Although the PlayStation 5 is approaching its fifth birthday, countless gamers are still holding tight to their PS4 s. There are a number of possible explanations for this, of course: economic hardship impacts discretionary spending on things like new gaming consoles, the leap from PS4 to PS5 is less impressive relative to previous generations, and some people simply don't care much about new gaming tech, exclusive games be damned.
It's worth analyzing how such next-gen exclusives impact how consumers engage with intergenerational gaming hardware. Indeed, a lot of PlayStation 5 owners likely only purchased the console because of their desire to play heavy-hitters that weren't released for the PS4. This is something of a touchy subject as, on the one hand, next-gen exclusives have always been the main selling point for new consoles, but the incremental difference between the PS4 and PS5, which are virtually meaningless for more non-demanding games, makes this exclusivity feel artificial and purely profit-driven. Regardless, many game publishers are still losing their releases on last-generation tech, and July 2025 will see a handful of such titles coming to the PlayStation 4.
These Are the 12 Biggest New Xbox Games Releasing in July 2025
There are many new games releasing for Xbox Series X/S consoles in July 2025, but these 12 stand out as the biggest coming to the platform next month.
New Games Coming to the PS4 in July 2025
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 - July 11
Gamers entrenched in the PS1 era were ecstatic to learn of the original Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 +2 remaster bundle back in 2020: this double-feature reinterprets the iconic gameplay of the 1999 and 2000 classics within a contemporary context, depicting them with stunning visuals, better performance, and a number of clever new features. Remarkably, these remasters remain faithful to their progenitors, with no corner-cutting or egregious creative liberties in sight.
Turns out, this remaster duo was only the beginning, as Activision announced Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 this March. Now, just a few months later, the game's release is imminent, coming to the PlayStation 4 as well as PC and other current-gen platforms. This is perhaps the most high-profile PS4 game launching in July, but it's joined by some promising smaller titles as well.
Monument Valley 3 - July 22
The third entry in the cult-classic, visually stunning puzzle franchise was actually released in December 2024, but exclusively on Netflix Games. This means that players can only enjoy Monument Valley 3 on their mobile devices, but it also means that it requires an active Netflix account to access. Naturally, this has been a disappointment for many series fans, but the game will be breaking free from the Netflix ecosystem on July 22, able to be purchased in full without a subscription and enjoyed on the big screen. For those who love atmospheric, artistically significant games with unique mechanics, this might be a PS4 game to check out in July.
Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound - July 31
July closes out with Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, a charmingly retro tribute to the pre-3D entries in the Ninja Gaiden franchise. Fans can expect the same high-speed action and brutal difficulty as previous games, but Ragebound's behind-the-scenes details make it even more exciting; Ragebound is coming from The Game Kitchen, a studio that previously churned out the spectacular Blasphemous games. With its established mastery of the side-scrolling action-adventure genre, The Game Kitchen can almost certainly be relied on to make a great Ninja Gaiden game.
As a retro-inspired, pixel-art game, it may not be particularly surprising that Ninja Gaiden Ragebound is coming to PS4. Unfortunately, this common-sense reasoning doesn't reflect the reality of most cases: there are several PS5 games launching soon, like Patapon 1 + 2 Replay and Shadow Labyrinth, that absolutely do not require the full power of the PS5 to run. Sadly, such games will not be coming to the PS4, signifying the continued decline of support for the console, despite its capabilities.
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- July 11, 2025
- ESRB
- Teen / Lyrics, Mild Blood, Mild Violence
- Developer(s)
- Iron Galaxy
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
WHERE TO PLAY
Get hyped for the legendary franchise to return with Tony Hawk’s™ Pro Skater™ 3 + 4. Everything you loved is back, but revamped with more skaters, new parks, gnarlier tricks, eardrum shattering music, plus a whole lot more.
• Reunite the crew with cross-platform online Multiplayer for up to 8 skaters in new and returning game modes.
• Drop in to new parks or tear it up across the timeless parks from both Tony Hawk’s™ Pro Skater™ 3 & Tony Hawk’s™ Pro Skater™ 4, authentically remade in jaw dropping 4K resolution with streamlined goals and the epic 2-minute format.
• Hit ‘em with some drip in the expanded Create-A-Skater and Create-A-Park modes, including the ability to create custom goals to share with friends for the first time ever.
• Shred harder than ever with more challenging goals and an enhanced New Game+ mode.
• Whether you’re a total casual or a grungy pro, the same smooth handling and simple-to-learn controls from Tony Hawk’s™ Pro Skater™ 1 + 2 will have you shredding like a Pro.
• Alert the neighborhood watch and grab your skate buddies because the shred’s not dead. It’s back and better than ever.
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Local Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- Yes - all platforms
- Cross Save
- No
- Prequel(s)
- Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (2020)
- Franchise
- Tony Hawk's Pro Skater
- Number of Players
- 1-2 players (local), 1-8 players (online)
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Playable
- PC Release Date
- July 11, 2025
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- July 11, 2025
- PS5 Release Date
- July 11, 2025
- Nintendo Switch Release Date
- July 11, 2025
- Nintendo Switch 2 Release Date
- July 11, 2025
- Genre(s)
- Sports
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PC
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
