The Biggest Games Coming in 2026

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!

April

On April 16, yet another game with literary inspirations is Cthulu: The Cosmic Abyss, a first person thriller mired in the unthinkable cosmic horrors of the works of H.P. Lovecraft, so that should be a nice cheerful jaunt. That’s on Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.

On April 24 arrives Pragmata, which is a totally new sci-fi property from Capcom that pairs third-person shooting with some realtime hacking minigames, which seems cool.

On a similar note, on April 30, the folks who gave us Returnal are back with Saros, a roguelite third-person bullet hell, which stars the wonderful Rahul Kohli and takes place in a sci-fi setting that’s cribbing from Robert W. Chambers’ proto-lovecraftian classic, The King in Yellow.

May

On May 8th, Mortal Kombat 2 hits theaters, the first of two very fun-looking fighting game movies. Something I very much appreciated about the first game is they didn’t make use of the whole roster, and saved some big names for round two – namely, Johnny Cage, who looks to be very much the central focus of the sequel, and he’s being played by the ever-delightful Karl Urban. Very excited to watch him do a split and punch someone in the groin.

On May 27, we’ll get high speed chases and every other kind of action in 007 First Light, a game I’m trying not to get too excited about, but which i can’t not – after all, it’s from the team behind Hitman: World of Assassinaiton, which is already basically the best James Bond game to date, except this one’s actually about Ian Fleming’s legendary spy. Anyway that’s coming to all the newer consoles and PC.

LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is the closest thing to an Arkham game we’ll be getting anytime soon, and while it might not have quite the massive roster of playable characters as TT Games’ previous LEGO titles, it looks to be making up for it with much tighter combat. That’s on all the newer boxes and also PC on May 29.

September

Illfonic, the studio that gave us asymmetrical multiplayer horror games based on Friday the 13th, Killer Klowns from Outer Space, and Predator are giving the granddaddy of all slashers the same treatment with John Carpenter’s original Halloween, which’ll also have a single player mode this time around. That’s coming to Xbox Series, PS5 and PC on September 8.

On September 12, Phantom Blade Zero hits PC and PS5, which looks like a soulslike or a hack and slash action game, and while it is an action RPG with lots of hacking and slashing, it’s apparently doing its own thing that’s somewhere in the middle – whatever the hell it is, buzz on this one is killer.

October

Not a game, but obviously worth including is the newest Street Fighter movie, which looks like an absolute blast and I’ve been hyping this movie up since the first casting announcements trickled out – it’s directed by Kitao Sakurai, who is best known for his work with Eric Andre on the Eric Andre Show and the film Bad Trip, which has involved a lot of people getting injured in entertaining ways in public places as well as a few cars getting destroyed, so I think this movie is going to kick ass. That hits theaters October 16 and I will be there opening night.

November

And of course, the biggest game of 2026, the 2020s as a whole, and possibly all time, assuming it ever comes out, is Grand Theft Auto 6, which is hitting Xbox Series and PS5 on November 19 – a date which basically every other game in development is steering clear of. At this point we’ve been waiting so long for this game that it’s just stopped seeming like something I’ll ever get to play – but someday, I’ll get to actually play it, I think, and I hope it’s this year!

Now, that takes us to the very end of games that currently have release dates – but there a whole lot more that just have vague 2026 releases planned, so here’s what we’ve got right now:

Sometime in 2026

Battlestar Galactica: Scattered Hopes is expected sometime in the first quarter of 2026, which lets you strategically square off with Cylons on PC.

At some point in 2026, Starfield is supposedly coming to PS5, and while Bethesda’s dropped a handful of updates post-launch, I feel like players weren’t quite over the moon for this one – but who knows, maybe it’ll get some more tweaks and content alongside its eventual PlayStation version.

Super Meat Boy 3D adds a whole extra dimension to Team Meat’s beloved indie platformer, and that’s coming to PS5, Xbox Series, and PC.

Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is the latest offbeat and extremely cerebral CRPG from the developers of Disco Elysium. This is clearly a spiritual successor, but rather than take cues from detective fiction, Zero Parades is all about the world of espionage – specifically, the nerve-racking deception-based kind, not the sexy hollywood kind. That’s coming to PC and PS5.

If you want a game that takes place inside books, but involves a lot less reading, Chronoscript: The Endless End is an exploration based action-adventure sidescroller – or maybe more accurately, page turner. That’s on PS5 and PC as well.

Thick as Thieves is a PvPvE stealth game from Warren Spector, who was behind the original Deus Ex, and that’s sneaking onto PS5, Xbox Series, and PC at some point in 2026

If you’re sad we haven’t gotten a brand new Metal Gear Solid game in over a decade, you might want to keep an eye on Mudang: Two Hearts, which looks like like a similar blend of stealth, action, tactical military stuff, and over the top sci-fi nonsense, and that’s coming to PS5, Xbox Series, and PC as well.

If you like sequels, don’t worry, they’re still making lots of those: if you want to go on a power trip, you can be a tyrannical dictator in Tropico 7. If you’d rather feel utterly powerless, you can get punched so hard your soul flies out of your body in Mortal Shell 2. Those are both on the big consoles and PC. On Switch 2 and PC, you can go dungeon-crawling through even more bullet hells in Enter the Gungeon 2.

Onimusha: Way of the Sword marks the long-awated return of Capcom’s PS2-era supernatural samurai series, and that’s coming to Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.

If you want to travel through time and fight some ex boyfriends, there’s Scott Pilgrim EX, the long-awaited follow-up to hit beat-em-up based on Bryan Lee O’Malley’s beloved Canadian manga, which is on basically everything.

Speaking of Canadians, Marvel’s fan favorite canucklehead finally slices and dices his way onto PS5 sometime in the fall – Insomniac’s long-awaited Wolverine game is clearly not shying away from an M-rating, but hopefully it’s got as much brains and heart as it does blood and guts.

Two other Marvel games are also in the works expected in 2026 at some point: Skydance’s Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra, which features Cap and Black Panther’s grandpa, who is also Black Panther, fighting in World War 2 on PS5, Xbox Series, and PC. And then there’s Marvel Tokon Fighting Souls on PS5 and PC, a fighting game from Arc System Works that looks like it could be a proper spiritual successor to Marvel Vs Capcom – just, without the Capcom.

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve is the latest entry in the long running jet pilot sim to try to tempt me into playing it with sequences of stuff happening outside of a jet that are so impressively realistic it makes me forget that I don’t actually enjoy the part where you fly the jet. Don’t get me wrong, I think jets are the coolest thing ever invented and this game looks gorgeous, but aerial dogfighting in video games just never clicks for me. Can I just play the parts where you eat hamburgers and drink beer with your friends on an aircraft carrier? Anyway, that’s on PS5, Xbox Series, and PC

Remedy’s David Lynchian interconnected universe gets a bit bigger with Control: Resonant, which is a continuation of IGN’s 2019 game of the year, but also connects with Alan Wake 2 and FBC Firebreak – and even if you’re not keeping track of what’s going on, this looks like it’ll still be a good time.

I’ve always wondered why nobody’s made any first-person soulslikes, and the trailer for Decrepit answered that question very loudly: because they’d be too fucking scary. Get this shit outta here. Too scary! Just awful! No thank you! That’s on PC for now, so if you play on console, you’re safe from its horrors for the time being. Did you see that spider? Fuck off!

