2026 is shaping as much as be one other large yr for video video games. The subsequent 12 months are set to convey huge sequels like Forza Horizon 6, Resident Evil Requiem, and Gears of Conflict: E-Day. There are additionally some smaller video games we’re excited to get our palms on, like Bubsy 4D, Mouse: P.I. for Rent, and Slay The Spire 2. And naturally, there’s Grand Theft Auto 6, which, assuming it doesn’t get delayed once more, will shut out 2026 with a giant, industry-shaking bang. There are such a lot of video games to be enthusiastic about in 2026 that you simply might need forgotten about a few of them. So we right here at Kotaku have created this useful record of 31 video games we’re excited to play within the new yr. Now, place your bets for what number of will really launch in 2026 and what number of will as an alternative be delayed to 2027 or past.
Resident Evil Requiem – Feb. 27 I used to be already excited for a brand new mainline Resident Evil sport arriving in early 2026; you didn’t want so as to add Leon Kennedy. However I’m very grateful. -Zack Zwiezen
Lego Batman: Legacy of the Darkish Knight – 2026 We ain’t getting a brand new Arkham sport anytime quickly, so this Lego spin on the system should do. Fortunately, it seems rad as heck. – Zack Zwiezen Forza Horizon 6 – 2026 The follow-up to top-of-the-line Xbox video games ever made, and it’s set in a gorgeously dense open-world recreation of Japan. Yup. That’s going to be goooood. – Zack Zwiezen
Management Resonant – 2026 Treatment’s 2019 Management was a beautiful and creepy paranormal shooter. I’ve desperately needed a sequel, and that’s lastly arriving subsequent yr. – Zack Zwiezen
Mouse: P.I. for Rent – March 19 Mixing a boomer shooter with basic black-and-white cartoons is an odd alternative, however the ultimate product appears superior, and we don’t have to attend lengthy to play. – Zack Zwiezen
007 First Mild – March 26 IOI, the individuals behind Hitman, appear to be the proper studio to make a James Bond sport. Hopefully, all of it comes collectively within the spring. – Zack Zwiezen Bubsy 4D – 2026 I didn’t have “Excited for a brand new Bubsy sport” on my bingo card for 2026, however right here we’re. What can I say? Bubsy 4D seems good. – Zack Zwiezen
The Duskbloods – 2026 FromSoftware’s upcoming eight-player on-line motion RPG appears like an excellent concept now, after Nightreign proved to be an enormous hit and an excellent sport. Hopefully, the Swap 2 is ready to deal with it. – Zack Zwiezen Gears of Conflict: E-Day – 2026 I’m unhappy that Gears 5’s story isn’t shifting ahead. Nonetheless, it ought to be enjoyable seeing Marcus and Dom again collectively on this upcoming prequel to the OG Xbox 360 trilogy. – Zack Zwiezen Star Wars: Galactic Racer – 2026 So many Star Wars video games are RPGs, shooters, or action-adventure experiences. That’s wonderful, however I’m comfortable to see somebody making a racing sport set in my favourite sci-fi universe. – Zack Zwiezen
Marathon – March 2026 The it’s over/we’re so again graph has been all over on this one, however with a sequence of post-alpha take a look at tweaks, together with the addition of proximity chat, I’m as soon as once more trying ahead to seeing Bungie’s tackle the extraction shooter, particularly if they’ll weave as a lot of the background sci-fi lore right into a Future-style aspirational end-game as I’m hoping they’ll. – Ethan Gach Grand Theft Auto 6 – November 19 At this level, I really feel like I’ve written so many phrases in regards to the upcoming GTA 6 that I’m unsure what else to say. what this sport is. You might be in all probability excited for it. Let’s hope Rockstar lands this sucker. – Zack Zwiezen
Marvel’s Wolverine – 2026 Insomniac’s Spider-Man video games have been joyous open-world treats that really feel nice to play. So individuals are understandably excited for the studio’s upcoming Wolverine sport that appears enjoyable and really, very bloody. – Zack Zwiezen Saros – April 30 Returnal will at all times have a particular place in my coronary heart, however I’m trying ahead to seeing Housemarque department off right into a extra forgiving roguelike arcade shooter construction with a sturdy metagame development that offers extra gamers extra footholds, which can hopefully see extra of them grasp on and stick it out for the entire trip. – Ethan Gach Mina the Hollower – 2026 Following a short delay, I can’t wait to see the Shovel Knight workforce’s tackle Castlevania meets The Legend of Zelda: Hyperlink’s Awakening. I’m trying ahead to a retro homage that pushes the genres it’s enjoying with to new heights. – Ethan Gach
