Fans wanted 2022 to be the year that this generation of consoles broke out. And at the beginning of the year, things were poised to go in that direction: Elden Ring was going to come out in the Winter, God of War, and Starfield in the Fall. And plenty of other games were going to release between the three titles that would've established this year as a standout.

RELATED: 10 Great PC Games You Won't Find On Steam Or EpicUnfortunately, gaming release dates haven't been reliable in the best of circumstances. And the last two years have been anything but reliable for video games, meaning a ton of highly-anticipated games suddenly have 2023 release dates.

10 Tchia Is A Relaxing Island Adventure With A Familiar Mechanic

Tchia Comes To PlayStation Over Google Stadia

Originally announced at The Game Awards two years ago, Tchia has been hotly anticipated by fans of sandbox titles and indie games from day one. The game is an open-world sandbox featuring a young girl named Tchia on the island of New Caledonia. Tchia's a special girl, though, because she has the ability to jump into animals and objects on the island, which helps players explore the game's world.

If this mechanic sounds familiar, it's similar to what Nintendo did with Mario Odyssey, though this game certainly has plenty of unique elements. Unfortunately, Tchia was delayed from May to early 2023, with developer Awaceb mentioning that they want to make the best game possible.

Granblue Fantasy Relink's cast of characters

Granblue Fantasy fans by now have grown used to this title being delayed. Initially announced in 2015, Cygames' massive J-RPG was supposed to be out in 2018. Since then, the game switched to an in-house developer after getting rid of Platinum. As a result, they've completely changed the protagonist from a random nobody to Gran and Djeeta, the heroes of the mobile game.

When fans got the release date last year at Granblue Festival, it seemed like the wait was finally over. But instead, just after all the Summer Games Showcases, the game was delayed to 2023, with the developer promising more news in December. Again. At least fans can play the mobile game and watch Granblue Fantasy: The Animation while waiting.

8 Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League Was Rocksteady's Big Multiplayer Shooter

Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, King Shark and Harley Quinn relaxing in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League

After the developer established themselves as the gold standard with the Batman: Arkham series, people wondered what the next game from Rocksteady would be. Of course, everyone hoped it was a Superman game or another major DC character.

But instead, it turned out to be Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, a game that places the players in the role of the Suicide Squad after the Justice League has become mind-controlled by Brainiac. A bold decision to some, a baffling decision to others, fans were nonetheless eager to see what the game would look like when it was released in 2022. Instead, the project was delayed into the Spring of 2023. So fans will have to wait to live out their dreams of beating up Superman and Wonder Woman.

7 Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn Was A Gunpowder Fantasy Open-World Game

Flintlock The Siege Of Dawn

A44 Games' Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn was announced and delayed in the same year. The game is meant to be an open-world action RPG in a gunpowder fantasy world where players are granted incredible superpowers. Players are in the role of Nor Vanek, a soldier aiming to use the power of gunpowder and magic to take out the gods that have ruined her world.

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When Flintlock was announced in March, it was expected to be released in the fall. But by the time the game reappeared during all the summer showcases, the gameplay trailer revealed it slipped into an early 2023 release window. Considering how crowded that part of the year tends to be, Flintlock will need to be incredible to stand out.

6 Final Fantasy XVI Made Its Grand Reappearance But Still Got Delayed

final-fantasy-xvi-art

Final Fantasy XVI was the first new mainline Final Fantasy in over a decade. The title was hotly anticipated when it was revealed in 2020, but in 2021 the game vanished from additional announcements. This wasn't a great sign because it was rumored to be far ahead in development.

FFXVI was finally confirmed for a reappearance by the Spring of 2022, and just barely made it, showing up at Sony's State of Play in the Summer. However, though the trailer had plenty of amazing moments, Square-Enix had to break the hearts of FF fans everywhere. Rather than making it in time for the holiday, Final Fantasy XVI is confirmed as a Summer 2023 title. It's a long wait, but judging by how cool the Eikon battles look, it'll be worth it.

5 Pragmata Is Capcom's Mysterious Sci-Fi Game

Pragmata's mysterious sci-fi action

In 2020, Capcom announced a new IP called Pragmata. Unfortunately, they didn't reveal much about the game; they just showed off a cinematic trailer. What's known about the game is that it will take place in a dystopian near-future on the moon, and that's it.

Capcom talked about how Pragmata would rely on a lot of next-gen technology to make it look as gorgeous and immersive as possible, but nothing more about the story. Though it was meant to be released in 2022, in November 2021, the game was delayed into 2023, and Capcom offered no additional news other than a new screenshot.

4 Redfall Sees A Group Of Four Battle Against Vampires In The City Of Redfall

Bethesda's Redfall Team walking.

Arkane's Redfall ended Xbox and Bethesda's Games Showcase in 2021, promising the game would be released in 2022. But since there wasn't any gameplay in the trailer, no one believed it would hit the date. Still, as things got closer to Summer 2022, it did feel possible Xbox would release it as a shadow drop since most people could just get it on Game Pass.

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Instead, just weeks before their latest show, Bethesda announced the title would be delayed to the first half of 2023. Disappointing, to be sure, but if the game can live up to the fun gameplay shown in the trailer this year, it will be a hit.

3 Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes Has Much To Live Up To As The Successor To Suikoden

Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes

Rabbit & Bear Studios have been working on the spiritual successor to Suikoden since the Kickstarter was announced in 2020. However, before the game reached its supposed release date, it was announced that it would be delayed until 2023.

It wasn't happy news, but they also confirmed they would be making and releasing a second game that was meant to tie into Hundred Heroes as a prequel. Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising wasn't a ground-breaking project, but it was a fun side-scrolling RPG that left fans hopeful for the potential of Hundred Heroes when it releases in 2023.

2 No One Was Suprised When The Sequel To Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Was Delayed

Legend Of Zelda Breath Of The Wild 2

Breath of the Wild was one of the most iconic games of the generation, so of course, fans were eagerly awaiting the next title after that. The sequel to Breath of the Wild was announced during a Nintendo Direct in 2019. Unfortunately, since the announcement, not only have fans not gotten a chance to play it, but they still don't know the game's name.

During a Nintendo Direct this year, producer Eiji Aonuma informed fans the title was being pushed back to the crowded Spring 2023. But it's Zelda, so other games will just have to get out of the franchise's way.

1 Starfield Looks To Be Everything Sci-Fi Fans Were Hoping It Could Be

Character in a city from Starfield's gameplay demo

Fans have been talking about Starfield since the day it was hinted at during a Bethesda E3 2018 showcase. It was a key 2022 game that gamers were excited to play. But the game got everything from developer discussions about the story to a release date without anyone ever seeing a speck of gameplay. Fans were ravenous to see footage of the game during this year's Bethesda Showcase, but something went wrong.

Before the game was scheduled to be shown off, both Starfield and Redfall were delayed to the first half of 2023. But at least fans got to look at a solid fifteen minutes of gameplay, showing off the characters and environments of Starfield. And fortunately, it seems like it'll be everything fans are looking forward to experiencing.

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