Less scary looking, but from a studio with some major horror chops is Ontos, which is from the folks behind Amnesia and SOMA and takes place in a hotel where a lot of weird stuff is happening, which is to be expected from a hotel that’s on the moon.

If you want something nice and cute in space, there’s the two-player co-op adventure Oribitals on Switch 2 which looks just gorgeous. Lots of games look like anime, but this one specifically looks like a bubble era OVA, which has not just a specific aesthetic, but a certain VHS graininess and poppy sound quality as well, and that’s such a pretentious delineation but as a reformed weeaboo whose formative years were filled with badly dubbed “Japanimation” from Manga Video, I applaud this attention to detail.

Another co-op adventure coming this year is Out of Words, which is all stop-motion featuring handcrafted puppets. I have this theory that Geoff Keighley really loves puppets, and if you make a game with puppets in it, he’s more likely to feature it prominently in one of his shows – Out of Words was one of two puppet-centric games that debuted at Summer Game Fest, the other being Felt That: Boxing, and it showed up again at The Game Awards in between Miss Piggy appearances. Anyway that’s coming to the new consoles and PC.

Star Wars: Galactic Racer is hitting PS5, Xbox Series, and PC at some point in 2026, and I am stoked – like 10 years ago, when it was announced that EA had the Star Wars license, I was like, “Get the people who do Burnout and Need for Speed to do a podracing game.” -And well, it took a minute, but we’re getting something even better: a studio founded by a bunch of ex-Criterion devs is making a game like that and EA has nothing to do with it! Also, this isn’t straight podcasting – it’s got a bunch of other speeders and stuff, which reminds me of the criminally underrated 2000 vehicular combat game Star Wars Demolition.

If you thought that was a stupid joke, well, bad news because Stupid Never Dies – which is the name of a video game that’s coming out at some point on PC and PS5. This is a dungeon crawler action game that has some major Lollipop Chainsaw vibes, but it’s actually from a new studio founded by Hiroyuki Kobayashi, who, among other things, worked on Devil May Cry, Resident Evil, and Dragon’s Dogma.

Tankrat is a game where you drive a cool tank around and shoot stuff while also exploring and finding new stuff to make your tank even cooler – and it reminds me of modern version of Blaster Master. You guys remember Blaster Master? No? Well it sort of looked like this except really old. Tankrat is coming to PS5 and PC.

To Be Announced

A whole lot of games just have a vague “TBA” release window, which means that they’ll probably come out someday. And while 2026 seems like a safe bet for most of these, some might even be further down the road, while others might never come out.

If you ever wished they’d do a Star Wars XCOM… well, they’re doing it! Zero Company, or ZCOM for short, is from a studio of ex-Firaxis devs, and looks like a turn-based tactical good time. That’s coming to Xbox, PS5, and PC.

Cinder City is an open-world MMO tactical shooter that looks like it has literally everything in it, and that’s coming to PC at some point – though looking at this game in action, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a 2027 game.

Lords of the Fallen 2 is the sequel to the 2023 soulslike, which was itself the reboot of a game already titled Lords of the Fallen, so this is technically the third Lords of the Fallen game, but who’s keeping track? That’s on the newer non-Nintendo consoles and PC.

All we’ve seen of Road Kings is a cinematic trailer where a dude drives his 18 wheeler straight toward a tornado, but that seems like it was enough to get people hyped. And it’s from Saber, the studio that gave us Mudrunner and Snowrunner and the recent Road Craft, and as a very casual truck game enjoyer, I’m curious to see what their spin on a long-haul trucking sim is like. That’s on PC, Xbox Series, and PS5.

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 4 is the first installment in the fan-fave RTS series in almost a decade, and while it’s not from Relic, the studio that made the first three games, it is from the team behind another well-received RTS, Iron Harvest. That’s coming to PC.

Tomodachi Life might not have quite the same name-brand recognition as Animal Crossing, but the original mii-centric social game released in 2014 was the 11th best-selling 3DS game of all time, so it’s a surprise it’s taken Nintendo this long to make another one. Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream will be on Switch.

Somebody put The Elder Scrolls 6 on our list of upcoming game releases, and while that’ll probably come out someday, I would be shocked if it dropped in 2026. However, if you’re after a big pretty fantasy RPG from Xbox Game Studios, Fable seems a lot more likely for a fall release. This one is from Playground Games, the studio that gave us Forza Horizon, so I’m stoked to see how they tackle wizard stuff.

Speaking of Forza Horizon, the sixth entry is expected sometime in 2026, and though there have been rumblings it might launch in the first half of the year, nothing official on that front aside from the fact that it’s set in Japan this time around. Fable and Forza Horizon are both hitting Xbox Series and PC, with PS5 versions probably arriving later on, if recent Xbox release strategy is anything to go on.

Gears of War turns 20 in 2026, and to mark the occasion we’re hopefully getting a brand new installment with E-Day. This is a prequel set 14 years before the first game and will follow Marcus Fenix during the events of Emergence Day, when the big scary guys you’ve been shooting at and chainsawing into pieces in all the other installments first started coming out of holes in the ground. That’ll be on Xbox and PC for sure, and again, maybe PS5 at some point too.

Another major franchise celebrating a big anniversary is Tomb Raider, which turns 30 – To celebrate, we’re getting Legacy of Atlantis, a full ground-up Unreal Engine 5 remake of the original Tomb Raider. It certainly looks pretty, but I’m curious how much it plays like the originals. That’ll be on Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.

If you ever wished for a distant prequel to the Plague Tale games that swapped the medieval European setting for an ancient Greek one, well… you’re in luck! Because that’s exactly what Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is – and that’s coming to Xbox Series, PS5, and PC

The Adventures of Elliott: The Millennium Tales is the latest game from the folks behind Bravely Default and Octopath Traveller, and hopefully you won’t have to wait a thousand years to play – that one’s coming to all the newer consoles and PC.

Usually it’s bad when a game freezes, but sometimes that’s a feature, not a bug – like the bleak frigid survival game Blackfrost: The Long Dark 2, or Frostrail, a survival game that’s also bleak and frigid, but at least you have a train – those are both coming to PC – and there’s also Ikuma: The Frozen Compass, a coming of age story set in the arctic, which seems frigid, but less bleak – which is on PC, as well as Xbox Series and PS5.

If you’d like to try your hand at surviving while submerged in melted ice, ie: water, Subnautica 2 is hitting early access on PC and Xbox any day now. And by “now” I mean at some point in the coming year.

If you’d rather go on adventures above the waves, Sea of Remnants is a bright and colorful ocean-world RPG, which is slated to hit PC and PS5 at some point. If you prefer rails to sails, there’s also Denshattack, which looks like Jet Grind Radio, except you play as a train. Sure why not! That’s on PC as well as Xbox Series and PS5.

At some point The Duskbloods is coming out, which is FromSoftware’s Switch 2 exclusive foray into the world of PvE multiplayer, and I know I’m not the only one who’s disappointed that something that looks so much like Bloodborne isn’t an action RPG. Still, as arcane as this game looks, my intelligence is high enough that I’ll pump a few points into having faith that Hidetaka Miyazaki and company know what they’re doing.

If you ever wished Hotline Miami was about actual animal men and not just men in animal masks, well, get a load of Kusan: City of Wolves – it’s exactly what I just described. That’s coming to PC as well as Switch, Xbox Series and both PlayStations.

