A solid amount of noteworthy video games to play will be released this month across PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo consoles as well as PC.
Early 2022 started with some surprisingly high-profile releases, including a mainline Pokémon game, PC ports, FromSoftware’s latest Souls-like epic, and remasters of acclaimed PlayStation games. However, things continue to pad out the vast 2022 gaming catalog going into March.
Coming off the back of a strong January and February packed with blockbusters, this month will see some smaller, but no less noteworthy games to play. PlayStation and Polyphony Digital is set to launch the next entry in their premium racing series, Nintendo and Square Enix are releasing their next JRPG adventure and more.
One of the more inventive-looking games to come in March is developer Tango Gamework’s Ghostwire: Tokyo. The supernatural action-adventure game is set in Tokyo through the first-person perspective of a young man trying to find out why almost all of its citizens have disappeared.
At the same time, ethereal spirits have invaded the city, giving the game an exciting dose of the survival-horror genre. In terms of action, it blends elements of karate with magic that gives the protagonist — Akito — a variety of ways to approach combat. The nocturnal neon aesthetic is eye-catching as well, with Ghostwire: Tokyo launching for PlayStation 5 and PC on March 25th.
Tomoya Asano and his team at Square Enix launched Octopath Traveler in 2018 to hearken back to the glory days of 16-bit RPGs. The team is back for Triangle Strategy, a turn-based strategy JRPG set in a new fantasy world. The likes of Fire Emblem surging into the mainstream has certainly helped the strategy-RPG subgenre regain traction, and Square Enix’s «HD-2D» art style is a perfect marriage of genre and visuals.
Its story focuses on three warring countries on the continent of Norzelia over precious natural resources, with a handful of characters at the conflict’s center. Triangle Strategy should be an exciting evolution of Octopath‘s foundations, and it releases on March 4th for Nintendo Switch.
Xbox launched its latest entry to its respective racing franchise late last year in the form of Forza Horizon 5, and PlayStation is next up to bat. After years of waiting, Gran Turismo 7 is just about ready for release and boasts some promising quality-of-life enhancements and features.
Part of the additions includes the return of classic gameplay modes from previous titles in a streamlined way, like the GT Simulation Mode single-player campaign, Special Events, Championships, and more. Likewise, Gran Turismo 7 will also integrate fan-favorite modes like GT Sport Mode, Brand Central, etc. that were introduced in the side series Gran Turismo Sport. GT7 launches for PS4 and PS5 on March 4th.
While the mainline Borderlands series isn’t getting a fourth entry just yet, a spin-off game in the form of Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands could be an entertaining appetizer in the meantime. The game is technically a sequel to Borderlands 2, specifically the Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep DLC. This game will retain the foundations of gameplay established in the previous games, with a combination of the first-person shooter and RPG genres.
Being known for taking place in bombastic, colorfully-chaotic worlds, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands takes a fun spin on its setting by having a tabletop RPG-themed world that the titular character can change on the fly as its dungeon master. The game launches on March 25th for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
FromSoftware’s Elden Ring looks to be Hidetaka Miyazaki and co.’s next step in the Souls-like subgenre’s evolution. It was announced at E3 2019, with near radio silence until June 2021. Hype is at a fever pitch now that it’s finally just a few weeks away. Elden Ring takes place in a new world that A Song of Ice and Fire author George R. R. Martin helped craft, and the switch to an open world makes this FromSoft’s most ambitious yet.
Its combat looks like a blend between Dark Souls and Sekiro, with open-world design/traversal looking to be partly inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It releases on February 25th for PS4, PS5, XBO, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
Guerrilla Games proved their versatility once they transitioned from the first-person shooter IP Killzone to the action RPG Horizon Zero Dawn. It was one of the best games to come from 2017, as well as the best of the last console generation. After being delayed from 2021, Horizon Forbidden West is just about ready to release.
Continuing its predecessor’s story, Aloy ventures to the country’s coastal regions to investigate a mysterious and deadly plague. Players will also meet rival tribes, new machine creatures, and stunning biomes. Combat and traversal are both improved, with the latter getting new ranged and in-depth melee abilities. Horizon Forbidden West is one of PlayStation’s biggest games to look forward to, and it launches on February 18th for PS4 and PS5.
One of 2018’s biggest games, as well as Sony Santa Monica Studios’ best work yet, was God of War on PS4. The story was a soft reboot that kept the original continuity but portrayed Kratos in a more sympathetic light as he faced the consequences of his actions in previous games in the long-running series.
Narratively, it took a more immersive and cinematic approach to storytelling while having a new gripping combat system. It received critical acclaim upon release, with Sony finally porting it over to PC with some welcome performance/visual improvements to take advantage of the platform. God of War arrives on January 14th for PC via Steam.
With Sony finally embracing PC for all the potential it has, the Uncharted franchise is also seeing ports in January. Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection is a pair of remasters for Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and the spinoff Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, with fan-favorite Chloe Frazer in the lead role.
Though Nathan Drake’s story has concluded, this franchise remains the beloved Indiana Jones equivalent in the gaming scene with its cinematically adventurous stories, lovable characters, and frantic action/set pieces. It’s not solely a PC port, though, as Legacy of Thieves Collection will also be available on PS5. The PS5 version arrives on January 28th with the PC version arriving later in the year.
For original triple-A releases, Nintendo and Game Freak’s Pokémon Legends: Arceus is January’s most anticipated. The gaming IP has been getting increasingly stale in recent years, but Legends has the potential to be the much-needed boost fans hope it to be given its premise.
Its world and gameplay approach is on a much bigger scale, with several open-ended environments that seem to mimic Monster Hunter‘s quest structure and Breath of the Wild. Longtime fans will have their eyes on this new mainline title, as this format has incredible potential going forward should it succeed critically. Pokémon Legends: Arceus arrives on January 28th for Nintendo Switch.
343’s tenure on the revered Halo franchise was rocky at times, but now with Infinite fully released on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, it seems like a welcome return to form. The early multiplayer rollout came with its controversies but should be getting polished and fine-tuned now and in the future.
Among the many compliments Halo Infinite received was that the multiplayer was a smooth evolution of what came before, with the story campaign also being well-received from its narrative and implementation of open-world gameplay elements. The story will be particularly welcome for longtime fans, as it was the weakest part of Halo 5: Guardians to many. All of these praises easily make it one of the best Xbox games to get on Game Pass.
Guillermo Kurten is a journalism major at the University of Houston. Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, he now resides in Houston. He is a fan of pretty much anything involving nerd culture. Video games, comics, movies, TV, anime, manga, you name it. He also has experience writing about soccer, specifically, the German team Bayern Munich.
