Some games feel like they’ll never be released, while others feel like they’ll never be finished. The longer the wait, the more the anticipation grows, which can lead to some lofty expectations from long-time fans.
Many of us tend to overestimate just how game-changing a title will be when it finally reaches its finished state. Unreasonable expectations lead to impossible outcomes, and it’s a problem that’s largely out of the developer’s control.
It’s worth noting that I’m not saying that these games won’t be good. They will almost certainly clear the bar for quality if past releases are anything to go by. They just might not be able to live up to the hype that has been generated during their long development cycles.
1
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Announced in 2019 as a follow-up to the surprise 2017 hit Hollow Knight, Silksong was initially conceived as downloadable content before indie developer Team Cherry decided that the game had grown in scope to the point of becoming its own, separate sequel. This explains the game’s premise, where you play as a character called Hornet who was initially hostile to you in the prequel.
The original Hollow Knight is a Metroidvania set in an underground world full of foes, bosses, and some friends. The follow-up takes the same formula and switches up the setting and protagonist. It’s more of the same on a grander scale, but years of radio silence from developers has caused fans to speculate about the health of the project (and how ambitious the follow-up will be).
Not helping matters is the fact that the game has been named one of the most anticipated games of all time by critics and fans alike, winning two such “awards” from game engine developer Unity in 2022 and 2024. While developers initially intended to release the game in late 2023, this has been revised to later in 2025. The game even got 9 seconds of fame in the April 2025 Nintendo Switch 2 announcement.
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2
Deltarune
Deltarune is the follow-up to 2015’s Undertale, a game developed by video game auteur Toby Fox that is being released in episodes. The first episode arrived in late 2018, to a fanfare of praise. The second arrived three years later in a similar fashion. Both were released for free and were intended for players who had completed Undertale.
Roughly four years later, the third and fourth installments of Deltarune are set to arrive (along with the already-released free episodes) as a paid Nintendo Switch 2 launch title. In total, Fox intends to release seven separate chapters of which the remaining three will arrive as free updates to those who purchase the full release.
There are benefits and drawbacks to this sort of staggered release. On the one hand, it curries favor with fans and demonstrates the path forward. On the other, it sets up potential disappointment for the end of the series which still feels like a long way away. Make no mistake: Deltarune is already worth playing, but whether the concluding chapters can continue to improve on the already stellar work won’t be clear for a while yet.
3
Half-Life 3
Half-Life 3 doesn’t officially exist (yet). This is a mythical title that gamers around the world collectively will into existence, as Valve maintains radio silence while releasing games like Deadlock and Aperture Desk Job. These are games that show the company still has it (whatever “it” is), despite sitting pretty on the cash machine that is the Steam store.
The problem with Half-Life 3 is that every major Half-Life release has done something truly special. The original game helped to redefine first-person gunplay, linear narrative design, and expectations of video game AI. The second was a visually stunning masterpiece that offered a window into the future with next-generation physics and industry-leading mod support right out of the gate. Even though it was originally released in 2004, the game still looks incredible thanks to a few careful engine upgrades.
Even Half-Life: Alyx set a new bar for what a virtual reality game could be. Half-Life 3 has to push the medium forward in some respect because that’s what Valve does. What this could look like is anyone’s guess, if and when the game ever arrives. But the 20-plus years and counting between the previous entry’s debut and now aren’t helping matters.
4
Star Citizen
It’s a meme to say that Star Citizen will never be finished, but 23 years after the game was announced (and 22 years after the first “modules” were released) the game is still under active development. This is a massively multiplayer space simulator with first-person shooting, space combat, trading, and more. It’s arguably the most ambitious game ever conceived, let alone released, and has missed countless deadlines during the course of its development.
Star Citizen might be the most pertinent example of feature creep that the video game world has ever seen. The game’s scope has spiraled out of control as a result of the developer’s grand ambitions and poor management. Star Citizen has raised more than $800 million in crowdfunding as per the official counter. The project has been selling in-game assets like ships to players to raise funds, around which a gray market has emerged.
The thing is, Star Citizen is playable right now. You can buy the game, load up on pricey microtransactions, and have yourself a time. But it’s not the finished product that players expected it would be by now. It’s an out-of-control monster that struggles to break ground with new players. If the game is ever done, it will be a marvel of human engineering, but that’s a big if.
5
Haunted Chocolatier
When you create and release one of the best-received games of all time, you’re making things particularly difficult on yourself when it comes to follow-up projects. Past success can be so hard to follow, especially when you’re not creating a direct sequel and instead going in a slightly different direction. I’m of course talking about ConcernedApe and their smash-hit farming sim, Stardew Valley.
Developer Eric Barone announced that they were working on a game called Haunted Chocolatier in 2021 when they also released an early gameplay trailer. The game looks strikingly similar to Stardew Valley to the point where it could be set in the exact same universe (and why not?). This time around you appear to be taking on the role of a chocolatier who must venture out into the overworld to collect ingredients in order to craft your wares. If Stardew is anything to go by, there’ll be heaps of other things to do as well.
The game appears to share many of the same elements as Eric’s previous project, with simple real-time combat, a focus on social interaction, the ability to romance various characters, and a similarly chilled-out and uplifting vibe. Even the music (which last time around was composed by Eric himself) is reminiscent of the airy synth-driven tunes that form the background to any Stardew Valley run. The only issue is that Stardew Valley is near-perfect at this stage after being steadily improved over the course of a decade. How do you follow that?
As a massive fan of Bethesda’s open-world RPGs, even I can admit that the company has a bit of a reputation for letting fans down at this point. There’s a pervasive notion that the company’s games have been steadily declining in quality, and though I’m not sure I necessarily agree (I did put 100 hours into Starfield and had a great time), the follow-up to Skyrim will be a tough nut to crack.
Despite its reputation for bugs, hackneyed voice lines, a relatively dull main quest, and being one of the most re-released titles of all time; The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is still a wonderful video game. It’s the perfect combination of a stunning and immersive setting, best-in-class soundtrack, rewarding gameplay loop, satisfying progression, and tons of quests to work through that make it such an intoxicating RPG experience.
The Elder Scroll VI has some big boots to fill, and Bethesda hasn’t exactly been knocking it out of the park recently. One silver lining comes in the form of the Oblivion Remaster which improves on the original with an Unreal Engine 5 visual overhaul that’s still somehow plugged into Bethesda’s Creation Engine back-end. If this is a proof of concept for the next mainline installment, we could be in for a real treat.
GTA VI: The Game That Can
If there’s one studio that consistently knocks it out of the park, it’s Rockstar. By extension of this logic, if there’s one game that can live up to expectations it’s what is set to be the biggest release of 2025: Grand Theft Auto VI.
The GTA franchise doesn’t miss. Even back in the day, the 1969 London expansion and somewhat divisive follow-up GTA 2 pushed the open-world crime ‘em up forward in meaningful ways. It’s hard to believe how thick and fast the original 3D trilogy came considering the 12-year gap between GTA V and the upcoming sixth installment, but they were all incredible video games that defined an era.
With the exception of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition (which the company farmed out to a third party, before another third party fixed it and was absorbed into the Rockstar family), Rockstar games hit hard. From Read Dead Redemption to Bully, The Warriors, and even gritty murder-sim Manhunt, they’re all quality releases. I can’t wait.
