It’s a new month and a new year, and January is bringing quite a few great games to be excited about.
A game based on one of the most popular manga and anime series will kick off this month’s big releases in less than a week, while one of the best games on the Nintendo Switch is finally getting ported to all other current- and previous-gen consoles. A long-awaited open-world RPG from Square Enix, where you talk to your wrist, is also on the menu.
Switch owners will be treated to the next installment in the Fire Emblem series, while survival horror fans are getting the highly-anticipated remake of one of the best games in the genre. At the very end of January, we’ll get another SpongeBob game and a new road trip adventure.
Plenty of titles to look forward to, so let’s go over the best games releasing in January 2023.
One Piece Odyssey
Fans of the One Piece manga and anime franchise should definitely pick this one up. One Piece Odyssey is a new JRPG coming just in time for the series’ 25th anniversary. You’ll get to play as Monkey D. Luffy and various members of his Straw Hat Crew in an open world full of adventures.
One Piece Odyssey’s story has been developed together with the manga series’ author, Eiichiro Oda, who created new characters and monsters for the game and developed the plot, in which Luffy and his pirate crew are stranded on a mysterious island.
Each character in your party has unique abilities that help you get around, collect items and solve puzzles. Combat is turn-based and each of your pirates fights in a separate combat area, so you’ll need to optimize your characters’ positioning based on their strengths to counter specific opponents.
One Piece Odyssey releases on Jan. 12 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Monster Hunter Rise
One of the biggest action RPGs on the Nintendo Switch and the sixth mainline game in the Monster Hunter series, Monster Hunter Rise, is finally coming to all other modern consoles.
As in every Monster Hunter game, you slay or capture monsters, complete quests, and gather loot that lets you upgrade your weapons and armor to slay or capture more and bigger monsters.
Rise has been praised for being more accessible to new players and for building upon mechanics from its predecessor, Monster Hunter: World. The new Wirebug mechanic lets you use a flying insect that adds verticality to your movement and unlocks special aerial attacks during combat.
The recently released Sunbreak expansion will also be ported to other consoles later this year.
Monster Hunter Rise will release on Jan. 20, for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S. The game has been out for Switch and PC for a while now.
Forspoken
Forspoken is finally coming this month after being delayed several times, most recently from its October 2022 release date, which would have coincided with God of War Ragnarok’s launch.
The game promises intriguing twists on the standard (and tired) open-world action RPG formula, as it follows the story of Frey, a young woman from New York, who is transported into the fantasy world of Athia and given magical abilities emanating from her talking bracelet, known as Cuff.
A key feature of this open-world adventure is magical parkour, which allows Frey to explore the world in a lightning-fast and satisfying way. Combat is entirely based on spells with quite a few options as you unlock more and more abilities.
A short demo of Forspoken is already available on the PlayStation Store, and you can read more about magical parkour in our Forspoken preview.
Forspoken releases Jan. 24 on PC and as a console exclusive on the PS5.
Dead Space
This Dead Space is a remake of the seminal survival horror game of the same name that came out in 2008, built from the ground up with improved graphics and sound that make for an even more terrifying horror experience.
In Dead Space, you play as systems engineer Isaac Clarke, who is on a mission to rescue a mining spaceship, USG Ishimura, which has gone missing. As it happens in sci-fi horror games and movies, you soon become stranded on the vessel and have to fight for your life against the nightmarish alien infestation you find there.
This complete reimagining of the classic game promises a much more powerful and immersive experience, and it will be interesting to see how it will stack up against Dead Space’ spiritual successor, The Callisto Protocol, which launched last month to mixed reviews. Check out our Dead Space remake preview for more.
Dead Space is releasing on Jan. 27 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Season: A Letter to the Future
Season: A Letter to the Future is an action-adventure game where you play as Estelle who travels the world on a bicycle collecting memories for posterity before a mysterious cataclysmic event destroys everything.
This bicycle road trip game is all about exploration, meeting people, and capturing sights and sounds as your character documents the world by taking notes, drawing, snapping photos, and recording audio and videos.
Season: A Letter to the Future will release Jan. 31 for PC, PS4, and PS5.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake is a new 3D platformer based on Nickelodeon’s animated franchise. You play as SpongeBob himself as you jump your way through varied worlds with the help of sidekick Patrick Star.
SpongeBob and Patrick meet mysterious fortune teller Kassandra who gives them a vial of Mermaid’s Tears that grant wishes and open portals to the game’s seven Wishworlds.
The Cosmic Shake is touted as a spiritual successor to Battle for Bikini Bottom from 2003, which got a Rehydrated remake in 2020. As you explore, you unlock both classic and new platforming moves like the Fishhook Swing and Karate Kick.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake releases Jan. 31 for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC.
