Best upcoming games: everything we’re excited to play in 2024
Discover what's in store for PS5, Xbox and Switch in 2024
This year has already been packed with massive titles to compete for your attention, whether you play on a Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox console, or one of the best gaming laptops. Here’s our guide to the best upcoming games for 2024.
Admittedly, some of these titles are ones that we had anticipated last year but got delayed. Nonetheless, after a couple of years of adjusting to both the latest console generation and development challenges brought on by the pandemic, 2024 is when the current-gen is finally hitting its stride.
But whether it’s the start of spring, a stacked summer, or beyond, there are plenty of exciting games coming up regardless of the platform you’re playing on. Read on for our picks of the best upcoming games.
1. Hollow Knight: Silksong
Platforms: PC, Switch, Xbox, PS5, PS4
Made by just a team of three people, Hollow Knight is an indie Metroidvania that has just grown and grown in cult status since first releasing in 2017. Unsurprisingly then, anticipation for its follow-up Silksong has reached fever pitch.
Set in a haunted world of bugs, but presented in a gorgeous hand-drawn style, you play as the nimble Hornet, previously a deadly antagonist in the original game, facing all-new enemies and all-new challenges as you try and making your way up to the top of the kingdom you’ve been imprisoned in.
We still don’t know when Silksong will release, or whether Team Cherry will just drop it out of the blue, but at least throughout all the agonising wait, it’s been confirmed for every major platform, including Game Pass on day one.
Due: TBA
2. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/S
The fourth game in the Stalker series from Ukranian dev GSC Game World, Heart of Chornobyl will send you back into the exclusion zone around the infamous nuclear power station to survive, shoot monsters, and take on weird radioactive anomalies. The original game, released back in 2007, featured a hive-mind created from seven linked scientists, so who knows what the team has come up with to top that.
A first-person game set in a true open world, Heart of Chornobyl is being developed for the Unreal Engine 5. It should look excellent by taking advantage of the latest graphics technology, including ray-tracing.
Due: Delayed to 2024
3. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Solid Snake meets real snake in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, a game that sees the brooding mercenary go full Rambo. Coming to PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is supposed to be a pretty true to the title remake of Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece, albeit without his actual involvement.
We don’t have any gameplay footage yet, only a few cinematic shots where we see jungle critters being eaten, an anaconda (we think) fighting a crocodile (or alligator), and Solid Snake emerging from a swamp. But if the remaster of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is anything like the original, it’ll be the strongest game in the series.
Due: 2024
4. Sand Land
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox
The late Akira Toriyama is best known for being the creator of the enormously successful Dragon Ball series, while in the world of video games his character designs in the Dragon Quest series and the beloved SNES RPG, Chrono Trigger, are as iconic as the games themselves. But a month on from Toriyama’s passing, it’s one of his lesser known creations that’s getting the multimedia treatment. Sand Land was a short-lived manga series first released in 2000, but it’s recently been adapted into an anime film and a series that you can now stream on Disney+. If all that wasn’t enough, we’re also getting a game.
Sand Land is an action RPG based on the story of the manga, in which a demon named Beelzebub (the main playable character), his friend Thief, and a former military general believed to be dead, join forces on a journey through the desert to locate a new water supply. This open-world game has a big focus on vehicular combat, and as you’d expect from an Akira Toriyama (the game was one of the last projects he would be involved with) it looks absolutely gorgeous.
Due: 25 April 2024
5. The Rogue Prince of Persia
Platforms: PC (Early Access via Steam)
Prince of Persia is having a moment. We might be waiting a lot longer for that The Sands of Time remake, but after kicking off 2024 with Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, the superb 2D Metroidvania reimagining of the long-running series, Ubisoft has now handed the keys to the Prince to Dead Cells developer Evil Empire. The studio is making The Rogue Prince of Persia, which is, you guessed it, a roguelite spin on the 35-year-old series, with a focus on acrobatic platforming and fast-combat. And, of course, dying.
Whether the world needs another Prince of Persia game quite so soon after The Lost Crown (something about waiting for buses) remains to be seen, but we’re really digging the visual style and colour palette, and The Rogue Prince of Persia will start its life as PC exclusive via Steam’s Early Access programme, so we’ll likely be waiting a while for the finished article. No other platforms have been announced as yet, but we’d be stunned the game wasn’t on the whole lot by the time it launches proper.
Due: 14 May 2024 (Early Access)
6. Star Wars Outlaws
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
The first truly open-world Star Wars game. Set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Starring an all-new female protagonist who’s giving off big Han Solo vibes. If none of that has pricked up your ears then we’re not sure what else to tell you. After EA and Respawn knocked it out of the park in 2023 with Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, this year sees Ubisoft take a crack at the world’s best known space opera, and the recently released story trailer has only got us more excited.
You play as Kay Vess, an up-and-coming scoundrel in the galaxy’s murky underworld. Naturally, it doesn’t take long before she gets caught up in some beef between dangerous rival crime syndicates, in an original story that will take you to both classic Star Wars planets and some brand new ones. Promising varied approaches to combat, game-changing narrative choices and tense dogfights in space, Star Wars Outlaws has the potential to be brilliant.
