2025 is set to be the biggest year for the video game industry in a generation. Rockstar Games is preparing to release GTA 6 this fall, with the long-awaited return to Vice City guaranteed to have a seismic impact. Nintendo is set to reveal the Switch 2 any day now, with the new console expected to launch alongside Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. PlayStation is set to get Death Stranding 2: On the Beach and Ghost of Yotei out the door in the next 12 months, while Xbox has Avowed, Doom: The Dark Ages, Fable, and South of Midnight waiting in the wings. Like I said, 2025 is going to be big.
What's incredible is that there's still so much more to come. With behemoth sequels like Borderlands 4 and AAA experiments like Elden Ring Nightreign, ambitious remasters like Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and exciting new IPs like Atomfall, there's truly something for everyone in the lineup of new games for 2025. In fact, there's so much on the way that it can be difficult to know where to focus your attention.
That's why we have put together this list of the 50 most anticipated video games of 2025 to help. If you'd like to learn more about any of these exciting new titles, you'll want to keep checking back in on 12DOVE all throughout January. We have articles diving into all 50 of these upcoming games – exclusive interviews, hands-on access, analysis, and more – going live across the month, released daily. Welcome to Big in 2025, your guide to the year in video games.
50 games that will be Big in 2025
To a T
Developer: uvula | Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
We've all struggled with fitting in when growing up, but for Teen, the star of To a T, that's a very literal problem. Stuck in a T-pose (in game development terms, a default 'resting' position for a character model with arms spread wide), Teen isn't just conscious of being different, but struggles to do mundane tasks like brushing their teeth. But, with a friendly dog to help, and the ability to spin helicopter-like in order to fly, a journey of self-discovery begins across town throughout an episode structure that has you take each day at a time. There's collectibles to uncover, and mini-games about navigating the world with your unique condition. Just remember: you're the perfect shape for being yourself.
Splitgate 2
Developer: 1047 Games | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Splitgate was a genuine phenomenon when it landed in 2019, a portal-hopping first-person shooter that captured the feel and style of a bygone era of online multiplayer. The debut effort from developer 1047 Games burned bright and fast, ultimately struggling to hold the attention of its playerbase as the world transitioned into lockdowns. Longer-term retention is a frontier 1047 is hoping to conquer with Splitgate 2, a free-to-play effort which will introduce a wider focus on objective-based play and a class-based meta when it lands later in 2025. The shift away from raucous deathmatch action is certainly a shock, but it appears that these key changes are giving Splitgate 2 more room to evolve.
Exoborne
Developer: Sharkmob AB | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
If you're feeling a little burned out on battle royales, it may be time to turn your attention to something new. Extraction shooters are gearing up for a big year in 2025, thanks in no small part to excellent looking titles like Exoborne. The latest from developer Sharkmob, Exoborne will have you braving the wilds alone, teaming up with friends, or forging unlikely alliances to survive a dynamic, hostile open world. You'll need to scavenge for loot and resources, craft new gear and weapons, and then use it all to battle your way to a safe extraction. We're keen to see more of this one, particularly as Exoborne is promising that you can have a gunfight inside of an active tornado... sign us up!
Den of Wolves
Developer: 10 Chambers | Platform(s): PC | Release date: TBC 2025
Like a rival gang claiming new turf, co-op heister Den of Wolves has a lot to prove, but it has the backing to make a serious play. Developer 10 Chambers was founded by Payday creator Ulf Andersson, after all – meaning the likes of Payday 3 and Crime Boss: Rockay City had better watch their backs. Set in Midway City, it sees players teaming up for the familiar loop of planning their next moves, acquiring progressively better gear, and then collaborating to pull off a daring heist. The twist comes in the theming, with Den of Wolves capturing a techno-thriller style that promises "mind-bending scenarios" as well as high-tech gadgets to play with and, naturally, even higher-tech security to thwart.
Where Winds Meet
Developer: Everstone Studio | Platform(s): PS5 | Release date: TBC 2025
When it comes to open-world games steeped in historical settings, we're eating well this year. While Assassin's Creed Shadows and Ghost of Yōtei prod their respective swords into 15th and 16th-century Japan, Where Winds Meet will take us even further back in time with its colorful depiction of ancient China. We haven't seen too much of Where Winds Meet since its reveal in 2022, but what we have checked out offers plenty to be excited about. That's largely thanks to its slick-looking action-RPG combat, which has been inspired by Wuxia – a Chinese genre that tends to follow chivalrous martial artists. But there's also the seemingly-massive world, which suggests we're going to be very busy indeed when this adventure rolls around.
