Intro
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Covering games in one form or another means I end up publishing a lot of negativity, be it about individual games or the industry as a whole. I wanted to start the new year off with something positive, so I decided to put together a small list of games that I’m looking forward to and that are coming fairly soon. For this list, I chose games with defined release dates rather than vague early 2026 announcements. They aren’t in any particular order. They are just games that I’m excited to play, and maybe after reading this, you will be too!
Mewgenics
Mewgenics is a supremely weird game. If you know the name Edmund McMillen, that won’t be a surprise. If you don’t know, he was behind one of the most popular rogue-lites ever, Binding of Issac. As a big fan of rogue-lites, I…wasn’t actually able to get into Binding of Issac, I just found it to be a bit too disturbing and gross for my taste. However, I recognize the impact that the game had on the rogue-lite genre.
Mewgenics is definitely going to be a bit on the gross side as well. However, I’m interested in trying to stomach it for a couple of reasons. It’s a game about breeding mutant cats to take part in tactical turn-based combat. First of all, that’s such a wild idea that I have to check it out. Secondly, I’m expecting Mewgenics to be a very deep game given Binding of Issacs’ reputation. Going by the Steam description, there are 75 unique abilities, 900+ items, and 200+ enemies and bosses. That’s a lot of stuff for a tactics game.
Mewgenics is a game that is as likely to gross me out as it is to make PETA spontaneously combust, but the concept is incredibly intriguing, and it’s backed up by solid game development talent. Mewgenics releases on PC on February 10th.
Toxic Commando
Take the co-op zombie shooting of something like World War Z, and combine it with the vehicle simulation of Snowrunner, and you have Toxic Commando. It’s quite literally being developed by Saber Interactive, the team behind both of those games. For whatever reason, combining the two makes me super excited. I’ve always liked Mad Max style stuff, and the thought of dealing with things like winching a vehicle while fighting off mutant zombies with my friends just seems awesome.
To top it off, the game is running on the swarm engine, the same engine powering Space Marine 2, so battling the swarms should be a ton of fun. I’m a little worried about how the game plays if you have less than a full team, but other than that, I’m hyped. I’m a big fan of vehicle simulation games like Snowrunner, and having that concept blended in an action shooter could turn out to be something special.
I do hope that Toxic Commando leans into the teamwork aspect, at least at higher difficulties. I really need a Helldivers 2 replacement since Arrowhead butchered that game into a lone wolf power fantasy. The good news is, I won’t have to wait long to find out. Toxic Commando releases on PC, Xbox Series, and PlayStation 5 on March 12th.
Menace
Menace is a new game by the team that was behind Battle Brothers, which would have been enough to make me excited alone. Menace is the team’s take on an X-COM-style game, and it looks fantastic. You command both infantry and vehicles in tactical turn-based combat while managing a mobile base of operations aboard a spaceship.
While you command entire squads, Menace still taps into an element that’s important to the X-COM games, which is having soldiers you care about. In Menace, it’s the squad leaders, each of whom grows as you play, assuming they survive, of course. The only downside is that Menace is launching into early access, a practice that I’m exceptionally fatigued with. These days, I want the full experience the first time I play, and so half my freaking wishlist is full of games in early access as I impatiently wait for them to finish development.
That said, I may be making an exception with Menace. If the state of its early access release is full of content and if it’s expected to have a relatively short early access period, I’m probably going to pick it up on day 1. Battle Brothers is a good enough game to give Overhype Studios the benefit of a doubt. Menace releases into Steam early access on February 5th.
Mars Tactics
Mars Tactics is another X-COM style game with some very intriguing twists. One of which is that terrain and environment are fully destructible, opening up all kinds of tactical options in combat. Secondly is the asymmetry. You can play one of two sides, both of which have different mechanics and playstyles. You can play as the Labor Union fighting for the liberation of Mars, or the Capital that is beholden to Earth’s interests.
These types of games tend to be replayable as it is, but having the option to play two separate sides that have unique ways to play should balloon that replay value to orbital heights. Unfortunately, like Menace, Mars Tactics is also releasing into early access. However, I’m optimistic due to a few words from the developer. Essentially, the game is in a mature state, and they want to take the shortest path possible to a 1.0 release.
They don’t want the game to lose momentum in early access. That, to me, is how early access should be, short and sweet, not rotting there for years. Hopefully, that’s the case, if the game is already as mature as they claim, then I will likely pick up Mars Tactics when it releases into Steam Early Access in May.
Masters of Albion
Back in 2001 when Lionhead Studios and Peter Molyneux were in their prime, they released a game called Black & White and later a sequel. These two games are some of my all time favorites, ever. They were God games where you managed villages of people with the aid of a giant animal that you trained.
Let me tell you, there were things in those games that have never been replicated. The AI for the big animal creatures is more impressive than any of the slop that generative” AI” produces today, and the games are over 20 years old. Peter Molyneux has never hit that high again. He and his teams are undoubtedly talented, but the man’s unrealistic ambition is only matched by his mouth, where he oversells that ambition.
Masters of Albion is his new game, and the closest I’m likely ever going to get to playing Black & White again. While I will absolutely not believe a single thing that Molyneux says until the game is in my hands, it does look intriguing anyway. It’s very reminiscent of Black & White, right down to the floating hand casting spells. Sadly, there are no intelligent animal companions, but you can warp down and control single entities, such as heroes and animals. That’s a pretty novel concept that could be awesome if applied right.
One of the other interesting things is that Masters of Albion isn’t just a builder game. You’re building a village, sure, but with the knowledge that it’s going to be attacked at night. There’s a friction that’s not present in many of these style games, and I think that will ultimately work in the game’s favor. I don’t think Masters of Albion will ever dislodge Black & White from my heart, the animal companion is just too important. But if it can capture the sandbox feel, and the physical fun of throwing boulders around, and mix that with a mechanical gameplay loop. I think it could be pretty great anyway. Masters of Albion releases April 22nd
Ending Notes
This is far from all the games I’m looking forward to in 2026, but I wanted to stick to ones that had dates, or at least a release month. As more dates for more games are set in stone, I’ll consider making more lists like these if they are popular. One of my favorite things to do is introduce people to games they might enjoy, especially ones that might otherwise fly under the radar. Until next time, happy gaming!