The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake has been in development for several dumptrucks worth of hourglass-grade silica powder, but at some point this year, that’s supposedly coming out – and hopefully it’s worth the wait.

Another Ubisoft remake we’ve been hearing about for almost as long is Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag, which isn’t even officially announced, but will presumably come to modern consoles and PC if and when it ever gets released.

Valor Mortis is another first-person action soulslike from the studio behind Ghostrunner, which seems like a novel enough idea and hopefully has less spiders than Decrepit – and it’s coming to Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.

Originally slated for a fall 2025 release, Directive 8020: A Dark Pictures Game is the latest cinematic choose-your-own-adventure game from the folks at Supermassive, which is coming to Xbox Series, PS5, and PC.

Dune: Awakening has been going strong on PC for a while now, and at some point in the foreseeable future, it’ll be getting Xbox Series and PS5 versions as well.

And last but not least, 2026 marks the 30th anniversary of the launch of the Pokémon series. In addition to Pokopia, we’re also getting the strategy game Pokemon Champions – I have a hunch those aren’t the only two Pokémon games that’ll be dropping this year, but they’re the only two we officially know about right now.

So, there you go! That’s a look ahead at the biggest games coming in 2026 that we know about right now. Some of these might not actually come out in the next 12 months, but a whole lot more that I didn’t mention here that definitely will. If you want regular and slightly more accurate breakdowns of what games are coming on a more timely basis, keep an eye out for our monthly big game release videos – in fact, we should have one about January’s games, including a few that didn’t make it into this video.

I have no doubt in my mind that there’s some big huge obvious game coming out in 2026 that we forgot to mention, so please, whatever we forgot, share it in the comments. But also, and I always say this and very few people pay attention – tell us what the games we left out are about! Why should people care? Sharing a cool recommendation is one of the best feelings in the world, so if there’s a game you’re stoked on, tell us about it!

Score Persona 5 Tactica for $10 Today at Best Buy

2026 is a huge year for Persona, with the series celebrating its 30th anniversary. If you’ve yet to catch up on the series, now is the best time to do so. Beyond the standard mainline games, Persona has seen spin-offs here and there, but Persona 5, in particular, has seen a suite of them.

Persona 5 Strikers from Omega Force is actually set after the events of Persona 5, and the recently released Persona 5: The Phantom X brings many new characters into the fold. However, the most interesting spin-off is arguably Persona 5 Tactica, a strategy-based spin-off that is similar to XCOM. If you’ve yet to check out this game, Best Buy has a great deal to pick up a copy for only $10.

Persona 5 Tactica for $9.99

Persona 5 Tactica falls in line with the story of Persona 5, with the game actually taking place during the base game. One day, the party is transported away to an alternate reality called a Kingdom, and these worlds are where Tactica takes place. DLC was also made available for Persona 5 Tactica, in the form of Repaint Your Heart, which brought back familiar faces Goro Akechi and Kasumi Yoshizawa.

In each Kingdom, you control up to three characters and move them around a grid-based map to take down enemies. Many of Persona 5’s unique combat mechanics are implemented here in familiar ways, such as the 1 More mechanic when attacking an enemy and knocking them to the ground.

Noah Hunter is a freelance writer and reviewer with a passion for games and technology. He co-founded Final Weapon, an outlet focused on nonsense-free Japanese gaming (in 2019) and has contributed to various publishers writing about the medium.

PlayStation Plus January 2026 Game Line-Up Confirmed, Includes Need for Speed Unbound

Sony has announced the PlayStation Plus monthly games for January 2026, and the new year kicks off with Need for Speed Unbound, Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, and Core Keeper.

As detailed by PlayStation.Blog, these three games will be available to all PlayStation Plus members from January 6 until February 2.

This is also a great time to remind PlayStation Plus members that they also have until January 5 to add December’s games to their library, which include Lego Horizon Adventures, Killing Floor 3, The Outlast Trials, Synduality Echo of Ada, and Neon White.

2022’s Need for Speed Unbound leads the pack on PS5 and will give racers a chance to try out the latest entry in the beloved franchise. Unbound has separate single and multiplayer campaigns and encourages players to “race against time, outsmart the cops, and take on weekly qualifiers to reach The Grand, Lakeshore’s ultimate street racing challenge.”

In our Need for Speed Unbound review, we said it “hasn’t strayed very far from the fundamentals of 2019’s Heat, but its bold new animated style impresses.”

Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is up next on PS4 and PS5, and it’s a gorgeous remake of the 2010 title that first appeared on Nintendo Wii. In this 3D platformer, players become Mickey Mouse and venture to the Wasteland, a realm of forgotten Disney characters. And yes, you do get to encounter Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, who was Walt Disney’s first big character before Mickey.

In my preview of Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, I said, “what impressed me the most about Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is how much it looks and, perhaps most importantly, feels like a 2024 game.”

Rounding out the bunch is Core Keeper on PS4 and PS5, a 1-8 player mining sandbox adventure where you can “harvest relics and resources, craft advanced tools, build your base, and explore a dynamically evolving world waiting to be unearthed.”

Core Keeper is getting a big Void & Voltage Update (and a Switch 2 release!) on January 28, 2026, so this is a great time to jump aboard. The update includes a new biome called Breaker’s Reach, a new boss named S.A.H.A.B.A.R., an Advanced Automation Table, and much more.

For more, check out which game we crowned the best PlayStation game of 2025 alongside all of our other big winners of the year.

Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst, Instagram, and TikTok, and listen to his show, Talking Disney Magic.

Save Over 60% Off Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake at Amazon

It’s no secret that Dragon Quest is one of the most important RPG series of all time. Inspired by Wizardry, the Enix-published Famicom game has inspired thousands of famous RPGs. The genre simply wouldn’t exist the way it does today without Dragon Quest.

Last year, Square Enix finally released Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, the long-awaited remake of Erdrick’s adventure. Today at Amazon, you can save over 60% off an Xbox Series X copy, which is perfect for collectors and new adventurers alike.

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake for $22.23

As its name implies, Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake utilizes Square Enix’s HD-2D art style, which looks absolutely incredible. The blend of modern art design with crisp 2D sprites is endlessly charming, and the lighting systems in place really do wonders. Despite being the third game in the series, it is recommended that players begin with Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake before jumping ship to I & II. This is due to Dragon Quest III being a prequel.

In addition to the new visuals, DQIII HD-2D Remake also packs in numerous new features. For one, there is brand-new story content involving Ortega, the father of the protagonist. You also gain access to the new Monster Wrangler vocation, which is a ton of fun to try out. Beyond this, much of the game has voice acting, and an orchestrated soundtrack helps bring the world to life.

If you’re a fan of both turn-based combat and the RPG genre, you owe it to yourself to experience one of the medium’s defining entries. At $22, this is a steal for a game that easily packs in 60+ hours of content.

Noah Hunter is a freelance writer and reviewer with a passion for games and technology. He co-founded Final Weapon, an outlet focused on nonsense-free Japanese gaming (in 2019) and has contributed to various publishers writing about the medium.

Best Deals for Today: MTG Prices at Amazon and TCGPlayer, Scream 4K UHD Pre-order Deal, and More

Amazon has been dragging its feet when it comes to charging realistic prices for trading card games, especially with Pokémon TCG. Magic: The Gathering is playing out differently, however. We’re seeing healthy competition between Amazon and TCGPlayer during today’s price check, so there’s plenty of options to explore at the best prices.

