It may be hard to believe, but 2021 has come and gone. We're finally in 2022, and that means an entirely new crop of video games coming our way. If you thought last year was positively stuffed with excellent games, you haven't seen anything yet! You might still be getting in a little Call of Duty: Vanguard here and there, or maybe you're enjoying the return of Master Chief in Halo Infinite.

But we're about to embark on a gaming journey quite unlike any other with the upcoming new releases over the next few months. January is already poised to be a major gaming period for just about everyone, and there's plenty to look forward to after that.

If you just stocked up on your favorite KontrolFreek and SteelSeries gear and you're raring to go to test everything out on a slew of new games, you're in the right place. We're just as excited as you are. Here's just a small preview of what to expect from the next few months, a few highlights of the games you'll be playing next.

God of War

Santa Monica Studio's brilliant reimagining of the classic PlayStation series God of War made its debut in 2018 for PlayStation 4 owners, and now is headed to PC for an entirely new audience this month. It follows Kratos, the former Greek God of War, as he treks along with his son Atreus to fulfill his deceased wife's request to spread her ashes at the highest peak of all the nine realms. It's a harrowing and challenging journey that humanizes Kratos in a way we've not seen before, but it's also chock full of action. You'll tussle with vicious Norse mythological foes, handle powerful weapons like a magical axe, and solve puzzles alone with Atreus at Kratos's side.

And the good news is, once you’ve finished the original game again on PC, you can look forward to the sequel, God of War: Ragnarok, which is also set to debut on consoles. You’ll have to wait a bit longer to play it on PC, but it’ll debut on PlayStation first. You’ll want to throw on some KontrolFreek thumbsticks for this journey and its sequel as you brawl with some of the most menacing creatures Kratos has ever had to face. But you’ll also want to keep a box of tissues handy too, just in case. Things get a little, shall we say, emotional in the first game, and we can’t wait to see what Ragnarok holds.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus

Last fall, we got to revisit the world of classic Nintendo DS Pokémon adventures with Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Now, later this month, we'll get to experience the highs of exploring a world where dangerous wild Pokémon roam free. Pokémon Legends: Arceus is a new action RPG that takes place in the distant past of Pokémon. The Hisui region will introduce Pokémon that players can work with to capture directly without the need of Pokémon battles. And instead of the clean, familiar Poké Balls we all know and love, there are special wood and puffed steam versions, with a variety of different ways to catch the monsters you need to become a Pokémon master.

It’s a completely new Frontier compared to the older Pokémon games, but even with a more challenging set of battles stretched out before you, you'll be covered with our KontrolFreek Performance Thumbsticks for your Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers -- no matter which starter Pokémon options that you choose. If you've been seeking a more open world Pokémon game with more freedom to interface with over the years, this is going to be the game for you.

Elden Ring

FromSoftware's massively popular Souls series remains as challenging and as fantastic as when the first game debuted. Now, director Hidetaka Miyazaki and novelist George R.R. Martin have joined together to create a game that delves into a new world, with similar mechanics to the Souls games, with inventive narrative and play mechanics. Players will venture to the Lands Between, taking on a role as a Tarnished, those previously exiled from the Lands after the titular Elden Ring was destroyed and its shards scattered throughout the realm. Players will work to find all of the Great Runes to restore the Elden Ring, and then hope to become the Elden Lord.

Of course, anyone looking for a difficult challenge that will keep them on their toes should look for Elden Ring when it debuts in February. It focuses heavily on combat and exploration, with role-playing elements, a mounted combat and stealth system, and a wealth of abilities and skill trees to unlock and further customize their character. It's going to be one of the most epic titles of the year, and if you're a Souls fan, there will be plenty to love about it. With that in mind, you might want to grab some KontrolFreek Performance Grips for your favorite controller, as you’ll be spending quite a few hours traversing the Lands Between.

Horizon Forbidden West

Guerrilla Games is taking players back to the massive world in the West Coast of a post-apocalyptic America to spend time with huntress Aloy once more. In this lush, gorgeous adventure that finds civilization working to combat dangerous machines, Aloy and her companions will travel to the Forbidden West in a bid to find the source of a plague that kills everything it touches. Aloy will need to spend time in areas populated by dangerous machines and various enemies, and for the first time in the Horizon Zero Dawn series, extensive underwater exploration will be included.

This sequel will include a much larger open world than the first game, with a variety of different areas to explore, including deserts, beaches, valleys, and post-apocalyptic cities with above-ground and underwater components. There's going to be plenty of things to uncover, secrets revealed, and more intriguing characters to catch up with, so if that's something you're ready to see more of, get ready with your favorite KontrolFreek lighting to set the mood and a couple of thumbsticks to make sure your hands are primed and ready.

Rainbow Six Extraction

Looking for your next dose of multiplayer action? Rainbow Six Siege spinoff Rainbow Six Extraction has you covered. This co-op game finds players banding together to fight off an advancing alien menace known as the Archaeans. Three players work together to infiltrate an alien-infested location while completing objectives, extracting materials and intel, and collecting samples to try and get to the bottom of the alien invasion. It's going to be a much different animal than Rainbow Six Siege, with a supernatural flavor, but that's what makes this entry such an exciting option.

You'll see many of the same Siege operators returning in Extraction as the Rainbow Exogenous Analysis and Containment Team (REACT), with 18 different characters to choose from. Players will work together and coordinate locations in-game with pings to reveal hostile threats and resources, all culminating in ways to eliminate the Archaean enemies. It's going to be a chaotic entry in the Rainbow Six series, and we're excited to see where it takes us.

With all of these fantastic titles on their way out, you’ll want to make sure you’re geared up and ready when each hits store shelves. Be sure to grab all your goodies from KontrolFreek and SteelSeries to stock up with everything you need to play like a pro. You’re going to need it – this year is absolutely stacked, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.