Most Anticipated Games of 2024
By almost every measure, last year was a big one for video games. Some call it one of the best years in gaming ever, going back across decades. A large number of highly anticipated releases made their way into the hands of the players, and more importantly, almost all of them managed to meet or even exceed expectations, with high critical and fan ratings. Was this just a really great year and an anomaly, or are we entering a new golden generation of games? We won’t know until we look into the future and see what else is coming down the line – so as per our annual tradition, the staff here at NGN have voted for their 12 Most Anticipated Games of 2024, listed here in alphabetical order.
Avowed
Avowed is a first-person fantasy action RPG from Obsidian Entertainment. You are the envoy of Aedyr, a distant land, sent to investigate rumors of a spreading plague throughout the Living Lands – an island full of mysteries and secrets, danger and adventure, and choices and consequences, and untamed wilderness. Mix and match swords, spells, guns, and shields to fight your way. Companions from a spread of species will fight alongside you, with their own unique set of abilities. Explore an island home to many different environments and landscapes, each with their own unique ecosystem.
When: TBD 2024
Where: 
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is an action RPG and the second chapter in the FINAL FANTASY VII remake project, a reimagining of the original game into three standalone titles by its original creators. Cloud and his comrades escape the city of Midgar in pursuit of the fallen hero, Sephiroth. The game features an evolved battle system where players can combine strategy and action combat alongside their comrades, including newly added characters.
When: February 29, 2024
Where: 
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024
This brand-new simulator is designed to take advantage of the latest technologies in simulation, cloud, machine learning, graphics and gaming to create a sophisticated and immersive flight simulator. Powered by the evolved Asobo Studio engine, new mission types will include aerial firefighting, air search and rescue, helicopter cargo hook transport, air ambulance, cropdusting, and more. New aircraft types include gliders, airships, hot air balloons, and airliners.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
Hades II
As the immortal Princess of the Underworld, you’ll explore a bigger, deeper mythic world, vanquishing the forces of the Titan of Time with the full might of Olympus behind you, in a story that continually unfolds through your every setback and accomplishment.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is a first-person, single-player adventure set between the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade. The year is 1937, sinister forces are scouring the globe for the secret to an ancient power connected to the Great Circle, and only one person can stop them – Indiana Jones. The game is being developed by MachineGames – creators of Wolfenstein: The New Order and Wolfenstein: The New Colossus – in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games and executive produced by Bethesda Game Studios’ Todd Howard.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is a story-driven journey through time. The magical summer of 1995 is one of self-discovery and forging unbreakable bonds for high school friends Swann, Nora, Autumn, and Kat. 27 years of no contact later, fate reunites them to confront the long-buried secret that made them promise to never speak again.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
Pacific Drive
Pacific Drive is a first-person driving survival game with your car as your only companion. Navigate a surreal reimagining of the Pacific Northwest, and face supernatural dangers as you venture into the Olympic Exclusion Zone. Each excursion into the wilderness brings unique and strange challenges as you restore and upgrade your car from an abandoned garage that acts as your home base.
When: February 22, 2024
Where:
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
In this sequel, Senua returns in a brutal journey of survival through the myth and torment of Viking Iceland. Intent on saving those who have fallen victim to the horrors of tyranny, Senua faces a battle of overcoming the darkness within and without.
When: May 21, 2024
Where:
Slime Rancher 2
Players will continue the adventures of Beatrix LeBeau as she journeys across the Slime Sea to Rainbow Island, a land brimming with ancient mysteries, and bursting with wiggly, new slimes to wrangle. As Beatrix attempts to unravel the island’s secrets and uncover its true purpose, she’ll build, ranch, and farm within a beautiful conservatory, whose sparkling glass walls give her full view of the prismatic paradise she now calls home.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
Welcome to The Zone — an area of exclusion around the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Full of radiation, mutants and anomalies, it keeps drawing adventurers from beyond the perimeter. Take over a role of the lone stalker and explore an open world in a radioactive zone with a variety of environments that reveal post-apocalyptic atmosphere from different angles. Make your way through the Zone to define your destiny as you choose your paths within a branching story.
