2024 was particularly big for Canadian games.

Whether it was Balatro (anonymous lone developer LocalThunk) stealing countless hours from millions of people and being nominated for numerous Game of the Year awards, 1000xResist (Vancouver’s Sunset Visitor) telling a genuinely profound immigrant story or a Ubisoft Toronto team playing a pivotal role in the first-ever true open-world Star Wars game, Star Wars Outlaws, Canadian game makers made some pretty major splashes last year.

Impressively, 2025 only looks to continue that trend with several promising games from Canadian developers. From the latest entries in the popular Assassin’s Creed and Skate franchises to new IPs celebrating often-underrepresented cultures, there’s a lot to look forward to this year.

Read on for our breakdown of a bunch of Canadian games that should absolutely be on your radar this year. Note that we’re only considering releases with confirmed 2025 windows, so games like Vancouver-based Extremely OK Games Earthblade (which was delayed indefinitely last year) aren’t included here. Early access releases are fair game, though!

Eternal Strands

Developer/publisher: Yellow Brick Games (Montreal, Quebec)
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Release date: January 28th, 2025

In early 2020, Dragon Age veteran Mike Laidlaw and several former Ubisoft developers founded Yellow Brick, and 2025 will mark the release of the studio’s debut title. Inspired by the likes of Shadow of the Colossus and Breath of the Wild, Eternal Strands tasks players with exploring a fully climbable world and wielding all kinds of magical abilities to defeat gigantic bosses. It’s all looked quite impressive in gameplay footage, and if that weren’t enough, Grammy-nominated composer Austin Wintory (Journey) is tackling the score, which should bring even more gravitas to the action-adventure game.

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage

Developer/publisher: Don’t Nod Montreal
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Release date: February 18th, 2025 (Part 1), March 18th, 2025 (Part 2)

While Life is Strange has lived on at Square Enix and developer Deck Nine, the series’ original creator, Don’t Nod, is working on a spiritual successor, of sorts, and it’s being made at the French company’s nascent Montreal office. The adventure game sees four childhood friends reuniting after nearly 30 years to confront the dark secrets that made them promise to never speak again. Expect a Life is Strange-style emotional choice-based narrative about teenage friendship, with some strong dream pop music to further enhance the vibes.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Developer: Ubisoft Quebec (Quebec City, Quebec)
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Mac, iPad
Release date: March 20th, 2025

The latest Assassin’s Creed game hails from the developer of the acclaimed Syndicate and Odyssey and brings the series to a long-awaited feudal Japan setting. In Shadows, you control two characters: Yasuke, an African samurai inspired by the historical figure of the same name (the first time the series has let you play as a real person) and Naoe, an original female shinobi. The former focuses more on brute force melee combat, while the latter adopts a parkour-heavy stealth approach, giving players multiple playstyle options and opening up quest design.

Rooster

Developer: Sticky Brain Studios (Toronto, Ontario)
Publisher: Sticky Brain Studios, Astrolabe Games (Shanghai-based, with an office in Toronto)
Platforms: PC, Mac
Release date: Q1 2025

This charming celebration of Chinese culture from an Asian-led team follows a naughty rooster who is sent to Ancient China to learn some lessons. As Rooster, you’ll play through 12 Zodiac-inspired cozy minigames ranging from cooking and puzzles to garden design and even tower defence. Meanwhile, the stunning brush painting artstyle and themes of family and love aim to create a deeper and more emotional connection to this culturally rich setting.

For more on Rooster, check out our interview with Sticky Brain.

Battle Vision Network

Developer/publisher: Capybara Games (Toronto, Ontario)
Platforms: PC, Android and iOS (Netflix Games)
Release date: TBA 2025

A spiritual successor to its 2009 acclaimed game Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes, Capybara’s Battle Vision Network is a PvP puzzle-battler that blends cozy colour-matching gameplay with turn-based combat. In a fun space-themed riff on Eurovision, you’ll have to face off against different eclectic teams from around the galaxy with all kinds of customizable units. It’s also set to receive regular updates adding new characters, seasonal twists, challenges and more, which is exciting given Capybara’s strong support for Grindstone.

For more on Battle Vision Network, check out our interview with game director Dan Vader.

Button Man

Developer/publisher: Styrax Studios Inc. (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
Platforms: PC
Release date: TBA 2025

It’s rare for Canada to get itself, and when it does, it’s usually Toronto. That alone makes Button Man so interesting — it’s a side-scrolling adventure game set in prohibition Halifax. As the title suggests, you play as the hired killer of the local kingpin and must hunt down the man who whacked him. From the refreshingly unique and colourful comic book-esque visual style to the nostalgic old-school beat ’em up gameplay, Button Man looks like a real blast.

A free demo is available on Steam.

