The 25 Most Wanted games, as revealed in PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted
For our very first PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted edition on November 30th, we counted down the 25 games our panel of experts, The Council, is eager to play.
The season of wishlist-making has arrived and we're ringing it in with our own lengthy lineup of games we're dying to play. During today's first-ever PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted showcase, we counted down the 25 most-anticipated games right now as decided by The Council.
Our group of 70 experts includes PC Gamer writers, gaming content creators, and industry professionals—we got votes from developers like Brenda Romero, Dean Hall, Tim Schafer, and prominent content creators to forge our "nice" list of upcoming games.
We unfurled the big list with shoutouts from our voting council members, messages from developers, and some new trailers and information that developers have allowed us to share with you first. You can watch the entire showcase on YouTube or get the short version here in our countdown roundup.
But most of us have wishlists even longer than just the 25 biggest games on the horizon, so we packed the showcase with dozens of other games that we're looking forward to. Catch all the new trailers and announcements here: first up are the big 25, and below that you'll find our wishlist of other upcoming games (and some surprise launches) that also joined the show.
The 25 Most Wanted Countdown
#25: Still Wakes The Deep
The Chinese Room | Release date TBA
This spooky oil-rig psychological horror game announced that it's working with composer Jason Graves who's known for a number of games, including Dead Space and the Dark Pictures Anthology. They also introduced a ridiculously spooky-looking metal sculpture that created terrifying noises for the soundtrack.
Read more: Composer Jason Graves tells us "nothing beats the real thing" (the wacky sculpture instrument)
#24: Sword of the Sea
Giant Squid | Release date TBA
Even without anything new to share, we're absolutely anticipating the next game from the studio behind Abzu and The Pathless. The original reveal trailer showed that we're going back to sand surfing with a string soundtrack in this one and it looks just as lovely as when studio director Matt Nava was art director on Journey.
#23: Holstin
Sonka | Release date TBA
We've been intrigued by Sonka's survival horror game ever since we first saw clips of its wild overhead-view-to-third-person-shooter transitions. Sonka shared a new trailer with us featuring molotovs and stealth kills.
#22: Persona 3 Reload
Atlus | February 2, 2024
After getting treated to a ton of Persona on PC in the last could years, there's no way we aren't looking forward to a remake of one of the weirdest games in the series. Producer Ryota Niitsuma had a message for us at the show with a character trailer featuring schoolboy party member Ken Amada.
#21: Harold Halibut
Slow Bros. | Early 2024
Slow Bros. shared a new trailer for its upcoming hand-crafted adventure about an undersea society. We've been looking forward to Harold for a while and it's now coming in early 2024.
Read more: Art director Ole Tillman tells us about the "stop motion aesthetic" that isn't actually stop motion
#20: Star Wars Outlaws
Massive Entertainment | 2024
There's something romantic about riding a speeder across a big open map, which is exactly what Ubisoft is promising in this upcoming Star Wars adventure. It's saying all the right things to keep us at the edge of our seats for a scoundrel story.
#19: Skate Story
Sam Eng | 2024
Has there ever been a cooler pitch for a game than "You are a demon made of glass and pain?" We've been enamored with the look of this escape-the-underworld skate adventure for over three years. Skate Story is looking like a genuinely excellent skating game, and one that could even draw in folks who don't normally go for kickflip trick games.
#18: Menace
Overhype Studios | 2024
The developers of Battle Brothers are going sci-fi and we dan't deny that we're in the mood for mechs post-Armored Core 6. Each operation in Menace is going to be procedurally generated, which only has us more psyched about what surprises we'll get in its tactical battles.
Read more: Menace looks like a departure from Battle Brothers, but its tactical battles are just as deadly
#17: Avowed
Obsidian Entertainment | Release date TBA
Announced years ago, we're still hotly anticipating Obsidian's new fantasy RPG. It's returning to the world of Pillars of Eternity, but this time in a full action RPG. It's impossible not to anticipate the next game from the studio that just won't stop experimenting.
#16: Dragon's Dogma 2
Capcom | March 21, 2024
That other fantasy universe with dragons and humanoid cats is getting a sequel and it's one we're very much looking forward to. We've just found out this week that it's launching in March, so our anticipation won't have to hold too much longer.
