The 28 Most Anticipated Video Games of 2025
It’s tough to pinpoint exactly what's in store for video games in 2025. Grand Theft Auto VI is reportedly due out sometime this year. It's a sentence that could have existed on a list like this for the past decade, but an official trailer from Rockstar Games revealed that it's finally time to return to their wonderfully fucked-up playground. If fans play GTA VI at any time before 31 December, that game alone will cement 2025 as one of the biggest years in video game history. Thankfully, it's not the only title we have our eyes on this year.
If you look at the list of titles planned for 2025 below, you might notice a few similarities. There are very few release dates confirmed for the year so far. Rumor has it that developers are holding out until GTA VI announces its release date. Like Wicked: For Good or a surprise Beyoncé album, no one wants to compete with the highly anticipated blockbuster. The same goes for whenever the newly announced Nintendo Switch 2 hits shelves.
If either event actually happens this year, we can call 2025 a win. But even if we all look like fools with eggs on our faces, 2025 is still full of amazing titles. There’s an Elden Ring cooperative spin-off planned for later this year. Plus, we'll see sequels galore for Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding, The Outer Worlds, and Pokémon Legends. Below, we put together a list of our twenty-eight most anticipated video games of 2025.
Citizen Sleeper 2
What we know: When Citizen Sleeper released in 2022, the inventive text-driven adventure was easily one of my favourite games of the year. Players start out as a lowly spaceship mechanic who needs to find a way off the station to gain their freedom. There’s only a set number of actions that a player can perform each day to advance their goal, and dice rolls determine the success of each activity.
Why we're excited: We put Citizen Sleeper's DLC on our list of the Best Video Games of 2023. So, I’m hoping that the sequel’s new enhancements make a good game even greater.
Release Date: 31 January
Civilization VII
What we know: Esquire's team don’t have a ton of experience with Civilization firsthand, but the Risk-esque strategy game is reportedly set for a big update in its seventh installment. The city builder will cover three ages, according to Games Radar, including Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern. Players will also be able to select a new civilization for each age, as well as one of six attributes that will help determine the gameplay moving forward.
Why we're excited: Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones) voices in the in-game narrator.
Release Date: 11 February
Avowed
What we know: Did you love Skyrim? Well, Avowed may be the next great title for you. The upcoming role-playing game was originally pitched as Obsidian studio’s take on the popular Elder Scrolls RPG.
Why we're excited: Obsidian has a great track record following Fallout: New Vegas and The Outer Worlds, so I’m interested to see how they plan to take on a Dungeons & Dragons-esque setting next.
Release Date: 18 February
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
What we know: Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is another narrative adventure heading your way in early 2025. The story follows four high school girls in a punk band who are forever changed by a mysterious event.
Why we're excited: The new title is developed by the creators of Life Is Strange, which received critical acclaim back in 2015. Lost Records will debut in two parts on February 18 and March 18, so I’d expect a nice cliff-hanger in between releases.
Release Date: February 18 (Part 1) and March 18 (Part II)
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
What we know: Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is not only a mouthful, but it’s easily one of the most anticipated video games heading into the first half of 2025. The Yakuza spinoff RPG features Goro Majima—one of the long-running series' fan-favourite characters—as he wakes up with amnesia and takes to the high seas.
Why we're excited: I have no idea what to expect, but wackier is better when it comes to the Yakuza franchise these days. If it's anything like the fantastic Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii will feel like a million great games in one.
Release Date: 21 February
Monster Hunter Wilds
What we know: Monster Hunter Wilds is the latest adventure game from Capcom that places players in an unexplored new world to, well, hunt monsters. The developer is looking to build off the successes of both Monster Hunter Worlds and Monster Hunter Rise to create the best version of both in one game this time around.
Why we're excited: Wilds will arrive complete with cooperative multiplayer and monster behaviors that change based on the weather and the time of day.
Release Date: 28 February
Split Fiction
What we know: Split Fiction was one of the most-exciting titles announced during 2024’s Game Awards. The action-adventure game from It Takes Two director Josef Fores looks to blend fantasy and sci-fi as players work together to conquer platforming levels and challenging puzzles.
Why we're excited: We love any chance to game side-by-side that isn't just another round of Mario Kart. (No offense, Mario.)
Release Date: 6 March
Assassins Creed Shadows
What we know: After the success of Sekiro, just about every AAA gaming company began working on a title featuring a lead character with a samurai sword. I’m talking about Ghost of Tsushima, Rise of the Ronin, and most recently, Black Myth: Wukong. So, it’s only natural that Ubisoft eventually set one its annual Assassins Creed games in Edo period Japan.
Why we're excited: In Shadows, players will switch between Yasuke, the legendary Black samurai who fought for the shogun, and Naoe, a female ninja who specialises in stealth.
