2022 game releases: everything that launched on PC last year

2022 games: image of two characters in science-fiction mining equipment talking to each other from game The Callisto Protocol
(Image credit: Striking Distance Studios)

At long last, 2022 has come and gone. There was a little something for everyone last year, from huge new PC games like Total War: Warhammer 3 and the long-awaited, long-memed Elden Ring, to a great new way to play indie favorites with Valve's handheld Steam Deck.

Best of the best

Baldur's Gate 3 - Jaheira with a glowing green sword looks ready for battle

(Image credit: Larian Studios)

2024 games: Upcoming releases
Best PC games: All-time favorites
Free PC games: Freebie fest
Best FPS games: Finest gunplay
Best MMOs: Massive worlds
Best RPGs: Grand adventures

When you look at our list of the biggest games in 2022, you might feel a sense of déjà vu. It's true: some of the biggest games of yesteryear arrived late, if they've even arrived at all. Covid-19 and major developers working from home for most of 2020 and 2021 meant that last year was absolutely stacked with delays on games big and small.

It's a trend that's held up through 2022, with plenty of eagerly-awaited titles pushed into the nebulous future. But don't worry: however fake time might feel nowadays, we're still watching the calendar. To help you keep track of what you'll actually be playing this year, we'll keep this list up to date when release dates move to later points in the year or, more likely at this point, into 2023. 

Here's your guide to all the games that launched on PC in 2022:

2022 Games: The biggest upcoming games

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God of War | January 14
Kratos and son are finally making their way to PC in a port of the much-loved action hack-and-slash. You'll be able to take on the Norse realms in all the gorgeous 4K, with all the power inside your PC. See how he handles in our God of War review.

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Dying Light 2 | February 4
The sequel to Techland's zombies and parkour action game is finally arriving in 2022 after multiple delays. It's bringing a bigger map, double the parkour, and the return of the dangerous nights that will have you stealthing along rooftops and through Infected nests. Catch up with the parkour in our Dying Light 2 review to see if it leaps ahead.

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Total War: Warhammer 3 | February 17
This is the final game in Creative Assembly's trilogy, bringing the last of the tabletop wargame's armies into digital form. At launch, four daemonic factions will be joined by the human nations of Kislev and Cathay, with the Ogre Kingdoms as DLC. In short: bears battling daemons, and you can see how the war rages in our Total War: Warhammer 3 review.

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Elden Ring | February 25
FromSoftware is returning to the Dark Souls formula we're still craving more of, now in an open world with a lore written in part by George R.R. Martin. According to our Elden Ring review, it's basically Dark Souls but bigger, which is exactly what a lot of us were asking for.

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Final Fantasy Origin | March 18
This is the next Final Fantasy game we're getting before FFXVI. It's actually a pseudo-remake, "new story inspired by," the original Final Fantasy game from 1987. This one follows Jack and the Warriors of Light, using a mashup of the Final Fantasy 7 remake's team combat with Team Ninja's action-oriented Nioh series fighting and you can see what we thought in our Final Fantasy Origin review.

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LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | April 5
Another licensed LEGO game is breaking through the atmosphere. The Skywalker Saga is piecing together a huge cast of Star Wars characters for the sequel to the LEGO Force Awakens. You'll fly and fight and platform through all nine main Star Wars plots.

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Dune: Spice Wars | April 26
A sci-fi real-time strategy with 4X elements set in the universe of Frank Herbert's Dune novels. Dune: Spice Wars sees you vie with other factions for control of the desert planet Arrakis, and is developed by the creators of Northgard.

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Saints Row | August 23
Volition is rebooting its wacky action series with four new young and witty protagonists. As the new Boss, you and four friends launch a criminal empire in the American southwest-inspired Santo Ileso. The new Saints Row is aiming to be of its own time, a contemporary story about feisty young folks that leaves the old Boss in the past.

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Disney Dreamlight Valley | September 6 (Early Access)
The Mouse subsumes all things in time—even Stardew-likes. Dreamlight Valley is a Disney take on the idyllic lifesim, where the neighbors in your own slice of the Magic Kingdom are classic Disney and Pixar characters.

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Sunday Gold | September 13
Point-and-click your way through a dystopian London as a trio of misfit petty criminals in this near-future adventure game. Comic book sequences and turn-based battles punctuate a deeply stylish experience.

