The most anticipated games of 2025

Prequel to "Mafia" - 💣 New project by Hideo Kojima - 🧠 GTA VI - 🙏

In 2025, sequels to Assassin's Creed and Borderlands, prequels to Doom and Mafia, and hundreds of other good games will be released. True, there are no guarantees that some of them will not be rescheduled at the very last moment. For example, everyone is wondering whether the developers of the new GTA will be able to meet the deadline and release the long-awaited crime action game in the fall, as planned. Meduza tells you which games are definitely worth waiting for in 2025, and assesses the chances of the most interesting projects coming out.

Civilization VII

PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch and PC

A new part of the famous global strategy in which the player will have to build an empire and lead it through three eras: from primitive settlements to advanced civilization. As always, the developers do not set any strict criteria for achieving victory. The player can achieve success through diplomacy, subjugate the entire world by force, or achieve technological superiority.

Probability of release in 2025: almost one hundred percent. The release is scheduled for February 11, development is already in the final stage.

Assassin's Creed Shadows

PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC

The main action of the new Assassin's Creed will take place in Japan in the 16th century. The game will have two main characters - a female ninja and a samurai of African descent. Apparently, the playthrough style will change depending on the chosen character. A ninja will cope better with tasks that require stealth, and a samurai will show his skills in open combat.

Otherwise, players will find the same Assassin's Creed - a huge open world with many tasks and dynamic weather, parkour mandatory for the series and periodic meetings with famous historical figures.

Probability of release in 2025: almost one hundred percent. The developers wanted to release Assassin's Creed Shadows in November 2024, but decided to spend a little more time polishing. The release is now scheduled for February 14th.

Mafia: The Old Country

PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC

The Mafia prequel was announced in August, and recently at The Game Awards ceremony the developers showed what the gameplay will look like. Judging by the trailer, the spectacular shootouts and car chases that this third-person action game is famous for are still there.

The action will take place in Sicily at the beginning of the 20th century, and Enzo Favara will play the role of the main character. He worked in the sulfur mines as a child and later got the chance to join the Torrisi crime family. The developers promise to “return to the roots” of the series, offering a more developed and linear narrative, as well as recreating the atmosphere of classic crime action films about the mafia.

Probability of release in 2025: high. In the December trailer, the developers clarified that the release is planned for the summer.

Doom: The Dark Ages

PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC

The Dark Ages is a prequel to the shooter Doom, which was released in 2016 and became a restart of the entire series. Now the main character, the Doom Slayer, will fight demons in the dark fantasy Middle Ages, and his arsenal will be replenished with at least a shield that can be thrown at opponents. In addition, the developers decided to add even more madness to the game and let gamers control a huge robot and a mechanical dragon.

Probability of release in 2025: quite high. The game has been in active development for at least a couple of years, and there is no reason to doubt that the release will take place in 2025.

Borderlands 4

PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC

Borderlands 4 will take place on a new planet. But judging by the recent trailer, this will not have much effect on the game itself. The new quartet of heroes will still need to fight hordes of enemies, find the best weapons from an endless variety of available models, and hunt for treasures.

The visual style characteristic of the series will not change either - the three-dimensional characters still look as if they came out of the pages of a comic book. And the main villain will be a certain dictator known as the Guardian of Time. The developers promise to reveal additional details at the beginning of 2025.

Likelihood of release in 2025: Quite high, given the small number of changes compared to previous installments.

Ghost of Yōtei

PlayStation 5

The sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, a successful samurai action game about the Mongol invasion of Japan, was announced in September 2024. The events of the new game will unfold 300 years after the first part, and the main role will be played by a girl named Atsu. The developers promise new types of weapons and game mechanics, but other than that, almost nothing is known about the PlayStation 5 exclusive. But the trailer, which shows the nature of the island of Hokkaido, is very beautiful.

Likelihood of release in 2025: hard to say. It is possible that the release will be postponed to next year.

Fable

Xbox Series X|S and PC

The British studio Playground Games is responsible for the development of the new Fable, which should be a restart of the entire series. This is a little alarming, since before this she was exclusively involved in racing games from the Forza Horizon series. They were all very good , but the studio clearly lacks experience in other genres. The developers even called for help from colleagues from Eidos-Montréal, who worked on the latest parts of Deus Ex and Tomb Raider.

From the trailer, which was shown in mid-2024, it is difficult to understand how much the new Fable will change compared to the first trilogy. A darker game is likely in store for the races, although the trademark British humor should remain. And at the very least you can count on a large and detailed world - Forza Horizon was really good.

Likelihood of release in 2025: low. The game has been in development for quite some time, but the developers are reluctant to share details. Considering that many Microsoft exclusives are often delayed, there is a chance that Fable will also be delayed to a later date.

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach

PlayStation 5

Hideo Kojima continues to work on the sequel to the game about a courier in a post-apocalyptic USA. However, the Japanese game designer, as always, is in no hurry to reveal all the secrets. From a gameplay point of view, the game does not seem to have undergone major changes, but Kojima is a known hoaxer, so nothing can be said for sure.

It is known that in the new game the actors from the first part - Norman Reedus, Lea Seydoux and Troy Baker - will return to their roles. In addition, Elle Fanning will play one of the characters. And director Fatih Akin will appear as a talking doll. That is, at least you can count on spectacular and, as always, slightly crazy story videos.

Likelihood of release in 2025: only Hideo Kojima knows.

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2

PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines, released 20 years ago, can hardly be called a good game. For a number of reasons, it was released unfinished, with many bugs, and could not achieve commercial success. But thanks to its fascinating setting and incredible community support (fans literally completed Bloodlines after the developers), the game became a cult title.

The process of creating Bloodlines 2 is also going hard. The role-playing game was postponed several times, and at the beginning of 2021, publisher Paradox Interactive decided to change the development studio altogether. As a result, the plot began to be rewritten, and many gameplay elements were remade from scratch.

Probability of release in 2025: difficult to estimate. The developers are aiming for a release in the first half of 2025, but few will be surprised if the game is postponed again.

Grand Theft Auto VI

PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S

The list of the most anticipated games of the year could not be complete without GTA VI. True, it’s difficult to say anything new about the game. More than a year has passed since the release of the first and only trailer, and during this time the developers have not shared any additional information.

At the moment, it is known that the game will take place in the state of Leonidas, where the city of Vice City is located (locations are based on Florida and Miami, respectively). GTA VI will have two main characters, and for the first time in the history of the series, one of them will be a woman. It is still unclear how the gameplay will change - we are waiting for a new trailer.

Likelihood of release in 2025: low. Rockstar Games still promises to release the game in the fall, but according to Bloomberg journalist and one of the main industry insiders Jason Schreyer, the developers have already missed several internal deadlines. In addition, Take-Two Interactive already has at least three big releases planned for 2025, and the company will probably want to separate them from GTA so as not to harm its own sales.

Mikhail Gerasimov