RPGs Coming This Week, August 2–8, 2026 – Ugly Monsters, Cute Monsters, Crops, and More

Beast of Reincarnation – August 4th (PS5, XBX, Windows)

Beast of Reincarnation marks the major first multiplatform release from Pokémon developer Game Freak in years, one that hopes to be their triumphant debut into the AAA action RPG genre. Featuring a photorealistic post-apocalyptic Japan setting overgrown with nature and reclaimed by massive & terrible beasts, the game follows the warrior Emma and her canine companion Koo as they travel across Japan and slay enormous foes. The game combines the fast-paced, parry-centric action (inspired by Sekiro) for Emma with command-based combat mechanics for Koo. It’s an intriguing mix, further bolstered by Emma’s ability to manipulate plant life for traversal and combat.

by Ben Love

HellSlave II: Judgment of the Archon – August 4th (Windows)

Ars Goetia, developer behind cyberpunk point & click adventure The Blind Prophet and dark fantasy dungeon crawler Hellslave, is releasing their first sequel with HellSlave II: Judgment of the Archon. HellSlave II combines top-down overworld and dungeon exploration with challenging first-person turn-based combat. The gritty, comic book-inspired art style is hand-drawn, and the game’s trailer opens with a notice that no generative AI was used in the game’s production, which is absolutely a selling point as far as I’m concerned.

The combat is particularly unique, as it employs a turn-based system with real-time elements, each turn lasting only a certain amount of real time and each action you can perform in battle takes a few seconds to actually execute. Earlier this year I enjoyed a similar system in Hermit and Pig, so another game taking a crack at a hybrid combat style is always welcome, especially in a combat-focused dungeon crawler. All this is made even more impressive considering this is a solo-dev effort, so if you enjoy dark, medieval fantasy settings and rigorous combat mechanics, be sure to check it out on Steam.

by Ben Love

Fields of Mistria (Exiting Early Access) – August 5th (Windows)

Fields of Mistria is a farm and life sim RPG that’s leaving Steam’s Early Access soon. In it, you customize your very own character and enter an idyllic and nostalgic world. After an earthquake wreaks havoc on your town, can you help rebuild it and make your own homestead prosperous? Farm, craft, and use magic to help you achieve your goals, all while getting to know your fellow villagers along the way and maybe even see romance develop!

Fields of Mistria has a colorful pixel look reminiscent of classic anime and JRPGs. It seems evident that this game has a whole lot of charm and care crafted into it even before its more complete debut. I’m definitely curious to learn more about Fields of Mistria in its 1.0 form this week!

by Audra Bowling

Pokémon Pokopia: Bubbly Basin DLC + more – August 5th (Switch 2)

I’ve poured a ton of time into Pokémon Pokopia since it launched in March, and the game leaves this Dragon Quest Builders fan with very little wants. But after being able to dive underwater in DQB2, I did hope one day Pokopia would allow this as well. Thankfully, that day is August 5th. All players will be able to get the new Dive ability that day, and start building underwater in the existing game areas. But it’s also the day the game’s first paid DLC drops, which adds many new Pokémon and the new Bubbly Basin town.

Another thing I thought about prior to Bubbly Basin was that the lack of underwater exploration meant there was no good way to have many Pokémon that require a fully aquatic environment, and based on the footage we’ve seen, there will be no shortage of new friends to meet in the new town, largely Water types and others that are only (logically) possible with underwater exploration.

This update will also bring new block types, decorations, and more, though one of the stars is definitely the buoyant block, that you can place anywhere underwater to build floating homes and more. No need to build up scaffolding from the ground and removing it after! Learn more about what’s to come in our news article from this morning. Meanwhile, I’m off to clean up my towns ahead of the 5th.

by Mike Salbato

Sovereign Tower – August 6th (Windows)

Sovereign Tower bills itself as a “Round Table management RPG,” casting the player as a reigning monarch lording over a retinue of knights and handling crises in their kingdom. Guided by the advice of your advisor, Arlin, you must hear the troubles of your subjects, hire and train your knights’ stats, and even manage your relationships (platonic and romantic) with the rest of your court. A successful ruler must not neglect their infrastructure, so improving your castle and developing new technologies through the crafting system are integral to victory. The art style is incredibly striking, featuring evocative character designs that call Hades to mind, and colorful, saturated backgrounds that breathe life into the fantasy setting. If you enjoy management and strategy mechanics in your RPGs, and don’t mind the visual novel-style presentation, then Sovereign Tower (Steam) seems like a royal good time.

by Ben Love

Final Fantasy XIV: Complete Edition – August 4th (Switch 2)

There’s been talk of Square Enix bringing Final Fantasy XIV to the Nintendo Switch for years, but realistically, it wasn’t going to happen until the Switch 2’s beefier hardware came along. This week marks the debut of the critically acclaimed MMORPG, which, even on Switch 2, includes the base A Realm Reborn, and three more expansions up through Shadowbringers, allowing players to play all the way to level 80 for free.

Though this Complete Edition actually includes everything, including the latest expansion, Dawntrail, all playable on the go or docked. There will be a free trial version to test the game on Switch 2 alongside multiple editions, and the game will also launch with a 30% discount.

The one caveat with the Switch 2 version is that the game requires a separate subscription, even if you already play on other platforms. It appears to be something required by Nintendo, but as a concession, players can play FFXIV on Switch 2 without needing a Nintendo Switch Online account. And those of us who already have almost every other platform on our accounts can get a 50% discount on the Switch 2 subscription.

So there’s a few hoops to jump through, but I imagine playing on the go this way will be more reliable than when I used to try to use Remote Play on my Vita to connect to my PS4 at home! The real trick is if I can free up the 100+ GB needed to install all these expansions…

by Mike Salbato

Lies of P: Complete Edition – August 5th (Switch 2)

Lies of P takes the classic story of Pinocchio—think less the cute Disney version and more the world of mischief and misfortune from the novel The Adventures of Pinocchio—and transforms it into a real Souls-like. Players control P, a human-looking automaton with the unique ability to lie, just as the dark steampunk city of automatons and monsters Krat begins to go haywire and P’s father-creator, Geppetto, goes missing. The combat is punishing and parry-reliant, though the story has a more delicate emotional touch than your typical Souls-like.

This Complete Edition combines the 2023 base game with 2025’s Overture prequel DLC, and gives the option to play in three graphical settings: Performance, Balanced, and Quality. Personally, this is my favourite non-FromSoftware Souls-like, so the idea of playing handheld—no strings attached—is enticing. For a more in-depth take, check out Noah’s 2023 review.

by Matt Wardell