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Return to Monkey Island | September 19
Guybrush Threepwood returns alongside series creator Ron Gilbert for another voyage to Monkey Island, and they're bringing a new art style along with them. Point & click piratical adventure never dies.

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Overwatch 2 | October 4 (Early Access)
Blizzard's landmark hero shooter returns as an unconventional free-to-play sequel with a 5v5 format, new heroes, new maps, and an eventual PvE offering.

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Gotham Knights | October 21
Four members of the Bat Family are watching over Gotham in Batman's absence in this diversion from the Arkhamverse timeline. In solo or two-player co-op, you'll tackle the big bads of the Court of Owls as Batgirl, Robin, Nightwing, and Red Hood.

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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | October 28
It's Modern Warfare 2, again—again! All your favorite tactical operators like Soap, Captain Price, and that skull-faced guy have returned to reimagine one of the most cherished Call of Duties for a new era.

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Warhammer 40,000: Darktide | November 30
Fatshark is branching out with a new '-tide' game set in the grim darkness of the Warhammer 40k world. The co-op fps formula looks to be firing on all cylinders, and with meaty melee combat returning—chainswords in hand—with a new cast of four, this may be the pinnacle of games to get your group into in 2022.

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Marvel's Midnight Suns | December 2, 2022
Assemble a team from across the Marvel canon to confront a demonic apocalypse. Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, Wolverine, and more face occult forces in this tactical RPG from the devs of XCOM.

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System Shock | 2022
Shodan is coming back in a neon-drenched remake of the classic fps. You'll wake up from a coma onboard the orbital research station and have to take on the hordes of mutants and cyborgs that the killer station-AI has created. System Shock's cyberpunk pedigree is unmatched, and we're hoping this will nail it.

2022 Games: January

January is kicking off the year with two excellent PC ports of console games. Monster Hunter Rise is following in the new tradition of Monster Hunter games on PC while Kratos breaks new ground by bringing God of War to PC for the first time. Not a bad start to 2022. 

Biggest January 2022 games

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Monster Hunter Rise | January 12
The next Monster Hunter series game coming to PC is another classic big creature battling adventure. This time you'll be visiting Kamura Village with your new Palamute dog mount. Ride out to our breakdown in the Monster Hunter Rise review.

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God of War | January 14
The latest Sony port of a popular PS4 game hits early in the year. Our big question: will throwing that axe feel as satisfying with keyboard/mouse? You can see for yourself in our God of War review.

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Rainbow Six Extraction | January 20
Ubisoft's horde-fighting spinoff from the Clancy games is borrowing operators from Rainbow Six Siege for co-op tactical shooting. You'll fight back the parasitic alien threat in 12 containment sites around the United States. You can see just how deadly they are in our Rainbow Six Extraction review and decide for yourself.

All release dates for January 2022 games

2022 Games: February

After that good warmup in January, things are really scheduled to heat up in February. Elden Ring and Total War: Warhammer 3 are two big, highly anticipated games launching fresh on PC. They're joined by Dying Light 2, which is finally arriving after multiple delays.

Biggest February 2022 games

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Dying Light 2 | February 4
It's taken years, but Techland's ambitious zombie parkour sequel is finally past its delays. Expect co-op as before, but reworked combat, abilities, and a story with many branching decisions. Soften your landing by reading up on our Dying Light 2 review.

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Total War: Warhammer 3 | February 17
Creative Assembly closes out the 4X trilogy with four daemonic factions, plus Kislev and Cathay and the Ogre Kingdoms as DLC. Place your bets now for the bears vs. daemons cage matches, and see how the war rages in our Total War: Warhammer 3 review.

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Elden Ring | February 25
FromSoftware is returning to the Dark Souls formula we're still craving more of, now in an open world with a lore written in part by George R.R. Martin. According to our Elden Ring review, it's basically Dark Souls but bigger, which is exactly what a lot of us were asking for.

All release dates for February 2022 games

2022 Games: March

Leading off as we start to move towards spring is the adorable looking fox-powered action-adventure Tunic, followed up by a re-imagining of SquareEnix's original entry in the series in Final Fantasy Origins.

Biggest March 2022 games

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Tunic | March 16
A charming isometric adventure with a healthy dose of Zelda's ingredients and an adorable fox protagonist. Discover secrets, smash pots, and run wild in what looks to be the cutest adventure of the year.

