If you're a fan of massive RPGs, then 2023 should have you hyped beyond belief. Not only are we getting Skyrim in space, we're finally getting a new Final Fantasy game. (We've been waiting ages for this one.) We here at TheGamer are particularly fond of the kind of experiences a good RPG can give us, which is why next year has many of us excited.

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There's nothing we enjoy more than being able to immerse ourselves for weeks on end in a carefully crafted world, building up our characters and making impactful choices that will shake the narrative up. Read on to discover what upcoming RPGs of 2023 we're most anticipating.

Updated December 15, 2022: It looks like there are even more RPGs coming out next year that we here at TheGamer are excited for. Nothing rings in the new year quite like a timesink of a game, so here are a couple more lengthy RPGs we can't wait to dive into.

Sea Of Stars

Seth Parmer

Sea of Stars close up of promotional image

Sabotage Studio knocked it out of the park with The Messenger, their Ninja Gaiden-inspired action-platformer. And, by all counts, they’re on par to continue doing so with Sea of Stars, their stunning retro-inspired RPG with a gorgeous art style, fascinating characters, and an engaging turn-based combat system that seems to be heavily influenced by Chrono Trigger.

Despite a couple of delays, my excitement level for this game has only grown, and I cannot wait to finally get my hands on it. While many heavy-hitting RPGs are releasing next year that also have my attention, I can’t help but be more curious about what Sea of Stars is doing.

WrestleQuest

Josh Coulson

WrestleQuest - via Skybound Games

Pro wrestling, good. RPGs, good. Both of them together in one awesome package. Wait, that's a thing? Well no, not yet, but it will be in 2023 when WrestleQuest finally launches. Packed with wrestling legends from the past like Randy Savage and Andre the Giant, WrestleQuest will task players with ascending up the pro wrestling ladder by competing in matches and traveling through what appears to be a vast and detailed land.

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Bring on spending 100+ hours in whatever it has to offer when it launches next year, likely neglecting other stuff I really should be playing as I become mildly obsessed with something that combines two of my favorite things.

Starfield

Amanda Hurych

Starfield ship on a desert planet

Even if RPGs are deeply rooted in the fantasy genre, I’ve always preferred a sci-fi environment for these titles. I will take Mass Effect over Dragon Age any day of the week. As a result, when I look at next year and think about what RPG I’m going to sink my entire life into, the answer is quite clearly Starfield. If Bethesda pulls it off, Starfield is set to be the Skyrim of this generation. By which I mean it will stay relevant far past its initial release, and we’ll have a gazillion ports of it as time goes on.

Snarkiness aside, I’m here for it. I want Starfield to succeed. I want to get lost in a universe of danger-filled planets and zany, star-crossed adventures. I want to immerse myself in a new sci-fi setting, where the far reaches of space are my horizon. But mostly, I just want to have Starfield be the game that consumes me body and soul come 2023. Is that too much to ask?

Dragon Age: Dreadwolf

Meg Pelliccio

A screenshot of Solas in Dragon Age 4

Are we still optimistic that Dragon Age: Dreadwolf will launch next year?

I mean, we can only hope, right?

Sure, why not. Let’s live in hope. Despite the ups and downs of its development, I’m still very much looking forward to Dreadwolf, and I’m hopeful for a worthy successor to everything that Inquisition delivered. Well, not everything. Multiplayer got dropped — good riddance.

I’m hoping for another big open world to explore, an interesting new protagonist, a really good story, and of course, to be able to slap old baldy Solas around the head and knock some sense into him. Give me Tevinter and plenty of returning characters, throw in some new faces, make it both hilarious and heartbreaking, and I’ll be happy. There are a lot of high expectations on Dreadwolf’s shoulders, so in all honesty, if it gets bumped from next year to ensure it’s decent, I wouldn’t complain.

Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora

Stacey Henley

A Na'vi gazing at a forest in Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora
via Ubisoft

While technically Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is on track for a 2023 release, I am less optimistic than Meg and expect it to be delayed. It’s one of the few ‘pure’ RPGs I love, so even though I don’t think the Avatar game needs RPG elements, the fact it will have them means I am forced to select it as my most anticipated RPG. It’s a funny old world. I recently rewatched Avatar, seeing it in 3D and at the cinema for the first time, and found it to be far better than I remembered it. I also found that literally everyone was wrong about it.

Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes

James Kennedy

Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes

I’ve written about this one before, and a part of me wants to acknowledge one of the other wonderful RPGs releasing next year. Like Sea of Stars, which looks incredible, or Baldur’s Gate 3, which is almost certainly going to be an instant classic.

But Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes is a special project. It is being helmed by the key players from the original Suikoden team. And, unlike so many of the games that serve as spiritual successors, it is visually reminiscent of Suikoden 2, while looking better than it in almost every way. It has embraced the HD-2D style and is quite possibly doing it better than any other game that has used this aesthetic.

We have seen a lot of Eiyuden at this point, and everything looks incredible! The character designs? Lovely and classic⁠—these designs largely eschew the worst qualities that have poisoned modern JRPG character designs. The compositions? The tracks we have heard sound incredible. Lastly, the battle engine looks snappy, the sprite work is expressive and detailed, and the script is being handled by Murayama himself. He’s the guy that just so happens to have been responsible for the best-written Suikoden games.