Arc Raiders
Developer: Embark Studios | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Plenty of extraction shooters have come and gone, but there's something uniquely compelling about Arc Raiders. Combining retro-futurist aesthetics with a truly lush-if-desolate world, Arc Raiders offers a world that really does feel challenging to survive (and extract from), yet also one worth the trip. With the strange ARC machines always on the hunt, scavenging materials from the world isn't easy, but it's all needed to help Speranza, the underground home that is your sole sanctuary. With such a harsh world, you'll need to squad up and forge alliances with fellow Raiders in order to survive, but some Raiders will be just as willing to take it all for themselves too. How much do you want to risk? That's the essence of the extraction shooter.
Bionic Bay
Developer: Psychoflow Studio | Platform(s): PC, PS5 | Release date: March 13, 2025
Vibrant side-scroller Bionic Bay is an upcoming action platformer that guides players through a sci-fi biomechanical fantasy. The debut release from Psychoflow Studio will see us traversing the strange intersection between a decaying natural world and the complex machinery disturbing it, controlling a Scientist that can wield time-bending powers to manipulate environments, make use of futuristic technology, and ultimately carve the way to freedom. The depth within each of the visually-arresting stages is arresting, each level a puzzle in itself. Whether flipped, paused, or rewound, the very fabric of time seems to hang in this balance as Psychoflow weaves a spellbinding dystopian story. From everything we've seen of Bionic Bay so far, it looks like publisher Kepler Interactive has another hit on its hands.
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers
Developer: Leenzee | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
As far as action-RPGs go, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is shaping up to be one of this year's most intense. Though its Ming dynasty setting blends ancient Chinese history with fantasy, its battles – which are very fast-paced and heavy on the parrying – closest resemble the forcefulness and speed of Fromsoftware's Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. That's a winning combination on paper, but the real flourish is the creativity we've seen from its boss fights. Giant fish? Shape-shifting martial artists? Swordsmen with snake buddies? Much more of that, please. We're yet to get a release date for this one locked down, but fans of Black Myth: Wukong will want to keep both eyes peeled for news as we head into 2025.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
Developer: Warhorse Studios | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 4, 2025
Henry of Skalitz is back in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. A little older. A little stronger. A little… wiser? Well, that all depends on how you decide to play him in this RPG set in 15th Century Medieval Europe. With a massive open world, Henry's quest to avenge the death of his parents is as filled with diversions as ever, from the downright dangerous to a little bit silly. Whether you devote yourself to the blade or take up blacksmithing, enter combat loud or in stealth, the approach you take is up to you. Somehow more ambitious than the impressive first game, the visceral first-person combat is where it really stands out. Even crossbows join the mix this time around.
Thick as Thieves
Developer: OtherSide Entertainment | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Defining an immersive sim is tricky. But if you look at the best examples – think Thief, Dishonored, Deus Ex – you'll notice that they're all single player. But what happens when that seemingly set-in-stone principle comes up against Warren Spector, the developer who coined the term immersive sim in the first place? We'll find out in Thick As Thieves, a stealth-driven sim in which players will compete to pull off the perfect heist. This city is a living world set within an alternate magical 1910s, in which you'll have to con and cheat its denizens whilst every other player tries to do the same thing. How will this great experiment go? Who knows – but the staggering level of ambition is undeniable.
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Baby Steps
Developer: Gabe Cuzzillo, Maxi Boch, Bennett Foddy | Platform(s): PC, PS5 | Release date: TBC 2025
One of the quirkiest, most quintessentially Devolver Digital-looking upcoming games of 2025 has got to be Baby Steps, and for that reason, we've had our eye on it for a year now. Putting a very literal spin on the "walking sim" subgenre, Baby Steps sees protagonist Nate peeling himself off the basement sofa on an intrepid journey to do what he has never done before: take a little stroll and see the world. Players will control Nate's legs with the left and right controller triggers for an altogether more…involved traversal experience, and if that doesn't scream "weird but brilliant" then I don't know what will. Now get those knees up – we've got a lot of ground to plod over.