Release Date: 20 March
Borderlands 4
What we know: The popular looter-shooter series has a lot of competition compared to when its predecessor, Borderlands 3, debuted in 2019. But developer Gearbox Software is hopeful that long-time fans of the genre will come back for the next installment. After all, Borderlands 3 pulled over 15 million sales, according to a report from May 2022.
Why we're excited: While I can’t speak to the state of that awful-looking Borderlands movie, I can confirm that Borderlands 4 is a highly anticipated video game that requires zero knowledge of said film.
Release Date: TBA
Cairn
What we know: The indie climbing game is unlike anything we've ever seen. Sure, you can climb in plenty of titles now. But Cairn is solely focusing on using the mechanic to produce a mountain-climbing adventure.
Why we're excited: Cairn looks both challenging and oddly relaxing at the same time—just like real climbing!
Release Date: TBA
Death Stranding 2
What we know: Video game auteur Hideo Kojima is hard at work finishing up the sequel to 2019’s polarising Death Stranding. The action game and package-delivery simulator starred Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen, as players traversed a massive map to reconnect a broken world. Popularity for Death Stranding picked up once the game began resembling the Covid-19 pandemic—which began mere weeks after the game’s launch. Now, Kojima is readying the sequel for a 2025 release.
Why we're excited: Kojima levels are hitting 100 percent on this one. There's guys with electric guitars, little talking puppets, and cameos from Mad Max director George Miller.
Release Date: TBA
Doom: The Dark Ages
What we know: Doom: The Dark Ages narratively serves as a prequel to the new Doom series that rebooted in 2019, but I’m pretty sure that just means we’re getting some swords and shields along with our arsenal of guns. If that metal dragon from the trailer is anything to go off, The Dark Ages may still have some secrets up its sleeves.
Why we're excited: Doom: The Dark Ages's marketing introduced me to the phrase “techno-medieval." For that alone, I’m certain that the upcoming shooter will succeed.
Release Date: TBA
Dune: Awakening
What we know: Video games based on movies don’t always have a great track record. The last Dune adaptation was a real-time strategy game called Dune: Spice Wars, which PC Gamer described as having “not enough depth in its interlocking systems nor a compelling narrative hook." Well, Dune: Awakening is made by the same publisher as Dune: Spice Wars.
Why we're excited: The two games couldn’t look more different from each other. The new title is an open-world MMO, looking a lot like Final Fantasy XIV and Starfield had a baby on Arakkis.
Release Date: TBA
Elden Ring: Nightreign
What we know: Before the 2024 Game Awards trailer (above), I could have sworn that FromSoftware president Hidetaka Miyazaki told IGN that we wouldn’t see an Elden Ring sequel. And yet, Elden Ring: Nightreign is due out in 2025 to make the hellish trials of dying a million times to the same boss a shared experience.
Why we're excited: I guess Miyazaki was partially telling the truth, because the cooperative spin-off looks less a full-blown sequel and more like FromSoft made everyone’s illegal multiplayer mods an official product.
Release Date: TBA
Fable
What we know: Forza Horizon developer Playground Games is planning to reboot the Fable franchise in 2025, even though fans haven’t seen much of what the team has been working on so far. The action-adventure RPG is reportedly written by Horizon Forbidden West’s Andrew Walsh.
Why we're excited: Fable likely won't have Forza Horizon's sports cars, but the fandom for this series of RPGs runs deep.
Release Date: TBA
Ghost of Yotei
What we know: Ghost of Tsushima will receive a sequel this year in Ghost of Yotei, which will follow a female samurai named Atsu. This time around, players will reportedly have more control over the main character's narrative choices than before.
Why we're excited: The serene and challenging first game was a favorite among players in 2020, and games set in feudal Japan have only risen in popularity ever since.
Release Date: TBA
Grand Theft Auto 6
What we know: We received confirmation of the Nintendo Switch 2 before Grand Theft Auto 6. Insane! The new title to the highly successful franchise reportedly takes place in Vice City with a Bonnie & Clyde-esque plot. It's tough to tell what's official and what's just a rumor, due to the sheer number of leaks from Rockstar Games. But fans are just hoping everything runs smoothly once they have GTA 6 in their hands.
Why we're excited: Until Minecraft came along, Grand Theft Auto V was the highest-selling video game of all time. The pressure to produce a worthy follow-up is likely why the sixth installment is so delayed, but there's arguably never been a more highly anticipated title in video game history.
Release Date: TBA
Hollow Knight: Silksong
What we know: It feels unfair to put the Hollow Knight sequel on the list since there’s no promise of a 2025 release just yet. The last we heard from the developers was in May 2023, when they said that “development is still continuing."