Due: 30 August 2024
7. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree (DLC)
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC
You want more Elden Ring? Well, you’d better believe that you’re getting more Elden Ring. The long-awaited expansion for FromSoftware’s hard-as-nails open-world masterpiece is finally coming this summer for those who have made it far enough into the game to access it. Those reacquainting themselves with their battle-scarred Tarnished of choice will follow in the footsteps of the enigmatic Miquella, as you learn how and why he ended up in the Land of Shadow, the brand new area in which the DLC is set.
We don’t dare go any deeper into Elden Ring lore here, but here are the need-to-knows: Shadow of the Erdtree is the largest FromSoftware expansion to date; the new map is comparable in size to Limgrave, the base game’s introductory area; George R.R. Martin wasn’t involved this time (hopefully because he’s busy with, you know, other projects); there are loads of new bosses; you’re going to die. A lot. We can’t wait.
Due: 21 June 2024
8. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Platforms: Switch
The Switch appears to be winding down, but before we wave it off for good, one of the most beloved Nintendo games of all time is finally being re-released for a modern audience. Much like last year’s Super Mario RPG remake, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door comes from an era where Nintendo wasn’t afraid to put Mario and co in proper RPGs. But while the former has made its way onto various virtual console offerings and the SNES Classic Mini a few years ago, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door has remained a GameCube exclusive, despite being one of the best reviewed games on the console and widely regarded as the definitive Mario RPG.
This Switch remake, then, is a big deal indeed, and will give a whole new generation of Nintendo fans to experience what is probably the funniest game the plumber has ever starred in. Like its N64 predecessor, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is a turn-based RPG, in which Mario is tasked with tracking down the Crystal Stars and the missing Princess Peach. It features some of the best original characters in the history of the series, excellent writing and updated graphics for the Switch version. We can’t wait.
Due: 23 May 2024
9. Stellar Blade
Platforms: PS5
Coming exclusively to PS5 at the end of April, this slick-looking sci-action game is clearly inspired by the likes of NieR: Automata and Bayonetta, but the recent demo reveals a surprisingly Dark Souls-tinged combat system, with as much emphasis on dodging and parrying as there is on hacking and slashing.
Stellar Blade is set on a post-apocalyptic and very much abandoned Earth that’s been invaded by aliens. You play as EVE, who returns to her home planet to reclaim it from the Naytiba. With top notch production values, a futuristic semi-open world to explore and challenging combat, this could be a sleeper hit in what is otherwise currently looking like a pretty quiet year for PS5 exclusives.
Due: 26 April 2024
10. Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, PC
It’s been a quiet year for Xbox so far, but this sequel to the critically acclaimed Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice looks very promising. Ninja’s Theory’s latest is being developed in Unreal Engine 5, which should only add to its brutal cinematic action. You play once again as the titular Senua in a narrative-focused action adventure game that sees the traumatised heroine journey to Iceland to help liberate it from Viking tyranny.
While clearly a big-budget game, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 is a refreshingly focused experience, with the developer opting not to bloat it with throwaway content. They’ve said to expect a shorter game because of it, but hopefully one that is as impactful as its predecessor.
Due: 21 May 2024
11. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
The less said about the last Indie movie outing the better, but we still have faith in the renegade archaeologist. His next adventure comes in the form of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, a first-person, single-player adventure game. On first impressions, it looks like we’ll following Indiana Jones’ exploits in 1937, when dark forces are taking over the world. Developed by MachineGames, the folks behind of Wolfenstein: The New Order and The New Colossus, expect lots of puzzle solving and nazi punching. All the good stuff, then.
Release date: 2024
12. Jurassic Park: Survival
You’d have thought people would stop going back to Jurassic Park, given the bad press it always seems to be getting. But you can’t blame the lead protagonist of Jurassic Park: Survival.
Set the day after the events of the original 1993 Jurassic Park, this first-person survival follows InGen scientist Dr. Maya Joshi, who was left behind when sweet ol’ Jeff Goldblum rode off into the sunset in a helicopter. Nice, Goldblum. While movie tie-ins can be pretty hit and miss, even when the film was released 30 years ago, a nice concept has us excited for Jurassic Park: Survival.
Release date: 2024
13. Avowed
Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, PC
2024 is a good year if you like fantasy RPGs. We’ve already had Dragon’s Dogma 2, the Elden Ring DLC is just around the corner, and at some point later in the year Xbox and PC players will get their hands on Avowed, the next game from the now Microsoft-owned Obsidian. With its first-person perspective, varied landscapes and abundance of monsters to hit with swords and cast spells at, it’s hard not to to think of Skyrim, but Avowed is no Elder Scrolls copycat.
For one, it isn’t a truly open-world game, with Obsidian opting for a more authored experience akin to the one it served up in its 2019 sci-fi RPG, The Outer Worlds. The companions you pick up throughout your adventure will be key to the story, and from what we’ve seen so far, there’s plenty of depth to the combat. One to watch for sure.
Release date: 2024
Jack Needham
With contributions from