Honestly, I believe in this product in a way that is hard to express. I think this may truly end up being one of the best JRPGs ever made. Mark your calendars, RPG fans, Eiyuden is going to show us the way!

Final Fantasy 16

David W. Duffy

Final Fantasy 16 Producer Says It Doesn't Make Sense To Go Back To Turn-Based Combat

Maybe it's just me, but FF16 seems like a make-or-break entry in the main numbered series. Between the continued success of FF14 and the hype around FF7 Remake/Rebirth, there's every chance that FF16 could get lost in the mire if Square Enix doesn't manage it well. There doesn't appear to be the excitement for a new Final Fantasy as there once was, and FF16 not being well received could just force Square Enix into a cycle of remaking their older titles (which they know would sell bucket loads) for an extended period, instead of driving the series forward.

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Giving Naoki Yoshida the reins could be an inspired choice, so it's going to be fascinating to see how it turns out. I know what to expect with FF7 Rebirth, but I much prefer the intrigue around an unknown quantity.

Final Fantasy 16

Quinton O’Connor

FinalFantasy16

First, some honorable mentions. For brevity’s sake, I’ll stick with stuff I suspect will be out by mid-2024. Starfield and Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes are my big 2023-confirmed runners-up. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and Dragon Age: Dreadwolf are coming a little later on. All shall be played. But this isn’t about them. This is about a next-summer superstar that I am convinced will be an absolute banger bursting with that most delicious blend of thoughtful sociopolitical commentary and jaw-dropping audiovisual spectacle.

I have faith that Square Enix Creative Business Unit 3, helmed by Final Fantasy 14 legend Naoki Yoshida and such industry icons as Hiroshi Takai, Kazutoyo Maehiro, and Hiroshi Minagawa, is the perfect team for a fresh take on Final Fantasy that nevertheless gets to the heart of what put the series on the industry radar so many years ago.

Sea Of Stars

Joshua Robertson

Sea of Stars

The Messenger is one of my favorite indie games of all time, so when Sabotage Studio announced Sea of Stars, I was immediately on board. Of course, it also helps that the game looks stunning and is inspired by some of the best classic RPGs out there, with Chrono Trigger composer Yasunori Mitsuda even having worked on the soundtrack.

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From Sabotage’s previous work, I’m expecting witty dialogue, lovable characters, and a scintillating story, but what interests me more is how it will provide its own unique spin on classic turn-based gameplay. Whatever the case, I’m confident that Sabotage will not only be able to create a fantastic game inspired by RPG greats, but make one that can sit proudly beside them.

Cassette Beasts

Ben Sledge

Cassette Beasts Is The Retro Pokemon Game Of Your Dreams 2

I’ve been following the development of this Pokemon-like RPG for a few years now, and finally got to jump into the demo during Steam Next Fest. It’s a game designed specifically for me: the region is named after the place I grew up, the developers are based in Brighton, where I lived when the game was announced, and it’s a bloody pixel art Pokemon-like based on collecting monsters in cassette tapes. It’s got some new mechanics as well – catching is different and, dare I say, improved, from Pokemon – and I can’t wait to get stuck into the full game.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

James Troughton

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty knight on a horse riding toward the camera against cream pastel background

Souls-likes are a dime a dozen. For every Nioh, we have ten Lords of the Fallen, with none really managing to capture the charm and feel of a FromSoft game. It’s like getting Aldi coke — yeah, it’s coke, but it’s a bit naff. Team Ninja is different. It’s the only studio to reach the same levels as Dark Souls and Bloodborne with its games, and I’ve no doubt Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty will do the same. And as someone who has put far too many hours into Souls and Nioh, I’m excited to spend hundreds doing the same here.

Starfield

Branden Lizardi

Starfield character in a space helmet

There are simply too many aspects of this game that check off my list of my favorite game components. Aside from a personal love for the sci-fi genre in general, especially when it sits somewhere between realistic and space fantasy, Bethesda has an established record of creating narrative environments that balance perfectly between the serious and the silly. There are faction wars and political struggles, but there’s also a giant snake cult addicted to warp jumping and little office mugs that say “liquid happens” on them.

Throw in plenty of landscapes to explore, give me a base and a ship to customize how I see fit, and I can imagine myself spending more time than I should deep in the space-paint, as they probably say. Bethesda knows what I like, and I’m fairly confident they will deliver, planet express style.

Forspoken

Joe Parlock

Forspoken, Frey facing down a dragon

I know. I know. I get it. I understand. This is forever going to be the “I’m talking to a cuff” game, and I’m fully expecting the writing to not get much better in the full game. And yet there’s something about Forspoken that appeals to me.

Whether it’s the whole Isekai angle, the fantasy setting, the high degree of mobility, or the action-based combat, I’m not sure, but I find myself spending more time thinking about this game than anything with a trailer that infamous really deserves. Is this a bit of a backhanded compliment? Probably, but I do get major Dragon’s Dogma vibes from it being a chore to listen to but a lot of fun to play.

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