Why we're excited: Hollow Knight was such a success for the Metroidvania genre that the independent game contended with Super Mario Odyssey, Persona 5, and even The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for 2017’s Game of the Year. Take your time on the sequel, TeamCherry!
Release Date: TBA
Hyper Light Breaker
What we know: Heart Machine hopes to convert fans of 2016's Hyper Light Breaker this year when they release a 3D rougelike set in the same universe.
Why we're excited: Hyper Light Drifter was one of my favorite 2D indie titles in 2016. The action game was a nostalgic return to 8-bit swordplay games like The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. This year, Hyper Light Breaker will expand the formula to focus on multiplayer experiences.
Release Date: TBA
Mafia: The Old Country
What we know: Tired of not playing Grand Theft Auto 6 yet? Check out Mafia: The Old Country. The crime story will be a more linear experience than Grand Theft Auto, as it reportedly follows the early origins of the mafia in 1900s Sicily.
Why we're excited: Thanks to a trailer full of cutscenes at the 2024 Game Awards, it seems that Mafia: The Old Country will feature a heavy amount of story. We don't mind that! I'll take a mafia-tinged Red Dead Redemption any day.
Release Date: TBA
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
What we know: Following Hideo Kojima’s split with Konami, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater will serve as the first title to continue the franchise without its creator’s support. (We don’t talk about Metal Gear Survive.) The new game is a remake of Metal gear Solid 3: Snake Eater using the updated Unreal Engine 5 used by games such as Fortnite and Tekken 8.
Why we're excited: Konami did a fantastic job with the much-celebrated Silent Hill 2 remake. Even without Kojima's involvement, there’s still some hope.
Release Date: TBA
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
What we know: The next 3D Metroid title is scheduled for release in 2025, as Nintendo hopes to build off the successful 2023 remaster of the original Metroid Prime.
Why we're excited: Not only is the fourth Metroid Prime entry due for some hype in 2025, but the upcoming game is rumored as a potential launch title for Nintendo Switch 2.
Release Date: TBA
The Outer Worlds 2
What we know: Obsidian premiered a wacky trailer for their sequel to The Outer Worlds at the 2024 Game Awards. The developer looks to build off their zany, narrative-driven shooter that brought them acclaim in 2019.
Why we're excited: According to Obsidian, the sequel will feature a greater focus on the action, as well as “everything that should have been in the first game."
Release Date: TBA
Pokémon Legends: Z-A
What we know: Pokémon Legends: Arceus was a dream come true. Though you could bicker all day about the game’s graphical limitations, the ability to finally run around and throw a Pokéball at the little pocket monsters was revolutionary for the long-running franchise. So, Pokémon fans lost their minds when the sequel was announced for a 2025 release.
Why we're excited: You're a fool if you don't play every mainline game with Pokémon in the title. I couldn’t tell you what “Z-A” means, but we’ll find out later this year.
Release Date: TBA
Shadow Labyrinth
What we know: If you’re still making Pac-Man games in 2025, the usual map just won't do it anymore. Time to think outside of the box. Thanks to a rather bizarre trailer at the 2024 Game Awards, the upcoming Bandai Namco title transformed your typical Metroidvania into something with a yellow puck-sized twist. Fans will need to wait until later in 2025 to see just what kind of craziness awaits them.
Why we're excited: It's tough to tell if this is a new way to play Pac-Man, or if Shadow Labyrinth just looks a hell of a lot like Pac-Man. Show me Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde, and then we'll talk.
Release Date: TBA
Slay the Spire 2
What we know: The indie deck-building roguelike title will receive an official sequel in 2025, according to its 2024 Game Awards trailer. The game will be available in early access very soon. Then, developer Mega Crit hopes to finish out the details with fan support.
Why we're excited: Slay the Spire 2 will feature new cards and new characters to mix, including a necromancer named the Necrobinder.
Release Date: TBA
South of Midnight
What we know: South of Midnight is a new Microsoft exclusive coming to players in 2025 that looks to explore the Deep South with gothic folklore.
Why we're excited: The most recent gameplay trailer showcased a first-person action-adventure title with impressive graphics. Players control a character named Hazel, who weaves magic and fights monsters.
Release Date: TBA
The Witcher 4
What we know: Moving on from Geralt, The Witcher IV plans to follow his adopted daughter, Ciri. A cinematic trailer premiered at the 2024 Game Awards, promising an enriching story that will build upon The Witcher's much-celebrated canon.
Why we're excited: Though there's no official release date yet, the trailer showcased some of the most exciting material from the Game Awards. Sure, it wasn't gameplay, but any improvement to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will delight gamers.
Release Date: TBA
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