10 RPGs Coming in 2026 that You Need To Wishlist Now

2026 is looking like a promising year for gaming as a whole. With plenty of interesting strategy titles already announced, now we are taking a look at some of the best upcoming RPGs set to hit storefronts this year. The RPG genre is one of the most popular in gaming for good reason, often giving players plenty of freedom to choose how they wish to interact with them.

While the term is used more broadly now than ever before, these games certainly plan to live up to their 'RPG' status. Whether it's presenting players with complex open worlds or varied class systems to choose from, these games are among the most highly anticipated releases coming in 2026.

10 Alkahest

Poisons and Potions

A grimdark medieval adventure RPG, Alkahest has already impressed audiences with its impressive gameplay trailer, showcasing a focus on poisons and enchanted oils to cut down goblins in a highly cinematic game world. The game is more than just a visual feast, though; the variety of potions, trinkets, and abilities promises to offer a lot of creative solutions to overcoming enemies and traversing the landscape.

Alkahest also appears to feature parkour elements, with a focus on dungeons and combat in a world that seems incredibly hostile to mere humans. The game doesn't simply stop at hack-and-slash either, with a story centered around the son of a Petty Lord, trying to make a name for himself in the kingdom of Kadanor.

9 Chronicles: Medieval

A New Immersive Medieval Sim

Chronicles: Medieval is quickly becoming one of the most anticipated games of the year, and not just in the medieval genre. This debut title from indie developer Raw Power Games promises to be a giant dynamic medieval sandbox where players are free to choose how they want to live their lives within it.

Whether you want to remain a humble merchant or climb the ranks as an esteemed knight, it appears that Chronicles: Medieval will let you do it all. While we haven't seen a lot in terms of gameplay, the early signs still look good and the atmosphere is absolutely perfect for a game of this era.

8 Blind Descent

What's Down There?

It's hard to make a sci-fi survival and crafting game stand out these days, but Blind Descent has managed to do precisely that with its charming aesthetic and focus on gorgeous world design. Having crash-landed on an alien planet filled with incredible plant life, insects, animals and much more, you'll have to learn the ecology and use it to your advantage if you are to have any hope of surviving.

This game seems to be about more than just crafting and survival, though, with a Subnautica-style mystery to unravel and a world that feels like a throwback to a Clark Ashton Smith story. Not everything is just beauty and aesthetics here, though. There is plenty lurking beneath the surface, and it's your job to find out exactly what's down there.

7 Solasta 2

One for the Fantasy Crowd

Is it just me or do tabletop adaptations almost always produce great games? Solasta 2 is looking to continue that trend following the success of the first game, and this fantasy game shouldn't go under your radar if you're a fan of turn-based tactical RPGs. Set in the fictional world of Neokos, this adventure takes place ten years after the first, though it seems as though it can be enjoyed as a standalone experience.

If you're a fan of Baldur's Gate 3 or the original Dragon Age series, this could be the game for you. Like most games using any form of D&D ruleset, play choice is at the heart of every quest line, with your decisions often going on to have further effects both on your character and the world around you. As of last month, the game has in fact already entered early access, so you can jump in and get a taste for what's to come when the game finally gets its official release.

6 Light No Fire

Medieval Man's Sky

After the ambitious No Man's Sky project, Hello Games' next venture takes to the fantasy genre, though with equal ambition, as it seeks to give players an entire dynamic planet to explore. Trading spaceships for sorcery, Light No Fire seems to be a promising MMO which really aims to put the 'Massive' into 'Massive Multiplayer Online'.

While the initial launch of No Man's Sky was disappointing, the developers clearly learned a lot and improved the game considerably over time. It seems that players will be able to craft, tame animals, and customize characters, among other things. However, unlike vanilla No Man's Sky, there seems to be a much higher probability of actually meeting other players this time.

5 Clockwork Revolution

Political Steampunk Action

One of the more unique titles scheduled to launch at some time in 2026 is inXile Entertainment's Clockwork Revolution. This steampunk RPG from the developers of the Wasteland series gives you an entire city to explore, complete with political factions and a variety of bizarre inventions.

What makes the game more than a mere BioShock clone is the sense that the world seemingly changes depending upon your actions, and with time-travel interwoven into the game's story, it seems that players will be able to influence events and outcomes across multiple timelines. I'm personally excited about this one in particular, as BioShock Infinite is among my favorite games of all time.

4 The Blood of the Dawnwalker

A Gothic Vampire Adventure

The latest craze in the vampire game world is that of the upcoming The Blood of the Dawnwalker. From a small team of former Witcher developers comes this action-heavy and seemingly well-fleshed-out game world in which players take on the role of a half-breed human-vampire.

Featuring the staple heavy and impactful combat that is immediately recognizable from the Witcher games, this title similarly includes a protagonist with supernatural abilities and a game world inspired by Eastern European folklore. It's certainly not one for the faint-hearted though, with plenty of gore and horror elements as we have come to expect from the genre.

3 Gothic 1 Remake

Reimagining an Old Classic

The upcoming Gothic 1 Remake is one of the most anticipated remakes I can remember in recent years, and for good reason. For fans of the original series, this fantasy RPG was up there with the very best in the genre and even rivaled the likes of the early Witcher and Elder Scrolls games. Under new management, the series is making a comeback after a 20-year hiatus, and looks very promising based on the early trailers.

On top of their near-limitless freedom, the Gothic games were also known for their lore-rich game world, interesting characters, and great quest design. It seems like an open goal, and if Piranha Bites and THQ Nordic are able to even replicate 80% of the original game, then it seems like it will be a great success.

2 The Expanse: Osiris Reborn

Expanding the Universe

Following on from the Telltale series called The Expanse, Osiris Reborn promises to be a much less linear and more open-ended experience set within the same sci-fi universe. Based on the novel series by James S. A. Corey, The Expanse takes place across various off-world ships and settlements, but remains relatively grounded in terms of its 'hard science' content.

Rather than the choice-based and narrative-driven gameplay of the first game, this follow-up looks like it will, quite literally, expand on the original in every possible way. This time around, it's seems to be a fully-fledged RPG with more action and more freedom, but with player choice still very much at the heart of it.

1 Subnautica 2

Bigger, Darker, and Deeper

Despite what appears to have been a tumultuous development cycle, it does seem that Subnautica 2, the follow-up to the beloved underwater exploration adventure, might actually see the light of day in 2026. Taking players deep beneath the surface with all kinds of bizarre and fantastical alien sea creatures, Subnautica 2 promises to deliver on more the nautical adventure, and terror, that the first game produced.

Players can explore at their own pace and uncover various sci-fi mysteries along the way, but there are also extensive base building mechanics, so you can truly live a second life under the waves. While we don't know yet exactly what state the final game will be in when it releases, the bar has been set extremely high for this series.