Skip to main content

New games in February 2025: Monster Hunter, Civilization, and more

If you thought January was a quiet month for games, you’re about to wish you still only had a handful of games to play. February is here and it’s about to flood your backlog with enormous games that could take you the rest of the year to get through. Games like Civilization 7 and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 would be enough to make for an unmanageable month, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. With new Like a Dragon and Monster Hunter games on the horizon, plus a few new IPs, you’re going to have your hands full.

To help you prepare, here’s everything you can expect to play this month. Seven big games need to be on your radar for sure, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You can expect a whole lot more when you factor in the indies that’ll fall between these bigger releases. Just be glad that Assassin’s Creed Shadows got pushed back to March. Can you imagine trying to work that into your schedule too?

Recommended Videos

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (February 4)

Henry in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2.
Deep Silver

February will start with a band thanks to Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. Warhorse Studios’ latest action RPG is a long awaited sequel to a Medieval classic. The historical epic tosses players into 15th century Europe and sets them on a good old fashioned quest for revenge. The main appeal here is its giant Medieval sandbox, which gives players plenty of opportunities to slash down rivals in first-person and shape their character in a deep RPG system. If that’s checking the right boxes for you already, you’ll probably want to check this one out come February. I’d just recommend staying as far away as possible from its online community.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 will be available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Rift of the Necrodancer (February 5)

A board full of enemies appears in Rift of the Necrodancer.
Klei Publishing

If rhythm games are more your speed, I can’t recommend Rift of the Necrodancer enough. The follow-up to the hit Crypt of the Necrodancer twists the Guitar Hero formula on its head by replacing music notes with monsters that need to be slain by pressing a button on the right beat. That sounds simple, but it paves the way for a complex hook where every monster has its own rhythmic rules to learn. With a fantastic soundtrack and full modding support available at launch, it might just be one of the best rhythm games of all time. I’ve been playing it for a week or two now, and I can’t get enough.

Rift of the Necrodancer will be available on Nintendo Switch and PC.

Sid Meier’s Civilization 7 (February 11)

Two world leaders, Cleopatra and Caesar, going up against each other in front of their flags.
2K Games

It’s hard to say what the biggest release of this month actually is, but Civilization 7 is a strong contender. The latest entry in Firaxis’ strategy series once again has players building a civilization from scratch and guiding it through three ages. Along the way, players will have to juggle diplomacy with other nations, build cities, and manage trade resources. It should all be familiar to long-time fans of the Civilization series. Our early impressions of it have been positive thus far, so we expect it to make a big splash when it launches on February 11. You can catch me going to war as Machiavelli around then.

Sid Meier’s Civilization 7 will launch on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

Lost Records: Bloom and Rage Tape 1 (February 18)

The four girls stand together in Lost Records: Bloom & Rage.
Don’t Nod

At first glance, you may mistake Lost Records: Bloom and Rage for a brand new Life is Strange game. That instinct would be warranted. The narrative adventure comes from Don’t Nod, the studio behind Life is Strange (which has since moved hands to Deck Nine Games). Lost Records looks like a return to the series’ heights, with a horror-tinged 90s story dipped in punk rock. You’ll be able to play the first half of it in February, with Tape 2 coming in April. If February feels too crowded, I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to wait until the full game was out.

Lost Records: Bloom and Rage will launch on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Avowed (February 18)

A masked figure in Avowed. The mask looks like it's made of gold, it has glowing red eyes, and there's a hood over its head.
Xbox

Obsidian Entertainment is known for some of the best RPGs of all time, so any new release from it should turn heads. This month, the studio will return to the world of Pillars of Eternity with Avowed. The new release drops players into a magic-filled world fighting off a mysterious plague. We’ve gotten hands on with it a few times now and the prognosis is good thus far. It’s feeling like another solid fantasy RPG from a studio that has that formula down pat. Hopefully that’ll start Xbox’s promising 2025 out on the right foot.

