After Nvidia’s latest database leak on Twitter detailed specific release dates for a myriad of titles—some yet unreleased—it became very clear 2022 was going to be a big year for the gaming industry.
With all the titles that have recently been delayed to 2022 joining a massive list of other announced titles that will finally be published within the next year, it looks like the months leading up to the end of 2022 are going to be the busiest release months for the video game industry since 2011.
Games of different genres, studios, and audiences are going to fill the entire calendar year, from January all the way through December. From Hogwarts Legacy to Elden Ring, these are the best upcoming PC games set to be released in 2022.
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands
Developed by Gearbox Software and published by 2K, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is a spin-off title in the critically acclaimed Borderlands series which will be released in March 2022.
This next Borderlands title will be a first-person shooter, like its predecessors, with RPG elements and a strong D&D vibe. The fantasy world of Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands will be filled with underground caves, endless forests infested with mushrooms, and troll-inhabited mountains. Tiny Tina takes on the role of Dungeon Master of this new world, which means she will be able to change and alter it as she pleases. Players can create their own characters and choose from six different classes that will provide different skills, as well as explore a large arsenal of weapons and other gear.
Earlier this month, Gearbox released the DLC that inspired this upcoming game, Assault on Dragon Keep, which was available as a free download from Nov. 8 to Nov. 16. The events in the upcoming 2022 title will take place straight after everything that unravels in the DLC.
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands will be released on March 25, 2022 and will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series S/X.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2
This first-person shooter developed by GSC Game World is set to release in 2022 and will be the fourth installment in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R series. It has been 13 years since the release of a S.T.A.L.K.E.R game. Call of Pripyat was released in 2009, and a new title was announced shortly after to be released in 2012, but it ended up being canceled that same year. It wasn’t until 2018 that it was back on the development table.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 fans saw a glimpse of the upcoming game in the extended trailer that was presented at the Xbox-Bethesda conference at E3 2021, which also confirmed that the survival shooter would be released in April 2022. Furthermore, it was unveiled that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will be available on Xbox Game Pass for both consoles and PC at launch.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will be released on April 28, 2022 and will be available on PC and Xbox Series S/X.
Elden Ring
Said to be reinventing the nature of open-world games, Elden Ring is by far one of the most hyped pending releases for 2022. This RPG developed by FromSoftware will feature several elements that could also be found in previous instalments of the Souls series, with a heavy focus on combat and exploration. The game takes place in The Lands Between and will include six different areas, filled with castles, fortresses, and catacombs to explore.
The game is directed by Hidetaka Miyazaki, and the world-building is led by author George R.R. Martin, mostly known for his A Song of Ice and Fire novel series which was later developed into the Game of Thrones hit TV show. Miyazaki gave him creative freedom to write the backstory of the game universe.
Elden Ring will be released on Feb. 25, 2021 and will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
Company of Heroes 3
Officially announced in July 2021, Company of Heroes 3 is an upcoming RTS game developed by Relic Entertainment. Set in the Italian and North African locations of World War II, the sequel to Company of Heroes 2 will feature new mechanics and new game modes.
Some of the new features include the Tactical Pause System, allowing the player to pause a battle and queue up different commands, and a new dynamic story that allows players to interact with different NPCs and affect the story ending.
Although no official release date has been revealed, fans can expect Company of Heroes 3 to release in late 2022.
Baldur’s Gate 3
Baldur’s Gate 3 is Larian Studios’ most ambitious project to date. Although the game is partially available as an Early Access on Steam as of October 2020, a full release is planned for 2022.
Players take on the role of Tav, the protagonist of the story, who is abducted by mind flayers. They implant a parasite in Tav that has the power of transforming him into another mind flayer, but before the transformation takes place, the ship Tav is in is attacked and Tav manages to escape. From this point onward Tav must find a way to remove the parasite as he encounters a number of other survivors in the wreck.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is an RPG that gives players both a single-player experience as well as multiplayer options. Unlike previous installments of the series, Baldur’s Gate 3 has a turn-based combat system comparable to the one from Divinity: Original Sin. The story takes players back to the 15th century and 120 years after the story in Baldur’s Gate 2.
