Looking for an upcoming games release schedule for 2022? Then you're in the right place. The coming months (and beyond) are set to be jam-packed with an abundance of new games and we're here to let you know when you'll get your hands on them so you can plan out your year in gaming accordingly.
2022 is set to be another huge year for upcoming games, especially as developers continue to push the power of the PS5 and Xbox Series X to their limits. We've got our eye on Forspoken and Starfield in particular – two console exclusives that are set to show us exactly what the latest hardware is capable of.
But it's not just PlayStation and Xbox gamers having all the fun. The Nintendo Switch is on track for another strong year, with Splatoon 3 , and Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope due to release in 2022. Meanwhile, PC players have the likes of Baldur's Gate 3, and Company of Heroes 3 to look forward to. And don't forget, a lot of these games are releasing across a multitude of platforms, including PS4 and Xbox One , so there'll be plenty to keep you busy.
With so many new games on the horizon, it can be tricky to keep track of when the biggest is due to release, but we've got you covered. This handy guide, which we regularly update, will let you know what dates to mark in your calendar. So read on to find out when you can expect to get your hands on the biggest upcoming games of 2022. and beyond Make sure you check out our new PS5 games , new Xbox Series X games and best new games 2022 lists too.
Upcoming games 2022: most-anticipated upcoming games
Upcoming games 2022: TBC 2022 and beyond
Apple HomePod 2: what we want to see
The original Apple HomePod was among the best wireless speakers on the market, before it was unceremoniously discontinued in March 2021, and the company elected to focus on the smaller and cheaper Apple HomePod mini .
For all intents and purposes, despite our most wanted hopes and dreams for a new HomePod , the full-sized, full-fat HomePod appears to be dead. For now, at least – there's still evidence to suggest that Apple is looking to revisit this popular product category sometime in the future.
While the Apple HomePod mini is a fantastic speaker in its own right, its small stature and low price makes us doubt that Apple wouldn’t release a follow-up to its original flagship smart speaker , in a bid to compete with more powerful models like the Amazon Echo Studio and the Sonos One .
Since Apple discontinued the HomePod, we’ve seen a number of patents that could suggest that the company is looking to create a new HomePod model – the so-called Apple HomePod 2 – and it may even come with a display, if rumors are to be believed.
So far, Apple hasn’t confirmed whether the HomePod 2 really exists, which means that we can’t say for sure whether it will materialize any time soon – but that hasn’t stopped us from dreaming about all the features we’d like to see from the tech giant’s next smart speaker.
Apple HomePod 2 release date : Apple was rumored to have plans to release a HomePod 2 in 2022, however that project might have been shelved when the HomePod was discontinued.
Apple HomePod 2 price : We don't know how much the HomePod 2 will cost but we hope it comes in lower than the $349 / £319 / AU$499 that the original HomePod cost at launch.
Apple HomePod 2 design and features : Rumors have suggested that the HomePod 2 could include a screen like the Amazon Echo Show and could work in tandem with the Apple MR headset.
There’s no word yet on when the Apple HomePod 2 will be released – or indeed if it really exists – and there was no mention of the smart speaker at Apple's 2021 hardware events nor at Apple's March 2022 Event .
Indeed, we could be waiting a while to see the HomePod 2. In a Bloomberg report , Mark Gurman said that "before the discontinuation of the larger HomePod, the company had been working on an updated version for release in 2022. It has also been developing new speakers with screens and cameras, but such a launch isn’t imminent."
It's yet to be seen if Apple's new speakers will pick up the HomePod mantle - but at the very least it sounds like we could be waiting until 2023 or beyond before a HomePod 2 is released if it comes at all.
Again, there’s no word on a potential price for the Apple HomePod 2, but if it’s another full-sized HomePod as opposed to the HomePod mini, we’d expect it to cost about the same as the original smart speaker.
When it launched in 2018, the Apple HomePod cost $349 / £319 / AU$499, making it one of the most expensive smart speakers on the market – and certainly the most expensive mainstream option.
That’s why we were surprised when the Apple HomePod mini was released in 2020 for just $99 / £99 / AU$149. We’re hoping that, even if the next HomePod is full-size, Apple will find a happy medium between the two price points.
So far we’ve heard a few Apple HomePod 2 rumors that might tell us what the next smart speaker will be like.
A battery-powered HomePod
According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman in his PowerOn newsletter Apple planned to release a portable battery-powered version of its HomePod that we could have seen challenge our favorite portable speaker: the Sonos Roam .
Apple recently discontinued the only Bluetooth speaker in its subsidiary Beats' range, unceremoniously getting rid of the Beats Pill+ , meaning that it could be making way for a new portable option.
Despite that, it sounds like the portable HomePod plans have been shelved for now - but we'll have to wait and see what it comes out with if a HomePod 2 is unveiled.
A HomePod with a screen
One of the most interesting rumors is that the HomePod 2 could come with a screen, like the Amazon Echo Show 10 and the Google Nest Hub 2 . The news that Apple is potentially working on a HomePod smart display, could be a good indication that the company is renewing its focus on smart home compatibility.
