It’s that time of year, upon writing my list of the best games I played in 2025, time to look ahead to 2026! I’ve broken things out into two categories, games I’m excited for and will very likely pick up upon their release and games I’m interested in but am not quite ready to commit to, more of a ‘wait and see’.
Games I’m excited for:
- Marvel’s Wolverine – I’m a huge mark for a lot of Marvel and DC media and Wolverine has been one of my favorite characters since I was a child. I will absolutely play this when it’s out. I’m looking forward to what Insomniac Studios (who made Spider-man 2018 and it’s sequels) can do with the Wolverine gameplay. If the trailer released this year is any indication, it will be awesome.
- Solasta 2 – I enjoyed the first Solasta, I played it until credits. The production values were noticeably low, which is completely understandable for a very small studio with their first game. This is going to be their second game and from the early looks, they’ve really ramped up the production values.
- Warhammer 40k Dark Heresy – Owlcat’s next CRPG following pathfinder wrath of the righteous and Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader, both amazing CRPGs. I would have *preferred* a medieval fantasy setting instead of the grim dark future, but I will play about anything from this developer, and be excited to do so.
- Exodus – From the makers of Mass Effect, taking a stab at a spiritual successor. Also, Matthew McConaughey. Very easily could not land, but I am cautiously optimistic.
- Expanse (Owlcat game) – Owlcat stepping into a mass effect like adventure rpg set in the licensed Expanse universe. I’m in.
- Titan quest 2 – Loved Titan Quest 1.. Which released about 20 years ago (ugh, I feel old!), the sequel is in early access as of this writing. I’ve played through most of act 1 and am very excited for the full release.
- Marvel 1943 Rise of Hydra – Yep, still a mark for Marvel stuff. The game has been delayed ‘beyond early 2026’ a couple of months ago. Will this ever release? I hope so.
- Squadron 42 – Single player space action RPG as an off-shoot of Star Citizen, which has been in development for about 15 years. Will this ever come out? I hope so.
Games I’m curious about
- GTA6 – It’s been 12 years since GTA5 released, the creative leadership and most of the creative staff have transitioned away. The US is openly wearing its prejudices on its sleeve. Will this be as popular as GTA5? I have no idea, but am incredibly curious to see how the game turns out, and what the reaction will be to it.
- Control 2 – It appears the game is moving protagonists and transitioning from a 3rd person shooter to a 3rd person melee game. I loved control, and am very curious about the sequel.
- Dragon Quest 7 Remake – I never played Dragon Quest 7 when it launched on ps1 nor did I play it (much) when the port happened for the 3ds.
- Fire Emblem Fortunes Weave – Sadly, I do not have a nintendo switch 2, but I am very interested in the upcoming Fire Emblem game. Fire Emblem 3 houses was a top 3 game for me on the original Nintendo Switch.
- James Bond: 007 First Light – From the studio that has been doing hitman games for the past 30ish years. I love the hitman series and am cautiously optimistic that first light will be excellent.
- Saros – From the studio that made Returnal, it looks like Saros will be a similar game but with more of a, hopefully, coherent story presentation. I’m all for that.
- Crimson Desert – From the makers of the MMO Black Desert Online, Crimson Desert will be a single player adventure that is mechanically heavy in terms of in game systems.
- Pragmata – Capcom’s interesting take on an action shooter where you’re paired with a little android girl who hacks enemies (via minigame) that enables you to shoot them. I’m curious to see how it works, and if the mechanic is still fun for the duration of the game.
- Nioh 3 – Follow up to the progressively better Nioh series. I’m curious to see how this game releases.
- Fable – The Microsoft published by Microsoft owned development studio Playground Games, who have traditionally helmed car racing games such as the Forza Horizon series. The game has been announced since 2020, which as of this writing is at least 5 years old. I’m interested in medieval fantasy as a general rule, I’m doubly interested to see if the studio and Microsoft can pull off this title successfully.
- Invincible vs – This fighting game feels a bit more like mortal kombat with it’s gruesome violence, which I very much appreciate.
- Phantom Blade 0 – Single player action game with highly detailed animations, looks amazing but am curious if they’ll be able to pull off the work start to finish.
- Onimusha Way of the Sword – Sequel from the 00’s Onimusha games using the RE engine. I’m curious to see how this game comes together.
