Highlights

• Next week is set to be one of the biggest in the gaming industry all year, with highly anticipated events and releases.
• Fortnite Chapter 5 is expected to launch on December 3, bringing significant changes, a new map, and possible character crossovers.
• The debut trailer for Grand Theft Auto 6 will premiere on December 5, generating massive excitement and speculation among fans.

Next week is shaping up to be one of the biggest the gaming industry has seen in all of 2023. 2023 has been an incredible year for video games in terms of new releases, with a seemingly endless line of critically-acclaimed titles from big name publishers and smaller indie developers.

When it comes to the video game industry, the busiest months tend to be the stretch from September to November, as that’s when publishers like to drop their biggest games to get them out in time for the holiday shopping season. December is a slow-down month most years, playing host to The Game Awards, but otherwise being fairly light in terms of big developments.

December 2023 is proving to be a notable exception to that rule, with next week set up to be one of the biggest weeks the industry has seen all year. While some of these events will only be relevant to fans of certain games, there’s no denying that next week will be huge for gamers of all kinds.

Fortnite Chapter 5 (Sunday, December 3)

Epic’s mega-popular battle royale game Fortnite managed to bring back lapsed fans and bring in newcomers by returning to its OG roots. Fortnite Season OG has served as a sort of interlude between Chapter 4 and Chapter 5, giving fans the chance to revisit iconic locations from the BR’s early days and utilize items that were vaulted long ago. Fortnite Season OG has been a huge success, but all good things must come to an end.

Fortnite Season OG will end with the Big Bang event on Saturday, December 2, which is expected to wipe the existing Fortnite OG map from existence. Following some server downtime, Fortnite Chapter 5 will appear in its place, giving fans a brand-new map to duke it out on. Fortnite Chapter 5 is expected to go live on Sunday, December 3, bringing with it significant changes.

Some Fortnite Chapter 5 leaks have given fans an idea of what to expect from the game’s new skins at least, with rumors suggesting that Family Guy‘s Peter Griffin and Metal Gear Solid‘s Solid Snake will soon be making their debut in the BR. With Fortnite Chapter 5 right around the corner, fans don’t have to wait much longer to find out everything that it has in store.

Grand Theft Auto 6’s First Trailer (Tuesday, December 5)

Easily the biggest gaming event next week is the debut of the first-ever Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer. Previously, Rockstar Games confirmed that it would be dropping the first Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer at some point in early December, but now the company has provided a specific date and time. The first Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer will premiere on Tuesday, December 5 at 6am PT. It’s safe to say that the GTA 6 trailer is going to break the Internet, regardless of how long it is or what all it reveals about the highly-anticipated open world game.

Time will tell what exactly the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer has in store, but it should at the very least confirm where the game is set, who the main characters are, and what gameplay will look like. Fans have waited over a decade for a brand-new Grand Theft Auto experience, and so it’s likely that they will tear the trailer apart for clues about what the new game is going to bring to the table. If fans are lucky, they may even get an idea of when the Grand Theft Auto 6 release date will be, though they shouldn’t hold their breath.

Call of Duty Season 1 (Wednesday, December 6)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has some of the worst reviews out of any Call of Duty game in history, but that hasn’t stopped it from becoming a runaway commercial success. Modern Warfare 3 has been breaking player engagement records and all signs point to it being another major success for the CoD franchise, from a financial standpoint, at least. Regardless of how one feels about Modern Warfare 3, it’s clear that many fans are playing the game and are no doubt excited about Season 1, coming Wednesday, December 6.

Modern Warfare 3 Season 1 will see Gunfight brought back into the mix, new multiplayer maps added to the playlists, and new game modes introduced. Fans of the traditional Call of Duty multiplayer experience will be kept plenty busy when Season 1 goes live on December 6, but there will also be new content for the open world Zombies mode, and of course, the Warzone battle royale.

Perhaps the most exciting new addition with Call of Duty Season 1 on December 6 is the debut of the Urzikstan map for Warzone. Call of Duty players have already gotten a sneak peek at Urzikstan by playing the Zombies mode, and it seems like many are excited to see the map featured in a proper battle royale setting. Fans will find out how Urzikstan stacks up compared to classic Call of Duty BR maps like Verdansk when it makes its debut on December 6 as part of the big Season 1 update.

New PS Plus and Xbox Game Pass Additions (Tuesday, December 5 – Friday, December 8)

Live service game events and the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer would be enough to make next week a memorable one for the gaming industry, but there’s even more in store. Subscribers to both the PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass subscription services have some fresh additions to look forward to next week, with the new monthly free PS Plus games being added on Tuesday, December 5 and various new Game Pass titles making their debut throughout the week.

Free PS Plus Games for December 2023

• LEGO 2K Drive
• Powerwash Simulator
• Sable

Beginning Tuesday, December 5, PlayStation Plus subscribers can snag the free PS Plus games for December 2023, which are LEGO 2K Drive, Powerwash Simulator, and Sable, with Sable only available to PS5 gamers.

New Xbox Game Pass Games for December 2023

• Clone Drone in the Danger Zone – December 5
• Rise of the Tomb Raider – December 5
• While the Iron’s Hot – December 5
• World War Z: Aftermath – December 5
• Goat Simulator 3 – December 7
• Against the Storm – December 8

The new Xbox Game Pass additions will also get started on Tuesday, December 5, with Clone Drone in the Danger Zone, Rise of the Tomb Raider, While the Iron’s Hot, and World War Z: Aftermath all coming on that day. Then Goat Simulator 3 is dropping on December 7, followed by Against the Storm for PC Game Pass subscribers on December 8.

The Game Awards (Thursday, December 7)

If it weren’t for the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer, Thursday, December 7 would easily be the biggest day for the industry next week. The Game Awards 2023 will take place that day, with various games nominated for awards at the big show. The Game Awards 2023 will have plenty of world premiere trailers and big reveals for fans to look forward to as well, so it will be a must-watch for any gamers next week. The Game Awards 2023 will kick off with its “Opening Act” at 4:30pm PT that day.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Release Date (Thursday, December 7)

December 2023 doesn’t have much in the way of big new video game releases, but arguably the biggest new release of the month is coming next week. Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, an open world FPS based on James Cameron’s Avatar franchise, is scheduled to launch on December 7 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X. Developer Massive Entertainment has a proven track record, and it will be exciting to see if the game sticks the landing come its December 7 release date.