Happy new year, or almost new year, or just… whatever time it is when you’re reading this. For me, it’s the very tail end of 2025, and what better time to take a look ahead at some of the games coming out in the new year? Here are 2026’s biggest game releases
Before we get into it, just a heads up that this is by no means a 100% comprehensive guide to all the games coming out in 2026, as many of those haven’t even been announced yet. Also, as always, release dates are subject to change – I made something very much like this exactly a year ago in which I told you that GTA would be the biggest game of 2025… assuming it came out in 2025, which it didn’t. So, this is true in our regular monthly game release updates, but it’s especially true when we’re talking about games that are 11 months away, or games that don’t have release dates yet.
January
On January 15, Animal Crossing: New Horizons gets a new lease on life, and also a new mortgage to pay off when the beloved debt, yard work, and interior decoration sim comes to Switch 2 – and if you happen to be one of the 50 million people who bought Animal Crossing on the original Switch, you’ll be happy to hear that you can upgrade to the Switch 2 version for just 5 bucks. Meanwhile, if you’re still playing on Switch 1, you’ll still be getting access to a ton of new features with the 3.0 update, which adds a ton of new features including hotel renovation, and in-game items based on other Nintendo properties, as well as LEGO’s line of Animal Crossing sets.
You can’t spell “Purchase a Game In January” without JRPG, or a lot of other letters, but this is the time of year when fans of that particular genre are bound to be especially busy. Still on the 15th, there’s The Legend of Heroes: Trails Beyond The Horizon, which is the seventeenth installment in The Legend of Heroes series, or the thirteenth installment in the Trails series, and a direct sequel to 2022’s Legend of Heroes Trails Through Daybreak II. That’s coming to all the Switches, PlayStations, and PC.
On the 22nd, Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade comes to Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series as well as Xbox on PC – this includes the base game, all the visual and technical improvements that it got when it was ported to PS5, a whole side story that follows Yuffie, and this latest release will add a new streamlined mode that maxes out your party’s stats and has all attacks do 9,999 damage so you can just blow through the story.
Not quite a JRPG, but JRPG-adjacent, Dynasty Warriors Origins also hits Switch 2 that day, alongside the Visions of Four Heroes DLC expansion, which also comes to the other platforms the game’s already on.
On the 26th, Highguard drops, which is the new PVP raid game from a bunch of ex-Respawn devs who worked on Titanfall and Apex Legends – and while you can see some similar DNA, it’s clearly going a very different direction, and instead of bunch of a bunch of wallrunning dudes and Neil Blomkamp mechs, it’s got more fantasy flair – so if you’ve ever wanted to bear arms while riding a bear, go nuts. That’s free to play on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series.
Finally, rounding out January’s JRPGs, on the 28th there’s The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin, an open-world RPG based on the hit anime series for PS5, PC, and mobile. And then on the 30th, there’s Code Vein 2, the sequel to Bandai Namco’s 2019 vampire anime soulslike, which is on PS5, Xbox Series, and PC.
At some point in January, 2XKO will hit PS5 and Xbox series, which is Riot Games’ 2v2 fighting game featuring a roster of characters from League of Legends – that’s been in early access on PC since October.
February
On February 5, Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined hits PS5, Xbox Series, both Switches, and PC. Originally released stateside for PS1 in 2001, and then 3DS 15 years after that, it’s now getting a full modern overhaul. JRPGs aren’t exactly known for being concise, but this one is pretty infamously beefy, and don’t be surprised if you sink 100 hours into this just doing the main quest.
If you’d rather just make a bunch of colorful characters hit each other, My Hero Academia: All’s Justice is a 3v3 arena fighter featuring several dozen characters from the beloved anime series. That’s on PS5, Xbox Series, and PC February 6.
Also on the 6th is Nioh 3, the third installment in Team Ninja’s tough-as-balls soulslike series that is actually its first true sequel, as Nioh 2 took place before the events of the first game – which probably has no bearing whatsoever on the moment to moment combat that’s the main selling point here. That’s on PS5 and PC.
On February 11, Romeo is a Deadman is the latest whackadoo action game from Suda51 and the fine folks at Grasshopper Manufacture, who gave us such cult classics as Killer7 and No More Heroes – this latest one looks to be as stylish, absurd, and over-the-top as we’ve come to expect. That’s on PS5, Xbox series and PC. I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing a lot of really interesting people in this job, and Suda is one of my favorites – we did one with him years ago where we asked a bunch of really stupid questions rapid-fire and he didn’t skip a beat. So anyway, I’m happy to see he’s keeping busy making weird cool games.
