5 highly anticipated video games likely to release in 2023 (and 5 that aren't coming anytime soon)

2022 has had several excellent video game releases and is set for a couple more before the year ends. With just five more months to go, it’s a surprise how quickly the year has gone by and that we will soon be saying hello to 2023, which will bring along numerous new video games.

2023 has many confirmed titles set to be released during the initial months, along with some video games with a tentative release window, although there is no fixed date for launch yet. Judging by how video game development works these days, you can expect delays for at least a handful of these titles.

Looking ahead, certain games have been announced yet do not even have a release date. These titles are likely in the very early stages of development or not even that, meaning they will probably be released sometime in 2024 or 2025.

Note: This article reflects the writer’s opinions.

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Five video games that might be released in 2023

1) Starfield

Bethesda has been working hard on its upcoming space sci-fi game, which showcased some promising-looking gameplay during the Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase in 2022. Todd Howard himself took to the stage and made some bold claims about the upcoming video game, and only time will tell if the developer can live up to them.

As such, Starfield looks quite spectacular and is one of the most anticipated games of 2023. Set in the fictional quadrant of space known as the Settled Systems in the year 2330, the title’s protagonist is a member of the Constellation, a group of space explorers.

The gameplay showcased some exploration and combat, which looks like a new, refreshed take from the older Bethesda titles. Players will allegedly be able to freely explore the Settled systems and land on any of the 1000+ planets in the game, which is a staggering number if it turns out to be true.

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2) Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

With Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered wrapping up its fifth week on PC and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales arriving later this year on the platform, you might wonder what’s next for Insomniac Game’s take on the Wall-Crawler. Well, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has a 2023 release window, so we can expect to see the two swing into action once more sometime next year.

Details regarding the video game are slim now, although you can expect the core gameplay and designs to remain mostly the same. A teaser trailer revealed that Venom would play a role in the story, voiced by Tony Todd, which will be fun to see.

However, whether this is an Eddie Brock Venom or a Harry Osbourne Venom is unclear at this point.

One of the highly talked about aspects of the game is its possible inclusion of multiplayer. Files for a beta version of this were found in Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered PC, and the teaser for the sequel showed both Miles and Peter fighting together, which supports this theory.

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3) Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League

Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has already been delayed once, so it’s unlikely it will be delayed again. However, in this day and age, who knows what pandemic waits around the corner?

The upcoming superhero, or anti-hero, game is currently set for a Spring 2023 release window.

As the name suggests, the game revolves around an iteration of the Suicide Squad, DC’s secret government organization that employs incarcerated villains for dangerous covert assignments. The team in the video game comprises Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, and King Shark.

It is a third-person single-player title, although it is also set to include online multiplayer support. The narrative follows the Squad as they head into Metropolis, where the Justice League has been taken under control by the alien entity known as Brainiac.

Their mission is to eliminate these members and save the world. It couldn’t be simpler.

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4) Breath of the Wild 2

Zelda fans are waiting with bated breath for the sequel to Breath of the Wild, which had previously been delayed to Spring 2023. This marks the first time a Zelda game has received a sequel, as previous video games have generally been standalone adventures.

While the title is set to take place in the same Hyrule featured in Breath of the Wild, the land’s topography has somewhat changed. It can be seen in the teaser trailer that exhibits large floating islands dotted about in the sky, which Link can travel to, possibly using some of his new abilities.

A couple of these new abilities were also highlighted, including one that seemingly allowed Link to reverse time for a specific object. Another, let him fly up to a floating platform, phasing through the floor in the process.

Whether Ganondorf will feature as the main antagonist or if a new evil will rear its head is unclear until we get some more news regarding the video game.

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5) Final Fantasy 16

A new entry into the Final Fantasy video game series has been a long time coming, and Final Fantasy 16 is set to fill that void for many fans. The release window is for the second or third quarter of 2023, so there’s a good chance that we’ll see the game in the coming year, as it was stated to be in the final stages of development in April 2022.

Like most Final Fantasy video games, this is a standalone title set in the fictional world of Valisthea. The protagonist is Clive Rosfield, who serves as the main playable character, while a cast of side characters also exists that will likely be members of the main character’s party.