Today’s highlights also include preorders for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Lorwyn Eclipsed, plus a scary movie exclusive pre-order you won’t want to miss.

TL;DR: Best Deals Today

With Amazon, you’re getting Prime delivery, with products shipping out either the same day or landing at your door within 24 hours. Whilst you don’t get the same speedy shipment with TCGPlayer merchants, you’re likely buying from them for the cheaper price points and big savings over big-box Amazon. Let’s get into it:

Get 20% Off All eSIM Plans at Roamless

Cheapest at Amazon: MTG

Commander Masters is the best set to get into if you love playing Commander and getting hold of legacy card reprints that are ideal for the format. It’s not cheap, but Amazon currently has the best pricing for Set and Draft booster boxes.
If you missed out on the Final Fantasy Universes Beyond set when it dropped earlier this year, the game edition of Cloud Strife’s Commander Deck, Limit Breaker, is at market value on Amazon right now. That just means you’re getting it for a fair price compared to the secondary market, whilst being able to take advantage of that sweet Prime shipping.

Cheapest at TCGPlayer – MTG

TCGPlayer is still holding the top spot for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Play Booster Box preorders. It’s a full $20 cheaper from its merchants right now, a saving worth getting over Prime shipping. The same goes for the Lorwyn Eclipsed Play Booster Box, a full $30 cheaper over Amazon’s price.

Fair enough, Amazon has its preorder price guarantee, but that only counts if they drop the price before release. You can’t price match other retailers with this guarantee, so if you see a steep discount on a preorder elsewhere, take your chances.

Get a Free Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G (2025) With Any Total Wireless Phone Plan

From now until January 7, or while supplies last, a Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G (2025) can be yours for no cost, and a trade-in isn’t required.

Cheapest at Amazon: Pokémon TCG

It’s great to see popular sets like Surging Sparks and Phantasmal Flames Elite Trainer Boxes crop up for less on Amazon, with the former being below market value alongside the Destined Rivals triple booster.

Cheapest at TCGPlayer: Pokémon TCG

It’s strange to see Silver Tempest sealed product showing up on Amazon right now. Perhaps we’ll see more Sword & Shield-era reprints on store shelves? Regardless, TCGPlayer has the Silver Tempest Elite Trainer Box for far less than Amazon, and the same goes for the Prismatic Evolutions ETB.

TCGPlayer also has the best deal on Destined Rivals Booster Bundles, currently sitting at $52.50. That means you get double the booster packs compared to the three-pack booster deal in the last section for less than double the price. TCGPlayer really has the no-brainer deals right now.

Scream (1996) Limited-Edition Steelbook (4K UHD) Available to Pre-order at 19% Off

Amazon is offering 19% off the Scream 4K UHD pre-order right now, set to release on February 17. A classic!

Skytech Gaming PC Holiday Sale

Considering we’ve just entered a memory chip shortage across the board, with even DDR4 RAM going for silly money, getting an RTX 5060 build with 32GB DDR4 for $1,079 is a great deal. You’ll have solid 1080p gaming with either an Intel i5-14400F or AMD Ryzen 7 5700 processor to boot. Personally, I’d go for the Crystal build. It costs the same and gives you far more room for bigger GPU upgrades down the line.

If you’re looking to go all-in with 4K gaming out of the box for under $3,000, the $2,799.99 Aqua build comes with a gorgeous clear white and blue case, complete with CPU liquid cooling, an RTX 5080, 32GB DDR5, and the absolute beast that is the Ryzen 7 9800X3D.

Christian Wait is a contributing freelancer for IGN covering everything collectable and deals. Christian has over 7 years of experience in the Gaming and Tech industry with bylines at Mashable and Pocket-Tactics. Christian also makes hand-painted collectibles for Saber Miniatures. Christian is also the author of “Pokemon Ultimate Unofficial Gaming Guide by GamesWarrior”. Find Christian on X @ChrisReggieWait.

Arise, Sir Idris! Actor Idris Elba Knighted in New Year Honours

Actor Idris Elba is knighted in the New Year Honours. The 53-year old Hollywood star from Hackney, London can now officially be called Sir Idris.

Sir Idris, who rose to prominence for playing Stringer Bell in HBO series The Wire and DCI John Luther in BBC series Luther, more recently played the British Prime Minister and the President of the United States, in Heads of State and A House of Dynamite respectively, both of which came out in 2025. Elba is no stranger to the world of video games, either, having played Solomon Reed in the Cyberpunk 2077 expansion, Phantom Liberty.

He was knighted for services to young people in recognition of his charity work at the Elba Hope Foundation, which supports community empowerment, education, youth advocacy, and sustainable development. In particular, Elba has been outspoken on knife crime. He said: “I hope we can do more to draw attention to the importance of sustained, practical support for young people and to the responsibility we all share to help them find an alternative to violence.”

Meanwhile, the actor and comedian Meera Syal (The Kumars at No 42) is being awarded a Damehood for services to Literature, Drama and Charity, while the composer Max Richter is being awarded a CBE (Commanders of the Order of the British Empire) for his services to Music. Actor Warwick Davis is also being recognised for services to Drama and Charity with an OBE (Officers of the Order of the British Empire). Davis said: “This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me — and I’ve been in Star Wars.”

An MBE (Members of the Order of the British Empire) went to Wicked star Cynthia Erivo, and the author and television presenter Richard Osman (Thursday Murder Club) is being awarded an OBE for his services to literature and broadcasting.

1,157 recipients have been awarded from every part of the UK, with a particular focus this year on those who have gone above and beyond for their communities.

Photo by Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images for The Red Sea International Film Festival.

Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Save on Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster Today at Amazon

In recent years, Square Enix has made quite an effort to remaster or remake some of its most beloved games and bring them to modern platforms. We’ve seen the incredible Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake, SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered, and Final Fantasy Tactics – The Ivalice Chronicles in 2025 alone!

However, one game that continues to be left out of that conversation is Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster, which released alongside the Nintendo Switch 2 in June. If you’re a recent Switch 2 owner and are looking for a new RPG to play, look no further than the fantastic game that is Bravely Default.

Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster for $29.99

Amazon has discounted Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster to $29.99 with a limited-time deal, which marks the lowest we’ve seen this game to date. Originally released in 2013 for the Nintendo 3DS, Bravely Default follows four heroes across the world of Luxendarc as they attempt to reclaim the world’s four crystals.

Bravely Default is a fascinating game for many reasons. It initially was set to be a Final Fantasy game, but it shifted mid-development into its own game despite retaining key elements of the series. Revo, best known for his work as Linked Horizon for Attack on Titan, composed the soundtrack, which is still, to this day, an incredible RPG soundtrack.

The remaster brought new minigames, a refreshed UI, and other solid quality-of-life features like fast-forward, encounter rate adjustments, and more. While this is unfortunately a Game-Key Card, the download is only 11GB, so you will not need much space available on your Switch 2 to download this one. This is one of the best Switch 2 games you can buy right now, so don’t miss out on this deal.

Noah Hunter is a freelance writer and reviewer with a passion for games and technology. He co-founded Final Weapon, an outlet focused on nonsense-free Japanese gaming (in 2019) and has contributed to various publishers writing about the medium.

Deals for Today: Pokémon TCG Price Check and Holiday Gaming PC Sale

We’re in post-Christmas deals territory, which is a surprisingly good time to shop. Off the rip, we’re seeing new price drops on pre-built gaming PCs, which are becoming all the more popular given the recent price increases on RAM alone.