The Alters
Developer: 11 Bit Studios| Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
"If you want something done right, do it yourself" is one of life's truer adages. Survival management game The Alters takes this quite literally, as you'll need to repeatedly clone protagonist Jan Dolski to stay alive on the hostile planet he's crash-landed on. Each of his companions – called Alters – are unique in some way or another, as they're created from tweaking past decisions in Dolski's life, but they're all integral for keeping his moving base one step ahead of deadly radiation. It's a wild concept, but it's from the same team that knocked it out of the park with strategy gem Frostpunk 2 last year – so if there's any developer capable of making this brain-melting concept work, it's 11 Bit.
Possessor(s)
Developer: Heart Machine | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC, 2025
Dynamic side-scrolling action? A hostile world brimming with "interdimensional horrors? Sign me right up. Possessor(s) is a gorgeously rendered upcoming indie game set to launch later in 2025, and if the trailers are anything to go by, the Hyper Light creators have gone all-out. The hack n' slash platformer sees the player character Luca laying waste to all manner of creepy monsters running amok in a dark, crumbling town lit only by the neon flashes of blades, traps, and a bleeding orange sunset overhead. True to the game's title, Luca is playing host to Rehm, a spirit-like entity that seems to be along for the ride, as the two learn to work together and defeat the evils all around them.
Wanderstop
Developer: Ivy Road | Platform(s): PC, PS5 | Release date: March 11, 2025
To fans of cozy games, the words "tea shop management game" are a potent summoning ritual. That alone would be worth an eyebrow-raise, but Ivy Road's debut game Wanderstop is still so much more than it seems. We'll be playing as defeated warrior Alta as she runs a small pitstop for travellers, brewing and selling tea whilst getting to know her customers. Again, all fantastic – but wait until you hear about the team making it. Its creators include The Stanley Parable creator Davey Wreden, Gone Home co-creator Gone Home, and Minecraft composer Daniel Rosenfeld (though you may know him best as C418). If you don't fancy a cuppa in Wanderstop after reading all of that, maybe you're a coffee person?
Revenge of the Savage Planet
Developer: Raccoon Logic Studios | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X| Release date: TBC 2025
Surprise – you're fired! If you thought redundancy couldn't reach the outer rims of space, you may have underestimated the corporate overlords of our distant future. That's presumably one of many lessons we'll learn from Journey to the Savage Planet sequel Revenge of the Savage Planet, a sci-fi action-adventure which tasks players with planet-hopping their way home to wreak vengeance upon their Earth-bound former employer. Raccoon Logic's satirical tone would be fun enough, but on the way home we'll also blast aliens with slime guns, run and skate through dazzlingly colorful environments, and decorate our base – all of which can be done with a pal through co-op. Unemployed? More like fun-employed, if Alta Interglobal's HR-mandated severance package can be believed.
Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
Developer: Jump Over The Age | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox Series X | Release date: January 31, 2025
Immersive narrative sandbox meets high-stakes tabletop RPG in Citizen Sleeper 2. Gareth Damian Martin's upcoming intergalactic sequel takes the point-and-click literary stylings of the first instalment and doubles down on its TTRPG roots, promising a new stress management mechanic, recruitable NPCs, and a host of vibrant sci-fi communities to explore at the roll of the dice. With no shortage of emergent gameplay opportunities thanks to its 250,000 words of scripted interactions, it's already twice as long as the first game. If Citizen Sleeper 2 is even a fraction as moreish as its 2022 predecessor – an expectation which, from the sounds of it, it's likely to surpass easily – this could be one of the year's earliest heavy-hitters fresh out the gate.
Killing Floor 3
Developer: Tripwire Interactive | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
If kicking zombie ass and taking names had a name unto itself, it would probably be Killing Floor. The third entry in the longrunning zombie FPS is on its way, and judging from our Killing Floor 3 preview, it's looking better and bloodier than ever. Not only are we expecting new Zed types to unleash bullet hell upon, developer Tripwire Interactive has gone all-out with the long-awaited introduction of weapon modding to make gunplay a custom experience tailored to your personal tastes. It just shows how far Killing Floor 3 will go to make good on the series' decades-long promise to deliver gory zombie mayhem for the iron-stomached. With a TBC March release planned, we're counting down the days.
