Games I’m Excited for this Holiday Season

The holiday season always causes an uptick in video game releases, with the best releases usually happening at the end of the year to make us all hyped. Without fail, my schedule always winds up swamped during this time and I never have as much time as I would like to sink into these games, but that never stops me from buying each release (even if I get to them months later, much to my dismay).

With some heavy-hitters earlier in the year like the release of Diablo 4, Resident Evil 4 Remake, and, of course, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, it’s hard to beat what 2023 has already offered for video games.

But, there is still a few games I am holding out for — and here’s three of them!

OXENFREE II: LOST SIGNALS — July 12th

Cover for Oxenfree II: Lost Signals by Night Studio Games

Night School Studio has yet to do us wrong yet with releases like Afterparty and Next Stop Nowhere, and I have full faith that the sequel to the smash-hit Oxenfree will be amazing. Releasing July 12th, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals picks up five years after the events of the first game and is playable as a follow-up or a standalone game. Your choice matters and every dialogue option, choice, and action you take affects Riley and the story.

Bonus, by the time you’re reading this, Oxenfree II will already be released, so go support and play an awesome game!

CYBERPUNK 2077: PHANTOM LIBERTY — September 26th

Cyberpunk 2077 holds a very special place in my heart and is one of my favorite video game narratives. The premise of Phantom Liberty is already intriguing enough, a spy thriller with politics, espionage, and Idris Elba? I’m beyond here for it, sign me UP. With the nagging question of ‘will Phantom Liberty change the ending of the base game Cyberpunk?’, this expansion will be an immediate play for me.

MARVEL’S SPIDERMAN 2 — October 20th

Marvel’s Spiderman (2018) was one of the first games I had platinum'd on the PS4 and I had done it in under four days, completely glued to my TV screen and a burning desire to play everything that game offered. The dynamic gameplay, the moving story, and Yuri Lowenthal’s Peter Parker had just smashed my expectations and I am more than excited to see what Insomniac has in store for us this October.