Gaming Prediction 2025 - TOP TEN

VIDEO GAME PRedictions 2025

Grand Theft Auto 6, Avowed, Civilization 7, Metroid Prime 4, Ghost of Yotei, Monster Hunter Wilds, Fable, South of Midnight, Death Stranding 2, and over 50 incredible Indies that I have already featured are coming in 2025, but what about the unannounced or secret games?

When it comes to this list of unannounced games, there are two different classifications. The first would be actually unannounced games from studios that are undoubtedly working on a game, but haven’t said anything official. The second are games that have been announced in some way, but no big reveals. These minor announcements usually come in the form of a teaser trailer, press release or even a job posting.

Whatever the case, these studios have been silent since they were quasi-announced, which makes these the top ten unannounced games or top ten video game predictions, in order, that I cant wait to play in 2025.

10. SONY BEND

It’s hard to believe that Days Gone released in April of 2019 for the PlayStation 4. People might not have loved Days Gone, but it does have an average review score around 75 and it does seem like the reception to the game has improved over the years. It might surprise some people that as of 2022, Days Gone had sold nearly 7.5 million copies. Despite these sales figures, Sony reportedly turned down the idea of a sequel.

It’s no secret that Bend is working on a new game. Back in 2021, Herman Hulst said that Bend was working on a new IP that “they are very passionate about and that it was building on the deep open world systems that they created with Days Gone”.

With a studio of around 150 people, 6 years is a long time for a game and by the end of 2025, it will be almost 7. It’s hard not the see Sony Bend release a game at some point in 2025. A release from Sony Bend takes the pressure off Insomniac and Naughty Dog, two studios that PlayStation would like to give as much time as possible to create something incredible. These studios are without a doubt higher on the pecking order in the eyes of PlayStation

Outside of Ghost of Yotei from Sucker Punch, Sony doesn't have anything else on the books in 2025 for PlayStation Studios. After minimal releases from PlayStation Studios in 2024 PlayStation Studios must have more to offer 2025

9. X-Com 3

You might think that a new tactics game from Firaxis might be completely out of the question due to the fact that Civilization 7 is releasing in February, but there are a few reasons to have hope that we might see X-Com 3 or another turn based tactics game from the studio in 2025. First, the studio is big enough to support two different development teams simultaneously. Firaixs likely operates like an ocean tide with people moving between projects depending on needs.

Second, since 2012, Firaxis has released four different tactics games with X-Com, X-Com 2, X-Com: Chimera Squad and Marvel’s Midnight Suns. This works out to a release cadence of every three years and Midnight Suns came out in 2022. Take Two is a publicly traded company with shareholders to please. Third, after trying to branch out, it would seem likely that Firaxis will follow it up with something a bit more safe and reliable. Marvel’s Midnight Suns was beloved by the people who played it as well as critics, but it was a commercial failure. Likely by the time it released, Marvel fatigue had set in pretty good and also deckbuidling is pretty good repellent for casual gamers.

Finally, back in 2016, Firaxis launched Civilization 6 and X-Com 2 within six months of each other. With one game releasing in the spring and one game releasing in the fall, it might seem that history has a possibility to repeat itself.

8. NEW HAZELIGHT GAME

About the only thing we know is that Josef Fares and the rest of Hazelight Studios are working on their next game, which is a new IP and will be once again published by EA Originals. Hinting that we might be moving closer to the reveal and release is that Hazelight recently posted a teaser on social media with the script lying on a table. Just the cover page, but the year scribbled out, new IP circled in highlighter, scribbles of a lot of squares and platforms as well as the name Mio and Zoe, which can be assumed to be the names of the main characters and the words co-op written in pen a few times.

It might not seem like that long ago, but It Takes Two was released back in March 2021. Surprisingly, but well earned, It Takes Two has sold over 20 million copies and ended up winning Game of The Year at The Game Awards 2021 as well as Best Multiplayer Game at The Golden Joystick Awards and Best Design at GDC.

The time between their first game, A Way Out and It Takes Two was around 3 years and happened in the midst of a pandemic. March 2025 would be 4 years, but would also be a strong possibility as Hazelight has released both of their games in March and found success. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Typically the reveal to release has been longer, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see Fares show up at The Game Awards 2024 to reveal the new game that Hazelight has been working on and announce a March release date. He does have a pretty strong history with Geoff Keighly and the show.

I was feeling pretty strongly about this prediction, but after It Takes Two was just announced as one of the PlayStation Plus offerings for December 2024, this feels very coincidental.