#15: Frostpunk 2
11 Bit Studios | 2024
Especially after it slid from a 2023 to 2024 launch window, Frostpunk 2 is our most-anticipated city builder. 11 Bit Studios has brought us a new trailer showing off the scale of the city we'll be building in the sequel and it's going to be a lot to manage—sweet.
Read more: Frostpunk 2 teaser shows just how big your city can get, and wow
#14: Gloomwood
Dillon Rogers, David Szymanski | Early Access
Though it's currently in early access, the full launch of retro immersive stealth FPS Gloomwood is one we're looking forward to. Its developers tipped us off to an upcoming update with a new trailer showing off the sewer-like Underport area.
Read more: Gloomwood's next big update delves into the city's dank sewers
#13: Grand Theft Auto 6
Rockstar | Release date TBA
Is there anybody not looking forward to GTA 6? This may have even landed higher on our anticipated list if we'd found out earlier about the official reveal coming in December. There's a lot to look forward to in Rockstar's next crime spree if it is indeed returning to Vice City as rumored.
#12: Tekken 8
Bandai Namco | Jan 25, 2024
Fighting games are finally warming to PC more than ever before. Building on Street Fighter 6's success this year, Tekken 8 is poised for an exciting moment next year. It's coming in January, so 2024 in fighting games is really going to be starting off strong.
#11: Hollow Knight: Silksong
Team Cherry | Release date TBA
The anticipation around Hollow Knight's sequel is almost as frantic as it was for Elden Ring. We still don't know any more than anyone else, but the long wait has definitely not cooled our enthusiasm.
#10: Marathon
Bungie | Release date TBA
Bungie is bringing back Marathon and it's going to be a PvP-focused extraction shooter. We've still only seen a teaser trailer so far, but seeing Bungie return to this old series is enough to get psyched about.
#9: Path of Exile 2
Grinding Gear Games | Release date TBA
Now that everyone has caught a new case of ARPG fever, we're eagerly awaiting PoE 2. Ahead of the show, we got the opportunity to sit down with Grinding Gear Games to talk about many of the gameplay changes in the sequel ahead of closed beta next summer.
Read more: Path of Exile 2 is building on a decade of action RPG depth
#8: Homeworld 3
Blackbird Interactive | March 8, 2024
We absolutely want another space game from the developers of Hardspace Shipbreaker, especially the long-awaited next Homeworld RTS. We visited Blackbird in Vancouver to talk about making a sequel after all these years, and we now know the final release date, too.
#7: Haunted Chocolatier
ConcernedApe | Release date TBA
While Stardew Valley continues to dominate the cozy farm sim space, Eric Barone's next game is already one of our most anticipated. We've got no clue when it might launch, but it already has us thrilled about a new village and the crafting potential of chocolate.
#6: Pacific Drive
Ironwood Studios | February 22, 2024
Run-based station wagon survival game Pacific Drive has had our attention since its reveal purely on killer concept, though it does also look pretty cool. Ironwood Studios brought us a new trailer to show off a bit more of its spooky setting and announce a February launch date.
Read more: Surrealist ‘driving survival game’ Pacific Drive has a new February release date
#5: Helldivers 2
Arrowhead Game Studios | February 8, 2024
We finally got a true reveal for this co-op FPS sequel and what's more thrilling is that the PC release is coming simultaneously with console. We're quite excited to see how Arrowhead transitions away from its old top-down style into this slick, full 3D action.
#4: Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth
Rya Ga Gotoku Studio | January 25, 2024
The next game in the Yakuza saga launches in January and it's very high up on our list of most anticipated. Ryu Ga Gotoku brought us a new English voice over trailer to show off performances by Daniel Dae Kim and Danny Trejo. Yeah, machete-wielding Danny Trejo.
#3: Hades 2
Supergiant Games | Release date TBA
Supergiant Games never misses but it also never does sequels. Until now, that is. For its first double-feature, the developers of Bastion and Transistor are following up their charismatic Greek god roguelike with a sequel featuring another protagonist. We've a little while to wait yet as it's expected in Early Access in the middle of 2024.
