Out This Week: May 19, 2014

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Transistor, Wolfenstein: The New Order, Drakengard 3 and more will kick off this week of new releases – then Tropico 5 will close it out on Friday.

By Lucas M. Thomas

With so many new games and movies coming out, it can be hard to keep up. Lucky for you, IGN is here to help with a weekly round-up of the biggest releases each and every week. Check out the latest releases for this week, and be sure to come back next Monday for a new update.
Note: The prices and deals compiled below are accurate at the time we published this story, but all are subject to change.

Transistor

Release Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2014 (PS4, PC)
From the makers of Bastion, Transistor has players assume the role of a young woman who gains control of a powerful weapon after a mysterious group of assailants nearly kills her with it. Now she must fight from street to street against forces that will stop at nothing to recover the weapon. During the course of the adventure, players will piece together the Transistor’s mysteries as they pursue its former owners.

Wolfenstein: The New Order

Release Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2014
From our Preview: After a failed air battle and a crash landing, I’m on a beach echoing with the sounds of war. In the distance, a rampaging robotic dog terrorizes my troops. What can my bullets do against it? Not much, it seems, so I head toward a downed airplane with a still-functioning turret. As I swim along the beach amidst fire and twisted metal, I’m nearly crushed by a gigantic metal foot. Yes, Wolfenstein: The New Order can proudly put a check in the “big set piece” box.

R-Type Dimensions – PS3 Version

Release Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2014
See it on PlayStation Network for $10.00 (PS3)
From the Announcement: Over five years after this classic collection first hit Xbox Live Arcade, R-Type Dimensions is finally coming to PlayStation 3. It features both R-Type and R-Type II, and each title can be played in 2D and 3D. In addition, the downloadable shooter includes an infinite mode (meaning endless retries), level select, local two-player co-op, worldwide leaderboards, and PlayStation 3 trophies.

Mugen Souls Z

Release Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2014
From our Preview: It’s true: we didn’t like Mugen Souls very much when it came to PlayStation 3 in 2012. But that didn’t stop it from garnering a hardcore niche that not only necessitated a sequel in Japan, but a localization and translation of that sequel for the west. This JRPG may not be squarely aimed at every JRPG fan – or even most of them – but the story of Chou Chou was endearing to some, and so we’ll get another one of her stories this year.

Drakengard 3

Release Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2014
From our Preview: Out of all of the games on this list, the fact that Drakengard 3 is leaving Japan and coming west is perhaps the biggest surprise. In Japan, Drakengard is known as Dragon Dragoon, and the third game is, interestingly, a prequel to the series’ original entry. But it keeps intact the established themes of the series, as well as the game’s action-heavy mechanics folded-up as an RPG.
Drakengard 3 undoubtedly looks great – and fans of action-RPGs have something to look forward to with it – but the story behind the game is perhaps what’s most fascinating about it (well, at least until we actually get to play it). It’s been long-in-development, and it nearly never came out at all. In fact, its development is intimately intertwined with a very similar game called Nier. You should go read about its interesting story sometime!

The Monuments Men

Release Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2014
From our Review: The Monuments Men plays like a first cut, that rough assemblage of footage cobbled together for the filmmakers to see and judge but not the public, leaving one to assume the film simply got away from director George Clooney and his team in the editing room. It’s a shame because there’s a fine and engaging wartime tale in there somewhere, but not up on the screen.
Maybe Monuments Men would have been better suited as a cable miniseries where we could spend the time traversing war-torn Europe with these characters, or perhaps there’s a much longer director’s cut Blu-ray in store that will, like Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven, give us the movie we were truly intended to see.

Swords

Release Date: Thursday, May 22, 2014
See it in the Nintendo eShop for Wii U
Prepare for an encounter with a freakishly large pepper: Swords & Soldiers is coming your way! Rewrite history as you take control of the brutal Vikings, the devious Aztecs or the crafty Chinese in their global quest to win the favor of the Gods! Swords & Soldiers is a side-scrolling strategy game that lets you control an entire army and lets you wield devastating magical abilities. Demolish your enemy’s castle at the end of these two-dimensional battlefields and lead your troops to victory.

Tropico 5 – PC Version

Release Date: Friday, May 23, 2014
Packed with a whole host of new gameplay features and all new artwork designed from scratch, Tropico 5 takes the strategy series into a new and exciting direction — dynasties! You, as El Presidente, will first take control of the infamous island of Tropico during early colonial times and then guide it through the centuries as the world changes and moves ever forward. You must tackle the changing needs of your people, as well as opposing governments and factions, and thus lay the foundations for your own dynasty. As you move through your years in office you can promote members of your extended family on the island to positions of power: such as ambassador, commanding general or even Supreme Ruler, to ensure your legacy thrives through the eras. As your influence and wealth grows, so do the threats to your burgeoning island superpower. Can you survive both World Wars, prosper through the Great Depression, rule as an iron-fisted dictator through the Cold War and advance your country to modern times and beyond? From the 19th to the 21st century, each era carries its own challenges and opportunities.

Be sure to check back at the beginning of every week for a round-up of the week’s hottest game and movie releases.

You can follow Lucas M. Thomas on Twitter, @lucasmthomas.