7. Returnal sequel/Housemarque

In 2021, Returnal was released as one of the first PS5 exclusive games. It was also Housemarque’s first AAA level game after the team had developed arcade titles like Dead Nation, Resogun, and even Nex Machina with arcade legend Eugene Jarvis. Unfortunately, Housemarque had outgrown the scrappy indie team that they once were and arcade titles were no longer sustainable for the studio at its current size. This likely led to some heavy discussions about whether to downsize and continue in the arcade scene or to press forward and forge and new destiny for the studio.

Luckily for gamers, Housemarque decided on the latter. Returnal somehow managed to create a AAA level game, but still retain the core essence of what Housemarque was. Returnal was a sci-fi, third person rogue-like about a pilot who crash lands on an alien planet and gets stuck in a time loop. For a studio that has only done arcade with minimal visuals and minimal story, Housemarque obliterated the glass ceiling of what was expected from the studio.

Returnal reviewed incredibly well with only minimal points of criticism, most of which were patched relatively quickly including a checkpoint system. Unfortunately, there are a few genres that are still too niche to find mainstream success consistently like Rogue-likes, Deckbuilders, and Metroidvanias. Due to this, sales didn’t parallel critical acclaim.

However, this was at the beginning of 2021 and since then the studio has been purchased and become part of PlayStation Studios. With the reveal and release of Returnal taking place relatively close to each other, I expect to see the next game from Housemarque release in 2025. With the lukewarm sales and the studios history since working with PlayStation to not work on the same IP back to back, I would expect something new and innovative from the Finnish studio in 2025

6. Luigi’s Mansion 4

Next Level Games operate like clockwork and that might have been part of the reason that Nintendo acquired the studio a few years back. That and the Vancouver studios ability to produce Nintendo games on the same level as Nintendo internal. Starting in 2009 with Punch-Out!! for the Wii, in 2013 was Luigi’s mansion 2: Dark Moon for the 3DS, in 2016 was Metroid Prime: Federation Force for the 3DS, 2019 was Luigi’s mansion 3 for the Switch, and in 2022 it was Mario Strikers: Battle League for the Switch.

Looking at this list, there are two things of note. There is a consistent level of quality ranging from good to great with the exception of Metroid Prime: Federation Force. The other trend to notice is the cadence of releases. With the exception of the length between Punch-Out!! and Dark Moon, Next Level Games have been releasing a premium Nintendo release every three years.

It’s easy to see that with the launch of the Nintendo Switch successor, you can rest assured that there will be a Next Level Game either at launch or in the launch window. As for what that game will be, it seems obvious that it should be Luigi’s Mansion. With the most recent original entry being LM3 in 2019 having sales of nearly 15 million and even the rerelease of Dark Moon having sold nearly 2 million copies in about 3 months. It seems that we are primed for Luigi’s mansion 4, and hopefully they can incorporate the best elements of the series into one game with the Gooigi and gameplay mechanics of LM3, but with the darker tone of the first few games.

About the only reason that I wouldn’t expect Luigi’s mansion 4 to be a Switch 2 launch title is because the GameCube launched with Luigi’s mansion, which would go on to become one of the companies lowest selling consoles. Nintendo seems like a company that pays attention to tradition and wants to avoid repeating the same mistakes.

5. Super Mario Odyssey 2

I’ll say it, Super Mario Odyssey is the best Mario game ever made. Sales can also attest to this with over 28.5 million copies sold, making it one of the highest selling Super Mario games of all time, and easily the highest selling 3D Super Mario. Odyssey refined and distilled what 3D Super Mario had been trying since 1996 with Super Mario 64. The controls were perfect, there was a structure, but there was also near limitless freedom for the player. Then there was variety and innovation that is unrivalled in the series. Huge sandboxes, fun boss fights, nods to the past and pure joy propelled Super Mario Odyssey to new heights.

The only new Super Mario Game that we got since Odyssey was Super Mario Wonder, which was developed by a different team. Back in 2021, there was a lot of speculation that the team from Nintendo EPD that created Super Mario Odyssey were making a new Donkey Kong. This was never confirmed and knowing Nintendo, it wont be until after the game is released, but even if this team is working on a new Donkey Kong, they have created the blueprint for Odyssey. Any talented internal team at Nintendo could take that ball and run with it. Add some new captures, add some co-op, and add some cool new levels and you have a great sequel.

The opportunity for Super Mario Odyssey 2 to be a hub for showcasing other titles is very existent. The inclusion of Captain Toad in Super Mario Odyssey got me thinking of other possibilities. Wouldn’t it be fun to discover a haunted mansion with a note from Luigi and you need to find a few moons using the mechanics of Luigi’s Mansion 4. What about if you discovered a kart and there is an open world section that sees you drive around to find moons in what could be a taste of Mario Kart 9.

There is a large opportunity to get a lot of casual gamers who only buy Nintendo to play the Super Mario games invested into other first party Nintendo franchises.

