UPDATE: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom won Most Anticipated Game at The Game Awards 2022!
2022 has been a strong year for video games, with titans like Elden Ring and Horizon Forbidden West opening while God of War: Ragnarok and Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are left to close things out. Next month, The Game Awards sets out to see which of the many successful games of 2022 should be crowned the best in their category. But, while The Game Awards celebrates all the achievements of a given year, it also looks to gaming's future with the Most Anticipated Game award.
Even as the world returns to somewhat of a normal state following the setbacks of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2022 has still seen a lot of big releases pushed into 2023. In fact, two of the games that were up for last year's Most Anticipated award have actually made it onto this year's list. Those games are Starfield and the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which has been revealed to be Tears of the Kingdom. They are joined by Resident Evil 4, Hogwarts Legacy, and Final Fantasy 16 this time around.
Starfield
According to Bethesda, the studio's new sci-fi RPG has been in the works for a decade. Fans have known about Starfield for years, but despite a cinematic trailer, they've had to wait until 2022 to see much of it or hear details about it. Now that Todd Howard and Bethesda have revealed a good portion of what fans can expect in Starfield, including hundreds of thousands of lines of dialogue, plenty of space for fans to explore, and a story that is longer than that of Skyrim or Fallout 4, there are a good deal of reasons for gamers to get hyped about the title.
There might be a lot less of the unknown about Starfield's grand space adventure now, but that could serve to only increase fan hype for the game. In the past, there was a simple hope that Bethesda could make Starfield a return to glory, but now that gameplay has been shown, and that the game was set to come out this year, it makes the eventual release seem that much closer. With the end of the wait in sight, this could lead to gamers getting even more excited to jump into Starfield.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Ever since Breath of the Wild broke onto the scene with its own unique way of tackling the open-world genre, gamers have been waiting for Nintendo to finally show what the sequel looks like. First announced way back in 2019, the game's official title wasn't revealed until this year, where fans finally saw the name Tears of the Kingdom pop up on their screens. As stated, Tears of the Kingdom was set to come out this year, but its revised release date was confirmed by Nintendo in the trailer that also showed off its title.
There's still not been an extensive showcase of Tears of the Kingdom at the time of writing, but that may only serve to increase fan anticipation as they want to find out the mysteries behind Nintendo's upcoming open-world title. Considering how highly rated Breath of the Wild is by critics and fans, it only makes sense that the follow-up would have an even greater level of hype around it.
Resident Evil 4
The upcoming Resident Evil 4 remake is the latest in Capcom's series of remastered classic titles. Beginning with the well-received Resident Evil 2 remake and moving on to Resident Evil 3, the latest entry was only revealed in 2022, so it might not have been teased for as long as some of the other titles on this list, but that does not mean there isn't a great deal of anticipation isn't surrounding Resident Evil 4.
As one of the most popular games from the franchise, Resident Evil 4 is a title that a lot of gamers are looking forward to playing again. Nostalgic fans will want to see one of their favorites remade for modern machines, and there are plenty of newcomers to the Resident Evil series as well thanks to the major success of Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil Village, which returned the franchise to form in the eyes of many.
Hogwarts Legacy
Initially meant to drop around the holiday period this year, Hogwarts Legacy announced its delay a few months ago, pushing its launch into early 2023. Even while this minor setback might disappoint a lot of fans, there's still a lot to look forward to in the open-world wizarding experience, as shown by the gameplay reveals and multiple trailers for Hogwarts Legacy.
Giving fans of the Harry Potter books and movies their own chance to study magic at the iconic school of Hogwarts, Hogwarts Legacy includes its own story set long before the events of the original works. So, while there might not be any Ron Weasley or Hermoine Granger cameos to look forward to, this will keep the game fresh and exciting both for long-time fans and those who are just putting the sorting hat on for the first time.
Final Fantasy 16
The legacy of the Final Fantasy franchise speaks for itself, really, but the latest entry in the long-running series still looks as though it'll offer fans something new compared to previous titles. Expected in the fairly vague window of Summer 2023, even without an official release date, a lot of gamers cannot wait to explore the vast world of Valisthea and see what Square Enix has cooked up this time around.
Final Fantasy 16 seems to be both an attempt to catch the series up with modern gaming trends while delivering an experience most fans of the franchise will be used to. Giving players a journey across the world, there will be expansive regions to explore in the style of Monster Hunter or Pokemon Legends: Arceus. The game's story focuses on Clive Rosfield, a protagonist who must forge his own path after his younger brother inherits a power meant for him.
Final Prediction
This category seems like it might be one of the tightest within the 2022 Game Awards, as while there are some key titles that do stand out among the list of nominees, it wouldn't be terribly surprising to see any of these games take the prize. However, with over a decade of anticipation behind it, it seems that Starfield is set to win the award for Most Anticipated Game this time around. Without FromSoftware fans to compete with this year, it seems a lot of eyes are watching Bethesda eagerly to see what it will come up with after over seven years without a single-player RPG release.
An honorable mention has to go the way of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, as even without a proper gameplay showcase for that title, it has still managed to drum up a tremendous amount of hype with one short trailer. Even before that, plenty of Nintendo fans were hoping for details on Tears of the Kingdom with each passing Nintendo Direct. So, while Starfield is more likely to win out, a strong case can certainly be made for Breath of the Wild's sequel.