Baldur’s Gate 3 will be fully released in 2022, and will remain in Steam Early Access until then.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is an open-world action/adventure game that will be based on James Cameron’s Avatar film. Developed by Massive Entertainment, this title will be published by Ubisoft and will be available in 2022.
In the game, players take control of the Na’vi and start their journey through the Western Frontier, a new region of Pandora. A first trailer was revealed during E3 2021, but the game had first been announced all the way back in 2017. Although not many details have yet been released, we know that this will be a standalone story and won’t follow the same narrative as the one presented in the film series.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is under development and will be released in 2022.
The Lord of the Rings: Gollum
Daedalic’s latest project was initially set to release in 2021 but was recently pushed to 2022. This is an upcoming action/adventure game which, as its name suggests, will be based on the character of Gollum and the events that happen before the novel and films of The Lord of the Rings franchise.
Players will get to experience parts of Gollum’s story that haven’t been explored in too much detail, from his time as a slave under the Dark Tower to the time he spent with the Elves of Mirkwood. Using stealth, agility, and cunning to survive will only be part of the gameplay. Decisions that are made along the story will have a significant influence on how Gollum’s personality develops. In the novels and films, Gollum constantly struggles between the darkness embodied by Gollum and his life as Smeagol. In the game, it is up to the player to decide which side takes over.
The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is set to release in 2022, and will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
Forspoken
Square Enix’s next development project, Forspoken, is an action RPG that will be released in spring 2022. The publisher described the title as a “narrative-driven adventure” which will take place in an open world that players will be free to explore.
The story protagonist, Frey Holland, is a young woman who is taken from her home in New York and introduced to the fantasy world of Athia, where she will have to use magical powers to make her way through this new, mysterious land to survive and make her way home.
Forspoken is a PS5 console exclusive but will also be available on PC when it releases in 2022.
Dying Light 2
Techland’s Dying Light 2: Stay Human, the sequel to Techland’s 2015 Dying Light, has kept fans waiting for a long time and is finally launching in 2022. This is a survival/horror RPG which stars Aiden Caldwell as a new protagonist which players get to control. New gameplay mechanics in the sequel will include parkour and the chance to climb, slide, and wall-run through buildings in the city.
Over 3,000 parkour animations have been confirmed, as well as some new tools such as a grappling hook and a paraglider. As in the title’s predecessor, in-game combat will mostly be melee-based and weapons will wear out as they are used over time. Although melee combat will take the center stage, there will also be ranged and upgradable weapons like the crossbow or shotgun. Weapons can be upgraded with different components that are found throughout the game. The protagonist will also have a Superhuman Skill caused by the infection which players will be able to use in combat.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human is set in an open world which is four times bigger than that of the previous title. There are seven distinct regions and different settlements and factions players will come across throughout the campaign. There will also be a heavy focus on decision-making, which will actually change the game world and the main character’s reputation.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human is set to be released on 4 February 2022, and will be available on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
Hogwarts Legacy
Hogwarts Legacy has been one of the most anticipated and most controversial games to have been announced in the last couple of years. Based heavily on lore from the Harry Potter series and set in the same Wizarding World, Hogwarts Legacy is being developed by Avalanche Software and will be published by Warner Bros Entertainment. With a thread of leadership changes as well as initial concerns over J.K. Rowling’s involvement, the game was recently delayed to 2022, and we now know the game will be launched some time after the second Fantastic Beasts film, which is set to release in April 2022.
Hogwarts Legacy will be set in the 1800s and will have players fill in the shoes of a fifth-year student who goes to Hogwarts after receiving a late admission letter. Logically, none of the characters from the novels or films will appear, but it is possible that some lore characters that are mere mentions in the novels and films could make it into the game, as these would be an opportunity for the developers to breathe new life into existing characters fans know little about.
The playable protagonist in the story is a witch or wizard who turns out to be the only one able to understand and use powerful, ancient magic that will uncover the hidden truths about the Wizarding World. The game’s story will focus on the character’s journey in Hogwarts and the player’s choices through a series of events and missions that will have the protagonist go on a journey of of choosing between good and evil.
Hogwarts Legacy is set to release in 2022 on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series S/X.
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