Most Anticipated Games of 2023

2023 is upon us, and it’s a hard act to follow when it comes to games, because 2022 was a very good year. We had Elden Ring, God of War Ragnarok, Tunic and Vampire Survivors, just to name a few. Today I want to look ahead into the future at my top ten most anticipated games of 2023.

Before we get into it let me know your most anticipated games of 2023. Either comment below, or tweet me at TWIVGPodcast or get in contact through podcast@thisweekinvideogames.com.

Destiny 2: Lightfall

This is the penultimate expansion in the Light vs Darkness saga. We’re off to Neptune and the neon city of Neomuna to fight against Calus and the Shadow Cabal. The Witness draws ever nearer Earth, plus the name Lightfall doesn’t bode well for the Traveler, currently situated just outside the Last City. We have a new darkness subclass coming with Strand, our second Darkness subclass since Stasis was introduced in Beyond Light in 2020. As well as moving the story forward Bungie is introducing new tools and features like in-game LFG, Guardian Ranks, Commendations and a Mod Managment System. Bungie’s next Destiny Expansion is set for release on 28th February 2023.

Starfield

Starfield is the first new universe in 25 years from Bethesda. This is a next generation role-playing game set amongst the stars, create any character you want and explore with freedom as you embark on an epic journey to answer humanity’s greatest mystery. Starfield is set in an area that extends outward from the Solar System for approximately 50 light-years called The Settled Systems. Around the year 2310, the two largest factions in the game, the United Colonies and Freestar Collective, engaged in a conflict called the Colony War. The game takes place 20 years after the war, with the major factions enjoying an uneasy peace. The player assumes the role of a customizable character who is a member of Constellation, an organization of space explorers. The game can be played in either first or third-person perspectives. Starfield is set to release in 2023.

Diablo IV

Diablo IV is an upcoming action RPG developed and published by Blizzard, and is the fourth main installment in the Diablo series. Series features such as re-playable, procedurally generated dungeons, and loot-focused character-building will return, while new features such as an open world, and player versus player (PVP) interactions will be incorporated.

Five playable classes have been announced—Barbarian, Sorceress, Druid, Rogue, and Necromancer—all of which have appeared in the series. Players guide their character through quests and combat in the world of Sanctuary as the once banished Lilith returns to wreak havoc. The game was announced on November 1, 2019 at BlizzCon 2019, and is scheduled for release on June 6, 2023.

Sea of stars

Sea of Stars is an RPG centered around two heroes named Valerie and Zale, who use the power of the sun and moon to fight against an alchemist. Gameplay includes elements of puzzle-solving and turn-based combat, with players able to control up to six player characters. The game is inspired by role-playing games such as Illusion of Gaia, Breath of Fire, and Chrono Trigger and features sailing mechanics, side quests, and combat focused around finding the “elemental weaknesses” of enemies.[5] Sea of Stars is located in the same setting as The Messenger, but is set thousands of years before the events of the latter game.

Sea of Stars was announced on March 19, 2020, with an expected release date set for 2022. First launched as a project on Kickstarter, Sabotage intended to develop an RPG that was more ambitious than The Messenger. Creative director Thierry Boulanger said that Sabotage wanted to expand and tell a new story in the same game world, using a new genre unlike the metroidvania style of the first game. He wanted to include “higher stakes” with six characters and exploration that differed from the linear nature of The Messenger. The game was scored by Eric W. Brown and Chrono Trigger composer Yasunori Mitsuda. In June 2022, Sabotage announced a delay of the game into 2023.

Star Wars Jedi Survivor

The story of Cal Kestis continues in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, a third person galaxy-spanning action-adventure game from Respawn Entertainment, developed in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games. This narratively-driven, single player title picks up five years after the events of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and follows Cal’s increasingly desperate fight as the galaxy descends further into darkness.

Continue Cal’s Journey – No longer a Padawan, Cal has come into his own and grown into a powerful Jedi Knight. The Dark Times are closing in – with enemies new and familiar surrounding him, Cal will need to decide how far he’s willing to go to save those closest to him.

Go Beyond Your Training – The cinematic combat system returns with additional Force abilities and new lightsaber fighting styles. Creatively leverage all these abilities and weapons to strategically take on an expanded host of enemies, sizing up strengths and weaknesses while cleverly utilizing your training to overcome your opponents and solve the mysteries that lay in your path.

Explore an Untamed Galaxy – Discover new planets and familiar frontiers in the Star Wars galaxy, each with unique biomes, challenges, and enemies. Master new skills, equipment, and abilities that will augment the ways you explore, fight, and roam.

Stand against the darkness on March 17, 2023.

Pepper Grinder

Pepper Grinder is an action-packed pirate adventure starring the titular Pepper, a seafaring soul with a passion for prospecting, and Grinder, her super-powered drilling device. Shipwrecked and robbed of her treasure, Pepper must spin up her trusty sidearm to reclaim what the mischievous Narlings stole. Armed with Grinder, Pepper burrows through terrain & water, controls machines, and pulverizes all enemies blocking the way towards recovering her missing fortune – with interest! Pepper’s progress will not be that simple, however, as mysterious beings begin to emerge from the shadows…

GRITTY GAMEPLAY
Cruise through a colorfully animated world with precise movements, fluid drilling, and thrilling leaps.

