Even without Assassin's Creed Shadows, next month is so packed with big games that I'd need until February 2026 to play them all

It's beginning to feel like the holiday game release season doesn't end until March. It used to be that the new year meant we could all take a breath, collect ourselves, and catch up on the big launches that piled up just before the holiday shopping rush. But as last-minute delays into the new year have grown more common, heavy hitters that need a bit of extra polish are now routinely dropping into the same release window as the games that set their early-year launch targets to dodge their biggest competition.

It's the makings of a perfect storm, and February's shaping up to be a real tempest. A genuine deluge. A proper Überschwemmung. Here are the games lighting up the radar:

• Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 — February 11
• Civilization 7 — February 11
• Avowed — February 18
• Monster Hunter Wilds — February 27
• Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii — February 27

We're looking at Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Civilization 7, and Avowed all releasing in the space of a single week. We might want to start staking out free time on our calendars now. Sorry, Captain America: Brave New World, I don't have a Saturday to spare for you—if I ever did.

For starters, February's going to be a massive month for RPGs, particularly if you're in the mood for some medieval adventuring. After some hands-on time with Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Fraser found it a promising return to 15th century Bohemia, calling it "larger, confident and extremely tactile." If you prefer more fantasy in your RPG fare, Robin called his four-hour Avowed preview "a cosy return to classic RPG adventure."

But those are practically small-time compared to the strategy and action games hitting next month. Frankly, new Civilization and Monster Hunter in one month feels like a cruel combination. Civ's the quintessential "just one more turn game," and after playing Civilization 7, Tyler said it's making promising—if controversial—revisions to its structure, which might make it an even more existential threat to my spare time. Meanwhile, after my hands-on Monster Hunter Wilds preview, I'm eager to see how Capcom flexes its storytelling muscles alongside however many hundreds of hours I spend in dinosaur swordfights.

And of course, who could possibly deny the appeal of a swashbuckling Goro Majima in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii? For the sake of my employment and relationships with friends and family, I might have to deny it for a few months, at least.

As stacked as February is, it could have been even worse. Assassin's Creed Shadows just received another last-second delay, pushing it back into March. While Morgan walked away from a hands-off Assassins Creed Shadow preview back in June 2024 eager to try Ubisoft's stealth and combat improvements himself, I'll admit: I'm happy to have the breathing room. I'm going to need it.