Join to get exclusive perks & news!

Top Games Releasing In January 2026 You Should Be Excited About

1-15

Ignacio Weil

Galleries - December 30th 2025, 23:59 GMT+1

Quarantine Zone The Last Check cropped processed by imagy — Quarantine Zone: The Last Check (PC) — January 12, 2026

Running a checkpoint in a zombie outbreak sounds like a solid career move until you realize your job description is basically “spot the apocalypse, but politely.” *Quarantine Zone: The Last Check* leans hard into the tense fantasy of paperwork under pressure: screen survivors, make calls with limited info, and hope your “gut feeling” isn’t just caffeine and denial. The fun (and dread) comes from the loop of scanning, sorting, and managing a fragile little ecosystem behind the barricade—because the line keeps growing, supplies keep shrinking, and one bad decision can turn your organized system into a very loud mistake. It’s part management sim, part moral juggling act, and fully the kind of game where you’ll swear you’re being rational while doing something completely unhinged “for the greater good.” | © Brigada Games

The Legend of Heroes Trails beyond the Horizon cropped processed by imagy — The Legend of Heroes: Trails beyond the Horizon (PS5, PS4, Switch 2, Switch, PC) — January 15, 2026

If your idea of a relaxing January is “multiple protagonists, continent-level stakes, and a lore vault that could qualify as real estate,” this one is here to enable you. This entry pushes the *Trails* formula forward with a big Calvard canvas, character relationships that actually matter, and combat that mixes real-time movement with turn-based decision-making—so you’re toggling between reflex and strategy instead of picking a single personality trait. The hook is that milestone-series feeling: politics, secrets, and people with very serious titles walking into very unserious personal disasters. Expect the usual *Trails* strengths—worldbuilding that never stops talking, in a good way—plus the kind of momentum that makes “I’ll play for an hour” a legally dubious promise. | © Nihon Falcom

Broken Lore UNFOLLOW — BrokenLore: UNFOLLOW (PS5, PC) — January 16, 2026

Some horror games go for haunted houses; this one goes for something more modern and somehow more exhausting: the psychological mess of online cruelty that won’t log off when you do. *BrokenLore: UNFOLLOW* is first-person and story-driven, dropping you into a surreal nightmare where bullying, anxiety, and distorted spaces blur together until you’re not sure what’s metaphor and what’s about to chase you. The tension isn’t only jump scares—it’s the slow pressure of being watched, judged, and cornered by systems that feel too familiar, even when the environment is clearly not real. Puzzles and mystery-solving keep it moving, but the mood is the point: it wants your attention the way a doomscroll wants your attention—sticky, relentless, and hard to shake. | © Serafini Productions

MIO Memories in Orbit — MIO: Memories in Orbit (Xbox Series X|S, PS5, Switch 2, Switch, PC) — January 20, 2026

Picture an enormous technological ark that’s gone feral, and then hand the cleanup job to an android who looks like she’s about to make “precision platforming” personal. *MIO: Memories in Orbit* plays in that sweet metroidvania space where curiosity is rewarded, but overconfidence gets you humbled fast—especially when the place you’re exploring is full of machines that have clearly decided you’re the problem. The pitch is exploration with purpose: uncover what happened aboard the Vessel, upgrade MIO’s abilities, and peel back secrets the ship would probably prefer to keep buried under a few more layers of metal and bad decisions. It’s the kind of game built for players who enjoy mapping, backtracking with new tools, and pretending they’re only stuck because they’re being “thorough.” | © Douze Dixièmes

Gooey (PC) — January 21, 2026

This one starts with a premise that feels like it came from a lab memo titled “Please stop making things sentient”: Gooey is alive, sticky, and trying to escape a facility that looks engineered by someone who hates joy. The core idea is satisfying, physics-driven movement—grappling and slinging with a stretchy little hand—where momentum becomes your best friend until it becomes your downfall. What keeps it from being just a cute traversal toy is the challenge design and the built-in level editor, which basically says, “Yes, you can beat our puzzles… and then you can make worse ones for everyone else.” Expect a lot of “that worked?” moments followed by “why did that work?” moments, which is the exact emotional arc a good physics platformer should deliver. | © Turbo Pixel