Phantom Blade Zero
Developer: S-GAME | Platform(s): PC, PS5 | Release date: TBC 2025
Phantom Blade Zero stands out in an industry beset by soulslikes by ditching the allure of that genre in order to embrace the wuxia promise – stylishly and beautifully kicking some ass. Lightning fast like Devil May Cry, the slick action has you chaining together lengthy combos across close-range and mid-range, all while staying on the move. So far we've mostly seen boss fights, which do echo Dark Souls with deadly moves of their own and hefty health bars, but the quick clashes of blades is anything but. Encouraging staying on the offense, you'll use twin swords to parry and stun foes, switching to a larger katana without missing a beat to slash that health bar shreds. Phantom Blade Zero has potential.
Dune: Awakening
Developer: Funcom | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Surviving on Arrakis looks plenty tough enough in Denis Villeneuve's movies, but Dune: Awakening goes the extra mile. Developer Funcom has transformed the desert planet into a survival MMO battleground, with players immediately tasked with managing their own basic needs before jumping headfirst into a more linear narrative campaign. Our Dune Awakening preview gave us a closer look at how Funcom combines complex base building elements as seen in the best survival games with online multiplayer functionality, presenting a gruelling new take on the sci-fi universe that seems to fold so seamlessly into the survival crafting genre already. Plus, spearheaded by the minds behind Conan Exile, we know Frank Herbert's world is in more than capable hands here.
Wheel World
Developer: Messhof | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
We're counting down the days until we can put our pedal to the metal – or, er, Lycra to the cycler – in Wheel World. A gorgeous cycling game from developer Messhof, Wheel World's main draw is in being able to roam the eponymous world of Wheel World on your bike, tracking down cyclists to race while searching for new parts to upgrade your own two-wheeler with. Of course, there's also a world-ending calamity that only you can prevent – but there always is, isn't there? Throw in a pulsing soundtrack from California label Italians Do It Better and Wheel World already feels like the sort of adventure you will lose one dreamy afternoon after another in.
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Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
Developer: Don't Nod | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 18, 2025
Don't Nod may no longer be collaborating with Square Enix on Life is Strange, but the developer is looking to recapture the franchise's spirit with a new narrative-driven endeavour. Lost Records: Bloom and Rage will split its heartbreaking action across two timelines, allowing you to delve into the lives of four high school girls in 1995 – filming all of the summertime mischief on a handheld videocamera – and then wallow in the ramifications of your actions in 2022. The secrets which bind these characters across the 27 years are sure to be wrapped up in the choices you make along the way. Part 1 lands on February 18, with Part 2 releasing on March 18.
Two Point Museum
Developer: Two Point Studios | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: March 4, 2025
Hospitals? Schools? Both are unimportant compared to enticing visitors with pure culture in Two Point Museum. Compared to its more service-based predecessors, there's something a lot more freeform about building your ultimate museum. While visitors do have potential interests and needs, it's up to you to craft the perfect flow of exhibits, which are collected by periodically sending your staff to increasingly further afield locations. To top it off, we love the special themes we've seen so far, from aquariums to a former haunted hotel that allows you to display actual ghosts. All of it can come together as you balance the best placement for donation boxes and, crucially, the optimum way to shuttle guests to leave through your gift shop with lighter wallets.
Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault
Developer: Digital Sun | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Sometimes a video game comes along with an idea so good you can't believe it hadn't been thought of sooner. That's exactly how we felt about Moonlighter in 2018, which lets you live the double life of a fearless explorer and entrepreneurial shopkeeper. Digital Sun has spent the last few years getting Cataclismo into Early Access and playing around in the League of Legends sandbox with The Mageseeker, but the studio is ready to return to its greatest adventure with Moonlighter 2. You'll venture into the unknown in search of treasure, and then put your hard-earned rewards up for sale – expanding your shop over time as travelers from across the land of Tresna come to check out your wares and haggle over your prices.
Exodus
Developer: Archetype Entertainment | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Matthew McConaughey in Mass Effect? Well, not really, but upcoming sci-fi thriller Exodus draws more than a few comparisons to the BioWare series after a cursory glance at the trailers alone. There's not even a Steam page for it yet, but our most recent look at Archetype Entertainment's work-in-progress had our attention thoroughly piqued. Playing as spacewalking Travellers, our mission will see us traversing the Centauri Universe to rescue a colony from a hostile alien invasion. Sorry, not aliens – celestials, but you get the picture. The dynamic third-person action as seen in the gameplay trailer has sold us on it already, and despite a release window being nowhere in sight yet, we're hoping to see Exodus launch later in 2025.