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Final Fantasy Origin | March 18
This is the next Final Fantasy game we're getting before FFXVI. It's actually a pseudo-remake, "new story inspired by," the original Final Fantasy game from 1987. This one follows Jack and the Warriors of Light, using a mashup of the Final Fantasy 7 remake's team combat with Team Ninja's action-oriented Nioh series fighting, and you can see what we thought in our Final Fantasy Origin review.

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Ghostwire: Tokyo | March 25
The action thriller from the developers of The Evil Within is all about using magic to defend Tokyo from a sudden influx of demons with supernatural martial arts. You'll play as KK and his group of supernatural detectives trying to figure out why people are disappearing. Vanish yourself over to our Ghostwire: Tokyo review to see how it turned out.

All release dates for March 2022 games

2022 Games: April

April is looking like a light month for PC gamers, but there are a couple deep cut classics making unlikely returns. The weird 90s platformer Glover is getting a new PC release and Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers is coming to PC too. The next LEGO: Star Wars game arrives this month as well with a series-spanning cast.

Biggest April 2022 games

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LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | April 5
Another licensed LEGO game is breaking through the atmosphere. The Skywalker Saga is piecing together a huge cast of Star Wars characters for the sequel to the LEGO Force Awakens. You'll fly and fight and platform through all nine main Star Wars plots.

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Chinatown Detective Agency | April 7
In 2037 Singapore, you play as Amira Darma, an ex-cop who has just opened her own detective agency. Make smart use of Amira's dwindling time and money to pick clients and cases and travel the world to solve them.

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Dune: Spice Wars | April 26
A sci-fi real-time strategy with 4X elements set in the universe of Frank Herbert's Dune novels. Dune: Spice Wars sees you vie with other factions for control of the desert planet Arrakis, and is developed by the creators of Northgard.

All release dates for April 2022 games

2022 Games: May

Like April, May is a little on the slow side for new game releases this year. While we wait for some big announcements headed into the summer, there are a few awaited early access indie games alongside a new Warhammer game and Evil Dead.

Biggest May 2022 games

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WH 40k: Chaos Gate - Daemonhunters | May 5
In this turn-based tactical Warhammer 40k game, you'll put on the Grey Knights helmet to fight chaos and Daemons. You'll command and personalize your own squad of Daemonhunters in the story-driven campaign.

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Evil Dead: The Game | May 13
Ash Williams and crew take on zombie hordes in this co-op survival shooter. You can play either as a bunch of different favorite characters or as the Kandarian Demon hunting them down.

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V Rising | May 17
Open world base building for self-made Draculas. Hunt humans for blood, or convert them into servants to tend your custom-built vampire castle. Adventure online with vampire allies in co-op, or defend your dark manor from rival players.

All release dates for May 2022 games

2022 Games: June

If April and May were slow for new releases, June is looking glacial. Even so, we've got the PC release of Diablo Immortal to ring in the month, and a slate of expansions and early access games to—hopefully—hold us over into summer.

June new games highlights

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Diablo Immortal | June 2
With Diablo 4 fading ever further into the future, we take what we can get. It might have started as a mobile-only game, but Diablo Immortal is our best option for harvesting every ounce of fresh loot from the legions of hell.

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Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak | June 30
What could be better than swordfights with giant lizards? A swordfight with a giant lizard that's also a werewolf. The new expansion for Rise adds new monsters, new abilities, master rank hunts and gear, and—most importantly—new palico outfits. 

All release dates for June 2022 games

2022 Games: July

July's list of new PC games may be even shorter than June's this year, but we've gotten two pretty worthwhile breakout hits from it. Cat puzzler Stray has captured the internet's heart and MultiVersus has proven to be a much more worthy Smash contender than Nickelodeon's attempt in 2021.

Biggest July 2022 games

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Stray | July 19
A cyberpunk game with feline flavor. Explore and solve mysteries as a cyberkitty in a cybercity, roaming a decaying, android-populated metropolis as you try to find your way home.

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MultiVersus | July 27
This is the Warner Bros. take on Smash Bros, in which Shaggy and Batman can wallop each other online. July's launch is technically the open beta, though WB is already selling season passes and has no end date for beta.

All release dates for July 2022 games

2022 Games: August

August is set to explode with a fresh Saints Row reboot and another of Sam Barlow's mysterious FMV story games.

Biggest August 2022 games

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Saints Row | August 23
Saints Row is still wacky, but maybe with a bit of the edge toned down. This series reboot stars a new young crop of protagonists, while the action looks in line with the older games.