The gameplay will seemingly be a diverse experience and will feature a variety of ways to approach combat. Clive can battle using a combination of melee-based weapons and magical abilities, which have been showcased in the trailers, although we’ve yet to see how party battles look in the game.

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Five video games that couldn’t be here sooner

1) Wonder Woman

Developer Monolith Productions had announced they were working on a superhero video game featuring Wonder Woman during The Game Awards 2021. While there has been no other news since then regarding this title, recent reports and tweets have revealed that the senior writer for the game, Jennifer Allaway, has been hired recently.

With a writer just being hired, it seemingly confirms that the game won’t be coming out in 2023, or possibly even early 2024. With the writing process just beginning, the story and narrative will have to be outlined first, following which the game will enter the design phase.

Monolith does have a couple of titles under its belt, the most famous being the F.E.A.R. series and the Middle-earth: Shadow series. Details regarding the Wonder Woman video game will probably be scant in the coming months, so we’ll have to satisfy ourselves with just the teaser trailer for now.

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2) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Remake

A remake of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is currently in development, although recently, it has faced many hurdles. Citing quality issues, the title has been handed over to a new developer under Saber Interactive after Aspyr seemingly failed to meet the necessary qualifications.

Remakes are a touchy subject as they are required to capture the nostalgia of the original title while also updating the game to modern standards without detracting from its old-school charm. One splendid example was the Demon’s Souls remake, done spectacularly by Bluepoint Games.

Knights of the Old Republic, or KOTOR, is a beloved Star Wars RPG that immersed players in a story set thousands of years before the Battle of Yavin. It is a perfect game for many people, featuring a grand narrative full of twists and turns along with one of the most reverential characters in Star Wars mythos.

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3) Fable 4

The Fable series is a beloved trilogy of video games that initially ran from 2004 to 2010. These high fantasy titles allow users to take on the role of a young ruler who has to govern the kingdom of Albion and keep it safe from threats by taking on the mantle of the Hero.

While the series has been dormant for a while, the Xbox Games Showcase in 2020 came with the official announcement that a new Fable game was in development. It is being headed by developer Playground Games, famous for its Forza Horizon series, and will utilize its in-house game engine, ForzaTech.

The new video game does not yet have a release date, although since it was announced in 2020, we can assume that it will come around sometime in late 2023 or 2024. Playground Games has released a teaser trailer highlighting the goofy fantasy we can expect from the game, and it is pretty endearing, if not a little crude.

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4) Marvel’s Wolverine

Insomniac Games surprised everyone in September 2021 during a PlayStation showcase where they revealed a new video game they would be working on. As the reveal trailer unfolded, gamers were caught off guard when a character unleashed three metal claws from his fist, revealing himself to be none other than Wolverine.

As Insomniac tends to put time and effort into its titles, fans wouldn’t be surprised if Marvel’s Wolverine releases sometime after Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. The developer claims they want to showcase an “emotional narrative and cutting-edge gameplay,” so it would be best for them if the two games were released months apart.

Aside from these details, little is known about what the title will look like, how it will play out, or even if it will feature other X-Men. For my money, I bet it will definitely be an action-adventure title and possibly even a linear game, as world traversal using Wolverine isn’t going to be fun.

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5) New Mass Effect game

During N7 Day in 2020, developer BioWare confirmed that a new Mass Effect video game was in development. An announcement trailer in December cleared up many doubts from fans as it showed a connection to the original trilogy instead of Mass Effect Andromeda, a smart move since Andromeda doesn’t have the best reputation.

The title is set to use Unreal Engine, much like the original games, and is set to finish full development by 2023. This would mean that we won’t be getting a new Mass Effect video game in the coming year, possibly, given that no release date or window has yet been announced.

However, the very fact that this is a continuation of the story from the original trilogy is a gift for many fans, for whom the wholly separate Mass Effect: Andromeda was a jarring experience. Returning to the Milky Way and meeting familiar characters from the crew of the Normandy is an experience many people, including me, can’t wait for.