Table of Contents
Astronomical robot
A deliriously joyful platformer that pays homage to 30 years of PlayStation history via adorable, tiny robots travelling in a controller-shaped spaceship between charming planet-sized levels. It looks cute, but it’s deceptively cutting-edge – the development team, Team Asobi, know the PS5 inside out. Think Sony’s answer to Mario Galaxy.
September 6th. PS5
UFO 50
A collection of 1980s games from a little-known but ambitious developer whose work shaped the course of video game history, except… the developer is fictional. Instead, these games, created by a small group of the world’s best indie developers, write an intriguing alternate history of the medium.
September 18th. PC
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
The first Zelda game to star the titular princess, rather than her green-clad knight Link. Rendered in the same toy-like visual style as 2019’s Link’s Awakening remake, it shows Zelda using a magical staff to conjure furniture and creatures out of thin air.
September 26th. Switch
Silent Hill 2
A remake of one of the most acclaimed horror games of all time. James Sunderland receives a letter from his dead wife summoning him to the fog-shrouded town of Silent Hill, where horrible things await. If the monstrous Pyramid Head didn’t give you nightmares in 2001, he will now.
October 8th. PC, PS5
This quasi-medieval fantasy game, which boasts all the grandeur of a big-budget playable anime series, is directed by Katsura Hashino, famous for the Japanese teen drama Persona games. After the death of a king, candidates from drunken tavern keepers to theocrats vie for the throne and the player becomes embroiled in politics.
October 11. PC, PS4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Life is Strange: Double Exposure
The long-running drama series about teens and young adults with supernatural powers returns to its roots. Original heroine Max Caulfield once again uses her mind to rewind time in an attempt to solve a murder and, perhaps, prevent it from happening.
October 29. PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox Series X/S
Shadows of Assassin’s Creed
Ubisoft’s fun historical fiction series has finally set its sights on feudal Japan. Starring Yasuke, a black samurai who is a mysterious figure in real-life historical records from that time, and the shinobi assassin Naoe, Shadows should be a nice tease for the upcoming Shogun season.
November 15th. PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S
Stalker 2: The Heart of Chernobyl
Developed by Ukrainian studio GSC Game World, which had to abandon its offices in kyiv amid the Russian invasion, this tense survival shooter has become an act of resistance for those who created it. As a player, you must survive in an irradiated zone filled with nasty creatures – it’s not for the faint of heart.
November 20th PC, Xbox Series S/X
Baby steps
When Nate, a forever-high loser, is thrown from his parents’ questionably stained couch into a surreal mountain landscape, he must finally learn to put one foot in front of the other. You control his legs as he stomps and staggers, often falling flat on his face.
PC, PS5