4. STAR WARS ECLIPSE - Quantic Dream

Quantic Dream has been extremely quiet about their Star Wars game since it was revealed back in 2021. The collaboration with Lucasfilm Games is an action adventure game set in the High Republic era of the franchise. As you would expect Star Wars Eclipse is described to have multiple characters and branching narratives as you see the galaxy through the eyes of an ensemble cast.

Eclipse will feature all new characters and environments, which is similar to recently released titles like Star Wars Outlaws from Ubisoft, which features Kay Vess, a scoundrel from Canto, both of which were completely original and both of which are now canon. There is also Cal Kestis from Respawn’s Star Wars Jedi , who is now part of the Star Wars Cannon. If previous collaborations with Lucasfilm tell us anything, it’s that somehow, no matter what your choices are, some part of the story and characters will become part of canon.

Eclipse takes place in uncharted areas of the Outer Rim with never before seen planets and species rife with opportunity. It’s safe to say that many people are excited for this adventures the cinematic reveal trailer has over 21 million views with most confusing it for a movie with stunning visuals.

3. playdead game 3

There is no reason to expect playdead’s third game in 2025, except for the fact that we have seen screenshots for years, the studio has increased in size after each release and it will have been almost a decade since playdead released INSIDE in 2016.

No matter how successful, their first two games might have been, there is a cost to doing business. Paying employees and rent isn’t free and eventually a game needs to release, Epic Games is also publishing GAME 3, which likely require updates on how development is progressing.

The studio has been working on a third game for quite some time, the studio has gradually increased in size over the years from a handful of people to now over 70 people. Game 3 is going to be the studio's first 3D attempt and will be a third person science fiction adventure set in a remote corner of the universe.

Looking at the history of the studio from when Limbo truly started development to release was 2006 to 2010. The time that Inside likely started development was immediately after the release of Limbo in 2010 to release in 2016. Limbo was 4 years, Inside was 6 years and if we are going to use that formula, it would seem like every project gets bigger, more ambitious and as a result, development increases. If we factor in the transition to 3D, the departure of key figures in the studio after the release of INSIDE, the pandemic and the high level of quality playdead has set for itself, we can assume this would mean 8-10 years, which would be 2024-2026

2. Blade-Arkane Lyon

I can’t think of a better studio than Arkane Lyon to develop a game based on Marvel’s Blade. Blade will be a third person, action adventure set in the heart of Paris. The game will take players to a quarantined section of Paris in the middle of a supernatural emergency.

Arkane Lyon is the perfect fit because they understand superpowers after developing Dishonored and Deathloop. They understand the mechanics needed like stalking prey, and more importantly, we have seen that they understand atmosphere. There is a lot of strengths that Arkane Lyon has that should be transferable to the development of Blade.

Deathloop began development in 2018 and released in 2021. This means some part of development was at the height of the covid pandemic, which likely would have halted development for a short time and at the very least slowed it down for a decent amount of time, while people figured out how to work from home in the most efficient manner. During the development of Deathloop, Arkane Lyon also co devloped Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot with MachineGames.

If you take a look at their history, Arkane Lyon has been pretty efficient in their development cycles. Their first game alone was Dishonored 2, which released in 2016, followed by the standalone expansion Death of The Outsider in 2017, then the two games with MachineGames in 2019 and finally Deathloop in 2021.

1. Project 007

Back in November 2020, just mere months before the release of Hitman 3, IOI announced Project 007, a collaboration with MGM that will see the studio explore the origins of James Bond. The game will focus on a younger version of James as he earns his 00 status. Project 007 will use IOI’s in house engine, Glacier to bring this vision to life.

After hearing this announcement and then playing Hitman 3, it was impossible not to see many of the missions as testing and prototyping for James Bond. When the announcement was made, Project 007 was already in “active development” according to the press release.

Having not heard much about Project 007 since its announcement in 2020 isn’t concerning as IOI typically do short marketing campaigns. Hitman 3 was officially revealed in June 2020 and then released just a little over six months later.

With Daniel Craig recently retiring from the role of James Bond and the search for his replacement still underway, the game doesn’t have to tie into any movie in any way, as it will be a standalone IP seperate from the movies. IOI also has offices around the world with almost 500 people, which not only can expedite development, but it also means that development can’t remain in limbo for too long. With this in mind, I would fully expect an official reveal and release of Project 007 in 2025.

CONCLUSION

If just half of these games release, combined with games that we already know are likely coming in 2025 including Grand Theft Auto 6, Avowed, Civilization 7, Metroid Prime 4, Monster Hunter Wilds, Fable, South of Midnight, a new Nintendo console and over 50 incredible Indies that we have talked about, 2025 has a decent chance of being the best year in gaming that could rival 1998, 2004 and 2018.