Milestone has released a new MotoGP game for the last ten years like clockwork.
We usually get a new MotoGP game in April. However, we're now in mid-March and MotoGP 23 still hasn't been announced. After complete silence from the Italian developer, we're starting to wonder when MotoGP 23 will be announced.
Normally by now, we've seen a flashy announcement trailer and maybe a second trailer. EA has already started teasing F1 23, but we've got nothing to go on when it comes to MotoGP 23. But why is this?
We're going to look back at previous years and try to figure out when we'll hear about this year's MotoGP title from the Italian developers.
Where is the MotoGP 23 Announcement?
The 2023 MotoGP season will get underway later this month. Unlike some annual racing games based on a real-life sport like WRC and Formula 1, the MotoGP adaptation is released only a month or so after the start of the season.
That has been the case for the past three games, which were released in April of their respective years.
An April launch meant that the reveal trailer would usually drop in late February as the first official announcement of the title.
In the two months between announcement and release, we normally see a few more trailers. These trailers highlight new gameplay features or new modes such as 2022's Nine Career Mode.
We're now in mid-March though, so what's going on?
Going back to old ways
MotoGP games haven't always been released in April. In fact, this isn't a release date that has been constant since Milestone took over the MotoGP video game franchise in 2013.
If you go back to the days of MotoGP 19, the game was released in June 2019.
So, it's entirely possible that Milestone could be moving MotoGP 23 back to its former Summer release spot. This could be down to Monster Energy Supercross 6 only being released last week.
However, Monster Energy Supercross 5 was released 12 months ago and it didn't delay the announcement of MotoGP 22. So, while that could be the reason, it's not likely.
Big things could be on the way
Despite the disruptions endured by almost every other studio, Milestone have managed to run like clockwork over the past three years.
Their annual series such as MotoGP, MXGP and MESX have released on time with no delays, as have other one-off games such as Hot Wheels Unleashed.
If a Milestone game is releasing later than anticipated, there has to be a good reason. What that reason is isn't clear, but we can have an educated guess at the cause.
MotoGP 22's single player mode raised the bar, with the Nine Career Mode surpassing F1 2021's Braking Point. It could be that the success of Nine has encouraged Milestone to sink more time and effort into MotoGP 23's equivalent.
MotoGP 23 will also mark the tenth anniversary of the series, so Milestone could be planning some special anniversary content.
It's also possible that the two new circuits on the 2023 MotoGP calendar are proving difficult to integrate in time. Both the Indian and Kazakh Motorcycle Grands Prix are late additions to the calendar, with the latter proving to be a particular challenge due to the circuit not being raced on by any series yet.
Despite all those hypotheses though, it could simply be that Milestone wants their release calendar to be more evenly spread.
Time will tell what Milestone is planning for MotoGP 23. But we've got to hear something soon, surely?
When will MotoGP 23 be announced?
With no word yet from Milestone, it's unclear when MotoGP 23 will be announced. But if the release date has moved from April to June, we shouldn't have to wait much longer for an official announcement.
MotoGP 19 was announced on March 12 2019 before releasing on 5 June 2019. This means MotoGP 23 could be revealed sometime in March, so watch this space.