The Game Awards 2025

#videogames #thegameawards #thegamewards2025

Today was The Game Awards. Probably the best show that they've done thus far. Props to Geoff, I appreciate him sharing with the public that his dad passed away earlier this year. Mine did as well, so I know what that's like. For him to put on such a good show after having just gone through that, I find that impressive.

The Awards themselves are what they are... Expedition 33 cleaned house. I lost track of how many awards it won. Congrats to those guys, they deserve it. I have my own misgivings about the game, but those are my personal issues and I acknowledge that. My opinions are in the minority, and so the general consensus is dictating that it's a great game.

All things being equal though, we know The Game Awards are really the The Game *Adverts*. There's nothing wrong with that. I get excited for new games, and as mentioned above, Geoff puts on a good show. There's a live orchestra, usually at least one pejorative word, and one muppet. Sometimes we get lucky and there are multiples of each.

Without further adieu, here are the new games coming out that caught my attention:

Star Wars Galactic Racer

Part of why the show was so good has to do with the games that are in the pipeline, and the reveals and... Honestly, a Star Wars Pod Racer game was very much unexpected but also welcome. I'm just praying for sim aspects where you get to customize your pod racer throughout the course of the game. I don't know anything about the game other than the trailer that we saw, however, I would very much enjoy a game that functions similar to Forza or Gran Turismo, but I'll settle for NFS car customization.

Exodus

This game is highly anticipated by my friends and I. We're all Mass Effect fans to some degree or another, and the hope is that Wizards of the Coast can deliver. At the end of the day, a lot of good sci-fi is just someone's take on the heroes journey.

So, this year we got to see a really good story trailer for Exodus. I am slightly concerned that it's going to be too much like Starfield, in that main character is just another “prophesied/chosen” one who becomes a space knight or wizard... Looks like it definitely has heavier science fantasy vibes rather than space opera vibes, yet, it was written by Drew Karpyshyn (who also wrote Mass Effect).

The way that Mass Effect handles the hero's journey is exceedingly good on an overall arc (1, 2, and 3). But especially within just the first game. After seeing this trailer I have some hope that it's more (or less) a refinement of the space opera hero's journey, with some new flair.

Divinity

It did leak yesterday that Larian's new game was going to be “Divinity” and that it was related to the statue/art installation that was put up in the desert in Joshua Tree, CA. However, after an amazing debut cinematic, we still don't know exactly what the game is. They've had other games with “Divinity” in the title and each of those games have different gameplay styles; some are classic CRPGs, but as is the case with Divinity II, at least one of their games is an action title.

I'm assuming that they are going to continue the work that they did with Baldur's Gate 3 just because that game was such a massive success for them, but that's not a given. They could pivot and do something entirely different this time.

Regardless of the fact that we don't know exactly what the game is going to be... Blizzard used to be the King of CGI cinematic trailers and cut scenes, but Larian just took the crown by force. People are being burned alive, orcs and elves are engaged in coitus, it's quite a sight to behold.

Warlock

It has been known that Larian weren't going to work on any new D&D titles in the near future. However, Wizards made a big push to expand their digital offerings after Baldur's Gate 3's release, and there was a public announcement some months back about how they were courting other development studios. We're finally seeing the fruits of those partnerships, and what D&D IP looks in the hands of others.

With Warlock, they certainly got my attention. TOOL's “46&2” is a unique song to pick. The only thing I could think was, “who was able to get TOOL to license their music?!?” I'm sure WotC shelled out some serious cash to get the rights for the trailer.

Again, we don't know much about this game, it's entirely a cinematic trailer. Eagle-eyed Redditors will probably be picking it apart to figure out whether the game is set in the Ravenloft, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, or Dragonlance campaign settings... And I'm sure there are hints. I thought I was that kind of nerd, but nothing in particular really stood out to me. Based on the opening shot I would bet on a Ravenloft game, but as far as I know, nothing is official. According to IGN, the gameplay reveal is scheduled for June 2026, and with that I'm sure we'll get more information.

Highguard

Who left from Respawn to go start Wildlight Entertainment?? Because Highguard looks awesome! Yes, I will absolutely play this game for FREE.

I've always liked HeXen and Heretic, and I revisited those games when the remasters dropped earlier this year on GamePass. For me, those id Software classics have been the benchmark for Fantasy FPS games. Still, in my opinion, they were always a bit dark. I don't mind serious themes, but I do like more whimsical visuals with my fantasy games. Highguard delivers that, and in a way, this is almost science fantasy as well. My only hope is that there will be more than just a battle royale mode.

Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about how Geoff opened up the show with this bombshell. The best WORLD PREMIERE of the night was Fate of the Old Republic.

All of the rumors suggested that there was going to be “a Star Wars game with Old Republic in the title,” so everyone assumed that it was the KoTOR Remake returning. Depositions were done in conjunction with a legal proceeding that just settled last month. An Aspyr executive testified that the KoTOR Remake was still in development. Along with it, there is also supposed to be a remake of the second game that also includes the cut content... Why? Well, the suit was brought under false advertising claims, because there has already been a “remaster,” or port, of of KoTOR II to the Nintendo Switch. It was advertised quite plainly that the Switch version would get the cut content.

None of that really matters though, because Casey Hudsen is back! And he's directing a NEW entry in the Old Republic games. I'm stoked, as much as I want to play the old games with some modern features, I don't mind a modern interpretation.

Seems to be a bit of a resurrection of old BioWare alumni. A lot of hype this year, and I was there for it. I needed a hype-filled year of hopes and dreams.

Honorable mentions