What to Play in August: 13 Notable Upcoming Games

by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor – July 29, 2021

In the gallery on this page, our editors have selected the most promising videogames scheduled for release in the month ahead.

11 of 14 photo by Xbox Game Studios

Psychonauts 2

Platformer
Out August 25 for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, and Xbox One

If the 2020 Olympics can happen in 2021, then why can't we also have one of the most anticipated games of 2018 also come out this year? This long-awaited, crowdfunded sequel to the cult hit 2005 platformer Psychonauts comes from the same developer, Double Fine, which has been working on the new game since 2015. (Double Fine was acquired by Microsoft a few years ago, but since a PlayStation version of Psychonauts 2 was already in the works, it'll be the rare PS4 game to be published by Microsoft.) The sequel once again follows the young acrobatic psychic Raz, who has grown up (a bit) and now works as an intern at Psychonaut Headquarters. Expect Double Fine's usual sense of humor mixed with surprisingly weighty themes and a touch of surrealism. Xbox Game Pass subscribers (including PC subscribers) get the game on day one.

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