Avowed will launch for Xbox Series X/S and PC.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii (February 21)

Majima shooting a pirate with flintlock pistols in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii.
Sega

It’s a little strange that Like a Dragon has become an annualized series like Madden at this point, but it’s hard to complain when developer Ryu Ga Gotoku keeps putting out such consistent games. This February, it’s taking its weirdest swing yet with Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, a spinoff starring Goro Majima. The title sort of says it all here. You can expect an over-the-top, swashbuckling adventure that ties into the events of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Expect everything you love about the series, but with some ship battling thrown in for good measure.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii will launch for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Monster Hunter Wilds (February 28)

A massive furred beast rears back and attacks a sword wielding hunter in Monster Hunter Wilds.
Capcom

February is ending strong with what could be the biggest game of the entire year if Grand Theft Auto 6 winds up delayed. Monster Hunter Wilds is set to continue the action RPG series’ momentum with an even bigger sequel filled with fiercer monsters and a larger emphasis on story. Based on what we’ve played so far across a few demos, we’re already sold on the Monster Hunter World follow-up, which continues to build on everything that game did well. With better onboarding for new players and the power of current gen consoles to make it even more spectacular, this will be the month’s can’t miss game.

Monster Hunter Wilds will launch for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

More new games in February 2025

A slime has formed a sword and is slashing it at a group of dark monsters in Slime Heroes.
Whitethorn Games
  • Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To (February 3)
  • Rogue Waters (February 4)
  • Big Helmet Heroes (February 6)
  • Slime Heroes (February 13)
  • Urban Myth Dissolution Center (February 13)
  • Dawnfolk (February 13)
  • Afterlove EP (February 14)
  • The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II (February 14)
  • Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered (February 14)
  • Godzilla Voxel Wars (February 20)
  • The King of Fighters XIII: Global Match (February 20)
  • Ninja Five-O (February 25)
  • Crystar (February 27)
  • Yu-Gi-Oh! Early Days Collection (February 27)
  • PGA Tour 2K25 (February 28)
  • Morsels (TBA)
  • On Your Tail (TBA)
Giovanni Colantonio
As Digital Trends' Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran…
Topics
3 PlayStation Plus games to play this weekend (June 13-15)
Dead by Daylight player standing in front of a fire.

After the State of Play last week, followed by all the Summer Game Fest announcements, PlayStation fans have tons of upcoming PS5 games to look forward to. The only downside is we can't play them right now. That's where my weekly PS Plus game recommendations come in to save the weekend. This time around, I wanted to mix things up by celebrating Friday the 13th as well as give you some games to wet your appetites for a few of the more exciting game announcements. I've crammed in a classic multiplayer game, brutal single-player adventure, and cult classic strategy title here to cover as many bases as possible.

Dead by Daylight

Read more
3 new Game Pass games to play this weekend (June 13-15)
The mobile base in The Alters.

If you're a superstitious person, Friday the 13th might be a bad sign for this weekend. While I can't say you won't encounter any bad luck, what I can promise is that you will have more than enough fun with all the new Game Pass games hitting the service. Last weekend's Xbox Games Showcase showed off too many upcoming Xbox Series X games to count, most of which will be day-one Game Pass games when they come out, but we still have a while to wait for games like Keeper and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7. All that excitement may have overshadowed the latest batch of Game Pass games, including a fantastic day one sci-fi survival game like nothing else, a delightful co-op strategy game, and the biggest sports game just in time for the World Cup.

The Alters

Read more
I played 9 games at Tribeca Fest. They all need to be on your radar
A character stands in a church in Mio: Memories of Orbit.

Here's a tip for anyone who's trying to scout out the next great indie game: Pay attention to Tribeca Fest. A few years ago, the film festival expanded its modern, multimedia approach to include video games as official selections. In that time, it has showcased a who's who of indie games that went on to become critical darlings. We're talking games like Blue Prince, Immortality, Despelote, and Chants of Sennaar -- all of which went on to become some of the best reviewed games of the 2020's here at Digital Trends. You will always find something truly special at Tribeca Fest.

This year's show is no different. Nine upcoming games were in competition at the festival this year, and all of them are poised to become breakout indies. Because we love nothing more than scouting promising indies, Digital Trends attended this year's Tribeca Fest and checked out what this year's show had to offer. From a stylish beat-em-up to a 90s coming of age tale soundtracked by the likes of Devo, these nine games should be on your radar.

Read more