat Wings: The Great Battles of WW2 (Xbox 360; March 27th, 2012)
  • Collapse: Devastated Worlds (PS3, Xbox 360, Wii; March 27th, 2012)
  • 50 Classic Games (3DS; March 27th, 2012)
  • Horses 3D (3DS; March 27th, 2012)
  • Test Drive: Ferrari Legends (PS3, Xbox 360; March 27th, 2012)
  • Kids Learn To Think: A+ Edition (DS; March 29th, 2012)
  • Silent Hill: Book of Memories (Vita; March 27th, 2012)
  • Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 (PS3, Xbox 360; March 27th, 2012)

No one on our team, will be playing  Let's Ride: Best in Breed because here at Game Rant, we hate prejudice, especially when it involves horse breeds. But if you're playing it or anything else, follow us on Twitter @GameRant or like us on Facebook and let us know, or just leave a comment down below!