A Happy New Year from SciFiEmpire

What happened in 2022?

It feels odd, but it is becoming hard to remember the COVID pandemic. I suppose that is a good thing. Besides a minor lockdown last winter where I live, we have been little effected recently. During the summer I visited San Francisco and California and there were still a number of restrictions. People wore masks even outside. But it is hard to move on, not doing things became partly ingrained. This year I often found myself vacillating. Going on that long trip to California was a breath of fresh air but the decision to move to Berlin Germany and start my own company still weighed heavily on me, but that is exactly what I am doing. 2022 was for many people a mixed year. Yes, the pandemic is clearly receding but the terrible war in Ukraine and the cost-of-living crisis due to inflation makes me want to forget this year ever happened, not unlike 2020. However, when it comes to science fiction it was not all bad. Movies such as The Batman and Avatar 2 were epic, other movies such as Top Gun Maverick and Thor: Love & Thunder. Series such as The Peripheral and Severance ensured the small screen was not devoid of new introductions either. Yet 2022 did feel like a bit of a gap year for sci-fi. I think the shadow of two Dune movies is in part at fault. Speaking of Dune, the franchise made up the bulk of my videos on YouTube, a trend that will continue into next year.

What to expect in 2023!

So next year, like every prior year is the year I want to make my dreams come true. There is little stopping me. For my YouTube channel I am aiming for a solid two video per week, for a target of a hundred for the whole year.  

When it comes to science fiction 2023 will be an interesting year. Sadly, no Star Wars movie is scheduled as the Rogue Squadron movie remains in development hell. Instead, Dune Part 2 set for October 20^th is for me the highlight of the year. Indiana Jones 5 and Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning are for me the biggest summer tentpole movies worth watching. Neither fit the sci-fi genre perfectly but then few sci-fi movies ever do. The year starts off well enough with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania in February, but after that it is mostly superhero movies that will be released. I am always on the lookout for new movies that are not yet making a buzz but at this moment there is little on the horizon.

When it comes to gaming 2023 will be an insane year. It begins in March with Star Wars Jedi Survivor. Sometime in 2023 we will also get the long-awaited Starfield from Bethesda as well as STALKER: Shadow of Chornobyl. Those are the biggest tentpole games but there is plenty more. Deliver is Mars is one I am eagerly wanting to play in February as are Alan Wake 2, TRON: Identity, Fort Solis and The invincible. Thus, when it comes to gaming 2023 will be a big improvement over 2022. But there is more, Dune: Spice Wars should finally get it official release, as should Terminator: Dark Fate: Defiance (what a title) and Robocop: Rogue City.

On TV things are perhaps not as interesting. Don’t get me wrong, many wonderful series will get a new season in 2023 but when it comes to new series little is on de horizon. That may yet change of course, series that will be released in the fall may not necessarily catch my attention. Anyway, 2023 will start with a Sci-Fi / Mystery series names Kaleidoscope on January 1^st, tomorrow. It will star Giancarlo Esposito so it cannot be all bad. Later on in the year we will also get a new Star Wars series, Ahsoka, which may also introduce Grand Admiral Thrawn into live-action. Another tentpole series to watch is the Three-Body Problem based on the work by Chinese author Liu Cixin.

So, there you have it, 2023 may just shape up to be a great year for Sci-Fi. I think it will definitely be better than 2022. I hope you enjoy the new year celebration and form SciFiEmpire I want to wish everybody a Happy New Year!