Plus, as MacRumors' Steve Moser discovered in the tvOS 14.5 beta code, Apple has added FaceTime and iMessage frameworks, as well as a new AVFCapture framework related to capturing images.
Apple uses tvOS as the basis for the software that runs on the HomePod, rather than iOS – and that means messaging and video calls could come to a future HomePod smart display, too.
Smarter than your average smart speaker
Whether the next HomePod is a smart display or a regular smart speaker, it has the potential to be very clever. A newly-uncovered patent shows that Apple has ambitions for its smart speakers to work alongside its rumored Apple MR headset and Apple Glasses .
The patent describes an audio speaker system that is equipped with additional microphones and depth-sensing cameras. In tandem, they’d be able to pinpoint a user’s position in a room, and tailor a 3D audio experience to suit what’s being seen in a virtual reality environment.
From what we can gather from the patent, a user with one or more HomePods set up could enjoy adaptive and surrounding audio without the need for headphones or on-device speakers like what you see with the Meta Quest headsets. Say there’s a virtual cat in your VR experience – walking towards it could increase the volume of its meow from a HomePod Mini, for instance.
This would also work in two-way communication applications – a user with a similar setup elsewhere could transmit their spatial audio information to another user in VR with the same setup, and both would be able to identify sound coming from the other in 3D space.
The patent also goes to describe how this could be used for commercial purposes and lays out how a recording and transmission system could be set up at a live music event, and beamed to a VR headset with the resulting spatial audio information.
As with any patented technology, there’s no guarantee that these features will actually materialize – but they do give us an interesting insight into the future of Apple speakers.
The Apple HomePod mini may offer a few clues as to the features we’ll see from the next HomePod, too.
A built-in temperature sensor
The HomePod mini contains a hidden sensor that can measure temperature and humidity – potentially unlocking new and exciting features for the device in the future.
A recent report from Bloomberg highlighted the previously undiscovered feature, describing a sensor that could allow “internet-connected thermostats [to] adjust different parts of a home based on current conditions.”
The hardware could also let the HomePod mini automatically engage other actions depending on temperature – such as activating a fan – which suggests the device might see a host of functionality upgrades in future software updates.
It’s possible that these functionality upgrades could come to the HomePod 2 as well, if Apple decides to include these sensors in a future model.
While information on the Apple HomePod 2 is still thin on the ground, there are a few things we’d like to see from the rumored smart speaker.
Bluetooth connectivity
Sure, smart speakers are all about voice controls, and the fact that they’re standalone devices that don’t need to be hooked up to another audio source in order to play back tunes and podcasts. But, sometimes, a few added options are just convenient – especially if you’re trying to play back a track that, for whatever reason, can’t be found on the smart speaker’s streaming service of choice.
It may not be cutting edge in the smart speaker world, but there’s still the odd occasion when a Bluetooth speaker would be useful, and it’s a feature that was introduced with the HomePod mini.
If the HomePod 2 is similarly tied to Apple Music, that’d be particularly useful for anyone looking to access, say, Spotify streaming. Which brings us onto our next point…
Open access to other music services
If you buy one of the current Apple HomePod speakers, you’re essentially locking yourself into Apple’s audio ecosystem. So, iTunes purchases aside, that’s $9.99 / £9.99 / AU$11.99 a month for a single Apple Music streaming account, or $14.99 / £14.99 / AU$17.99 for a family account.
That’s fine if you’re an iPhone-owning Cupertino disciple, and Apple Music is a fine service definitely worth investing in. But, if you’ve already committed to Spotify or any of the other myriad smaller streaming options, that could be a frustrating restriction.
By knocking a few bricks out of its walled garden and letting other services have a look in could give a new Apple HomePod a user base boost – and it could be paired with incentives to jump to Apple Music , if Apple played a savvy long-game.
Better Siri performance
Apple’s HomePod does well on sound but when it comes to smarts it’s somewhat lacking. Compared to Google Assistant and Amazon’s Alexa, Siri is rather limited in what it can do for you as a smart home hub. This isn’t great considering it’s one of the most expensive smart speakers on the market, and Siri is your main means of controlling it.
With that in mind, we’d love to see better Siri performance in a new HomePod iteration when it comes to performing commands quickly and accurately.
Apple AirPods Max 2: our predictions and features we’d like to see
Ever since the launch of the Apple AirPods Max , we've been wondering what a potential follow-up AirPods Max 2 could feature. The tech giant is almost certain to release a new version of its premium wireless headphones , we just don't know when as of yet.
The Apple AirPods Max headphones are Apple’s most premium wireless headphones and offer listeners a superb audio experience - at an eye-watering price - something we suspect will also be the case for a prospective AirPods Max 2.
We had hoped to hear something at the Peek Performance Apple Event that took place on March 8, but while the iPhone SE 3 and iPad Air 5 were unveiled, no new AirPods devices made an appearance.
So right now, though, because we know so little about the Apple AirPods Max 2, we'll instead run through the rumors, features we hope they’ll incorporate, and give our price and release date predictions. Scroll down and check those out while we wait for leaks, rumors, and any official updates.