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Developer: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 21, 2025
If there's one thing you need to know about Goro Majima, it's that he can pop up anywhere. Even in a spin-off Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, as an amnesiac pirate ready to captain his own crew – the job is, after all, only a few nautical clicks away from helming a yakuza clan, managing a hostess club, or leading a construction company (his resume is massive). Drawing on Infinite Wealth's setting, the high seas around the island nevertheless greatly expand the scope. Majima's quest to restore his memories also re-introduces real-time combat, meaning you'll be battling on and around Hawaii like never before, all while chuckling at zany sidequests and dabbing tears from your eyes at the emotional story.
FBC: Firebreak
Developer: Remedy Entertainment | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Remedy Entertainment has long been known for its imaginative single-player adventures – Alan Wake, Control, Max Payne, and Quantum Break – but the studio is venturing into uncharted territory. FBC: Firebreak is Remedy's first online multiplayer game, a cooperative third-person shooter set in the depths of the Oldest House. You and two friends will take on the role of first-responders, pushing back against interdimensional threats with punchy firearms and explosive Objects of Power. While the live-service space was pretty volatile last year, the success of Helldivers 2 and Marvel Rivals demonstrated that it's still possible for new experiences to hold territory against the battle royale behemoths. Remedy has a reputation for breaking boundaries, so who's to say it can't do it again.
Little Nightmares 3
Developer: Supermassive Games | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Another most wanted title for 2025, Little Nightmares 3 is an upcoming horror game for the cute yet creepy folks out there. Supermassive Games should be right at home, following up its co-developer credit by steering the series into brand new waters for its maiden voyage without Tarsier. Little Nightmares 3 will be the first multiplayer entrant in the adorably eerie collection, as protagonists Low and Alone make their way through all manner of terrifying environments in a desperate escape attempt. With puzzles and enemies galore blocking the path – including the truly nasty Monster Baby – Little Nightmares 3 asks players to work together to defeat all odds. You could always play it solo, but this horror experience seems one best shared.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Developer: Sandfall Interactive | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
What if Persona was inspired by Belle Époque France? Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is here to answer that question, following a party of heroes on a journey to defeat the mysterious Paintress, who, year-by-year, is eliminating the population of a certain-age, counting down as the human race is culled – Logan's Run style. With the age group 33 now on the chopping block, enough is enough. But as the party stares down their magical demise they'll have hordes of strange monsters to contend with, Clair Obscur's turn-based combat mixed with real-time elements to keep the stylish action constantly flowing. Promising a thrilling narrative, and looking gorgeous to boot, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 may be the first must-play RPG of the year.
Mafia: The Old Country
Developer: Hangar 13 | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
The reveal of Mafia: The Old Country was one of 2024's sweetest surprises. Far from the '60s setting of 2016's Mafia 3, The Old Country – as its name suggests – will send us all the way back to 1900s Sicily to explore the origins of the Cosa Nostra crime family. It's a time of great change, as demonstrated by The Old Country's gameplay reveal: just look at the characters riding horses alongside old-timey cars, or the gritty knife fights interspersed with chaotic shootouts. But most exciting is Hangar 13's renewed commitment to the more linear, story-driven elements that made Mafia great in the first place. It's music to long-time fans' ears, and a firmer release window can't come soon enough.
Cairn
Developer: The Game Bakers | Platform(s): PS5, Xbox Series X, PC | Release date: 2025
Clambering around forms the backbone of gaming. From Jumpman skipping over barrels to ascend towards Donkey Kong, to Nathan Drake scrabbling across ancient ruins in Uncharted – most of the time it's so simple to do we take it for granted. Not in Cairn, the latest from The Game Bakers, which digs into every placed piton and strained arm muscle to pull you from one ledge to the next. Freeform, it's up to you to plan your route and execute the climb, moments of rest providing room to manage resources as you ready yourself for the next leg, and to meet others who are also compelled to climb. Cairn asks what pushes us to take on and overcome challenges, and just why we chase the next high.
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inZOI
Developer: Krafton | Platform(s): PC | Release date: March 28, 2025
The Sims 4's latest challenger is just months from release, and I'm already all in on inZOI. Krafton's upcoming PC game, while incorporating the staple elements of the best life sims, pushes the meta narrative by having players control a character who is orchestrating the lives of people in VR town, known as Zoi. This gives way to a unique karma system, with the Zoi remembering and reacting to your character depending upon your own past interactions with them – and yes, "farting secretly" will accrue bad karma. Paired with hyper-realistic graphics, a complex emotions system, and a fully customizable world to shape for yourself, inZOI could well unseat EA's legacy life sim as the most densely packed digital toy town on the block.
