While there are a few games scheduled for release in 2022 that we’ve been looking forward to for years now, it’s the depth of the year’s lineup that really sets it apart. While we’re still waiting for several of the year’s biggest games to finally get release dates (and delays are obviously always a possibility), there’s a very good chance that every month this year will feature multiple new releases that will end up being in the game of the year conversation. Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, though, let’s take a look at some of the biggest upcoming releases in 2022 and why you should have many of these games on your calendar and wishlist.
Babylon’s Fall
March 3 | PlatinumGames | PS4, PS5, PC
Dune: Spice Wars
TBA | Shiro Games | PC Described as a “real-time strategy game with 4X elements,” Shiro Games’ Spice Wars looks to not only capture the political intrigue and strategic maneuvering that help make the Dune universe so compelling but somehow live up to that franchise’s history of revolutionary RTS experiences. At the very least, it will give us a little more Dune to look forward to while we all wait for Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human
February 4 | Techland | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC It’s been a long road to the release of Dying Light 2, but with this long-awaited sequel to one of the surprise hits of 2015, developer Techland looks to find a way to improve the original game’s incredible freerunning action while telling a much more ambitious story about a (possibly hopeless) attempt to reunite the increasingly divided humans that wander the area known simply as The City.
Elden Ring
February 25 | FromSoftware Inc. | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Evil Dead: The Game
February | Saber Interactive | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC
While there have been a few Evil Dead games in the past, none have come close to recreating that perfect blend of comedy, horror, and action that has come to define most of the entries in this franchise. Evil Dead: The Game looks to reverse the curse with its co-op horror gameplay that lets you control Ash and a few more familiar faces as you battle a variety of Deadites.
Ghostwire: Tokyo
TBA | Tango Gameworks | PS5, PC Developer Tango Gameworks (the studio responsible for the underrated Evil Within games) returns to the horror genre with Ghostwire: Tokyo. While many of the details about this game remain a mystery, we do know that it will take players on a first-person tour through the paranormal side of Tokyo as they battle spirits with help from a combat system that director Shinichiro Hara has described as “karate meets magic.” If Tango’s previous works are any indication, it’s at least safe to assume this game will be incredibly scary.
God of War Ragnarök
TBA | Santa Monica Studio | PS4, PS5
Gotham Knights
TBA | WB Games Montréal | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Batman is dead and Gotham has become even more of a warzone than ever. You control Nightwing, Batgirl, Robin, and Red Hood as they attempt to save the city and perhaps become Gotham’s new hero. Recent Batman games have certainly raised our expectations for this franchise, but this title’s drop-in and drop-out co-op multiplayer could help it establish its own identity and become one of the year’s most intriguing action experiences.
Gran Turismo 7
March 4 | Polyphony Digital | PS4, PS5
It’s been quite a while since we’ve gotten a proper new Gran Turismo game, but in the minds of many, this series is still the standard by which all realistic racing games must be judged. With the power of the PS5 at their side, they may even find a way to surpass this series’ legendary audio and visual design elements that have often made GT games the definitive declaration that the next generation of gaming is here.
Hogwarts Legacy
TBA | Avalanche Software | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Horizon Forbidden West
February 18 | Guerrilla Games | PS4, PS5 Nobody knew quite what to expect from 2017’s Horizon Zero Dawn, but Guerrilla Games most ambitious project yet turned out to be one of the most unique and enjoyable open-world experiences of the last generation. With its expanded item system and diverse new biomes, Forbidden West may just be the superior sequel that turns this series into one of gaming’s most undeniable franchises.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land
Spring | HAL Laboratory | Nintendo Switch The Kirby franchise has long been one of the great torchbearers of the 2D platformer genre, which makes it that much more surprising that Forgotten Land will essentially be the first “proper” 3D Kirby game ever. We’ve seen that transition go wrong in the past, but developer HAL Laboratory’s unbelievably consistent work with this franchise over the years has to inspire hope that they will find a way to make it work.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
TBA | Traveller’s Tales, TT Games | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2
TBA | Nintendo EPD | Nintendo Switch It’s only been about five years since Breath of the Wild was released, but developers everywhere are still chasing that game’s best ideas and have started to use Breath of the Wild as shorthand for what they’re trying to do. With the still-unnamed sequel to Breath of the Wild, Nintendo looks to show everyone why nobody does it quite as well as they do. The one thing we know for sure about this mysterious sequel is that it’s easily one of 2022’s most anticipated games.
The Lord of the Rings: Gollum
TBA | Nintendo EPD | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is a stealth-based adventure title that casts you in the role of Gollum on his eternal quest to find his precious. There’s been an interesting influx of stealth “revival” games in recent years, and Gollum is certainly one of the most high-profile attempts we’ve seen in quite some time to bring that genre back to mainstream prominence and perhaps modernize the best elements of the greatest stealth titles.