THRILLING DRILLING
Chew through the world with Grinder and find new drill bits to ramp up the chaos and solve clever puzzles.

CONQUER & COLLECT
Pick up jewels and other riches during your adventure and cash them in at shops to power up Pepper, open up new paths on the world map, and snag collectible stickers for your sticker book.

Final Fantasy XVI

Final Fantasy XVI is an upcoming action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix. The sixteenth main installment in the Final Fantasy series, it is scheduled for release in 2023 for the PlayStation 5 as a timed exclusive. The game will feature segmented open environments and an action-based combat system involving both melee and magic-based attacks. There are also recurring series features including Chocobos, and summoned monsters called Eikons which are both fought as bosses and used through channelling their power in combat.

Final Fantasy XVI is set on Valisthea, a world divided between six nations who hold power through access to magical Crystals and Dominants, humans who act as hosts for each nation’s Eikon. Tensions between the nations escalate as a malady dubbed the Blight begins consuming the land. Clive Rosfield, guardian to his younger brother Joshua, witnesses his kingdom destroyed and goes on a revenge quest in pursuit of the dark Eikon Ifrit.

Beginning concept development in 2015, the staff included Naoki Yoshida as producer, Hiroshi Takai as main director, artists Hiroshi Minagawa and Kazuya Takahashi, Kazutoyo Maehiro as creative director and lead writer, Masayoshi Soken as composer, and Capcom veteran Ryota Suzuki as battle designer. Yoshida’s aim was for a dark fantasy storyline which would have broad appeal and reinvigorate the series.

Wild Hearts

Wild Hearts is an upcoming action role-playing video game developed by Omega Force and published by Electronic Arts under its EA Originals label. The game tasks the player to hunt massive monsters in Azuma, a fantasy world inspired by feudal Japan.

Players assume the role of a nameless hunter, who must embark on quests to hunt down massive monsters known as Kemono in the world of Azuma. Azuma is not an open world, but instead, several large areas that players can freely explore. The game features eight different weapon types, including the likes of wagasa and katana. In addition to using weapons to defeat enemies, players can also build items to assist combat through the Karakuri mechanic. For instance, players can build crates that allow players to leap off to deal massive damage to enemies, or a torch which can be used to ignite enemies.

However, these building blocks can be combined to form larger machines, such as a bulwark that blocks an enemy’s path. The constructed items are permanent, until they were destroyed by Kemono. Players can also build Karakuri to aid transversal. Building Karakuri consumes thread, which can be acquired through simply attacking enemies. As the player progresses in the game, they will unlock new weapons and armors, allowing players to hunt more challenging monsters. The team estimated that players can complete the game’s narrative campaign in about 30 hours. Players can team up with two other players as they progress in the game.

The game is set to be released on February 17, 2023 for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S.

Street Fighter VI

Street Fighter 6 is an upcoming fighting game developed and published by Capcom.

Street Fighter 6 features three overarching game modes: Fighting Ground, World Tour, and Battle Hub. Fighting Ground contains local and online versus battles as well as training and arcade modes, all featuring similar 2D fighting gameplay to the previous games in the series, in which two fighters use a variety of attacks and special abilities to knock out their opponent. World Tour is a single-player story mode featuring a customizable player avatar exploring 3D environments with action-adventure gameplay. Battle Hub acts as an online lobby mode, with other features set to be revealed in the future.

The main fighting gameplay of Street Fighter 6 is based around the Drive Gauge, a system designed to encourage player creativity. The gauge can be used for five different techniques, requiring players to choose which to prioritize. Most of the Drive Gauge’s mechanics are based on previously existing mechanics from previous Street Fighter mainline games, such as Parry, Focus Attack, EX move, etc. The game features two control types: the “classic” control scheme has a six-button layout that functions similarly to previous entries, while the “modern” control scheme assigns special moves to a single button combined with a directional input.

The use of multiple super combos returns from the Street Fighter Alpha sub-series, also counting the Ultra Combo W variant from Ultra Street Fighter IV. However, each character only has three super combos based on their respective level gauge. For example, Ryu’s Shinku Hadoken, Shin Hashogeki and Shin Shoryuken can only be used at Level 1, 2 and 3 respectively.

It is planned for release for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on June 2, 2023.

The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom

Development started in 2017 after The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was completed. The game was announced at E3 2019 as a sequel to Breath of the Wild. At E3 2021, Nintendo debuted a trailer revealing gameplay, story elements and a 2022 release date,[4] but Nintendo later changed the release date to Q2 2023. More information was revealed in Nintendo Direct presentation held in September 2022, including the title Tears of the Kingdom and a release date of May 12, 2023.

Breath of the Wild director, Hidemaro Fujibayashi, and Zelda producer, Eiji Aonuma, are reprising their roles. The game was conceived after the team was unable to use every idea planned for Breath of the Wild’s downloadable content. New elements include floating islands above Hyrule, with players able to soar between them in a style similar to The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011).

Let me know in the comments which games you are most excited for in 2023.