The Most Anticipated Sports Games of 2023

The sports genre is one of the most popular in video gaming. It sits at the centre of a Venn Diagram between people who are fans of the sport in the real world and those that simply enjoy playing this particular type of video game. Fans of real-world sports enjoy the games because they are a way for them to engage with the league, team(s), and player(s) that they love.

This is also why so many sports fans enjoy betting on the outcomes of games. There has been a significant increase in demand for this in recent years as brands like DraftKings have been increasing the number,  size, and frequency of free bet promotions that they’ve offered to new customers.

Both video games and betting allow fans to test their knowledge of their chosen competition and their ability to make predictions using what they know. This is why sports titles get more frequent releases than most other genres. For example, there hasn’t been a sequel to Grand Theft Auto V, despite it turning 10 years old in 2023. The same is true for Dota 2, and League of Legends will celebrate its 24th birthday this year, with no follow-up on the cards.

In contrast, EA Sports FC (formerly FIFA), NBA 2K, and Madden will continue their decades-long trend of annual releases this year. These regular updates ensure players always get the latest players, teams, and stats rather than having to rely on ones that are several years old. So now we know why all these games will be getting a fresh lick of paint in 2023, here are the most anticipated titles over the next 12 months.

EA Sports FC

Last autumn, we saw the release of FIFA 23, the final installment in Electronic Arts’ long-running relationship with FIFA, the world governing body of Association Football. Earlier in the year, the two organisations announced that they would be ending this partnership.

For EA’s part, it publicly stated that the reason for the breakup was that it wanted more freedom to get creative with its game while some analysts suggested that it was actually more to do with money. Whatever the real reason, 2023 will be the first time we get a football game from EA that doesn’t bear the FIFA name. Instead, it will be called EA Sports FC, a somewhat boring name, but different nonetheless.

Fans are excited to see what will change in the new release and to understand whether EA will really follow through on its claim that it wants to be more creative.

Photo source: Unsplash

Forza Motorsport

Forza Motorsport was, for a long time, the leading name in motorsport simulation games. It pioneered several features and pushed the boundaries of realism in the early releases, earning respect among petrolheads everywhere. However, Forza Motorsport 7 was a bit of a let down. While it wasn’t a bad game overall, it failed to push the boundaries like in the past and didn’t over anything materially new over other titles on the market.

The new Forza Motorsport game is scheduled for release some time in 2023 promises to reverse that. Whether it can or not, is another question, but Turn 10 Studios and Microsoft are pretty confident that they will.

EA Sports PGA Tour

EA Sports has been the traditional publisher of official PGA Tour golf video games, releasing its first back in 1990. Over the years, its title has gone by several names, including the Tiger Woods PGA Tour and the Rory Mcllroy PGA Tour. However, the company stopped creating golf games after the 2015 release and Take-Two’s 2K arm took up the mantle and gave the genre a refresh. Not to be outdone, EA is returning in 2023 and promises to take things to another level.

The company has conducted an “aerial sweep” of some of the most prestigious courses in the world, collecting millions of data points for each one, so that it can recreate them in more detail than has ever seen before.

If it can live up to this hype, the EA Sports PGA Tour could revolutionize golf video games.