Horizon Call of the Mountain / Marvel's Spider-Man 2 / The Last of Us Factions
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With 2022 now done and dusted, it's time to look to the future. One thing we know at this point is that 2023 has a stacked release schedule of PS5 and PS4 games, but of course, we can never be totally sure of what will happen. As is tradition here on Push Square, it's time for the editorial team to make some predictions what the next 12 months have in store. We can be as outlandish as we like, but obviously, brownie points are on the line for any predictions that come true. With those incredibly high stakes set, let's get on with it!

Sammy Barker, Editor

PSVR2
Image: Push Square

I believe 2023 will be PS5's biggest year in terms of hardware sales by a comfortable margin. While this is somewhat of a safe prediction – and ultimately enforced by forecasts from the firm itself – I think the company has been stung by circumstances out of its control which have limited the number of units it can ship, and it'll be motivated to respond. I think we'll see the system's rumoured hardware revision readily available by September, and I think Sony's going to absolutely swamp retail with units throughout the year, in an all-out assault to try and take control of this generation before Microsoft's deep pockets can do any real damage to its market leading position. I wouldn't be surprised if the Japanese giant shipped and sold over 25 million PS5 consoles this year.

For as undeniably excited as I am for the hardware, I think PSVR2's going to have a tough first year. It's important I clarify my prediction here: I think in terms of critical acclaim, the headset will be universally lauded – and subsequently it's going to cultivate a cult following that will eulogise the device whenever and wherever possible. But given the economic climate, I predict there will be much handwringing from the ever-sceptical games media, eager to write it off as a flop. I don't expect more than two million units to be sold in the first year, and the mood to be gloomy by Christmas. However, I think Sony will have a steady software schedule through 2023, and will have some big games announced for 2024, too.

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Improvements will be made to PS Plus Premium. Despite taking an eternity to roll out the new PS Plus tiers, I think Sony misjudged the market for the Premium option. In the platform holder's mind, the selling point for its flagship subscription is cloud streaming; for the consumer, it's the promise of retro games. I actually think the manufacturer's going to buck expectations and get its act together in 2023; it'll probably be a slow burn, so don't expect much improvement in the early parts of the year, but I think by the end of the year it'll quietly be peddling a competent selection of well-emulated PS1 and PSP games, all available as part of its most expensive membership option.

Robert Ramsey, Deputy Editor

Monster Hunter: World PS4

Capcom will announce a new Monster Hunter game for PS5. Capcom's insane run of form will continue in 2023, and it'll cap things off later in the year with the announcement of a brand new Monster Hunter title — probably World 2. Now, obviously, Monster Hunter Rise will have released on PS5 and PS4 by this point, but I'd be shocked if a sequel to 2018's World hasn't been in development for at least a couple of years. It's happening, and I'd bet on it happening a lot sooner than people think.

Sony will host a colossal PS5 showcase about halfway through the year, essentially relaunching the console. This has been a long time coming. Sony went through the whole of 2022 without a 'proper' showcase, but I think we'll get one in 2023 — and it'll be a big deal. With PS5 stock surging and a bunch of high profile games releasing in the next 12 months, I can see Sony finally putting its full weight behind the current-gen console, to the point where it almost feels like a relaunch. This renewed commitment might also tie in to the release of a new model — something that's been rumoured for months now.

Persona 6 will be announced, but not revealed. In a classic Atlus move, I can see Persona 6 being officially announced in 2023 — but we won't actually see it until 2024. It sounded like the developer had big plans for the series' 25th anniversary last year, but, as Atlus actually admitted, things didn't work out. I'm not sure whether Persona 6 was going to be part of the celebrations, but I think the time is right to make the next Persona official. Bonus prediction: Persona 6 will use green as its primary colour. Or maybe purple — I can't quite decide.

Stephen Tailby, Associate Editor

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 PS5

Sony's rumoured live service reboot of Twisted Metal is officially announced, and it'll launch close to its TV adaptation. I think the stars will align quite nicely here. We know the live action series has been picked up by Peacock, and we know the show is firmly entrenched in post-production right now, having finished filming last summer. On the flip side, it's heavily rumoured that Sony's studio Firesprite is leading development on a new game in the franchise, with an emphasis on multiplayer and live service. Assuming nothing goes wrong, the two projects could well line up for a semi-joint arrival later in the year.