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope
TBA | Ubisoft Milan, Ubisoft Paris | Nintendo Switch
Marvel’s Midnight Suns
March | Firaxis Games | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC Midnight Suns initially appeared to be that team-based Marvel superhero action game we’ve been waiting to see someone properly bring into the modern era, but this title’s deckbuilding and card combat systems make it one of the biggest…err…wildcards of the year. However, the considerable talents of developer Firaxis (the studio behind XCOM: Enemy Unknown and many of the modern Civilization titles) may be the best reason to consider this one of the year’s best strategy games.
Metal Slug Tactics
TBA | Leikir Studio | Nintendo Switch, PC “Tactical” isn’t the word I would use to describe the action in the Metal Slug franchise, but this fascinating spin-off from Leikir Studio looks to turn one of the definitive 2D action franchises into a compelling strategy experience. This project’s combination of Metal Slug art, Final Fantasy Tactics-style strategy, and roguelike elements may just make it one of the year’s more surprising hits.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus
January 28 | Game Freak | Nintendo Switch
Rainbow Six Extraction
January 20 | Ubisoft Montreal | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC, Stadia If Rainbow Six Siege has taught us anything, it’s that the Rainbow Six team is more than capable of taking this franchise in new directions while honoring that tactical combat that helped set this series apart in the first place. So while Extraction’s sci-fi gameplay and cooperative action may remind you of Left 4 Dead, GTFO, and Back 4 Blood, there’s more than enough Rainbow Six in the mix to make this one of 2022’s most intriguing co-op experiences.
Redfall
TBA | Arkane Studios | Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC Redfall is an open-world, action-adventure first-person shooter that sees you battle both the undead and the tragically alive with the help of four uniquely talented survivors. It’s about as far from developer Arkane’s wheelhouse as the studio can possibly get, but Arkane’s success in pretty much every endeavor so far should be all the reason you need to keep an eye on this one.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl
April 28 | GSC Game World | Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Scorn
October | Ebb Software | Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC The art styles of H. R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński and modern first-person horror join forces in Scorn: the upcoming biopunk survival horror tile from Ebb Software that remains somewhat mysterious despite occasionally being teased over the last several years. Anyone who has ever wondered what it might be like if David Cronenberg made a horror game may just find their answer within the still-beating confines of this promising project.
Sifu
February 8 | Sloclap | PS4, PS5, PC The historic lack of truly exceptional martial arts games is one of those strange trends that we’ll never quite be able to explain. Thankfully, Sifu looks prepared to deliver the kind of kung-fu wish-fulfillment experience we just never seem to get enough of in gaming. This title’s complex 3D combat is reason enough to check it out, but it’s the game’s fascinating aging system that might prove to be its biggest secret weapon.
Sonic Frontiers
TBA | Sonic Team | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC
Splatoon 3
TBA | Nintendo EPD | Nintendo Switch The idea of Nintendo making a family-friendly competitive shooter once felt like a joke that nobody quite understood, but Splatoon has quickly become one of Nintendo’s most enjoyable new ideas in years. While Splatoon 3 looks fairly similar to the previous two games in the franchise in most of the ways that matter most, the chance to play with this game’s new levels, characters, and weapons is all most fans will need.
Starfield
November 11 | Bethesda Game Studios | Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC Starfield may be Bethesda Game Studios‘ first new RPG franchise in years, but much of the hype surrounding this game is based on the fact that it looks like a “return to form” for one of the industry’s most famous and acclaimed RPG studios. Can Starfield possibly live up to the hype that surrounds any new BGS game, or will it end up being a curious placeholder that lays the technical foundation for The Elder Scrolls 6?
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin
June 14 | Team Ninja | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Stray
June 14 | BlueTwelve Studio | PS4, PS5, PC Stray just missed its 2021 release date, which means that we’ve actually seen quite a bit of this game that follows a lost cat trying to navigate a world filled with robots in order to make it home to their family. There’s a fascinating dystopian quality to this game’s world that perfectly compliments its many puzzles and generally mysterious nature.
Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League
TBA | Rocksteady Studios | PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC After years worth of rumors that strongly suggested developer Rocksteady (the Batman: Arkham series) has been working on a Justice League game, that studio swerved us just slightly by revealing that they’re actually working on a game about the Suicide Squad trying to kill Justice League members that have gone rogue. This co-op action title has a lot to live up to given the high expectations for Rocksteady’s next project, but few fans dare doubt the skills of Rocksteady or the promise of this premise.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
TBA | Tribute Games | Nintendo Switch, PC
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands
March 25 | Gearbox Software | PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC Based on Borderlands 2’s brilliant D&D-inspired Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep DLC, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is a slightly more traditional tabletop-style RPG that benefits from a healthy influx of Borderlands-style art and humor. While that latter quality may attract some fans of that franchise, it’s this game’s character creation options, skill systems, and first-person battles that really have us intrigued.
Total War: Warhammer III
February 17 | Creative Assembly | PC The surprisingly perfect blend of Total War strategy and Warhammer world-building continues in Creative Assembly’s third entry into one of the best strategy series in years. Anyone who is a fan of truly massive battles featuring an array of impossible creations will likely fall in love with what Warhammer III has to offer.
Triangle Strategy
March 4 | Square Enix, Artdink | Nintendo Switch