Arknights Endfield — Arknights: Endfield (PS5, PC, iOS, Android) — January 22, 2026

If you’ve ever looked at a sci-fi frontier and thought, “Nice—now let me optimize it,” *Arknights: Endfield* is very much that flavor of problem. It leans into real-time 3D RPG action, but keeps a strategic brain underneath the sword-swinging: exploration, squad-style planning, and a world that feels built to reward people who like systems as much as spectacle. There’s also that distinct *Arknights* DNA—serious atmosphere, big factions, bigger mysteries, and characters who look like they have lore in their pockets at all times. The pitch works because it’s not trying to be “just combat” or “just management”; it’s aiming for that satisfying loop where fighting earns progress and progress makes the next run feel smarter. January is already crowded, and this one is arriving like it knows it has homework for you. | © Hypergryph

Hermit and Pig (PC) — January 22, 2026

A hermit, a truffle-hunting pig, and a corporate conspiracy is the kind of trio that sounds like a joke—until the game commits and somehow makes it charmingly stressful. *Hermit and Pig* is a story-rich, turn-based RPG that mixes cozy survival vibes (foraging, scraping by, staying fed) with the awkward realism of social anxiety and the sudden realization that something bigger is going on. Combat and exploration are there, sure, but the real hook is the tone: it wants you to laugh, then immediately asks you to make a slightly uncomfortable decision, then hands you a mushroom like an apology. It’s the sort of indie RPG where the “small” moments carry the weight—one more day survived, one more mystery thread pulled, one more pig-related reason to keep moving. Also, yes, the pig is absolutely part of the emotional core, and the game knows it. | © Heavy Lunch Studio LLC

Banquet for Fools (PC) — January 23, 2026

If you like your RPGs with a side of “why is this town abandoned and why do I feel like it’s judging me,” *Banquet for Fools* is serving exactly that. It’s been in Early Access, steadily expanding its systems and content, but the big moment is the full 1.0 launch landing on January 23, 2026. The hook is a party-based, brawl-forward adventure where your squad pushes into an eerie village mystery, trading polite exploration for very direct problem-solving. Combat reads like it wants you in the thick of it—more “scrappy crew throwing hands” than pristine tactical posing—while the RPG layer gives you enough choices to make each run feel like *your* brand of chaos. The tone walks that line between grim and strangely personable, like the world is bleak but your party still has to eat, argue, and keep moving. And because it’s a full launch (not just “another update”), it’s a good excuse to jump in fresh—or to return and see how the final shape compares to the Early Access version you remember. | © Hannah and Joseph Games

Escape from Ever After (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC) — January 23, 2026

Fairy tales were already doing unpaid labor, but *Escape from Ever After* makes it literal—and then turns the whole thing into a charmingly rebellious adventure RPG. The setup is deliciously modern: a greedy megacorp starts taking over storybooks for cheap work, and your newly hired “hero” responds by climbing the corporate ladder the only reasonable way—by breaking it. It takes clear inspiration from classic *Paper Mario*-style energy (comedy, characterful worlds, combat that’s more playful than grim), while still giving you a real narrative hook to chase. The tone is key: it’s bright on the surface, but it knows exactly how to twist “office culture” into something absurdly villainous. If you like RPGs that can be cute and pointed in the same breath, this one has January takeover potential. | © Sleepy Castle Studio

Highguard (PS5, PC) — January 26, 2026

Sometimes a game description casually drops “raid shooter” and you can practically hear your free time getting canceled. *Highguard* is positioning itself as PvP with teeth: crews of Wardens (arcane gunslingers, because of course they are) fighting over objectives and then pushing into enemy territory to smash what they’ve built. The vibe is competitive, but not sterile—more like “fantasy heist energy” with mounts, firefights, and the kind of coordinated chaos that turns every match into a story you’ll retell with selective honesty. It’s also clearly aiming at that sweet spot where team roles matter and movement matters, so victories feel earned instead of accidental. If you’ve been craving something multiplayer that isn’t just another samey arena loop, this looks like it wants to start arguments in your group chat—in the best way. | © Wildlight Entertainment, Inc.