33 Immortals

Developer/publisher: Thunder Lotus Games (Montreal, Quebec)
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, PC (Epic Games Store)
Release date: TBA 2025 (early access)

In a marked departure from its award-winning emotionally-charged cozy management sim Spiritfarer, Thunder Lotus’ next game is an action-roguelike in which you play as a damned soul rebelling against God’s final judgment. While the premise sounds Diablo-esque, the game actually draws more from World of Warcraft, if anything, thanks to its focus on thrilling 33-person co-op raids. (Why 33? That’s the number of chapters in Dante’s Divine Comedy.) Meanwhile, the roguelike elements — randomized enemy placement, gameplay challenges and rewards — aim to make each session feel even more distinct.

Skate

Developer: Full Circle (Vancouver, B.C.)
Publisher: EA
Platforms: PS4, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Release date: TBA 2025 (early access)

After years of teases and development updates, EA’s long-awaited fourth Skate game is slated to debut in early access this year. Led by veterans of the original Skate games, this Canadian-made entry features an overhauled version of the series’ signature Flick-It trick system, customizable characters, a new explorable city called ‘San Vansterdam’ and more. It’s also set to be a free-to-play live service that can grow over time, so hopefully, it’s supported well beyond early access and the final 1.0 release.

South of Midnight

Developer: Compulsion Games (Montreal, Quebec)
Publisher: Xbox
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, PC
Release date: TBA 2025

There’s no game that looks quite like South of Midnight. On top of its gorgeous Coraline-esque stop-motion aesthetic, the action-adventure game features a wholly unique dark modern folktale set in the American South. South of Midnight tells the story of Hazel, a young Black woman who must use her magical Weaver powers to heal Southern folklore-inspired creatures and uncover her family’s past. Lovingly rooted in community and culture, South of Midnight is one of Xbox’s most exciting games.

For more on South of Midnight, check out our full preview, which includes behind-closed-door demo impressions and interviews with the development team.

Soulframe Preludes

Developer/publisher: Digital Extremes (London, Ontario)
Platforms: PC
Release date: TBA 2025

Normally, I wouldn’t include a pre-alpha here, but I’ll make an exception given that it’s coming from Digital Extremes, the storied Canadian developer behind the massive Warframe. Therefore, any demo for its first new IP since Warframe launched in 2013 is quite noteworthy, and Soulframe, to DE’s immense credit, looks to be markedly different. That’s because it’s a playable co-op action hybrid-MMORPG set in a fantasy world. While it’s unclear when we’ll actually get the full release, fans can at least take part in development cycle through ongoing limited Preludes pre-alpha tests, which are set to expand widely to everyone this year.

I’d also be remiss not to mention that DE will host its tenth annual TennoCon event in July, once again bringing thousands of fans from around the world to none other than London, Ontario. Expect to see more from Soulframe there, as well as a bunch of updates on the ever-popular Warframe. Last year’s TennoCon gave us a glorious Y2K-inspired Warframe expansion led by Final Fantasy‘s Ben Starr, among other things, so who knows what DE has in store for 2025?

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Of course, this being January means there are still many games we don’t yet even know about. In particular, some will no doubt be revealed for Nintendo’s yet-to-be-unveiled Switch successor. (It’s been three years since Vancouver’s Next Level Games released Mario Strikers: Battle League — could we see that team’s next game this year? Will it be Luigi’s Mansion 4?) Then, of course, further reveals will come throughout the year’s various showcases, including, most notably, June’s Summer Game Fest. That’s to say nothing of when publishers Xbox and PlayStation might hold their own big presentations. (Xbox’s Developer_Direct on January 23rd will feature South of Midnight.)

Finally, there are Canadian games that have been revealed but don’t yet have confirmed release windows, including:

• All Systems Dance — an adventure rhythm game from Toronto’s Mighty Yell (The Big Con)
• Assassin’s Creed Infinity — the live service platform hosting multiple Assassin’s Creed games from the likes of Ubisoft Montreal
• Beastieball — a turn-based volleyball RPG from Vancouver’s Wishes Ultd. (Chicory) [released in 2024 in early access, 1.0 release TBA]
• Croak — a platformer from Montreal’s Woodrunner Games (a team that includes two former Cuphead developers)
• Earthblade — a Metroidvania platformer from Vancouver’s Extremely OK Games (Celeste)
• Fairgame$ — a competitive heist shooter from Montreal’s Haven (a new studio from Canadian Ubisoft and EA veteran Jade Raymond)
• Gears of War: E-Day — a new third-person shooter Gears prequel from Vancouver’s The Coalition
• Untitled new Mass Effect game — the next entry in EA’s beloved sci-fi RPG series from BioWare Edmonton

It’s also worth noting that Exodus, an ambitious Matthew McConaughey-starring new sci-fi game from Wizards of the Coast’s Archetype Entertainment, is being spearheaded by BioWare Edmonton alums James Ohlen and Drew Karpyshyn.

What Canadian games are you most excited for this year? Let us know in the comments.

Image credit: Ubisoft/Xbox/Yellow Brick Games