Atomfall
Developer: Rebellion Developments | Platform(s): PC, PS5 Xbox Series X | Release date: March 27, 2025
Atomfall may have been originally inspired by Fallout: New Vegas, but the adventure has taken on a life of its own throughout its development at Rebellion. It's a first-person adventure with light survival elements, an open-ended experience where you're free to follow threads and follow your intuition through a mysterious alternate-history, distinctly-British wasteland. You can kill every character you come across or nobody at all, barter for supplies and resources, or spend hours searching and sneaking your way through sprawling interconnected biomes. Atomfall is one of 2025's most promising prospects, and we're keen to see whether the Sniper Elite studio can pull off something so all-encompassing when it lands for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, and Game Pass.
Subnautica 2
Developer: Unknown Worlds Entertainment | Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Unknown World is following up its 2018 deep sea survival adventure with a long-awaited sequel. Subnatica 2 will take us back below the waves and into an open water world, one teeming with untold dangers and wonders in equal measure as players explore, craft, and manage resources to stay alive. With multiplayer mode being introduced, we'll get to plumb these hidden depths either alone or with a buddy – and given how dicey things can get down there, you'll be glad for the backup. The first game stunned with its blend of underwater beauty and high-stakes survival crafting, so we're more than ready for Subnautica 2 to finally emerge from the shallows and blow us out of the water yet again.
Civilization 7
Developer: Firaxis | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 11, 2025
With Civilization 7 arriving so early in the year, you can pre-emptively write off any plans to be productive in February or beyond. New entries in Firaxis' iconic series are few and far between – it's already been nine years since Civilization 6 doomed our productivity – which makes this launch akin to a national holiday for strategy fans. Civilization 7 will shake up the next turn-ing formula we know and love, with major changes to the way our empires develop across the course of a game. Expect to see campaigns divided into more impactful ages, while the mix-and-match approach to picking leaders and civilizations will create more unique playstyles. If you were hoping to get anything done in 2025, think again.
Mixtape
Developer: Beethoven and Dinosaur | Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Mixtape is one of those rare delights which immediately ignites the imagination. It's another symphony of accessible gameplay, scintillating music, and expressive visual design from developer Beethoven and Dinosaur – the studio responsible for the BAFTA award-winning adventure The Artful Escape. Presented as a series of vignettes, you'll essentially explore the greatest hits of teenage friendship to the sounds of Iggy Pop and The Smashing Pumpkins; experience the highs and lows of adolescence, ramble on through the wasteland of youth, and cause a little idle mischief with your buddies. Mixtape doesn't have a release date just yet, but it looks like another surefire hit for publisher Annapurna Interactive.
South of Midnight
Developer: Compulsion Games | Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
South of Midnight is a stunning, singular third person action-adventure from We Happy Few developer Compulsion Games – the studio's first release since its acquisition into Xbox Game Studios in 2018. Playing as fearless heroine Hazel, you'll explore a folklore-drenched Deep South USA on a quest to rescue her grandmother, meeting all sorts of mythic creatures, cryptids, and entities hailing from across the region. Some are redeemable trapped spirits she can set free, while others must be defeated by channeling Hazel's Weaver magic – and using a blade for good measure. South of Midnight looks set to offer a world of wonder to explore (or hack through) when it launches later this year, and despite lacking a firm release date, we can't keep our eyes off it.
Dying Light: The Beast
Developer: Techland | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Set 13 years after the original Dying Light, Techland is bringing back Kyle Crane for one last dose of zombie-slaying heroics. Dying Light: The Beast is the DLC that became something more, shining a light on what happened to Crane in the years between his adventure and that of Dying Light 2's Aiden. The Beast presents a tighter, more narrative-led experience compared to that of its predecessors as Crane grapples with zombie-human hybrid powers, out for revenge after breaking himself out of a top secret human experimentation facility. The Beast will be free to purchasers of Dying Light 2's deluxe edition, and the rest of you can pick it up as a standalone adventure this summer.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
Developer: Konami | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Following the success of its Silent Hill 2 remake, Konami continues to look to its past. Next up is Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, a revival of one of the greatest video games of all time. MGS3 had it all – incredible depth to its core systems and mechanics, a complex story, excellent world design, and a roster of characters who are still beloved some two decades later. Konami is working to carefully deliver Metal Gear Solid Delta to a new generation of players; with key gameplay additions from MGS4 and Peace Walker woven into the tapestry, along with an assortment of visual improvements. There's also a legacy mode, which faithfully recreates the original version of Snake Eater, fixed-camera and all.
