The year 2022 has finally come to the fore, accompanied by sighs of relief from video game enthusiasts. Because this new solar rotation promises the best for the video game world, marking the return of legendary franchises and the advent of promising new products.
[Mis à jour le 06 janvier 2022 à 17h21] 2021 will be remembered as a mixed year for the world of video games. Between surprise successes and big disappointments, this second year of the pandemic will have witnessed a change in the balance of power between independent studios and gargantuan licenses, the latter penalized by failed releases and yet another tasteless opus. Faced with the daring and originality of games like Valheim or Kena Bridge of Spirit, we find the starving Far Cry 6, Battlefield 2042 or Call of Duty Vanguard, specters of licenses destroyed by the greed assumed by the mastodon studios. But the good news is that a new year awaits us on the video game side and 2022 promises to be damn high, at least as much as can be a year marked once again by the global health crisis. This is also the opportunity to bring together the top of the most anticipated video game releases of 2022.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus (Nintendo Switch): January 28
This is a new release that will appeal to all fans of the Pokémon universe. Legends: Pokémon Arceus arrives on January 28 and brings with it a breath of fresh air to the most famous of Nintendo universes. This game will offer a whole new kind of experience for the franchise, giving us the opportunity to experience the Sinnoh region in a semi-open world and in third person. The player will play as one of the very first Pokémon trainers in the discovery of the legendary fauna that shelters his universe and will try to develop the very first Pokédex. The game will incorporate turn-based as well as real-time combat and will be available exclusively on Nintendo Switch.
Total War Warhammer 3 (PC): February 17
The Total War adventure Warhammer begins its final chapter with the release of its third installment. Total War Warhammer 3 arrives on February 17, a release that will delight the many fans of this turn-based strategy game charmed by this trilogy combining the scale and magnitude of the battles of a Total War with the sinister and prolific universe. from Warhammer Fantasy. This third installment will also be an opportunity to discover new factions among the most popular of the original board game, including Cathay and Kislev, but also the four kingdoms of the Gods of Chaos, ultimate antagonists of the Warhammer universe. On the gameplay side, some major changes are expected, especially in siege battles and campaign missions.
Horizon Forbidden West (PS5): February 25
Aloy is back and takes us to the lands of the American West in the distant future where machines and wildlife come together, and where civilization has been reduced to a collection of primitive tribes. Horizon Forbidden West is the second installment of the adventures of the fiery-haired adventurer, a long-awaited and even envied Playstation 5 exclusive by Xbox and PC gamers. An output that will also be on Playstation 4 so as not to put aside the many players who could not get their hands on the latest Sony console, out of stock since its release. Horizon Forbidden West takes us into the second chapter of Aloy’s adventures, where she will face a new threat from the Forbidden Lands of the West. We will find new gameplay elements, especially in terms of movement and combat, with new accessories and mechanics offering the player many ways to understand this open world as beautiful as it is dangerous.
Elden Ring (PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series, and PC): February 25
Certainly, February 25 will be a day to mark on your calendar because it will also be the one of the release of the most anticipated game of the year: Elden Ring. So why is Elden Ring the most anticipated game of 2022? Well because it is the most recent creation of the studio From Software, the studio behind the acclaimed Dark Souls, Bloodborne and Sekiro. And From Software has always got us used to great games. However, Elden Ring is a brand new creation, a new universe from the mind of the writer George RR Martin (Game of Thrones) and will offer for the first time in a “souls” game a gameplay entirely in open world. Set in the mysterious world of England, Elden Ring will be playable solo and co-op for up to four players. What to discover its sinister history and unearth its best buried treasures alone or with others. Note that this is still a From Software game, so its difficulty will be particularly high.
Gran Turismo 7 (PS5 and PS4): March 4
After the thunderous success of Forza Horizon 5, Sony had to show its teeth in the field of racing games. Gran Turismo 7 is the long-awaited sequel to the famous Polyphony Digital license, and brings us a next-gen approach to racing games. Sony Interactive Entertainment is still relatively silent on the exact content of the game, but seems to be putting the package to try to dethrone Forza Horizon 5. Strengths of this new component, the design, the variety and the personalization of the vehicles. An output that all racing game enthusiasts will have to watch at all costs.
Tiny Tina’s Wonderland (PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series, and PC): March 25
It’s an entry you might not find on all similar lists, but we were keen to include Tiny Tina’s Wonderland in ours. Indeed, 2K Games returns with this original title, the extension of a DLC of Borderlands 2 which offers us a dive into the crazy universe of Tiny Tina. On the menu, a typical Borderlands license looter-shooter transported to a different universe, dotted with magic and heroic fantasy. New features that will quickly refresh the view and review formula of the Borderlands games, and which encourages us to watch this original release very closely, on March 25.
STALKER 2 Heart of Chernobyl (PC, Xbox Series): April 28
If you have never played a STALKER game, know that this new component is awaited like the messiah by a large part of the community of survival games players. News of the franchise came straight from Russia for nearly twelve years, and that’s why STALKER 2 is a must-see release in spring 2022. This solo shooter / survival offers us a dive into the mysterious universe of the Zone, an exclusion zone around the Chernobyl power plant that is full of hidden treasures and unspeakable dangers. STALKER 2 Heart of Chernobyl will be a very special experience, reserved for fans of hardcore survival and poetry, and to say that we look forward to it is an understatement.