As the first weekend of 2026 kicks off, gamers are discussing their holiday backlogs, debating the best games of 2025, sharing thoughts on upcoming releases, and arguing about whether they’ll actually finish any of those Steam Sale purchases before the next sale hits.

Version Luna IV launches January 14, 2026, introducing the long-awaited Columbina, new character Zibai, the climactic Archon Quest confrontation with Il Dottore, and a free Traveler outfit. Plus, Lantern Rite returns and a new Lunar-Crystallize elemental reaction debuts.

Solo developer Philip Froelich is releasing his pixelated metroidvania roguelite Death Machine on January 6, 2026. Navigate a mechanical citadel, make deals with ancient demons, and harvest skulls to unlock powerful items in this metal-as-hell indie game.

After years of teasing, Lionsgate’s chairman finally confirmed during an earnings call that big-budget AAA games based on John Wick and Saw are in active development with announcements coming soon. This time they actually mean it.

After 13 years of development hell, The Binding of Isaac creator is finally releasing his cat breeding tactical RPG on February 10, 2026. He calls it his best work ever, and the 50-minute gameplay preview suggests he might not be exaggerating.

While every other game stutters through shader compilation hell and chugs at 30fps with upscaling, Doom: The Dark Ages runs butter-smooth at 60fps with path tracing. Maybe id Software’s engine is exactly what the industry needs right now.

From SkillUp’s brutal honesty about the industry to Jacob Geller’s philosophical deep dives and 191 Japanese developers sharing their favorite games, 2025 produced some exceptional gaming commentary worth revisiting.

Mohist: Dengling Hill looked like the next big Chinese action RPG with Sekiro-style parrying and gorgeous Unreal Engine 5 visuals. Then the developers dropped a gameplay reveal alongside the news that they’re putting it on hold indefinitely.

A roguelike puzzle game about finding the 46th room in a 45-room mansion became the highest-rated game of 2025. No combat, no shooting, just pure brain-melting mystery that consumed everyone who touched it.

The extraction shooter nobody expected to succeed just dominated Steam’s holiday sales charts, proving that paid multiplayer games can still thrive in 2025’s free-to-play dominated landscape.