Crimson Desert
Developer: Pearl Abyss | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
If you can't wait for The Witcher 4, Pearl Abyss has just the thing to scratch that medieval fantasy itch. Playing as Kliff, a brash monster slayer defending communities in the Scottish highlands, Crimson Desert promises an unforgiving world teeming with beasts to conquer. Our hands-on Crimson Desert preview gave us a taste of Kliff's combat chops, from punishing combos to agile quick attacks, all framed by dynamic camera movements that turn each encounter into a near cinematic one – whether against a gargantuan monster or a horde of bandits. It's a stylish yet experimental take on a typical third-person action game, so while Crimson Desert might not click with everyone, the gore-soaked epic has been high on our watch list for months.
Avowed
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment | Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 18, 2025
With Pillars of Eternity preparing to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2025, developer Obsidian Entertainment is looking to celebrate the occasion in style: a massive expansion of Eora. Avowed takes place in the same universe as Pillars, but it has been pitched as a distinctly different experience, a delightfully diverse RPG that'll let you wield magic, melee, and firearms to tackle a dangerous blight sweeping the land. Played in first-person or third-person perspectives, you'll have the chance to shape your character, pick your favorite companions, and begin exploring a series of distinctive biomes where your choices help direct the outcome of the story. If you enjoyed The Outer Worlds, Avowed will be a fantasy RPG you won't want to miss.
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Fable 4
Developer: Playground Games | Platform(s): PC, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Perhaps the biggest test for Xbox Game Studios in 2025 will be to pull off the successful return of one of its most beloved franchises, some 15 years after the release of Fable 3. The series went dormant with the closure of Lionhead Studios, following poorly-received experiments with Kinect and a lack of buzz surrounding the online-only Fable Legends. And so Forza Horizon developer Playground Games has taken on the task of breathing new life into Albion, an endeavour still shrouded in mystery. The few teaser trailers we have seen promise a world built around choice and consequence, combat underscored by magic and melee weapons, and benchmark-raising visual design. Here's hoping Fable 4 holds its 2025 release window.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
Developer: Retro Studios | Platform(s): Switch | Release date: TBC 2025
Will Metroid Prime 4: Beyond be a swansong for the Nintendo Switch or the first must-play for its successor? That's the question nobody is able to answer just yet, but rumors persist that it'll be a Switch 2 launch title. Given that it has been almost eight years since Metroid Prime 4 was announced – a production cycle which has included a change in developer and a total design overhaul – we don't really mind which platform it lands on, so long as Nintendo is able to maintain its promised 2025 release window. Despite the turmoil, it's clear that Retro Studios has no intention of straying too far from the beloved Prime model, bringing back a delicate blend of quiet exploration, puzzle solving, and frantic shootouts.
Assassin's Creed Shadows
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 14, 2025
It's been four long years since the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla, and developer Ubisoft Montreal is finally ready to unleash its next sprawling open-world upon us all. Assassin's Creed Shadows is set to land us in feudal Japan, a period of history marked by intense civil war. To survive it, you'll freely switch between two central characters – Naoe, a shinobi, and Yasuke, a samurai – and enjoy refined stealth mechanics as well as new combat systems. Shadows will also launch alongside the Animus Hub, a nexus for all upcoming Assassin's Creed games. Japan has long been a dream destination for the franchise, and we couldn't be more excited as Shadows finally makes that a reality in 2025.
Monster Hunter Wilds
Developer: Capcom | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: February 28, 2025
Monster Hunter Wilds stands poised to become one of Capcom's all-time crowning achievements. The series' momentum has been at an all-time high since the launch of 2018's Monster Hunter: World, yet everything we've seen of Wilds so far suggests that it will prove capable of seizing the moment: Besides the usual fare of new monsters to battle, we're also getting foundation-shifting additions like mounts and dynamic weather systems, which will influence every single hunt we'll be embarking on. Everything we've seen so far implies this will be Monster Hunter at its most intricate – and if Wilds lives up to its promise, we're likely to see it explode far beyond the semi-niche space its predecessors have dominated in the action-RPG genre.
