It's only February, but 2022 has already proven itself to be a hot year for exciting new games. There are major AAA releases including Horizon Forbidden West and Pokemon Legends: Arceus, live service games like Rainbow Six Extraction, Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel, and Lost Ark, and indie gems like Sifu, OlliOlli World, and Nobody Saves the World. It's perhaps no surprise then that gamers are already starting the Game of the Year 2022 conversation on social media, even knowing there are a lot of great games remaining in 2022.The viral conversation is largely happening on Twitter and was started due to a back and forth regarding two games. The first game is the recently released PlayStation exclusive Horizon Forbidden West. Players are sharing screenshots and clips, saying that the best game of 2022 may already have been released. However, what's triggered the larger conversation is the response of the Elden Ring community, who say to those claiming Horizon Forbidden West is 2022's GOTY, "Just wait until next week."Beyond the back and forth between Horizon Forbidden West and Elden Ring's respective fans, there are plenty of other communities wanting to make sure that their favorite game of 2022 so far isn't being left out of the conversation. Sifu is receiving a lot of support, as is Pokemon Legends: Arceus. Even Dying Light 2 is getting some love from Twitter posters.
While the initial conversation revolved around games that have already been released in 2022, Twitter users noticing the trending "GOTY" term aren't all ready to say the contest is decided yet. They point to the wide selection of upcoming releases that need to be launched before anyone can say anything about 2022's game of the year. Forspoken, Starfield, the Grand Theft Auto 5 Expanded and Enhanced update, Triangle Strategy, and Kirby and the Forgotten Land are all mentioned more than once.
There's also a crowd of fans saying that the GOTY conversation will depend entirely on two games that may or may not launch in 2022, and they have a point. Both God of War: Ragnarok and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 are expected to arrive this year, but could absolutely be delayed to 2023. Both games would be expected to be GOTY contenders, given how many awards their predecessors won.
With over ten months left in 2022, it's fair to say that video game fans haven't seen anything yet. The year is certainly off to a hot start, but it's fair to assume there are probably major releases that haven't even been announced coming from April on. With luck, 2022 will be a year of such overall quality it will be remembered for a very long time - regardless of the GOTY.