#2: Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
FromSoftware | Release date TBA
It may be just a DLC, but any new piece of Elden Ring is more than "just a DLC." Even without a release date or any update as of the show, going back to our 2022 game of the year qualifies as the second most-anticipated game right now. We're still just happy to speculate on what we want from Elden Ring's DLC until we learn more.
#1: Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl
Our #1 PC Gamer Most Wanted game is Stalker 2, as chosen by our full illustrious council of voters. According to our panel of over 70 experts, this is the big one. The upcoming survival horror FPS from GSC Game World is the follow-up to a classic PC experience that fans have been waiting to play for over a decade. At Gamescom this year, Phil Savage got to play a 15-minute demo and walked away feeling that "the Zone is as hostile as ever" but even darker and moodier than the original with its graphics and lighting.
The journey to see Stalker 2 into the world has been met with increasing challenge in the past two years, as GSC Game World continued development from its local office in Kyiv during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. GSC developers shared a message for Stalker fans at the end of the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted, thanking them for their passion and trust.
Stalker 2 is currently expected to launch in the first quarter of 2024, and we're all eagerly awaiting its time to shine.
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The PC Gamer Wishlist
In between the Most Wanted countdown, we also got to show off new trailers and announcements for 36 other games that we're looking forward to. Click through to hear more about each game, including interviews with developers and hands-on with demos.
- Dwarf Fortress is getting a new adventure mode in April.
- Under A Rock is a co-op survival game with very large critters.
- Unrailed 2 is a party game sequel coming to early access in 2024.
- Sands of Aura is a recently-released soulslike dungeon crawler.
- Lost Isle is an upcoming open-world survival MMO.
- G.I. Joe: Wrath of Cobra is a retro beat-em-up coming in 2024.
- Echos of the Plum Grove is a Paper Mario-inspired farm sim with a demo.
- Unforetold: Witchstone is a sandbox cRPG coming in January.
- Wild Bastards is a wild west Void Bastards sequel.
- Republic of Pirates is a nautical city-builder and strategy game coming in 2024.
- DataJack 2020 is a stealthy cyberpunk immersive sim with its first gameplay trailer.
- Tchia is coming to Steam with a free update in March 2024.
- Ironhive is a newly-revealed strategy deck-builder.
- Indika is a psychological adventure about a nun in alt-history Russia.
- Hawked is an extraction shooter that's free to play in early access right now.
- Demonschool is a tactical RPG with a new combat trailer.
- darkwebSTREAMER is a horror simulation story with a new trailer.
- SteamWorld Build is a spinoff city builder that's launching December 1.
- Bellwright is a medieval survival and management game coming to early access in 2024.
- Drowned Lake is a newly revealed found-footage style horror adventure.
- Gray Zone Warfare is a tactical FPS with a new gameplay trailer.
- Spine is a stylish action film-inspired brawler with a new gameplay trailer.
- Cryptical Path is a newly revealed roguelite dungeon crawler.
- Crashlands 2 is an open world survival crafting game coming in 2024.
- Deathgrip is a podracing-inspired game with a new demo.
- Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn is a soulslike action game coming in summer 2024.
- Islands of Insight is a multiplayer puzzler with a demo.
- Ultros is a psychedelic metroidvania coming in February.
- Ambulance Life is a job sim coming in 2024.
- Songs of Silence is an narrative-driven RTS coming in spring 2024.
- Mortal Crux is a 2000s-inspired action RPG announcing its 4-player co-op.
- Solium Infernum is a grand strategy game launching in early 2024.
- Crown Wars is a medieval turn-based strategy game coming in March.
- Everywhere is a sandbox game made for players to create in online.
- Penny's Big Breakaway is a mascot 3D platformer coming in 2024.
- Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 has announced another vampire clan.
Lauren has been writing for PC Gamer since she went hunting for the cryptid Dark Souls fashion police in 2017. She accepted her role as Associate Editor in 2021, now serving as self-appointed chief cozy games and farmlife sim enjoyer. Her career originally began in game development and she remains fascinated by how games tick in the modding and speedrunning scenes. She likes long fantasy books, longer RPGs, can't stop playing co-op survival crafting games, and has spent a number of hours she refuses to count building houses in The Sims games for over 20 years.