What are the biggest games coming out in April 2023? Much like the scorching summer, the first half of this month is a bit dry on new releases — a stark contrast to March, which was packed with AAA games to the brim. April’s biggest highlight is Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, where we’re whisked back into the galaxy far, far away to catch up on Cal Kestis’ desperate struggle against the Empire. It releases on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series S/X. We’ll also take you back to Horizon Forbidden West’s post-apocalyptic Los Angeles, albeit, for some mysterious reason, it has turned into a volcanic archipelago. The appropriately-titled new DLC Burning Shores is out April 19, exclusively on the PS5.
In Meet Your Maker, you build and raid trap-laden outposts, whereas in Minecraft Legends, you collect an army and charge into epic battles against sword-wielding piglins. Expect a couple of sequels this month too, with one of them having spent almost a decade in development. Of course, we’re talking about Dead Island 2, where you’re thrown onto the sun-kissed paradise of Los Angeles, now overrun with zombies. You could also chart the rebellious teen Zoe’s fate through the gruelling choices you make in Road 96: Mile 0’s politics-driven narrative.
With that, here are the eight biggest titles coming to PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X in April 2023:
Road 96: Mile 0
When: April 4
Where: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch
Road 96, 2021’s narrative focussed adventure title from French studio DigixArt, blended teenage rebellion, authoritarian politics, and a road movie vibe to present a tale of escape. The game brought together multiple playable characters, dialogue choices, player decisions, and consequently multiple endings in the service of a single objective: flee the borders of a fictional dictatorial state by any means possible. On the way, you met a host of people that fell on a wide spectrum of social backgrounds and political beliefs. They influenced your actions, aided your quest to break free, or acted as obstacles in your path.
Now the makers of the acclaimed indie adventure title have released a prequel, Road 96: Mile 0. While the first game puts you in the shoes of several teenage rebels trying to cross the border, Road 96: Mile 0 lets you play as Zoe and Kaito, two teenagers whose friendship forms the core of the game. Zoe returns from Road 96, while Kaito is a character from DigixArt’s first game, Lost in Harmony. The prequel will drop players back in the fictional setting of Petria, right in the midst of the push and pull of political and social forces. Zoe and Kaito’s bond will be put to test through the course of the game and, eventually, player choices will determine their fates.
Meet Your Maker
When: April 4
Where: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
Meet Your Maker is a medley of different game types and experiences. At its heart, it is a first-person shooter. But it also mixes elements of level editors, tower defence games, raiding, and base building. In Behavior Interactive’s building and raiding game, players get to design their own levels as a sort of fortress, which then other players online attempt to breach. Think Mario Maker, but with guns and gore.
Set in a post-apocalyptic world, Meet Your Maker invites players to construct fortified outposts and raid those created by other players. For raiding players, the objective is to obtain the GenMat, placed at the heart of each outpost, and escape the maze. Raids can be conducted solo or in a group with other players. Outposts can be secured with traps and AI-controlled guards. If you’re a PS Plus member, Meet Your Maker has already arrived on the subscription service as a day 1 launch title.
EA Sports PGA Tour
When: April 7
Where: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
Featuring 30 golf courses — 28 of the most well-known ones plus two that are imaginary — EA Sports PGA Tour will feature the Masters Tournament, The Open Championship, the PGA Championship, and the US Open Championship. You can step into the shoes of pro golfers including Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Nelly Korda, Tony Finau, Im Sung-jae, and Lexi Thompson. The game features a career mode, challenges and limited-time tournaments, and live service functionality coming on a later date. It was originally slated for release in March, but suffered a slight delay for the sake of polish.
The publisher says high-resolution visuals for EA Sports PGA Tour are only supported on the latest-generation consoles and some PCs. The upcoming EA Sports PGA Tour will feature a private match mode for friends and family, a social mode with players at your skill level, and a competitive mode that matches you with other players.
Minecraft Legends
When: April 18
Where: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch
An army of sword-wielding piglins has invaded the familiar Minecraft Overworld, threatening to corrupt its peaceful, lush biomes. As a sworn warrior, you explore its rich badlands to gather resources and rally mobs such as exploding Creepers and archers, to wage war against the snorting runts. Take complete charge of your troops and boss them around to build fortified structures or prisons and attack uniformly in specific formations. For this spin-off title Minecraft Legends, developer Mojang Studios has teamed up with Blackbird Interactive, best known for the 1999 RTS (real-time strategy) game Homeworld. Expect some complex strategic elements, despite its cutesy aesthetic.
No Minecraft experience is complete without a co-op element to it, which is also included in the upcoming Minecraft Legends. Here, you can team up with other players to grow your forces and freely drop in and out of sessions to help out the host, regardless of what platform you’re on. Alternatively, you can engage in 4v4 PvP battles to defend your village and fire back with apt strategic attacks. The game will also be available for free to Xbox Game Pass members.
Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores
When: April 19
Where: PS5
Horizon Forbidden West remains one of the best games you can play on the PS5. Guerrilla Games’ 2022 action-RPG showcases the power of Sony’s latest console, delivering eye-watering visuals, and an incredibly diverse and detailed open world to explore. Despite its flaws — most of which stem from the pitfalls of the open-world design — Horizon Forbidden West offers an immersive, inviting experience. You don’t really need an excuse to hop back into its lush, untamed lands, but now you have one.
The game’s first major expansion, Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores, brings a new story, a visually striking new map area, new characters, and most importantly, new machines to hunt and tame. Set in the ruins of Los Angeles – now carved into a lava-spitting archipelago as a result of repeated volcanic eruptions – Burning Shores continues Aloy’s journey as she discovers a new peril. Aside from your gear from the base game, the DLC will feature a new assortment of weapons and armour. While you can still fly around on your Sunwing, there are new machines as well, including Waterwings, which as the name suggests, can dive underwater.
While Forbidden West was available on both PS4 and PS5, Burning Shores will arrive April 19 exclusively on the PS5.
Dead Island 2
When: April 21
Where: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
Dead Island occupies its own unique space in gaming culture. Initially creating waves with its provocative cinematic reveal trailer, the game failed to live up to the hype when it was released in 2011. Now, 12 years later, Deep Silver’s zombie slaying simulator is returning, with a different developer at the helm. Dead Island 2 has had a long development cycle and swapped developers more than once. While these are worrying signs, Dead Island 2 looks very much alive, kicking, slashing and shooting.
Contrary to what its title may indicate, Dead Island 2 is not set on an island. This time it drops players into a hellish, zombie-infested version of LA — Hell-A. True to its setting, the game also takes on a sunnier, more colourful Beverly Hills vibe. All the usual undead mayhem, the blood, guts, and gore is still there, of course, but it all seems to be delivered with a Hollywood punch. From its zombies to its host of side characters, Dead Island 2 is populated with stereotypical LA denizens. While you’re running around iconic LA landmarks and fulfilling quests and errands, you’ll have a ridiculous arsenal of blades, blunts, and guns – all fully modifiable – at your disposal to leave your bloody mark on a post-apocalyptic Hollywood. The weighty melee combat is the focus here rather than the gunplay, with fully-realised damage physics and gore systems at play.
Bramble: The Mountain King
When: April 27
Where: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch
Fans of the haunting Little Nightmares series are in for a treat this month, as Bramble: The Mountain King takes its stealthy platforming approach and adds a dark Nordic spin to it. In it, you assume the role of Olle, a young boy on a quest to rescue his abducted sister from a dreaded troll. While the game is set against wondrous landscapes that are pleasing to the eye, it also lurks with fabled creatures ranging from giant butchers, seductive succubi, and the Nøkken, a pond-dwelling spirit that plays enchanting music to lure people to their deaths.
It’s not all that depressing though, as the game takes occasional breaks by tossing you into fun minigames, such as a hide-and-seek session with a group of gnomes. To ease the journey, you’re equipped with the Spark of Courage, an enchanted fragment that’s poised to grant ‘gifts’ for survival. It’s a bit unclear what this means, but brief glimpses from the trailer suggest that the substance serves as a light to ward off evil, in addition to materialising into a glowing sword.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
When: April 28
Where: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X
Five years since the events of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Cal Kestis has now grown into a powerful Jedi Knight, still continuing his crusade against the oppressive Empire with little hope of winning. As a Dark Souls-inspired Star Wars title, the sequel has added the long-requested fast-travel mechanic, easing traversal across biomes as you can now simply warp across them. Beasts can be tamed and ridden upon, and there’s even a grappling hook to access ledges or other high areas. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor also expands upon the combat by introducing fight stances, such as the ability to dual-wield lightsabers or adapt Kylo Ren’s ‘crossguard’ style that’s focused on stiff but heavy attacks.
To go along with your adorable droid BD-1, the sequel adds a new companion in Bode Akuna, who would accompany us on missions and actively partake in encounters by drawing enemy attention. Game director Stig Asmussen alluded that he forms a brother-like bond with Kestis. Essentially serving a big upgrade to the original, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor expands upon appearance customisation, seven large planets to explore, and a slew of Jedi Chamber Puzzles akin to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s shrines. Who doesn’t love straying off-path from the main story and messing around with random world activities as such? Must be equally relaxing and rewarding!
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Gameplay Reveals Planet Koboh, Weapon Dual-Wielding
Cal Kestis is now a powerful Jedi Knight in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Photo Credit: Respawn Entertainment