We’re already in the fifth month of the year, yet somehow it feels like it has just started. Perhaps one of the reasons for this is the whopping amount of games coming for PC in the following months. Some are decades-long franchises and others are new, but they’re all hotly anticipated.
Let’s examine what the last half of 2023 will bring to your PC gaming table.
Street Fighter 6
This fighting game series has been around since 1987 and is still enjoyed by a primary audience. The sixth iteration comes with a lot of novelties, including a new World Tour mode where you create an avatar and roam an open-world setting.
That said, not all is new. You’ll find familiar faces such as Zangieg and Chun-Li among new characters and familiar gameplay modes as well.
Diablo IV
Diablo IV is one of the year’s most anticipated games since more than a decade has passed since Diablo III was released. This time, the game focuses on more class choices, a new item system with more customization, and perhaps most importantly, an open world setting.
Because of how massively popular the franchise is, some wondered if Diablo IV would be considered an esport at some point. Even though many popular games and genres later became esports, like the ones you can bet on sportfogadasonline.com, this won’t be the case with Diablo IV. According to Diablo general manager Rod Fergusson, there are no plans to support Diablo as an esport.
Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl
This long-anticipated sequel has been years in the making and even rumored never to be released. However, it’s almost here and due for December at the time of writing. You’ll be back in the Exclusion Zone, this time with Unreal Engine 5 graphics and the usual mixture of FPS, horror, and survival genres.
Other important news is that the game will feature multiplayer, even though it won’t be available at its release.
Starfield
From The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim’s creators comes another much-hyped RPG that’s been years in the making. Starfield departs the typical fantasy setting and takes you to outer space. There’s an open world with 1,000 planets to visit, spaceships, and much more.
The game was set to be released during the first half of 2023 but has yet to be postponed. Hopefully, it’ll be available before the year ends.
Baldur’s Gate 3
Even though this game has been available in its early access version, it will officially be released in August 2023. It’s the follow-up to Baldur’s Gate II, released 23 years ago. Much has changed since, and the game innovates in many areas, including fully 3D graphics and a revamped combat system.
Not all is new, however. There are returning characters, familiar locations, and terrible enemies like the mind flayers.
Aliens: Dark Descent
The Aliens franchise has been portrayed in gaming for a long time, and Alien games are generally survival-horror-like experiences that offer the same atmosphere as the movies.
However, Aliens: Dark Descent takes a completely new approach. This is a real-time strategy game where you manage a squad of Marines fighting a Xenomorph outbreak. It’s poised to be one of the top strategy games of the year and releases in June 2023.
Alan Wake 2
The sequel to Alan Wake is released sometime in the second half of the year and takes you back to the story of Alan Wake, the writer-turned-survivalist. The same horror game mechanics with some new twists are coming back.
This game gained momentum thanks to the success of Alan Wake Remastered, which gave developers the right signals to complete the project and release it after 12 years had passed since the first game.
City: Skylines II
This is another highly-anticipated game that has no fixed release date yet, but everything points to a 2023 launch. There are high hopes since the developer claims this is the most realistic city builder ever and has an epic new scale.
One of the hints is that you’ll be able to use 150 titles to create cities instead of just 9, like in the original. There’s also more focus on each citizen since you can follow their lives from birth to old age.
Counter-Strike 2
Yes, it’s finally a reality. After years of rumors, Counter-Strike 2 is finally arriving. This is actually a free update that replaces Counter-Strike Global Offensive. However, it’s not just a mere update.
According to its developers, Counter-Strike 2 is the largest technical leap forward in the history of Counter-Strike, so expect many new features, graphics, and technical improvements over the current experience.
Summing Up
There are many hot games we left behind, such as Skull and Bones, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, Final Fantasy 16 and others, but our highlights suffice to claim 2023 is and will keep being a fantastic game for PC gamers. The only issue is how you’ll find time to play the many games coming!