The Microsoft / Activision Blizzard saga will rage on for another year. We're all bored to tears about this topic at Push Square, but it isn't over until it's over. A deal this big was never going to be an easy win for Microsoft. Between Sony throwing its toys out of the pram, regulators struggling to give the go-ahead, and the FTC even taking the matter to court, I think we'll be hearing about this throughout 2023. It's caught up in so much red tape at this point that I can't see it being settled anytime soon. Enjoy several more articles trying to make sense of this madness.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 will feature GTA 5-esque character swapping between Peter, Miles, and Venom. Both Peter Parker and Miles Morales have had their own character-affirming adventures, complete with fully fleshed-out movesets. It would be a little weird to throw out all that work and focus on just one of them, right? And let's face it, Venom won't be the real bad guy. He'll be an antagonistic force, but there will be a greater threat that unites the anti-hero with our pair of Spideys. So, I have a feeling you'll be able to play as not only Peter and Miles interchangeably, but Insomniac will go a step further and make Venom playable too. And the hot-swapping from GTA 5 means you can choose your flavour of web-slinger whenever you want.

Liam Croft, Assistant Editor

Resident Evil 4 PS5 PS4

Sony has a quiet 2023 in terms of game releases. While I expect the hardware manufacturer to have a slate of new PS5 reveals to share throughout the year, I don't think you'll actually be playing any of them in the next 12 months. Outside of Horizon Call of the Mountain and Marvel's Spider-Man 2, I think Sony has maybe one other big PS5 title up its sleeve. Compared to previous years, that is indeed a bit naff. Speaking purely from the perspective of PlayStation Studios — because I know stuff like Final Fantasy XVI and Stellar Blade is exclusive — I don't think there'll be too much to get excited about in 2023.

The Last of Us Multiplayer doesn't release this year. Part of the reason why I think 2023 will be quiet for Sony is because The Last of Us Multiplayer isn't coming out until 2024. With Naughty Dog still only teasing news later this year and sticking to concept art drops in the meantime, I can't see the online project making it to launch in 2023. It's going to be fantastic whenever it arrives, I'm sure, but maybe cool your anticipation if you're expecting it this year.

Resident Evil 4 wins Push Square Game of the Year for 2023. It happened in 2019 with Resident Evil 2, and it happened again in 2021 with Resident Evil Village. Therefore, it's only tradition at this point: a Resident Evil game wins our Game of the Year award every two years. It also helps that Resident Evil 4 already looks outstanding, faithfully remaking the PS2 classic while expanding on so many of its masterful aspects and mechanics. I think that's enough for Resident Evil 4 to take our top prize come the end of this year.

Aaron Bayne, Video Producer

The Last of Us Factions Multiplayer

Sony will announce the comeback of a beloved series. Okay, admittedly, I have no real idea what this could be, or what it should be, but Sony has a plethora of cult-favourite properties that haven't received their fair share of love in the PS5 era. Series like Resistance, Jak and Daxter, Killzone, and inFAMOUS to name a few. With most new-age series being on their second entries, it's high time to reintroduce some classics to modern audiences.

The Last of Us Factions will be Sony's most exciting project in 2023. Yeah sure, when people talk about their most anticipated, everyone is going to point to Marvel's Spider-Man 2. But let's be real, while it will undoubtedly be brilliant, I really don't think it will surprise us too much. The Last of Us Factions, on the other hand, is brimming with potential, especially as one of Sony's biggest attempts at a multiplayer-only title. Will it be battle royale? Will it be open world? How hard will Naughty Dog go for live service? There is a lot we don't know, but if it manages to bring The Last Of Us: Part II's stellar gameplay to a multiplayer setting, the possibilities are endless.

Developers are going to fully utilise the PS5 as they ditch PS4. There are only a few games out there that truly feel "next-gen" on PS5, and that's because most games released between 2020 and now have been developed for both PS4 and 5. However, 2023 is going to be the year we start to see more games really push the PS5 to the limit as we ditch cross-gen releases. As we start to see games that are solely made for current-gen, we're hopefully entering the PS5's golden era, just like that of the PS4, where each game aims to show us what the console is really capable of.

So, that's what we think might happen throughout 2023. We'll have to wait and see who has the most accurate foresight, but in the meantime, what do you predict 2023 will bring us? Have your say in the comments section below.