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
Developer: Kojima Productions | Platform(s): PS5 | Release date: TBC 2025
It's going to be difficult for any video game to draw attention away from Grand Theft Auto 6 in 2025, but if anything stands a chance it has to be Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. Creative director Hideo Kojima has a reputation for being able to arrest attention with ease, something we expect will hold true as more of this sequel to 2019's Death Stranding is revealed throughout the year. On the Beach will retain a focus on wide-scale exploration and the nature of societal connection, although there's going to be a smattering of exceptionally strange distractions along the way – otherworldly obstacles to circumvent, denser mysteries to unravel, and even a reanimated puppet doll acting as a companion across the wilds… It's looking vintage Kojima Productions.
Doom: The Dark Ages
Developer: id Software | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Doom: The Dark Ages is destined to be the most outrageous action game of 2025. We've spent nearly five years questioning whether developer id Software would ever be able to up the ante after Doom Eternal – the answer, it appears, lies in the past. The Dark Ages serves as a prequel to the rebooted Doom series, following the rise of the Doom Slayer across a lush techno-medieval landscape. The change of setting is an excuse to introduce a new wave of weapons, including the imaginatively titled Saw Shield, Skull Crusher, and Rail Spike, and for a return to more densely-packed combat arenas. More demons, more gore, and more projectiles: a trifecta of carnage that will define this upcoming Xbox Series X game.
Borderlands 4
Developer: Gearbox | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Borderlands 4 is leaving Pandora behind, with the famed looter-shooter series calling the new planet of Kairos home for a new round of absurdist action. Developer Gearbox Software is using a new open world to refresh some core aspects of the Borderlands design, including the introduction of four fresh Vault Hunters and a suite of ridiculous enemy factions to combat. Caught up within a war between the The Order and The Rippers, you and three friends will be free to explore Kairos as and when you want to, switching your arsenal up with hundreds of thousands of weapons to fight hordes of synthetic and organic enemies. Full-scale Borderlands mayhem has never looked better.
Elden Ring Nightreign
Developer: FromSoftware | Platform(s): PC, PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
A standalone spin-off rather than a simple expansion, Elden Ring Nightreign pushes aside dense lore in favor of emphasizing pure co-op soulslike action. Unleashed into the Lands Between, up to three players are given a simple task: survive for three nights. Though, as you'd expect of FromSoftware, actually pulling it off won't be easy. With a battle royale style shrinking circle, and boss monsters pulling from the rest of the developer's portfolio , Elden Ring Nightreign is almost something of a franchise celebration. Considering the developer thrust the "soulslike" genre into the spotlight, it's neat to see FromSoftware try something so new that it's almost hard to imagine how it will play in your hands. Then again, FromSoftware isn't in the habit of disappointing.
Ghost of Yōtei
Developer: Sucker Punch Studios | Platform(s): PS5 | Release date: TBC 2025
The stunningly cinematic PS4 exclusive Ghost of Tsushima is finally getting a sequel, with Ghost of Yotei slated for a 2025 launch. If you're wondering why we're so keen to see the next instalment in this blisteringly beautiful samurai saga, it's because the first game has been climbing the ranks of our best open world games list for years now. Ghost of Yotei introduces a new protagonist, Atsu, set in Hokkaido some 300 years after the events of Jin's Tsushima journey. With a new map, characters, and branching narrative to explore – not to mention the slick third-person combat that made its predecessor shine so brilliantly – Ghost of Yotei is by far one of the most anticipated upcoming PS5 games out there.
GTA 6
Developer: Rockstar Games | Platform(s): PS5, Xbox Series X | Release date: TBC 2025
Grand Theft Auto 6 is going to be the biggest entertainment release of the decade. It's impossible to overstate just how much of a monster the latest open-world epic from Rockstar Games is destined to be, with the famed developer engineering a long-awaited return to Vice City this fall – set in the modern era, rather than the 1980s. Little is known about what Rockstar has planned, although an early look at GTA 6 indicates that we're in for Bonnie and Clyde-inspired crime caper with two leading protagonists. GTA 6 will be closely guarded secret throughout the year, but once Rockstar is ready to reveal its work you should expect the first gameplay reveal to be a seismic event for gaming.