Rightfully Beary Arms — Rightfully, Beary Arms (Xbox Series X|S, PC) - January 27

A cute bear with a weaponized sense of justice is already a strong pitch, and this one doesn’t waste time pretending it’s subtle. The vibe is fast, arcadey, and a little chaotic on purpose—lots of dodging, lots of shooting, and the kind of enemy patterns that make you feel clever right up until you’re instantly humbled. It’s currently in *Early Access*, which fits the whole “keep tweaking the mayhem until it sings” energy, but the key thing for our list is that it’s set to hit its full 1.0 launch on the scheduled release day. Expect short runs, loud mistakes, and that familiar roguelite loop where your “plan” lasts about twelve seconds before you’re improvising like your life depends on it (because it does). | © Daylight Basement Studio LLC

The Seven Deadly Sins Origin — The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin (PS5, PC, iOS, Android) - January 28

Open-world anime action games live or die on one question: does the world feel like a place you want to wander, or just a big hallway with better lighting? This one is clearly aiming for the first option—big roaming energy, flashy combat, and a structure that encourages you to get distracted in the best way. Expect a steady drip of fights, story beats, and side content that makes “I’ll do one quest” turn into an accidental evening. The tone should land somewhere between adventurous and dramatic, with characters who treat every reveal like it’s extremely personal (because it usually is). If you like action RPGs where exploration actually feeds your power curve, this looks built to keep you moving and upgrading. | © Netmarble

Cairn (PS5, PC) - January 29

There’s a special kind of tension in games where the enemy isn’t a monster—it’s gravity, exhaustion, and your own confidence. *Cairn* is built around climbing as a survival problem, not a sightseeing tour: route choices matter, your tools matter, and every safe ledge feels earned instead of gifted. The appeal is how personal the challenge gets—one wrong commitment and you’re not “learning,” you’re improvising under pressure. It’s the kind of experience that turns quiet moments into drama, because silence on a wall can be louder than a boss fight. If you like games that reward patience, planning, and stubbornness in equal measure, this one looks like it’ll get under your skin in a good way. | © The Game Bakers

I Hate This Place (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - January 29

Some horror games want you to feel powerless; this one wants you to feel *responsible* for every bad outcome, which is somehow worse. The setup leans into survival systems—scavenge, craft, sneak—and then punishes you for getting sloppy, especially when noise turns into a beacon. The perspective and style give it a sharp identity, and the tension comes from the constant trade-offs: move fast or move safely, fight now or save resources, risk the shortcut or take the long way and hope the night doesn’t notice you. It’s horror with a practical edge, where being prepared is rarely enough and being cocky is basically a donation to the local nightmare economy. | © Feardemic

CODE VEIN II — Code Vein 2 (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - January 29

If you’re here for stylish action RPG combat with dramatic stakes and enemies that hit like they take your existence personally, you already understand the assignment. The pull is that familiar mix: big anime-post-apocalypse mood, build-focused progression, and fights that reward learning patterns instead of button-mashing your way to optimism. Expect a lot of tweaking—weapons, abilities, partner synergy—because half the fun is making a setup that feels *yours*, and the other half is watching it fail spectacularly against a boss you underestimated. The pace should swing between exploration and intense encounters, with that “just one more attempt” spiral baked directly into the design. In other words: a perfectly normal way to spend your free time, if your definition of normal includes voluntary suffering. | © Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.

1-15

January isn’t supposed to be this stacked, yet here we are—staring at a calendar that’s basically a loot drop. If you’re the type who “definitely won’t buy anything for a while” and then mysteriously ends up with three preloads, this month is about to test your self-control in very specific ways.

In our roundup of the biggest games releasing in January 2026, we’re keeping it simple: what’s launching, why it matters, and which titles look primed to take over your free time. Consider this your friendly, slightly smug heads-up before your backlog starts filing formal complaints.

Facebook X Reddit WhatsApp Copy URL

January isn’t supposed to be this stacked, yet here we are—staring at a calendar that’s basically a loot drop. If you’re the type who “definitely won’t buy anything for a while” and then mysteriously ends up with three preloads, this month is about to test your self-control in very specific ways.

In our roundup of the biggest games releasing in January 2026, we’re keeping it simple: what’s launching, why it matters, and which titles look primed to take over your free time. Consider this your friendly, slightly smug heads-up before your backlog starts filing formal complaints.