Just in time for the onset of winter, new games have been released in November 2025 that are perfect for dark evenings and long weekends.
For many, wintertime is playtime. The world outside isn’t exactly tempting with great weather, so we prefer to make ourselves comfortable indoors. What could be better than freshly released insider tips on games?
Make yourself a cup of tea or hot chocolate (the author’s joke reveals her to be over 30) and browse through our list of selected gems from the Steam store. Enjoy!
Tavern Keeper
- Genre: Business simulation
- Developer: Greenheart Games
- Release: November 3, 2025 (Early Access)
- User rating:
Tavern Keeper mixes a bit of role-playing into inn management. In a fantasy world, we run a tavern, which naturally serves as the starting and ending point for many adventures. Our guests are a colorful mix, including sword-wielding heroes, cozy hobbits, and maybe even rowdy dwarves.
Chaos is inevitable, because we also intervene in these stories, make small decisions, and run the shop on the side. The beer cellars must be full to the brim, our staff has their quirks, and then there are the decorations—thanks to the extensive design mode, we can rotate every tablecloth until we like it.
The Last Caretaker
- Genre: Survival
- Developer: channel37 Ltd
- Release: November 6, 2025 (Early Access)
- User ratings: 84 percent positive
Survival, but with sci-fi: As the last guardian, we are humanity’s only remaining hope in The Last Caretaker. We are sent to explore a flooded world and find a new home. Because in the future, floods have made the Earth inhospitable. In addition to the loop of expeditions, crafting, and building, the game also aims to tell a moving story.
No date has yet been set for the final 1.0 release. According to the description, the pre-release phase is expected to last at least 12 months. If you want to try it out first, there is a demo available on Steam.
Winter Burrow
- Genre: Adventure / Survival
- Developer: Pine Creek Games
- Release: November 12, 2025
- User ratings: 86 percent positive
The perfect theme for this time of year: Winter Burrow is a battle for survival in the cold white world, but in a cozy way. A mouse returns to the home of her childhood, builds herself a warm and lovingly furnished home, makes friends with other forest dwellers, and repeatedly ventures out into the snow to gather resources.
Don’t expect a highly complex survival simulation here; the game deliberately avoids stress. Instead, the story of our lost aunt and our return to our old home provides several hours of wonderful entertainment. Sometimes you need a heartwarming game like this between big titles. It’s also great for playing with children or younger siblings (although there is no co-op mode).
The Berlin Apartment
- Genre: Adventure
- Developer: btf
- Release: November 17, 2025
- User ratings: 96 percent positive
For 120 years, a wide variety of people have lived in the same apartment in Berlin. Their stories are at the heart of The Berlin, a German story adventure. During construction work, traces of the former residents come to light, which then become playable as various short stories.
Naturally, the game focuses on important moments in recent Berlin history, namely World War II, the construction of the Berlin Wall, and reunification. The developers are clearly very knowledgeable about these topics, which results in very realistic stories. If you want to get an impression of the game—and its excellent German voice acting—check out the free demo on Steam.
News Tower
- Genre: Management simulation
- Developer: Sparrow Night
- Release: November 18, 2025
- User ratings: 95 percent positive
What setting could be closer to our GameStar hearts than an editorial office? In News Tower, the goal is to become a media mogul in the 1930s. Fresh out of the economic crisis and into World War II – against this backdrop, there’s never a shortage of news. The game’s creators have also thought about what is extremely important when running a publishing house: toilets, coffee machines, legal department (in no particular order).
The issue must be ready by Sunday, no matter what. Pressure from politicians or even the mafia makes our lives difficult, but as unwavering representatives of the free press, we bravely defy such dangers, of course! Or we can choose to devote ourselves entirely to clickbait. News Tower impresses with its complexity and humor. No wonder the game was already very successful with its fans in Early Access. Now, with the final release, there’s a whole host of new content.
SpongeBob SquarePants: Giants of the Tides
- Genre: Platformer
- Developer: Purple Lamp
- Release: November 18, 2025
- User ratings: 95 percent positive
Snow sometimes falls in Bikini Bottom, completely disregarding all physical facts. And that makes SpongeBob SquarePants: Giants of the Tides a winter game! The Flying Dutchman and King Neptune are arguing and turning the tranquil little town into a ghost town.
Patrick also falls victim to this and from then on whizzes around in green ghost form. But that’s okay, because it gives him special abilities. This is handy, because we switch back and forth between SpongeBob and him, combining their strengths to overcome obstacles on our path to rescuing our friends.
The latest SpongeBob adventure is not only an excellent platformer, but also brimming with jokes familiar from the series. It even features many of the original voices!Cleared Hot
- Genre: Shooter / Flight Simulation
- Developer: Not Knowing Corporation
- Release: November 20, 2025 (Early Access)
- User ratings: 97 percent positive
Is this a new Desert Strike? No, but Cleared Hot is damn close to the 28-year-old classic that served as its inspiration. In this isometric helicopter shooter, we learn to control our combat machine perfectly, fly through risky maneuvers, and gradually upgrade it—or buy a better helicopter right away.
First, there’s an early access version, which is gradually being filled with features and information. Version 1.0 doesn’t have an exact release date yet, but it’s scheduled to be released in six to twelve months – so hopefully still in 2026.
Constance
- Genre: Platformer
- Developer: btf
- Release: November 24, 2025
- User ratings: 83 percent positive
Ori and Celeste have already impressively proven in recent years that platformers can also tell powerful stories. Now, with Constance, another title from German developers has been released in this tradition: Armed with a paintbrush as a painter, we try to escape from our own shattered soul world.
Painting is more than just decoration, because we use different techniques to defeat boss enemies, bring memories to life, and sketch out new abilities. However, we don’t have infinite creative energy, so we have to use it wisely. In roguelite style, we don’t start from scratch when we die, but can try other paths or continue on weakened.
Now it’s your turn! Which game from November 2025 appeals to you the most? Have you discovered a hidden gem that deserves more attention? Then share it with us and the rest of the GlobalESportNews community in the comments. After all, the pre-phase of the big Steam Winter Sale is already underway, so it’s time to fill up those wish lists.