Amazon has also bumped up its Pokémon TCG stock this holiday, but is anything worth buying? Of course it’s not. Well, there’s a handful of deals to be had, but the independent retailer army that makes up TCGPlayer is leading the way with the majority of the best prices on both the new and secondary market.

TL;DR: Top Deals for Today

Skytech has dropped some cracking deals on a range of their prebuilt gaming PCs before New Year’s Day, and we’re seeing RTX 5070 Ti builds for under $2,000 and RTX 5080 builds for under $2,800. Crazy scenes, let’s get into it.

iPhone 16e Offer From Metro by T-Mobile

Cheapest at Amazon: Pokémon TCG

It’s great to see popular sets like Surging Sparks and Phantasmal Flames Elite Trainer Boxes crop up for less on Amazon, with the former being below market value alongside the Destined Rivals triple booster.

Cheapest at TCGPlayer: Pokémon TCG

It’s strange to see Silver Tempest sealed product showing up on Amazon right now. Perhaps we’ll see more Sword & Shield-era reprints on store shelves? Regardless, TCGPlayer has the Silver Tempest Elite Trainer Box for far less than Amazon, and the same goes for the Prismatic Evolutions ETB.

TCGPlayer also has the best deal on Destined Rivals Booster Bundles, currently sitting at $52.50. That means you get double the booster packs compared to the three-pack booster deal in the last section for less than double the price. TCGPlayer really has the no-brainer deals right now.

Save Up to $460 on Top-Rated Narwal Robot and Mop Vac

Skytech Gaming PC Holiday Sale

Considering we’ve just entered a memory chip shortage across the board, with even DDR4 RAM going for silly money, getting an RTX 5060 build with 32GB DDR4 for $1,079 is a great deal. You’ll have solid 1080p gaming with either an Intel i5-14400F or AMD Ryzen 7 5700 processor to boot. Personally, I’d go for the Crystal build. It costs the same and gives you far more room for bigger GPU upgrades down the line.

If you’re looking to go all-in with 4K gaming out of the box for under $3,000, the $2,799.99 Aqua build comes with a gorgeous clear white and blue case, complete with CPU liquid cooling, an RTX 5080, 32GB DDR5, and the absolute beast that is the Ryzen 7 9800X3D.

Christian Wait is a contributing freelancer for IGN covering everything collectable and deals. Christian has over 7 years of experience in the Gaming and Tech industry with bylines at Mashable and Pocket-Tactics. Christian also makes hand-painted collectibles for Saber Miniatures. Christian is also the author of “Pokemon Ultimate Unofficial Gaming Guide by GamesWarrior”. Find Christian on X @ChrisReggieWait.

How to Play the Metal Gear Solid Games in Order: The Full MGS Timeline

Whether it’s Snake’s elevator ascent to the rainy cliffs of Shadow Moses or the climactic battle between student and mentor in the final moments of Snake Eater, Hideo Kojima and Konami’s epic spy thriller franchise, Metal Gear, is home to some of gaming’s most iconic moments. Telling a story that spanned multiple console generations and pushed the creative capabilities of video games to their limits, Solid Snake and Big Boss’ adventures are legendary, so much so that many claim they’re among the most important releases the medium has ever produced.

Back in 2015, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain seemingly ended the franchise for good, with Kojima leaving Konami and the Metal Gear Solid IP behind to form his own studio. However, Konami has started resurrecting the series through re-releases and remakes, like Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater coming out later this year. With so many new players experiencing this world of undercover espionage, shady government conspiracy and gruff-voiced dudes with cool eyepatches for the first time, we’ve laid out the chronological order of the Metal Gear Solid series so newcomers and returning fans can catch up.

Jump to:

How Many Metal Gear Solid Games Are There?

Not including remakes, ports or remasters, there are 17 total Metal Gear games: 11 mainline games, five on handheld devices and one on mobile. Although that’s a lot of games, a decent chunk of them are considered non-canon, with their stories overriding events from the main saga and spinning off into their own unique takes on the universe.

2018’s Metal Gear Survive takes place in an apocalyptic reality where a zombie virus has overtaken the world, so it falls outside the main canon. As for the PSP’s Metal Gear: Acid and Metal Gear: Acid 2, they veer from the timeline and tell a new story, making them alternate-timeline spin-offs. Then there’s the Game Boy Color’s Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, which is an alternate-universe Metal Gear sequel that wipes away the events of Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, thus removing it from the timeline. And finally, Metal Gear Mobile and Snake’s Revenge have since been deemed non-canon by the community and Kojima himself in interviews.

That leaves 11 games within the main storyline. Each game is considered part of the true Metal Gear Saga, spanning from a fictional alternate-history 1960s to the late 2010s. So, let’s run you through all the games in that story.

Which Metal Gear Should You Play First?

We recommend two potential starting points for Metal Gear. For those interested in the complete saga, we recommend 2023’s Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1, which includes the best available versions of Metal Gear Solid 1–3. Alternatively, for those interested in simply trying out the franchise (and for those with a lower tolerance for older games), we recommend starting with the series’ most contemporary iteration, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.

Metal Gear Games in Chronological Order

These blurbs contain mild spoilers for each game, including characters, settings, and story beats.

1. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

The first slot in the saga’s timeline and the most recent game to get a modern remake, Snake Eater follows a US Special Forces operative codenamed Naked Snake during the events of the Cold War. Sent to locate and extract a Russian scientist from the Soviet Union to prevent him from building a weapon of mass destruction known as the Shagohod, Snake’s shocked to find his former mentor, The Boss, has betrayed the US government and sided with the Soviets.

After a heated battle, Naked Snake is brutally defeated and left for dead in the jungle. Surviving the encounter, he’s tasked by his commanding officer, Zero, to return to Russia, find his mentor and kill her, all the while tracking down the Shagohod to prevent nuclear war. By the end of the story, Naked Snake adopts the moniker of Big Boss, becoming a legend among the US Special Forces. However, his battle with The Boss and the secrets he’s uncovered throughout his adventure leave him disillusioned with his duty and the government he serves.

Read our original review of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater or our new review of the MGS3 remake.

2. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops

Set six years after Big Boss’ climactic battle with his former mentor, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops picks up the legendary soldier’s story as he goes head to head with his former squad, FOX Unit. The game begins with Big Boss learning FOX has gone rogue, betraying the CIA and staging a revolt.

Captured and tortured on a Colombian base by FOX Unit, Boss breaks free but learns he’s been accused of treason. In a bid to clear his name, he decides to hunt down his former allies and pursue their ruthless leader, Gene. By the end of the game, Big Boss learns of Gene’s desire to create a nation of mercenary soldiers known as Army’s Heaven and acquires the mass of funds and equipment saved for the project. Returning to the US, he later forms a squadron of special ops soldiers known as FOXHOUND.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops.

3. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Four years after the events of Portable Ops, we catch up with Big Boss, who has left FOXHOUND and the Patriots. Since leaving, he’s formed a new band of mercenary soldiers known as Militaires Sans Frontières (or MSF) with Kazuhira Miller. Using their newfound army to protect countries that don’t have the forces or means to defend themselves, Big Boss and Miller wage war against an armed militia known as the Peace Sentinels after they invade Costa Rica.