On the 12th, Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties hits everything but Xbox One. Yakuza 3 was originally released for the PS3 back in 2009, and though it was included with the remastered collection in 2019, that version didn’t get any major graphical or gameplay improvements. Kiwami 3, on the other hand, is a full modern overhaul, so this’ll play as great as it looks – and the Dark Ties expansion is a whole new side story.
Still that day on Switch 2 is Mario Tennis Fever, which may sound like a fun casual sports game, but it’s also a very serious medical condition that can be deadly if not treated immediately. If you develop symptoms of Mario Tennis Fever while playing this game, please consult a Dr. Mario.
On the 13th we’re getting High on Life 2, the follow-up to the excellent 2022 first-person metroidvania – and between the first game, its High on Knife DLC, and now this, I gotta give the team at Squanch Games credit for shipping two and a half Metroid Prime-likes in half the time it took Retro to get Metroid Prime 4 out the door. Also, High on Life 2 is the only way you can legally purchase the classic 1991 Wisdom Tree platformer Bible Adventures for current consoles.
On February 20, Ys X: Proud Nordics is the latest Japanese action RPG rooted in Scandinavian folklore – and it’s actually an enhanced re-release of 2023’s Ys X: Nordics, but with enough added abilities, bosses and levels that it’s apparently very proud of itself. That’s coming to PS5, PC, and Switch 2.
On the 24th, Tides of Tomorrow hits PS5, Xbox Series and PC, which is set in a vibrant post-apocalyptic ocean world that’s riddled with microplastics, and where the choices made by other players in their game will affect how the narrative in yours unfolds.
On February 27, Resident Evil: Requiem – or the ninth mainline entry, if you’re keeping count – hits Xbox Series, PS5, PC, and Switch 2. I’m fairly late to the Resident Evil party, but as someone who liked 7, loved 8, and adored the remakes, I’m fairly lukewarm on what I’ve seen of this one so fair – but I’m also willing to give it a shot, since that team has been knocking it out the park with this series.
Any Switch 2 owners looking to play catchup, Resident Evil 7 and 8 – AKA Biohazard and Village – are also coming to the hybrid handheld that day as well. They got cloud-streamed versions on Switch 1, but this is the first time they’ll be playable locally on Nintendo hardware.
March
On March 5, Pokemon Pokopia comes to Switch 2, which sort of looks like Animal Crossing, except you play as a ditto who is masquerading as a human being, something that will never not be totally unsettling.
Hitting PC, Xbox Series and PS5 on March 12, John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando is a post-apocalyptic co-op FPS that’s been developed by the World War Z team with some input from the legendary horror filmmaker turned grouchy hardcore gamer, and it looks as though it’ll sit well with anyone wishing the Left 4 Dead franchise hadn’t been… abandoned in a seemingly deceased state. That’s on Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.
That same day on PC is Solasta 2, the follow-up to the very well-received 2021 tactical CRPG, which should click with anybody who’s had their fill of Baldur’s Gate 3 and needs to kill some time before Divinity.
Also on March 12, Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Remake hits all the newer consoles and PC, and that’s a modern do-over of the 2003 survival horror game that’s sort of like Pokémon Snap but with scary ghosts instead of cute animals.
If you’d prefer a game about making friends scary animals, on the 13th, there’s Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection for those same platforms, which puts a more conventional turn-based JRPG spin on Capcom’s hit creature clobberer series.
If you’re more into big huge sprawling open-world RPGs with fast-paced realtime combat, on the 19th there’s Crimson Desert, the single player spinoff of Black Desert Online. That’s on Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.
If you’d rather just shoot olde tymie cartoon criminal critters, Mouse: P.I. For Hire looks to like a boomer shooter with Cuphead aesthetics – that’s on everything
On March 26, Screamer hits PS5, Xbox Series, and PS5 – I heard about this game a while ago, and was wondering what was taking so long since the gameplay looked like it was in a pretty good state. The trailer that dropped during The Game Awards answered the hell out of that question: in addition to being a racing game, this is also a cyberpunk anime, and it sure looks like those cutscenes took a while. So, if you’ve ever wished for a cross between Redline and Initial D with playable races, here you go!
