The 6 hottest video games in a surprisingly action-packed February

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The 6 hottest video games in a surprisingly action-packed February

Apex Legends character

"Apex Legends"/Electronic Arts

"Apex Legends" kicked off the month with a surprise bang on February 4.

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  • It's just weeks into the new year and we're already waist-deep in major new games.
  • February kicked off with the surprise announcement-slash-launch of the excellent "Apex Legends" on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The game's already a breakaway hit, with over 10 million players.
  • Several other blockbuster titles are expected in the coming week, including "Crackdown 3" and "Anthem."

With a surprise announcement on February 4, followed swiftly by the game's launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, "Apex Legends" has already demonstrated that February is a big month for gaming.

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In the coming week, another trio of blockbusters is expected to arrive - spearheaded by the highly-anticipated "Anthem" from EA's Bioware team - and there's no slowing down after that!

Here's the rundown of all the biggest games of the year's shortest month:

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1. "Apex Legends"

1. "Apex Legends"

On paper, "Apex Legends" sounds a lot like "Fortnite."

It's a free-to-play shooter centered around a Battle Royale mode! It's available on several gaming platforms! It's full of colorful loot!

In reality, "Apex Legends" is a very different game in the same genre as "Fortnite."

If you've spent any time with the "Titanfall" games, you'll feel at least some tinge of familiarity with "Apex Legends."

There's a simple reason for that: "Apex Legends" is made by Respawn Entertainment, the EA-owned studio that made the "Titanfall" games. In fact, "Apex Legends" is sort of a "Titanfall" game, albeit one without wall-running or giant, hulking robot suits.

What it lacks in that stuff, it keeps in excellent first-person shooting. Above all else, "Apex Legends" is a really, really great multiplayer first-person shooter.

Yes, it's a Battle Royale game. And yes, it's a free-to-play game, with all the baggage that phrase comes with.

But, more than any of that stuff, "Apex Legends" is a best-in-class first-person shooter.

Release Date: February 4

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC

2. "Far Cry New Dawn"

2. "Far Cry New Dawn"

A new "Far Cry" game? Didn't one of those come out, like, in 2018?

Yep! That game was "Far Cry 5," and it came out in late March on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The open-world first-person shooter was set in America for the first time ever, and featured a new antagonist: a maniacal cult leader with nuclear ambitions.

"Far Cry New Dawn" is a sequel to that game, set in a post-apocalypse Montana 17 years after the events of "Far Cry 5." The trailer alludes to a period of extreme weather following a nuclear detonation, eventually leading to a new world — a world where people shoot sawblades from crossbows, apparently.

Release Date: February 15, 2019

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC

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3. "Crackdown 3"

3. "Crackdown 3"

"Crackdown 3" has been in the works for years, having been delayed multiple times.

As the name implies, it's the third game in the open-world, third-person action "Crackdown" series. But this time, apparently, it stars Terry Crews?

The series is big on mobility — allowing you to go anywhere you want — and on huge explosions. It looks like the third game in the series is no different in this respect.

Release Date: February 15, 2019

Platform(s): Xbox One, PC

4. "Anthem"

4. "Anthem"

You know "Iron Man"? The guy in the robot suit that flies through the air? Robert Downey Jr. plays him.

"Anthem" is basically an "Iron Man" game, albeit one that's entirely removed from the world of Marvel. You control a human inside of a robot suit — a "javelin" in the parlance of "Anthem" — and you do a lot of shooting.

Sometimes you're shooting humanoid enemies, sometimes it's types of animals, and sometimes it's a giant that shoots heat-seeking fire bombs.

All of which is to say this: "Anthem" is a third-person shooter that's set in an online-only, multiplayer-focused open world. It's a lot like "Destiny," but with jet packs.

Release Date: February 15 and February 22 (it's complicated)

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC

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5. "Metro: Exodus"

5. "Metro: Exodus"

Like so many other video games, the "Metro" series is set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Unlike many of those games, "Metro" is set in Russia. It envisions a wasteland shaped by nuclear radiation, dwindling resources, and unpredictable, extreme weather conditions.

It's a game about nuclear monsters, survival, and humanity. It's also a first-person shooter, so expect lots of shooting.

In "Metro: Exodus," the series finally exits the underground subway tunnels of previous games for higher ground. What you'll find there remains to be seen, but we're betting it's gruesome.

Release Date: February 22, 2019

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC

6. "Trials Rising"

6. "Trials Rising"

The "Trials" series is years-deep at this point, and it's still a surprising delight. The game is pretty straightforward: Carefully pilot a dirt bike through precarious stages that are rife with traps and pitfalls.

If you've spent any time watching bicycle or motorbike-based trials, you're no doubt familiar with what this game series is all about: Precision movement in extremely dangerous settings. "Trials" takes that formula and turns it into a risk-free video game, and then it adds massive, ridiculous explosions.

Release Date: February 26, 2019

Platform(s): Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, Nintendo Switch

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