We don’t yet have a release date for the AirPods Max 2, and most likely we won’t get a new iteration for at least another year.
The main reason we expect that the AirPods Max 2 are so long from release is that the only rumor we have heard so far is that they aren’t currently in development (via SlashGear ). That could mean we won't see official news of the AirPods Max 2 until later in 2022 or even beyond.
Unfortunately, new AirPods iterations don’t seem to follow any kind of release pattern either, so it's difficult to rely on previous AirPods release dates to clue us in on a potential AirPods Max 2 launch.
The first-generation AirPods Max launched in December, 2020, meaning that if Apple wanted to stick to that release window for future AirPods Max models, the very earliest we'll see the AirPods Max 2 would be December, 2022. But it's important to note that's purely speculative, and we could see the headphones launch before or after the end of the year.
We don’t know an official price point that the AirPods Max 2 headphones will hit retail at, but given the originals launched at $549 / £549 / AU$899 it's easy to expect that the AirPods Max 2 will come in at a similarly expensive price point, if not more so.
The AirPods Max are getting a bit long in the tooth at this point, so you can often find them discounted to around $100 / £100 off retail price, but even then you’re still looking at an exceptionally premium price that's even above most of the best wireless headphones out there.
We’ll have to wait and see what strategy Apple adopts, but we hope they aim the AirPods Max 2 headphones at a slightly more budget audience.
If the AirPods Max 2 are in development, then Apple has done a phenomenal job of keeping details and leaks to an absolute minimum. As such, there's precious little details to divulge at present. That said, here are all the rumors we have been able to find about the AirPods Max 2 so far.
Touch controls? A patent discovered by Patently Apple suggests that Apple is working on touch control functionality for the AirPods Max. The patent, published in early February, 2022, shows that touch controls could be present on future devices, though it's not clear if this pertains to a potential AirPods Max 2 or an updated AirPods Max model.
The patent mentions the act of "processing gestures on a touch-sensitive surface," displaying a diagram of an example of this tech. Furthermore, the digital crown featured on the AirPods Max appears to be absent in the patent's diagrams, potentially hinting that a future AirPods Max model could eschew it entirely in favor of bespoke touch controls.
Lossless audio Another patent spotted by Patently Apple suggests that Apple could be working on new optical audio transmission technology for the AirPods Pro. The vital part to understand here is that this could mean that the so-called AirPods Pro 2 could eschew Bluetooth connectivity entirely in favor of lossless audio support.
While this isn't a guaranteed feature for the AirPods Max 2, we have to imagine that a potential follow-up model could feature this same tech. After all, if the AirPods Pro 2 can manage to include this tech, there's no reason why a pair of over-ear headphones couldn't feature the same lossless audio support.
A price cut
While a huge price reduction seems unlikely, the AirPods Max are unnecessarily expensive and a follow-up device needs to be much cheaper. The launch price of the original AirPods Max was $549 / £549 / AU$899 around $200 / £200 / AU$350 more than the launch price of the Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless headphones - the best headphones we’ve ever reviewed.
While we feel Apple is likely to launch an AirPods Max 2 at around the same price, we hope it takes a look at the competition and tries a more competitive pricing strategy.
A 3.5mm audio port
One large design issue we had with the AirPods Max was their lack of a 3.5mm audio port; if want to use them with a mic or enjoy a wired connection you'll need to shell out on a USB-C to 3.5mm audio port adaptor. This should be a fairly simple issue to resolve on the AirPods Max 2 by just adding one, but after Apple removed the 3.5mm audio port on its iPhones there's no telling if it'll make a comeback in its headphones.
Improved support on Android
If you weren’t already tied into the Apple ecosystem, the first AirPods Max sucked. They lacked most of their premium features and made their $549 / £549 / AU$899 pricetag seem even more ludicrous. While this is likely a pipe dream on our part we’d like to see Apple design the AirPods Max 2 to interface better with Android hardware so that we don’t feel so locked in to just one mobile system.
A better case
If Apple is going to keep its premium price though, we need to see some premium upgrades especially to the case that’s packaged with the AirPods Max 2. The original case is flimsy and would be better suited as a sleep mask than something designed to protect a $550 piece of kit.
While there were some cool design ideas - such as an opening that meant you could charge the headphones in the case - the smart case left the headband completely exposed and easily let in dirt and debris. If Apple wants us to shell out around $500+ again on the AirPods Max 2 it needs to deliver the full premium experience we expect.
Hi-res audio
Earlier this year Apple announced that high-resolution audio support was coming to Apple Music meaning that subscribers could get lossless audio at no extra cost - but Apple’s most-dedicated supporters can’t take advantage of it.
Apple Music’s hi-Res lossless feature doesn't work on the AirPods Max or AirPods Pro headphones because they use the AAC codec, but not the Apple Lossless Audio Codec (ALAC) required for hi-res audio .
If Apple releases new AirPods Max 2 headphones the device needs to include the ALAC required to get the best possible sound quality out of Apple Music.
