Thus, here I am opting to do a little write-up about what games I'm looking forward to in 2023 instead of sitting around doing nothing. Who knows, maybe you're looking forward to these games as well. If I missed some games you are looking forward to, then by all means share what those games are in the comments below. You know what? Even if I included the games you're looking forward to, comment below anyway! This list will not be comprehensive in any way, shape, or form. I'm just listing the games I'm personally interested in.
Now, release dates for a lot of games have not yet been announced yet. It is possible that many of the games below may not make a 2023 release. Release dates really start to get muddled the further into the year we look. Still, we'll try to go through the upcoming releases on a month-by-month basis until we run out of firm dates. From there, we'll venture into the "To Be Announced" territory.
January 2023
- Forspoken – January 24 – I'm not really sure what to make of this one. I'm almost morbidly curious as to what the full game will be like as most of what I've seen so far just seems to be traversal focused through fairly barren landscapes and some splashes of flashy combat.
- Dead Space – January 27 – This is, without a doubt, one of the games I'm looking forward to the most. I've played through the Dead Space titles several times over now. Short of an entirely new game, this is probably the next best thing.
February
- Hogwarts Legacy – February 10 – Yeah, I'm looking forward to this one. I am a fan of the movies. I enjoyed the books. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to this game despite how much of a piece of trash the creator of the franchise turned out to be.
- Wanted: Dead – February 13 – This new hack and slash mixed with third-person shooter sits on my Steam Wishlist. It's from some of the makers of the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive games, which gives me hope that this turns out to be a fun and probably somewhat challenging experience.
- Atomic Heart – February 21 – What if BioShock but in an alternate history full of evil Soviet-era robots? I've heard of some development woes with this one, besides the super lengthy development time, but hopefully everything comes together in time.
- Like a Dragon: Ishin! – February 21 – Lets take a franchise I love (Yakuza) but set it in 1860s Japan. There's no way I couldn't be super excited for this one.
- Destiny 2: Lightfall – February 28 – The next expansion for Destiny 2. I've had a love-hate relationship with this game over the years, as most Destiny players probably have. Still, the release of a full, new expansion is always a good time thanks to the new story content, new abilities, and more.
March
- The Last of Us Part 1 – March 1 – This is the date in which The Last of Us franchise makes its PC debut. The $70 price for this one on PlayStation 5 was certainly excessive. Thankfully the PC release is a more reasonable $60 since it's "technically" a new release on the platform, even if the original release came out almost 10 years ago.
- Star Wars Jedi: Survivor – March 17 – I mostly enjoyed the first game, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, even though it felt rough around the edges and had some bad technical hiccups.
- Resident Evil 4 Remake – March 24 – This one is right up there with the Dead Space remake in my book. I think I played through Resident Evil 4 maybe eight times now over the years? I played the original release on GameCube. I played the PlayStation 2 version. I played the Wii version. I think I tried it when it came to Xbox 360. I played through it a few more times on PC, with the latest playthrough occurring just a couple of months back with the Resident Evil 4 HD Project. Capcom has been on fire with their remakes (I'm ignoring Resident Evil 3, as much as it pains me), so I have high hopes for this.
- Crime Boss: Rockay City – March 28 – Like Forspoken, I'm morbidly curious about this upcoming stealth action-FPS set in an early 90s Florida. The reveal trailer shown at The Game Awards 2022 gave me whiplash with the older and washed-up "celebrities" that are set to star in this. The "celebrity" choice coupled with the fact that this is the first game from Ingame Studios, leaves my expectations firmly at the bottom of the barrel.
April
- Meet Your Maker – April 4 – In this one, you build your own base with defenses and traps to protect a precious resource. Once built, you then attack other players' bases and attempt to overcome their traps to steal their resources. You can see where your build failed to stop players, readjust, and attempt to do it over again. More resources means bigger and better traps and enemies to thwart any would-be robbers.
- Dead Island 2 – April 28 – Friends and I enjoyed the first Dead Island even if better games have come out since. Despite the constant development limbo and delays, we're still looking forward to slaying some undead in this one. I just wish this wasn't a (timed) exclusive to Epic Games Store.
May
- Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League – May 26 – After the disappointment that was Gotham Knights, there's nowhere to go but up. Developer Rocksteady tends to make quality games, and if they can nail the co-op aspect of this one, it should be fun.
June
- Diablo IV – June 6 – I do like me some quality Diablo. I have reservations about this one given the, you know, everything Blizzard related. Still, I am eager to see how this turns out, even if I do not plan on buying this (at least not until a big discount or if I can obtain a review copy).