Changed – March 12 This sport seems unbelievable. Taking a look at will probably be sufficient. Taking part in it would hopefully really feel additional particular. – Ethan Gach Forbidden Solitaire – Q1 2026 Forbidden Solitaire is ostensibly about you discovering and enjoying a spooky ‘90s CD-ROM solitaire sport—assume The seventh Visitor however, y’know, solitaire—and getting far more than you bargained for. I don’t know what which means in gameplay phrases, however I can’t wait to search out out. – Carolyn Petit The Blood of Dawnwalker – 2026 Ex-Witcher 3 devs make a vampire immersive-sim RPG. Sufficient mentioned. – Ethan Gach Danganronpa 2×2 – 2026 Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair is getting a flowery remake, however it’s additionally getting a brand new “what if” state of affairs by which completely different victims and killers manifest in its homicide thriller. So hey, even when the brand new storyline isn’t nice, we’ll get to play Danganronpa 2 once more. – Kenneth Shepard
Pokémon Champions – 2026 Pokémon Champions is the brand new aggressive platform for the sequence shifting ahead, and it’s going to combine a number of mechanics, resembling Mega Evolution and Z-Strikes, into one place, which means it has the potential to utterly rework the aggressive area, and liberate the primary video games to now not be beholden to a selected means of doing issues. – Kenneth Shepard Mario Tennis Fever – February 12 The world wants extra enjoyable tennis video games. Thanks, Mario and firm, for listening to these calls and displaying up so early in 2026 to ship a sport that appears prefer it’ll be precisely what of us need. – Zack Zwiezen
Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis – 2026 Positive, one other remake of the primary Tomb Raider sport appears a bit foolish. However, hey, it seems nice and can maintain followers over till 2027’s Tomb Raider: Catalyst. – Zack Zwiezen Pokémon Pokopia – March 5 Pokémon Pokopia seems to be Pikachu and mates’ tackle an Animal Crossing-style life sim, however it additionally appears to have a darkish, post-apocalyptic setting that may hold it from being as cozy as different video games within the style. Intriguing! – Kenneth Shepard
Pragmata – April 24 New AAA franchises are so few and much between, it’s a particular deal with every time we get one, particularly out of Japan. It’s not 3D Mega Man however it could be the following smartest thing. – Ethan Gach Marvel Tokon Combating Souls – 2026 In terms of anime fighters, you don’t wager in opposition to Arc System Works. Marvel Tokon Combating Souls is a 4v4 preventing sport with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes on the roster, and it seems fairly rad. – Kenneth Shepard Scott Pilgrim EX – 2026 It’s about time we received a brand new Scott Pilgrim beat em up, and this time, it’s coming with a model new story by sequence’ creator Bryan Lee O’Malley set after the occasions of the Scott Pilgrim Takes Off anime. – Kenneth Shepard Demon Tides – February 19 Demon Tides is a modern-day PS2-style mascot platformer that manages to nail the center floor between pinpoint precision and free-flowing, fast-paced motion that so many others within the style can’t fairly inhabit. – Kenneth Shepard
Nocturne – June 30 I needed to get not less than one rhythm sport on this record, and Nocturne, a rhythm RPG impressed by science fantasy video games of the ’90s, is mainly Guitar Hero meets Closing Fantasy. – Kenneth Shepard Slay the Spire 2– March 2026 I slept on the primary Slay the Spire when it initially launched. I cannot make that mistake once more. With most sequels I need just a little bit extra than simply “greater and higher,” however with Slay the Spire 2 that will probably be greater than sufficient. – Ethan Gach Halo: Marketing campaign Advanced – 2026 Like Tomb Raider, it’s a bit foolish that we’re getting yet one more remake of the primary Halo, however this one is coming to PlayStation 5, and I want I might return in time and inform 12-year-old Zack that reality. It could blow his dumb pre-teen thoughts. – Zack Zwiezen Yoshi and the Mysterious Ebook – 2026 This ain’t the Nintendo platformer I hoped for in 2026, however it seems cute, and for folk who love the Yoshi video games, nicely, right here’s one other one for you. – Zack Zwiezen
