2022 is almost over; gone, done, finito, so it’s time to look ahead at what’s to come. Okay, so what can we expect in 2023? As is usual for for this time of year, a lot of games have been announced but most games don’t have a solid release date. We’re also moving into the fourth year of next generation of consoles but, with the high cost of living and rampant inflation, getting a PS5 or Series X is still unattainable for some people. Still, the publishers seem intent on leaving behind the 8th generation of consoles, with several new games only coming out on 9th generation hardware, so it’s going to become difficult to keep up if you don’t move on, sadly. Grab your notepad and set aside some cash now folks because, as always, it’s going to be another expensive year in gaming.

 

January

January of 2023 is a pretty strong month, surprisingly. First we have some really spectacular ports, like Persona 3 & Persona 4 hitting PC and consoles early in the month, as well as Monster Hunter Rise ending its Switch exclusivity. Square Enix continues it’s monumental output by releasing the oft delayed Forspoken (totally tubular; awkward), Bandai Namco gives us the RPG One Piece Odyssey, and the reboot of Dead Space also releases. The big January release, though, is once again from Nintendo who seem to be carving out a nice place for themselves here year after year, with Fire Emblem Engage; I am certain this will be dominating my Switch friend list in the first half of 2023.

 

February

February starts off with what will probably be the LEAST controversial game of 2023, Hogwarts Legacy. We’re getting a new entry in the Theatrhythm series, Final Bar Line, Koei Tecmo and Omega Force are putting out Wild Hearts, a kind of spiritual successor to the Toukiden series, and Sega is giving us a remake of the Japan-only Like a Dragon: Ishin. The biggest release of February is probably the PlayStation VR 2, along with its launch exclusive Horizon: Call of the Mountain. Warhammer fans can look forward to Blood Bowl III, while RPG fans should be excited for Atelier Ryza 3 and Octopath Traveller II. Finally, Nintendo is releasing Kirby Return To Dreamland Deluxe, an HD remake of the Wii game.

 

March

Koei Tecmo appears to be having a Square Enix year (at least in the first quarter), as they are planning to release a Nioh-esque action game from Team Ninja called Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. Two more Japan-only exclusives are getting the HD remaster for the West. First is Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, which has the distinction of being developed by auteur Suda 51, while the second is The Legend of Heroes: Trails To Azure. Ubisoft’s long awaited pirate game Skull & Bones is supposed to come out this month; we’ll see. Platinum Games and Nintendo are teaming up once again on the Bayonetta franchise, putting out the surprise spin-off Cereza and the Lost Demon. Lastly, we have two major titles coming out just one week apart from one another, the highly anticipated remake of Resident Evil 4, as well as the also eagerly awaited sequel Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.

 

April

Release dates start of get more sparse in April. DLC for Horizon: Forbidden West comes out, called Burning Shores, an interactive drama set in the Star Trek universe, Resurgence, comes out, and the Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection arrives. The big release of the month is the long awaited sequel, Dead Island 2. I wonder what kind of special edition packaging it’s going to have.

 

May

So far only two major titles have been announced for May, Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League and Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. That’s cool; moving on.

 

June

June has a few more releases confirmed, but the further we get into the year the more likely we’ll see delays, so don’t plan your PTO from work just yet to play any of these, Street Fighter 6, Diablo IV, Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life, and Final Fantasy XVI. Good stuff.

 

“Confirmed” for 2023

These are the rest of the 2023 games that have “confirmed” release dates, but of course this can easily change. Early in the year we can expect to get Starfield and Redfall, Spring should bring us the latest Forza Motorsport and the Summer should see the the Jet Set spiritual successor, Bomb Rush Cyberfunk. Later in the year we’ll get the next installment of The Dark Pictures Anthology with Directive 8020, which is also considered the first entry in “season 2” of the series.

 

The Rest…

As always there are a ton of games that have been announced but have no release date aside from either a generic “2023” or “Coming Soon”. Some I expect to arrive this year, like Pikmin 4 and Tekken 8, while some I would not be surprised to see in 2024 (or later) like Bethesda’s Indiana Jones and Insomniac’s Wolverine; I’m also convinced that Mineko’s Night Market is vaporware at this point, having been on this list since the 2019 preview. This list will also likely have adjustments to the consoles they arrive on as well, it’s best to think of this more like a “hey these might come out” list, and not get your hopes up too much.

• AEW: Fight Forever (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/XBone/Series X|S)
• Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp (Switch)
• Alan Wake 2 (PC/PS5/Series X|S)
• Aliens: Dark Descent (PC/PS4/PS5/XBone/Series X|S)
• Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon (PC/PS4/PS5/XBone/Series X|S)
• Assassin’s Creed: Mirage (PC/Luna/PS4/PS5/XBone/Series X|S)

• Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden (PC)
• Beyond Good and Evil 2 (PC)
• Crash Team Rumble (PS4/PS5/XBone/Series X|S)
• Death Stranding 2 (PS5)
• Demons Ate My Neighbors (PC)

• Dragon Age: Dreadwolf (PC/PS5/Series X|S)
• The Expanse (PC/PS4/PS5/Xbox One/Series X|S)
• Front Mission 2: Remake (Switch)
• Front Mission 3: Remake (Switch)
• Hades II (PC)
• Hellboy: Web of Wyrd (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/XBone/Series X|S)

• Hollow Knight: Silksong (PC/XBone/Series X|S)
• Homeworld 3 (PC)
• Indiana Jones (PC/Series X|S)
• Jagged Alliance 3 (PC)
• Judas (PC/PS5/Series X|S)
• Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game (PC/PS4/PS5/XBone/Series X|S)

• The Lord of the Rings: Gollum (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/XBone/Series X|S)
• Mass Effect (PS5/Series X|S)
• Metal Slug Tactics (PC/Switch)
• Metroid Prime 4 (Switch)
• Minecraft Legends (PC/Switch/XBone/Series X|S)
• Mineko’s Night Market (PC/Switch)

• Open Roads (PC/PS4/PS5/Series X|S)
• The Outer Worlds 2 (PC/XBone/Series X|S)
• Pikmin 4 (Switch)
• Robocop: Rogue City (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/XBone/Series X|S)
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl (PC/Series X|S)
• Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (PC/XBone/Series X|S)

• Spider-Man 2 (PS5)
• Tekken 8 (PC/PS5/Series X|S)
• Transformers: Reactivate (PC)
• Warhammer 40k Space Marine II (PC/PS5/Series X|S)
• The Wolf Among Us 2 (PC/PS4/PS5/XBone/Series X|S)
• Wolverine (PS5)
• Wrestling With Emotions: New Kid on the Block (PC/XBone/Series X|S)

 

What are the odds we see something wild come out, like Metroid Prime 4, Elder Scrolls VI, Dragon Age: Dreadwolf or the new Mass Effect? Be sure to call out anything I’ve missed, and chastise me soundly if I’ve messed anything up. I won’t pay attention to it, but it’ll make you feel better. Next week will see this column go back to regular coverage, however I would not expect it to be full of notable or big titles, so maybe catch up on your 2022 backlog for now. Be safe this week and have a fun & safe New Year’s Eve, I know I will, because 2022 was definitely not a hellscape that I was constantly trying to make sense of. 2020 and 2021 were the really bad years, but not 2022, nope, it was great, I WAS GREAT, WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?!! EVERYTHING IS FINE! Sorry about that; here’s to another great year of gaming!

 

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