We’ve a bumper list of games to get through, so without further ado, here are our pick of top titles to keep an eye out for next year…

Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues

Available to play from Tuesday 5 January on PC

The smash-hit TV series (a spin-off from the hit 1980s film franchise) gets a side-scrolling beat ’em up game adaptation which looks every bit as action-packed and side-splitting as the source material, as the console title finally arrives on PCs.

MXGP 2020

Available to play from Thursday 14 January on PS5

The popular motocross simulator franchise returns with this next-gen optimised new entry, featuring all the teams, riders, bikes and circuits from the suitably mud-soaked and dramatic 2020 season.

Hitman 3

Available to play from Wednesday 20 January on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and Stadia

He’s back, and he’s as bald, badass and terrifying as ever. IO Interactive’s “World Of Assassination” trilogy of sort-of-but-sort-of-not soft reboots concludes with this third entry, in which Agent 47 carries out (bald) head-scratching stealth missions in Dubai, Dartmoor and countless other locales.

Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time Remake

Available to play from Thursday 21 January on PC, PS4 and Xbox One

If you spent much of your childhood leaping from sofa to sofa pretending to be the titular prince that you’d spent countless hours playing as in the original game, then you’ll have a blast playing this gorgeously reconstructed remake.

Ride 4

Available to play from Thursday 21 January on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S

Effectively Forza for gamers who prefer their fuel-injected thrills to come on two wheels instead of four, Ride 4 is chock-full of bikes, tracks and game modes to thoroughly put your racing skills to the test. And, with this next-gen optimised version, the series has never looked so good.

Stronghold: Warlords

Available to play from Tuesday 26 January on PC

Create and expand your own enclave and command an army to conquer those of the Great Khans, Imperial and Shōgun warlords in this latest base-building strategy game.

The Medium

Available to play from Thursday 28 January on PC and Xbox Series X/S

Players’ horror chops and puzzle-solving skills will be seriously challenged with this innovative new psychological horror game, in which a young medium must defend both her own world and the spirit world from evil forces.

Outriders

Available to play from Tuesday 2 February on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S

Imagine a strange, multiparented lovechild of Mass Effect, Destiny, Gears Of War and Borderlands and you’ve got a slightly weird but half-decent idea of what this third-person sci-fi RPG has to offer, as you attempt to save humanity’s future and investigate a mysterious, storm-ridden alien planet.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood

Available to play from Thursday 4 February on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S

Exploration and combat are on the cards in this gory, macabre and oh-so-brilliant action RPG sequel that sees players once again take control of werewolf Cahal as he sets out to take down a corporation polluting the American Northwest.

Death Crown

Available to play from Thursday 11 February on PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch

The real-time strategy genre gets a surprising yet eye-catching and, if we’re honest, quite stunning minimalist overhaul with this 1bit-style title that allows you to command the forces of death and punish humanity’s overconfidence. Bleak stuff, but boy is it fun.

Little Nightmares 2

Available to play from Thursday 11 February on PC, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch

Though the scares may be miniature, they’re no less horrifying in this much-anticipated platformer sequel that expands on the 2017 original and adds increasingly surreal, nerve-shredding environments to the already suitably sinister story.

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury

Available to play from Friday 12 February on Nintendo Switch

As if a new port of the Wii U’s smash-hit 3D World wasn’t enough, players can now enjoy the classic 2013 title and, along with it, a brand new, as yet highly mysterious new companion pack titled Bowser’s Fury… It looks rainy, gloomy, and, well, furious.

Riders Republic

Available to play from Thursday 25 February on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Stadia

Fans of SSX or the more recent Steep will have an absolute blast with this adrenaline-filled new multiplayer sports game that allows players to tear down mountains and trails on bikes, skis and snowboards, or in wingsuits.

Destruction AllStars

Available to play on PS5, with a February release date TBC

Delayed due to the COVID-19 crisis, this action-packed vehicular combat game was meant be available at launch for the PS5. But, despite said delay, it looks every bit as thrilling as we expected it to be.