During his investigation, Big Boss soon realizes that his former mentor, The Boss, is somehow involved in the Peace Sentinels’ plans. Worse, they have access to nuclear weapons, wielding a supremely powerful mech called the Peace Walker. Rallying on an off-shore oil rig known as Motherbase, Snake and the Militaires Sans Frontières take the fight to the Peace Sentinels, attempting to discover their true motive and secrets. The game ends with Big Boss battling his former ally Paz, who turns out to be a secret agent of Zero’s shady government organization, Cipher.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker.

4. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes

A few months following the events of Peace Walker, Ground Zeroes acts as a prologue to the fifth entry in the Metal Gear Solid series: Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. The story sees Big Boss embark on a new mission after learning that Paz survived their climactic battle during the final moments of Peace Walker and is being interrogated by Cipher at a mysterious military base known as Camp Omega. Knowing that she has crucial information about Cipher and could reveal secrets about MSF to the shadowy organization, he rushes to extract her.

While infiltrating the base, he discovers a mysterious Cipher cell known as XOF, which is led by a sadistic, severely burned commander called Skull Face. The prologue ends with Snake extracting Paz only to realize his allies are being attacked by the XOF back at Motherbase. The onslaught destroys the oil rig and eradicates Militaires Sans Frontières, leaving Big Boss on the cusp of death.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes.

5. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

Nine years later, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain opens with a severely injured Big Boss waking up in a hospital in Cyprus. Evading an assassination attempt where he’s attacked by a man covered in flames, a telekinetic soldier and a master sniper, Boss is saved by Revolver Ocelot and returns to action as he leads a new mercenary group known as the Diamond Dogs.

Swearing to stop the XOF after they destroyed Militaires Sans Frontières, he adopts the codename Venom Snake and heads to Africa to pick up their trail, learning that the former-Cipher-affiliated group went rogue. Their leader, Skull Face, is instead working on a devastating parasitic weapon with the power to eradicate the Western world. The game ends with Big Boss setting in motion his plans to create a military nation known as Outer Heaven, where soldiers are free to live without being used to further shady government plans.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain.

6. Metal Gear

11 years later, the story catches up with the first entry in the series: Metal Gear. The game follows Solid Snake: a rookie soldier and member of FOXHOUND. FOXHOUND is once again run by Big Boss, who acts as Snake’s mentor and commanding officer. On his first mission, Solid Snake is sent to track down a weapon of mass destruction being constructed in a military nation known as Outer Heaven.

During his mission, he finds another agent codenamed Grey Fox, who was also sent to track the weapon. Grey Fox reveals the mysterious weapon is a mech codenamed Metal Gear, which has the power to launch nuclear bombs. The game ends with Solid Snake and Big Boss coming to blows, with the latter revealing he was behind Outer Heaven’s plans.

Read our review of Metal Gear.

7. Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

Four years later, Solid Snake returns to action after he learns Big Boss survived the events of the previous game and is currently constructing a new Metal Gear for the fictional nation of Zanzibar Land.

Teaming with various characters, Snake infiltrates Zanzibar Land and attempts to destroy the weapon of mass destruction, battling Big Boss and his army of soldiers along the way.

See more about Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake.

8. Metal Gear Solid

Six years after Metal Gear 2, Solid Snake returns in a new mission. This time he’s sent to battle his former unit, FOXHOUND, which has gone rogue, turned against the US and taken over a mysterious government facility on an island known as Shadow Moses. Shadow Moses is allegedly a test site for a secret Metal Gear, with FOXHOUND threatening to use its nuclear weapons if they aren’t supplied with Big Boss’ corpse and a large sum of money.

Snake heads to the facility and fights various members of FOXHOUND, including Revolver Ocelot, Psycho Mantis and a Cyborg version of his former ally, Greyfox. He also meets the eccentric leader of FOXHOUND, Liquid Snake. The game ends with Snake being declared killed-in-action by Colonel Campbell and presumed dead by the government after they intended to double-cross him. He flees Shadow Moses alive.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid or see more of the best PS1 games.

9. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty opens two years later, with a now-rogue Solid Snake infiltrating an oil tanker while hunting down a new Metal Gear being transported to the US. There he discovers a prototype Metal Gear known as Metal Gear Ray, which is subsequently stolen by Revolver Ocelot. Ocelot sinks the tanker and escapes, while Snake is blamed for the tanker’s destruction.

Two years later, we shift to a new protagonist: Raiden. An agent of FOXHOUND, Raiden is sent on a mission to an off-shore decontamination facility known as Big Shell, which was constructed to clear the crude oil spill caused when the oil tanker was destroyed during Solid Snake’s mission. Big Shell has been hijacked by a militant group known as the Sons of Liberty, which has taken the US president hostage.

Infiltrating the facility, Raiden soon discovers things aren’t quite what they seem, looking into Big Shell’s secrets and meeting a junior lieutenant named Iroquois Pliskin, who’s clearly hiding a big secret. By the end of the game, Solid Snake joins Raiden’s mission, telling him he’s going after Ocelot (who it’s revealed is possessed by the will of Liquid Snake) and the Patriots.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty or check out more of the best PS2 games.

10. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

Marking the end of the main story and Solid Snake’s final mission, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots catches up with Snake three years after the events of Sons of Liberty. Due to the cloning process used to create Snake and the rampant FOXDIE virus still coursing through his veins, we discover that his body is rapidly aging, with the protagonist being told he only has a year left to live. Donning a new nickname, Old Snake, he returns for one final mission.

He’s to assassinate Liquid Ocelot, who is currently running a new version of Outer Heaven which is comprised of some of the biggest private militaries in the Middle East. Equipping his body with nanomachines, Snake sets out to bring Ocelot down, learning that his nemesis intends to once again locate Big Boss’ corpse and execute a mysterious plan. As Snake battles his age and the lingering FOXDIE mutating in his body, he makes his way towards a final confrontation with his most ruthless enemy.

Read our review of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

11. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

The final story in the current Metal Gear timeline, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance focuses on Raiden who, as we learned during Guns of the Patriots, has transformed into a cyborg. The story picks up four years after Metal Gear Solid 4, revealing that Raiden now works with a private military company called Maverick Security Consulting.

During an operation in Africa, Raiden is attacked by a rival private military group known as Desperado Enforcement. Wounded and left for dead by its commander, Jet Stream Sam, Raiden continues his investigation into Desperado and learns some sinister secrets about the group and its allies. As the revelations about the private military grow darker, Raiden swears to bring them down, setting off on his own to deliver violent justice.

Read our review of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.

What’s Next for Metal Gear?

Now that we’ve gotten our hands on the Snake Eater remake, questions remain about what we might see next in the stealth franchise. Konami hasn’t confirmed whether they ever plan to make original Metal Gear games without Hideo Kojima. What we do know for sure is the original games’ messaging about the digital age is as poignant as ever in 2025.

That being said, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater developer Virtuous Studios did tease that remakes of other Metal Gear games aren’t off the table. Speaking with IGN, the team said, “Regarding remakes of previous games in the series other than Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, we will listen to player demand and consider accordingly.” True to their claims, the studio is rumored to being spreading a poll after Tokyo Games Show that lets fans vote on which Metal Gear game to remake next.

For more game timelines, also see Assassin’s Creed Games in Order and a list of Far Cry Games in order.

Callum Williams is a freelance media writer with years of experience as a game critic, news reporter, guides writer and features writer.

