Gamepur’s Best of 2022: The five best sports games of 2022

The best games for the sportiest of players.

Chris Studley
December 23, 2022
Best of 2022 F1 22 Football Manager 2023 Guides MLB The Show 22 Need for Speed Unbound Out of the Park Baseball 23

Image via EA Sports

5. MLB The Show 22

Released on April 4, 2022
Developed by Sony San Diego Studios
Published by Sony (PlayStation), MLB Advanced Media (Xbox and Nintendo)

Out of all the major triple-A sports games, the MLB The Show franchise has arguably been the best in terms of content. Sony San Diego’s MLB The Show 22 includes much of what sports fans expect from a major title: a career mode in Road to the Show, Franchise Mode, and SDS’ Diamond Dynasty. As the main mode in MLB The Show, Diamond Dynasty has what one would expect from a card-collecting game mode, but without the microtransactions.

MLB The Show is more accessible than ever before, thanks to editions that have been released for the Xbox family of consoles and the Nintendo Switch. Not to mention, MLB The Show 22 can also be played via Xbox Game Pass — truly a game-changer.

4. Football Manager 2023

Released on November 8, 2022
Developed by Sports Interactive
Published by SEGA

Football Manager has long been a popular name among traditional football — or soccer, depending on what part of the world you come from — fans. Football Manager 2023 offers much more depth than FIFA’s manager-based Career Mode, as users have much more control over decisions that real managers must make on a daily basis.

One drawback to Football Manager is that unlike in FIFA, you won’t be able to actually play games. Football Manager is a sim-based sports management game, of course. Sure, players do have the option to tweak tactics and watch games — however, don’t expect to head out on the pitch.

3. Out of the Park Baseball 2023

Released on April 22, 2022
Developed by Out of the Park Developments
Published by Com2Us

Com2Us’ Out of the Park Baseball 2023 is quite similar to Football Manager 2023. It’s a sports management game that allows users to take complete control of any MLB team, as well as organizations from international leagues. Not only does Out of the Park Baseball have more features at its disposal than MLB The Show 22’s franchise mode, but it also includes a CCG mode of its own, online play, and a historical mode that allows baseball fans to change the path of MLB history.

Like Football Manager 2023, users have the option to enter games and influence decisions. Just don’t expect this game to be a PC replacement for The Show.

2. F1 22

Released on July 1, 2022
Developed by Codemasters
Published by EA

Codemasters’ F1 franchise has long been an ideal model in the sports & racing games scene. This is thanks to the developers’ ability to keep things fresh, something that’s hard to say in the current landscape of the sports games industry.

F1 22 comes with some new twists that mark a departure from prior titles. The Codemasters-developed game includes the ability to create a showroom lobby, new cars, and a modified gameplay engine that reflects the changes made to Formula 1 cars in 2022, and additional difficulty settings for newer players to the series.

1. Need for Speed Unbound

Released on December 2, 2022
Developed by Criterion Games
Published by EA

If you’re a racing fan, you just might have a “need for speed.” Should that be the case, Need for Speed Unbound should hit the spot. Unbound is the latest installment of the iconic racing franchise, set in the open-world setting of Lakeshore City. NFS Unbound, from an aesthetic standpoint, looks different from its predecessors. Outside of that, Unbound’s gameplay includes much of what one would expect from a Need for Speed game: ride purchases, races, and wild & intense run-ins with the police. It’s not a traditional sports or racing simulation title, but that’s not a problem by any means.

Thanks to a deep and immersive experience that excites and keeps players engaged for hours on end, Need for Speed Unbound tops our list of the best sports games.