When: September 5, 2024
Where:
Star Wars Outlaws
Set between the events of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Star Wars Outlaws takes place in a time when the Galactic Empire relentlessly pursues the final defeat of the Rebel Alliance, and the criminal underworld is thriving. Kay will take on high-risk, high-reward missions from the galaxy’s crime syndicates as she seeks the means to start a new life.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
Still Wakes the Deep
Still Wakes the Deep, developed by The Chinese Room, follows an off-shore oil rig worker, fighting for his life through a vicious storm, perilous surroundings, and the dark, freezing North Sea waters. All lines of communication have been severed. All exits are gone. All that remains is to face the unknowable horror that’s come aboard.
When: TBD 2024
Where:
We look back at how our 2023 predictions turned out on the next page…
On this final page, we enjoy looking back at how well our hopes played out over the last year. Let’s see how well our most anticipated games for 2023 turned out!
Assassin’s Creed Mirage
72/100: “Assassin’s Creed Mirage is a decent return to the series’ roots that puts stealth and free-running parkour back into focus. While it has several issues, and Basim’s story is uninspired, many will still appreciate silently exploring a smaller sand castle.”
Atomic Heart
60/100: “Atomic Heart’s captivating Soviet robo-topia crumbles under the weight of a poorly delivered story, clunky action, unnecessary open-world traversal, and a glut of technical issues.”
Baldur’s Gate 3
85/100: “Baldur’s Gate 3 is a great cRPG that manages to meet the lofty expectations of the franchise name. With excellent writing, engaging story, flexible player choice and compelling mechanics, even its minor second-half stumbles can’t prevent the game from getting some of the highest rolls in the genre.” The title also won our 2023 GOTY!
Diablo IV
83/100: “Thanks to an enjoyable combat loop and wonderfully dark environments, Diablo IV is a great blend of the previous two games in the series that brings a slew of basic MMO features while preserving the core tenets of the franchise.”
Final Fantasy XVI
72/100: “Final Fantasy XVI continues to push the series into a new direction. While it has a well-realized setting, good characters, satisfying combat, and excellent cinematic large scale battles, the slow pacing, lackluster RPG elements and barebones optional content grind the excitement to a halt too often.”
Hades II
The game didn’t make it to a 2023 launch window, and is again on our list!
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
82/100: “With familiar but still great gameplay that has a few new moves, strong presentation, and a mostly engaging story which gets better in the second half, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is a crowd-pleasing blockbuster sequel that’s worth playing for any superhero fan.”
Replaced
The game didn’t make it to a 2023 launch window.
Resident Evil 4 remake
84/100: “Resident Evil 4’s excellent variety, involving combat, and rollercoaster pacing makes it one of the best in the series and a faithful recreation, mired by a parasitic companion and a few weird franchise tropes.”
Sea of Stars
82/100: “Sea of Stars may pinch its influences from numerous 16-bit titles like Chrono Trigger, but the gameplay feels neither stale or old. The gorgeous 2D environments and bizarre cosmic-esque plot will hold players’ attention for the whole 35-40-hour runtime.”
Slime Rancher 2
The game didn’t make it to a 2022 or 2023 launch window – and is once again on our most anticipated list!
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
The game didn’t make it to a 2022 or 2023 launch window – and is once again on our most anticipated list!
Starfield
86/100: “Starfield is a grand interstellar adventure with exciting pockets of exploration, detailed cities, interesting side quests, memorable characters, competent action, and fun ship building. Despite minor issues, it gracefully blends Bethesda’s trademark gameplay with the wonders of space.”
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
88/100: “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom improves and expands upon its fantastic predecessor in several ways. Link’s new abilities provide significant, and excellent, changes to the core gameplay. Even the narrative offers an interesting backstory the land of Hyrule, while also giving Zelda time to shine. It’s one of the best titles that the Nintendo Switch has to offer.”
Thanks for reading our annual prediction article, and we can only dream if 2024 ends up half as good as 2023 was!