The current hardware generation may be reaching the end, but the releases aren’t winding down yet. The next 12 months will feature the return of so many familiar faces, old friends like Master Chief, Mario, Leon Kennedy. But the release calendar won’t just be an old-boy’s club—new heroes stand ready and willing to capture our hearts and minds. Who are the most compelling heroes of upcoming games? Take a look…

Stars in: Remember Me

Capcom just recently revealed its upcoming dystopian sci-fi game Remember Me, so we don’t know very much about its lady protagonist Nilin. In fact, she doesn’t even know much about herself! Her (likely unscrupulous) employer Memoryeyes wiped out her memory, and the game’s plot revolves around her attempts to restore them. Set in a future version of Paris that’s become an Orwellian surveillance state, she could be a French citizen, or a foreign national there to work. Whatever the case, we can guess that she likely stumbled onto something that she wasn’t supposed to know. You don’t wake up in France’s Bastille Prison with a case of employer-induced amnesia without stepping on somebody’s toes. We’re really looking forward to watching this conspiracy unravel as more info on Remember Me is revealed. In the meantime, check out this impressive gameplay demo.

Stars in: Assassin’s Creed III

"On this land, I am torn. Part of me wants to fight and repel all outsiders. The other part of me is the outsider." – Connor Kenway

Connor Kenway’s real name is Ratonhnhakéton, but when he joined the Assassin Order, he decided to cut his peers a break and adopt an Anglo name that’s infinitely more pronounceable. That doesn’t mean he’s lost touch with roots, though. The son of an Englishman and a Native American woman, his British blood didn’t spare him a childhood of torment at the hands of invading colonialists. He has no hesitations about dropping down from the trees and burying a hatchet in a Lobsterback’s (Look it up. Didn’t you read Johnny Tremain?) skull. However, with so many allegiances he risks spreading himself thin. If he’s not careful, he could end up being a man without a country. Then again, so could everyone in the colonies, so the stakes are pretty high for ACIII. Finally, what we’d really like to know is how he connects to the series’ modern day main character Desmond Miles.

Stars in: Resident Evil 6

Talk about sins of the father! Mercenary Jake Mueller is the son of notable RE villain and all around bad guy Albert Wesker. This guy has infected more people with the T and G virus than we care to count. He’s even a carrier of the mutant super virus himself, so there’s no telling what kind of beastly genetic traits he’s passed on to his boy. As one of several playable protagonist we’ve seen for Resident Evil 6, Jake has exhibited some….interesting mutant tendencies. As a soldier for hire, we know that Jake has inherited his father’s “fight for the highest bidder” attitude, but we can’t wait to take him for a spin and see what kinds of nasty surprises he has up his sleeve.

Stars in: Deadpool

Assassin Wade Wilson isn't completely new to gamers and is beloved by many comic readers, but he's breaking new ground by starring in his own video game next year. The talkative soldier for hire is starring in his own ultra-violent action title that plays to his personal, metatextual strengths. Not much has been revealed about the plot yet, but you can expect Deadpool’s schizophrenic, self-aware dialogue along with beheadings, headshots, and everything else we love the antihero for. Soon the world will know the character comic fans have adored for decades.

Stars in: Dead Space 3

John Carver has had an uphill struggle with most Dead Space fans since he was first introduced. Seemingly a perfect example of the space marine cliché, Carver is the new co-op partner of the formerly solitary Isaac Clarke. Carver no-nonsense personality is at odds with Isaac's cerebral introspection, something that has played out in the co-op cutscenes we’ve seen in previews. We're interested to see more of in this interaction in the two player mode, and even for those that plan on playing DS3 solo better get used to John, as he'll still be a major supporting character in the narrative.

Stars in: Dishonored

Man, nothing will end your career as bodyguard to the Empress faster than being framed for her murder. That’s the first stumbling block players will have to step over as they take control of Corvo Atano, the protagonist from Bethesda’s exciting new IP Dishonored. Now that Corvo is a wanted man, pursued but the Lord Regent’s forces, he hides his face behind a technologically advanced mask that protects his identity, and keeps him safe from a nasty little plague that’s been going around. While much of Corvo’s backstory is yet to be revealed, we’ve had more than a few looks at what he’s capable of. He can pull off plenty of creative kills, choosing between a stealthy or bloody approach. Dishonored looks like a game that puts emphasis on player choice, which is why we’ve chosen as one of the most promising games slated for upcoming release.

Stars in: BioShock Infinite

The most interesting thing about Booker as a character is that he has any character at all. Unlike the fairly unknown Jack of 2007’s BioShock, Booker has a clearly defined past, personality, and face from the start of the game. Once a soldier and an operator for famous strike-breaking agency The Pinkertons, DeWitt is now a private detective hired to find a unique woman named Elizabeth on the floating city of Columbia. A stranger in a strange land, Booker has a lot to learn about this strange woman and the cloistered city, which he’ll be studying while killing a bunch of people and gaining new powers via the Plasmid-like Vigors.

Stars in: Beyond: Two Souls

Many games cover a small amount of time in a character’s life, be it a few days or even a few hours. For Jodie in the next game from the creators of Heavy Rain, players will follow 15 years of her life, starting when she’s a teen being kept in secret by a former federal agent. Eventually Jodie ends up on the run from the US government, no doubt because of her unexplained ability to communicate an invisible, powerful force she calls Aiden. Played by esteemed actress Ellen Page, Jodie could end up being the most well-realized character created by developer Quantic Dream.

Stars in: Injustice: Gods Among Us

Members of DC's premiere super team have appeared in multiple games with varying success, but many of them have been held back by being too goody-goody. Thanks to Injustice's twisted, alternate universe setting, the JLA can finally cut loose and use their powers to the extreme. Ever wanted to see Superman punch the Batman into space, or watch the Flash circle the Earth at light speed to deliver a right hook? That can finally happen in this game developed by the devs behind Mortal Kombat. But the big question is what made these heroes as bad as their enemies?

Stars in: Lost Planet 3

After taking most of the focus away from story in Lost Planet 2, narrative has come back with a vengeance in LP3, built around Jim. Set many years before the first game, Jim’s a family man that’s landed on the planet EDN III, his only desire to earn money to support his household on Earth. Of course, to do that he’ll have to battle snow pirates and the monsters inhabiting the frozen planet, so it’s a good thing for Jim that he’s well-versed in giant mech combat. It isn’t always true that what’s on the outside counts more than what’s inside, but it does when that outside is a giant robot with a chainsaw.

Stars in: The Last of Us

Most gamers aren’t too fond of escort missions, let alone an entire game built around that concept, but many can’t help but be drawn in by The Last of Us, thanks mostly to the relationship between the protagonists. Joel is a haggard man that has had to do some horrible things to survive in the now-ruined world of the near future. Ellie has only known the zombie-filled post-apocalypse and needs protection from Joel, something he isn’t used to providing. As we’ve seen in gameplay so far, Joel’s propensity for violence can be disturbing, but it’s how he was able to survive in the wastelands. Will Ellie help him earn back some of his humanity, or will she become a liability he can’t afford?

What about your feelings? We miss any new faces on the horizon worth a mention? Tell us in the comments!

Need to know more about upcoming games? Check out the 20 biggest games still supposedly coming out in 2012 and read our E3 2012 important stuff awards.