Hiro’s Escape

Available to play on PC, with a February release date TBC

This innovative little indie game combines a feudal Japan setting with stealth gameplay and pixelated, OG Pokémon-style graphics, as players sneak through mercenary-occupied territories to be reunited with their scattered family.

Harvest Moon: One World

Available to play from Tuesday 2 March on Nintendo Switch

A brand new game engine and cutting-edge graphics make this latest addition to the long-running simulator series a must-have both for fans and anyone who fancies the peaceful wholesomeness of virtual farming.

Yakuza: Like A Dragon

Available to play from Tuesday 2 March on PS5

The always entertaining and utterly bonkers Yakuza series gets a much-needed change of setting with this brand new instalment, now available on the PS5. It follows the rise of new protagonist Ichiban Kasuga within Yokohama’s sinister (but still bonkers) criminal underworld.

Monster Hunter Rise

Available to play from Friday 26 March on Nintendo Switch

Three years on from the PS4 and Xbox One release of Monster Hunter: World, Switch players can finally return to hunting humungous and utterly terrifying monsters with this much-anticipated new entry to the series.

Humankind

Available to play on PC and Stadia, with an April release date TBC

This innovative new strategy game quite literally allows you to re-write the narrative of human history, and combine all manner of cultures, histories, values and more to create a thoroughly unique world.

Deathloop

Available to play from Friday 21 May on PC and PS5

The latest offering from the brains behind Dishonored, Deathloop plops players into a strange, mysterious world in which an assassin must navigate their way through a former army base-turned-party island caught in an endless timeloop. Bizarre? Yes. Amazing? Also yes.

The Pedestrian

Available to play on PS4, with a release date TBC

Ever looked at those little stick people on street signs and wondered how they could navigate their way through the world? Well, with this ingenious new 2.5D platformer (in which you help a small stick person leap from sign to sign), you can now answer that very question.

Far Cry 6

Available to play on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Stadia, with a release date TBC

The Far Cry series’ imperious roster of absolutely terrifying villains gains a new member in Breaking Bad’s Giancarlo Esposito, who, as the above trailer shows, plays the ruthless dictator players are tasked with bringing down in this action-packed open world six-quel.

Halo Infinite

Available to play on PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, with a release date TBC

Ohhhhh mama, the Chief is back, once again setting out to save humanity on a critically damaged halo ring. We’re getting serious Halo 2 vibes from this one, which can only be a good thing.

Stray

Available to play on PS5, with a release date TBC

In a game that looks uh-MAZING, players take on the role of a lone, abandoned cat and attempt to unravel an ancient mystery in order to escape a Blade Runner-esque city inhabited by cyborgs.

Horizon Forbidden West

Available to play on PS4 and PS5, with a release date TBC

Following on from the jaw-dropping events and gameplay of 2017’s Horizon Zero Dawn, Forbidden West sees huntress Alloy journeying further into the titular landscape to find the source of a deadly virus.

Gotham Knights

Available to play on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, with a release date TBC

Following on from the acclaimed Arkham games, WB Games Montréal deliver a new title set within the same universe. Robin, Batgirl, Nightwing and Red Hood take up Batman’s mantle to keep Gotham’s streets safe in what is sure to be another action-packed, bone-crunching RPG.

GhostWire: Tokyo

Available to play on PC and PS5, with a release date TBC

Expect creeps, thrills and no shortage of fantastical action as you do battle with sinister spirits haunting Tokyo’s streets in this brand new action adventure game.

Hogwarts Legacy

Available to play on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, with a release date TBC

Set 90 or so years before Harry Potter was even a twinkle in James and Lilly Potter’s eyes, this eagerly awaited RPG allows players to fulfil their Hogwarts fantasies and finally grace its hallowed halls and learn all manner of spells. That isn’t the Hogwarts Express your’re hearing… It’s the Hype Train. And it’s just pulled into the station.

Let’s do Christmas

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