To Be Announced
- Alan Wake 2 – I hated the first Alan Wake. I tried a couple of times to play it and could never finish it. Maybe the sequel will be fun.
- Amnesia: The Bunker – A new horror game from the team that brought us the original Amnesia and my favorite horror game, SOMA? Sign me up!
- Ark 2 – I enjoyed Ark though admittedly didn't play a lot. I'm curious as to how Vin Diesel will factor into this sequel.
- ARC Raiders – A co-op third-person shooter where you fight against dangerous robots sounds like it could be fun.
- Assassin's Creed Mirage – This looks like it will be more of a "return to its roots" sort of Assassin's Creed. I'm a sucker for the Assassin's Creed games, for better and for worse.
- Atlas Fallen – Hunt ancient monsters and explore a fantasy landscape. Your goal is to try to save mankind from corrupted gods.
- Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden – I really enjoyed Vampyr, also developed by Don't Nod. Banishers takes on the paranormal and spirits, complete with impactful decisions and action-RPG elements.
- BattleBit Remastered – A good Battlefield game in all but name. It also features super simplified visuals to keep framerates high in battles that range from 16 players up to 254 players. The game is ramping up the playtests, so be sure to keep an eye out to join in one of these weekends.
- Blunt Force – This VR game takes place during and after WWII and features two parallel storylines. Hopefully we'll finally see this in 2023.
- Dark and Darker – This hardcore FPS dungeon crawler is way, way better than you may think at first glance. Go in alone or with a couple of friends. Keep an eye out for future playtests throughout 2023.
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth – If this actually comes out this year I'll be pleasantly surprised. I loved Remake and I am super excited for this "part 2" release.
- Gothic Remake – Modern visuals applied to an older-school action-RPG.
- Hell is Us – A semi-open world game where you fight paranormal monsters, all while trying to uncover answers about what led to a world changing calamity.
- Judas – Ken Levine finally showed off his first major post-BioShock game. It just so happens that this looks like BioShock but in space and I'm ok with this.
- Kerbal Space Program 2 – I wasn't very good at the first game, but it was fun. This one is more of a game that I will enjoy watching others play more.
- Layers of Fears – I liked the first Layers of Fear, disliked the sequel, and am mostly wondering just how Bloober Team will yet again completely drop the ball with regards to mental health in this game.
- Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name – A spin-off game to one of my favorite franchises? Yes, please!
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2 – The first game didn't exactly set my world on fire, but apparently I liked it enough to play through it twice (once on PS4, then again on PC).
- Nightingale – A first-person open-world survival game where you and some friends try simply to survive. Craft, build, and traverse various realms as you adventure.
- Payday 3 – Friends and I played a lot of Payday 2 back in its heyday. Though we fell off as the game was pumped full of more and more DLC, we greatly enjoyed the time we had spent with it.
- Redfall – Co-op vampire slaying from Arkane? That's a big "hell yeah!" from me. I don't like that story progress isn't made if you aren't the host though.
- Remnant 2 – Loved the first game, Remnant: From the Ashes. My co-op buddy and I are looking forward to more.
- Routine – A first-person sci-fi horror game set aboard an abandoned lunar base. Every preview for this oozed creepy atmosphere and I'm a sucker for a good horror game.
- Scars Above – Another sci-fi third-person action game that looks like it will be great for those wanting to explore creepy alien landscapes and killing equally creepy looking foes.
- Shadows of Doubt – A visually unique open-world sci-fi detective game. As a private investigator you take on side jobs to earn a living while also tracking down a serial killer.
- S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl – The previous games were great, especially the atmosphere and tension.
- Starfield – A new IP and game from Bethesda? You know it will be good, even if it's buggy. I just worry that there won't be much point to exploring planets if there's nothing to do on many of them.
- Test Drive Unlimited: Solar Crown – I loved Test Drive Unlimited 2 back in 2011. It was my Forza Horizon before I ever played a Forza Horizon. Cautiously optimistic for this one.
- The Anacrusis – The game is currently in Early Access and I already did a big preview for this one around when it first came out. It was already quite fun at that point. Since then they've added more content, Workshop support, and made big changes to the game. Looking forward to the "final" release.
- The Lords of the Fallen – This pseudo-sequel to Lords of the Fallen should scratch that Souls-like itch much like the first game did.
- Wrecknation – This game looks like Hot Wheels mixed with bombastic crashes developed by former employees of Criterion Games.
Now that this is all settled, share below the games you're looking forward to that may or may not come out in 2023. Also, be sure to check out the games that made Total Gaming Network's 2022 Games of the Year. You'll never guess what the overall game of the year was! No, you probably will. It's really not that hard to guess.