How to Play the Assassin’s Creed Games in Chronological Order

Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed franchise has covered a lot of ground in its 18 years. The Assassin-Templar conflict has taken players across five continents, from Ancient Greece to Victorian London, spanning 2,300 years of history over the course of 13 mainline games.

With the upcoming release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, we’ve put together this chronology of the Assassin’s Creed timeline so far. This chronology only includes mainline Assassin’s Creed games; spinoff games aren’t included on this list given their lack of importance to the ongoing Assassin’s Creed narrative.

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How Many Assassin’s Creed Games Are There?

There are currently 14 Assassin’s Creed games in the main series and 17 additional spinoff games. Outside of video games, there is also an Assassin’s Creed board game and an Assassin’s Creed TV series supposedly in the works at Netflix.

Which Assassin’s Creed Game Should You Play First?

There’s quite a few places you could start in the Assassin’s Creed timeline, and I personally recommend picking the game set in an era that you find most interesting. That said, it’s hard to deny that the original Ezio trilogy (Assassin’s Creed 2, Brotherhood, and Revelations) has some of the best writing in the series. If you’re interested in more recent games, Black Flag is a solid entry point with seafaring pirate gameplay, while Assassin’s Creed Odyssey lets you dive into world of ancient Greece.

How to Play the Assassin’s Creed Game In Order

There are two ways to look at the Assassin’s Creed chronology. First: In the order of the games’ modern-day storylines. This option makes sense considering the connective narrative of each mainline game is told through the present day. The present-day story progresses chronologically with each release, so if you’d like to play the games this way, simply scroll down to the section how to play the Assassin’s Creed games by release date. If you’re committed to playing through the entirety of the franchise, this is the order we recommend, as it’s the best way to follow the overarching story and experience the franchise’s evolution from stealth-action games to open-world RPGs.

The second option (detailed below) presents the games in order by their historic settings. These stories aren’t as intertwined as their modern-day counterparts, but they’re where you’ll spend the vast majority of your time in Assassin’s Creed. This is more useful as a matter of interest than a practical playing guide.

The Assassin’s Creed Games in Chronological Order

With series newcomers in mind, the brief plot synopses below contain only mild spoilers such as broad plot points, historical settings, and character introductions.

1. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (431 B.C.–422 B.C.)

  • Primary setting: Ancient Greece
  • Historic Protagonist: Cassandra or Alexios
  • Modern Protagonist: Layla Hassan

Set nearly 400 years earlier than any other mainline game, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey expanded on the RPG elements introduced in Origins to complete its genre-turn from stealth-based action to open-world RPG.

You play as Cassandra or Alexios, the grandchildren of Sparta’s King Leonidas I. Odyssey is set during the Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens, and features key historical figures from that period, including Hippocrates, Socrates, and Plato. It weaves the period’s history with its mythology, introducing creatures such as the Sphinx, Cyclops, and Medusa.

Odyssey is set before the formation of the Assassin and Templar orders, though it does feature a key Piece of Eden* in the Spear of Leonidas.

*Pieces of Eden are powerful technological artifacts created by a precursor race of beings known as The First Civilization. The pieces of Eden and the First Civilization are constants throughout the mainline games that connect the past and modern storylines.

2. Assassin’s Creed Origins (49 B.C.–44 B.C.)

  • Primary setting: Ancient Egypt
  • Historic Protagonist: Bayek of Siwa
  • Modern Protagonist: Layla Hassan

After releasing a new Assassin’s Creed game each year from 2009-2015, Ubisoft took a year off and returned in 2017 with Assassin’s Creed Origins, a soft reboot of the franchise and the series’ first game to introduce RPG mechanics.

Origins is primarily set in Ancient Egypt during the reigns of Ptolemy XIII and Cleopatra, though its historic inspiration extends to Rome and the rule of Julius Caesar. Many Assassin’s Creed stories kick off as tales of vengeance, only to unfurl into larger-scale tales of political conspiracy. Origins follows this pattern: The death of Bayek and Aya’s son serves as the impetus for their journey, though as the story progresses, the duo uncover a proto-Templar organization called the Order of the Ancients and ultimately form the Hidden Ones, the first incarnation of the Assassins.

The modern story, meanwhile, introduces Layla Hassan, who serves as the present-day protagonist for Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla.

3. Assassin’s Creed Mirage (861–???)

  • Primary setting: 9th Century Baghdad
  • Historic Protagonist: Basim Ibn Ishaq
  • Modern Protagonist: N/A

Released in 2023, Assassin’s Creed Mirage is the series’ most recent installment. Rather than a full-priced open-world RPG, Mirage is a $50 USD stealth-focused adventure designed as “an homage to the first Assassin’s Creed games.” Ubisoft describes it as “a shorter, more narrative-driven game than recent entries in the series.”

Assassin’s Creed Mirage stars a 17-year-old Basim Ibn Ishaq, a street thief with “nightmarish visions” who’d go on to play a critical role in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Mirage will tell the story of Basim, with the guidance of his mentor Roshan, escaping Baghdad en route to the Hidden Ones’ fortress of Alamut.

Unlike the other entries on this list, Mirage doesn’t prominently feature the present-day storyline. You can read our full review of Assassin’s Creed Mirage for more details.

4. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (872–878)

  • Primary setting: 9th Century England and Norway
  • Historic Protagonist: Eivor Varinsson/Varinsdottir
  • Modern Protagonist: Layla Hassan

Assassin’s Creed’s Valhalla is the series’ venture into Norse history and mythology. It’s easily the series’ biggest game; the average time to complete its main story is 60 hours, according to How Long to Beat (15 hours longer than the next biggest, Odyssey). Like Odyssey, Valhalla integrates its setting’s history with its mythology, introducing real-life characters — King Harald Fairhair, King Aelfred the Great, Rollo — and mythological figures such as Fenrir and Odin.

It continues the conflict between the Hidden Ones and the Order of the Ancients while balancing the more personal tale of Eivor and their clan’s pilgrimage from a resource-barren Norway to the more fertile lands of England.

The modern-day story seemingly concludes the three-game arc of Layla Hassan.

5. Assassin’s Creed (1191)

  • Primary setting: 12th Century Holy Land (Acre, Damascus, Jerusalem)
  • Historic Protagonist: Altair Ibn’La-Ahad
  • Modern Protagonist: Desmond Miles

The first Assassin’s Creed takes place 300 years after Valhalla and introduces us to the series’ original protagonist, Altair Ibn’La-Ahad. Assassin’s Creed laid the groundwork for the franchise’s next 15 years of success, introducing foundational gameplay elements like climbing and assassinations while also laying the groundwork for the time-hopping Assassin-Templar narrative.

It introduces key narrative concepts like the Pieces of Eden and the Animus, the in-universe device that allows each game’s modern-day protagonist to relive the memories of their historic counterparts through DNA.

The past story sees Altair hunting down nine Templars during the Third Crusade, while the present-day story introduces Desmond Miles and the modern Assassin-Templar conflict that runs through AC III.

6. Assassin’s Creed II (1476–1499)

  • Primary setting: 15th Century Italy
  • Historic Protagonist: Ezio Auditore da Firenze
  • Modern Protagonist: Desmond Miles

Assassin’s Creed 2 introduced the series’ longest-lasting protagonist, Ezio Auditore da Firenze. A favorite among Assassin’s Creed fans, Ezio’s story ran from 2009’s AC II through 2011’s AC: Revelations.