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Immortality | August 30
From the creator of Her Story and Telling Lies is another mystery FMV game, this time about an actress from the 1960-1990s who disappeared after none of the movies she starred in ever premiered.

All release dates for August 2022 games

2022 Games: September

September might not be laden with triple-A titans, but that isn't stopping a landslide of games from licensed properties. If you love brands, there's something for you this month—whether it's building your own little Disneyland, or slapping beefy anime meatheads and their psychic ghosts together.

Biggest September 2022 games

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Disney Dreamlight Valley | September 6 (early access)
The Mouse subsumes all things in time—even Stardew-likes. Dreamlight Valley is a Disney take on the idyllic lifesim, where the neighbors in your own slice of the Magic Kingdom are classic Disney and Pixar characters.

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Return to Monkey Island | September 19
Guybrush Threepwood returns alongside series creator Ron Gilbert for another voyage to Monkey Island, and they're bringing a new art style along with them. Point & click piratical adventure never dies.

All release dates for September 2022 games

2022 Games: October

It's happening: the autumn releases are upon us. Overwatch 2 is kicking the gate open, with Gotham Knights following behind and Call of Duty closing out the month. Not the most earth-shattering lead-in to the holiday season, but you're going to be hearing a lot of Warzone talk over the next few months, surely.

Biggest October 2022 games

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Overwatch 2 | October 4 (Early Access)
Blizzard's landmark hero shooter returns as an unconventional free-to-play sequel with a 5v5 format, new heroes, new maps, and an eventual PvE offering.

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Sunday Gold | October 13
Point-and-click your way through a dystopian London as a trio of misfit petty criminals in this near-future adventure game. Comic book sequences and turn-based battles punctuate a deeply stylish experience.

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Gotham Knights | October 21
Four members of the Bat Family are watching over Gotham in Batman's absence in this diversion from the Arkhamverse timeline. In solo or two-player co-op, you'll tackle the big bads of the Court of Owls as Batgirl, Robin, Nightwing, and Red Hood.

Image

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | October 28
It's Modern Warfare 2, again—again! All your favorite tactical operators like Soap, Captain Price, and that skull-faced guy have returned to reimagine one of the most cherished Call of Duties for a new era.

All release dates for October 2022 games

2022 Games: November

Biggest November 2022 games

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Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 | November 16 
Warzone is back, and free for everyone once again. The free to play Battle Royale shooter revealed its largest map, Al Mazrah, which will have players dashing through land, air, and water. Not too much is known about this sequel, but Infinity Ward promises to share more info before its release.

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Warhammer 40,000: Darktide | November 30
Fatshark is bringing a new '-tide' game from the grim darkness of the Warhammer 40k world. With a new cast, this may be the king of co-op to get your squad prepared for this year. Bring extra gas for the chainswords.

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Sonic Frontiers | November 8
Like so many other console game classics of late, Sonic is going open world. As always, he's on the hunt for Chaos Emeralds, but this time it's with a mixture of big open fields and some more classic Sonic level rails.

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Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales | November 18
This Spider-Man spin-off follows on from the events of Insomniac's game, casting players as Peter Parker's protégé, Miles Morales.

All release dates for November 2022 games

2022 Games: December

Biggest December 2022 games

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Marvel's Midnight Suns | December 2, 2022
Assemble a team from across the Marvel canon to confront a demonic apocalypse. Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, Wolverine, and more face occult forces in this tactical RPG from the devs of XCOM.

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The Callisto Protocol | December 2, 2022 
A scary, planetary survival horror which has you maneuvering through gross and gore-y corridors of a jail on Jupiter. This one comes from a Dead Space co-creator.

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The Settlers | December 31, 2022 
Explore, build, and conquer in this reboot of a classic RTS city-builder. It looks like you can also duke it out with your friends or robots in the new 8-player online mode.

All release dates for December 2022 games

Lauren Morton
Associate Editor

Lauren started writing for PC Gamer as a freelancer in 2017 while chasing the Dark Souls fashion police and accepted her role as Associate Editor in 2021, now serving as the self-appointed chief cozy games enjoyer. She originally started her career in game development and is still fascinated by how games tick in the modding and speedrunning scenes. She likes long books, longer RPGs, has strong feelings about farmlife sims, and can't stop playing co-op crafting games.

With contributions from