Ezio seeks to avenge the death of his father and brother, though his hunt for vengeance leads him to uncover a bigger conspiracy and places him at the center of the fight between the Assassins and Templars. Assassin’s Creed II takes players throughout Italy, from Florence to the Vatican, and introduces Ezio to historical figures like Leonardo Da Vinci, Niccolo Machiavelli, and Pope Alexander VI.

In the present day, Desmond begins his work with the Assassins.

7. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (1499–1507)

  • Primary setting: 15th-16th Century Italy
  • Historic Protagonist: Ezio Auditore da Firenze
  • Modern Protagonist: Desmond Miles

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood is a continuation of AC II in both the past and modern-day storylines. The fallout from AC II creates a new antagonist for Ezio, who embarks on another revenge quest while working to rebuild Rome’s weakened Assassins Guild and retrieve the Apple of Eden.

In the present day, Desmond and the modern Assassins head to Italy in search of that same Apple of Eden, a Piece of Eden that may help them prevent the prophesized end of the world.

8. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations (1511–1512)

  • Primary setting: 16th Century Constantinople
  • Historic Protagonist: Ezio Auditore da Firenze
  • Modern Protagonist: Desmond Miles

The conclusion of the Ezio trilogy unites the narrative of the Italian assassin with his predecessor, Altair. An older Ezio travels to Constantinople in search of Altair’s hidden library, which was thought to contain invaluable wisdom. In Constantinople, Ezio searches for the keys needed to open the library — each of which possesses a key memory in Altair’s life. Assassin’s Creed Revelations ultimately reveals Ezio’s role in the wider AC narrative.

In the present, a comatose Desmond is trapped in the Animus, where he works with a past Animus user to escape “the Black Room” and return to consciousness.

Revelations also features one of the series’ best trailers (above) first shown at E3 2011.

9. Assassin’s Creed Shadows (1581)

  • Primary setting: Feudal Japan
  • Historic protagonist: Naoe and Yasuke
  • Modern protagonist: N/A

The newest Assassin’s Creed game heads to Feudal Japan during the civil wars in the late Sengoku period. Assassin’s Creed Shadows features dual protagonists, each with unique gameplay, though Ubisoft has emphasized that players won’t be missing out by only playing one route. Yasuke is an African mercenary who becomes a samurai in service of Oda Nobunaga. That service leads him to the Iga province, home of shinobi-in-training Naoe, and tragedy brings the two together in a quest for vengeance.

Like Mirage, Shadows doesn’t have its own modern-day protagonist. Instead, the new game coincides with the release of the Animus Hub, which brings the Assassin’s Creed franchise into a single platform and adds additional “modern-day subplots” as well as a reward system to the game.

10. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag (1715–1722)

  • Primary setting: 18th Century Caribbean Islands
  • Historic Protagonist: Edward Kenway
  • Modern Protagonist: Unnamed Abstergo Employee

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag is best remembered for introducing the series’ naval gameplay. It’s set two centuries after Ezio’s trilogy and roughly 40 years before the previously released Assassin’s Creed III.

Black Flag stars Edward Kenway, an 18th-century pirate and the grandfather of AC III protagonist Connor Kenway. It features notorious real-life pirates of the era, such as Edward Thatch (Blackbeard), Benjamin Hornigold, and Mary Read. It also introduces Adéwalé, the protagonist of the DLC-turned-standalone-spinoff Freedom Cry. After unknowingly killing an Assassin, Edward finds himself embroiled in the Assassin-Templar conflict and on the hunt for a secret First Civilization site known as The Observatory.

The modern-day story stars an unnamed Abstergo employee tasked with reliving Connor’s life in order to create a film (though, unsurprisingly, Abstergo’s true intentions are more nefarious).

11. Assassin’s Creed Rogue (1752–1760)

  • Primary setting: 18th Century American Northeast
  • Historic Protagonist: Shay Patrick Cormac
  • Modern Protagonist: Abstergo Employee “Numbskull”

Assassin’s Creed Rogue serves as a narrative bridge between AC III and AC IV. It stars Shay Patrick Cormac, an Irish-American Assassin turned Templar hunting down a Piece of Eden. Templar Grand Master Haytham Kenway, the son of AC 4 protagonist Edward and father of AC III protagonist Connor, appears throughout the story.

In the present, you play as another Abstergo employee, referred to as “Numbskull,” doing the bidding of the modern-day Templars.

12. Assassin’s Creed III (1754–1783)

  • Primary setting: 18th Century Colonial America
  • Historic Protagonist: Ratonhnhaké “Connor” Kenway
  • Modern Protagonist: Desmond Miles

Following a 1754-set sequence during which you play as Haythem Kenway, Assassin’s Creed 3 begins in earnest with Haythem’s son Ratonhnhaké:ton, a.k.a Connor. Set largely during the American Revolution, Connor seeks to protect his tribe from the war and the First Civilization’s Grand Temple from the Templars.

AC III is loaded with historical figures, including George Washington, Sam Adams, Charles Lee, and Benjamin Franklin.

The present-day story concludes Desmond’s arc, as he and the other modern-day Assassins gather in the aforementioned Grand Temple to prevent the prophesized end of the world on December 21, 2012.

13. Assassins Creed Unity (1789–1794)

  • Primary setting: 18th Century France
  • Historic Protagonist: Shay Patrick Cormac
  • Modern Protagonist: Unnamed Helix Player

While Assassin’s Creed Unity features scenes that span from 1307 to the mid-1900s, it’s primarily set during the height of the French Revolution from 1789 to 1794. It stars French Assassin Arno Dorian, who becomes involved in the Assassin-Templar conflict while embarking on yet another quest for vengeance.

Historical figures include Napoléon Bonaparte, Marquis de Sade, and King Louis XVI.

Unity’s modern-day story is among the least memorable, as it removed gameplay entirely in favor of cutscenes and ultimately proved inconsequential to the ongoing narrative. You play as a gamer playing Helix, Abstergo’s Animus-powered gaming software created to push Templar propaganda and collect unsuspecting users’ DNA.

14. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate (1868)

  • Primary setting: Victorian London
  • Historic Protagonists: Jacob and Evie Frye
  • Modern Protagonist: Unnamed Helix Player

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate stars dual protagonists Jacob and Evie Frye, twin Assassins clearing London of Templar control while seeking a Piece of Eden. While a certain side mission extends the timeline to WWI, the majority of Syndicate is set in 1868. Notable historical figures include Alexander Graham Bell, Charles Darwin, and in the future sequence, Winston Churchill.

Syndicate stars the same modern-day character as Unity, who’s working with the Assassins to locate another Piece of Eden in London.

Upcoming Assassin’s Creed Games

Ubisoft’s latest AC game is Assassin’s Creed Shadows. We have tidbits of information about the next mainline Assassin’s Creed game, codenamed titled Assassin’s Creed Hexe, which will feature “witchier” vibes. Several remakes of older Assassin’s Creed games are also in development, according to Ubisoft’s CEO. The one remake we know for sure is in the pipeline is Black Flag, with the new ‘Resynced’ version theoretically launching in March 2026.

As far as we know, a live action Assassin’s Creed show is still in the works at Netflix, while Tencent’s mobile-exclusive game, Assassin’s Creed Jade, was delayed to 2025.

Jordan covers games, shows, and movies as a freelance writer for IGN.