RPGs Coming This Week, September 6–12, 2026 – Hexagon Grids, Chickens in Dungeons, and Killer Scarecrows

Veterum – September 7th (Leaving Early Access) (Windows)

Turn-based strategy RPG Veterum is finally leaving Early Access this week on Steam! Taking inspiration from classic PC strategy RPG series like King’s Bounty and Heroes of Might and Magic, Veterum features a vast overworld to explore and a self-directed, non-linear structure allowing you to build an army and pursue quests as you see fit. You lead the last remaining army of the Order of the Gatekeepers in a fantasy realm on its last legs, apocalyptic doom threatening to destroy what remnants remain of civilization as you seek to stem the tide of evil. The classic, detail 2D art design evokes early ’90s PC RPGs, and the game even features a mission and map editor to create your own challenges to share with other players. Fans of Battle Brothers, WarTales, or even XCOM will find a lot to love in this one.

by Ben Love

Code Vein II: Mask of Idris DLC – September 9th (PS5, XBX, Windows)

Code Vein II is back with a significant update and a DLC expansion. Despite not being a huge fan of souls-like action RPGs, I enjoyed Code Vein II when I played it for review.

The DLC expansion, Mask of Idris, has players fighting their way through an alternate reality after the main story’s events. With new companions such as Liv Voda and a different variation of steadfast ally Lou, can you save reality once more? New weapons and abilities are rewarded to those who brave the expansion, which should add more entertainment and gameplay strategy.

The free 2.0 update that releases alongside the DLC release promises to be an enticing reason to either pick up the game once more or finally give it a chance if, like me, you were initially intimidated by elements of the combat. Not only does it add new features like getting to replay past bosses for additional rewards and other goodies, but it also offers a “story-focused mode” to help push through more harrowing challenges should you need it. The mysterious witch Jadwiga becomes a full-fledged party member with this update, and a new jukebox will let you listen to music from the Code Vein and God Eater series, perfect for composer Go Shiina fans such as myself! Given that I like the companion characters a lot, I’m also excited about the promised inclusion of short story epilogues for them.

Code Vein II is already an entertaining sequel, but this free Ver 2.0 update alongside the Mask of Idris expansion promises to make it even more so for those ready to brave the challenge! For a deeper dive into the DLC and 2.0 update, Bandai Namco released a 10+ minute video with Keita Iizuka (Producer) and Hiroshi Yoshimura (Director) walking through all the updates.

by Audra Bowling

Roguecraft DX – September 10th (Windows)

Roguecraft DX is retro love at its most devout. Originally released in 2024 as a Commodore Amiga game (if you’ve been holding on to an Amiga since 1994) playable on Windows via emulators, the DX update brings Roguecraft to modern PC platforms. Crawl through random floors of a 3D isometric dungeon, mixing Lovecraftian horror with ’90s goofiness, as a Warrior, Rogue, or Wizard—each class dictating the dungeon’s difficulty for each roguelike run. What appeals to me as an impatient young man with important things to do is how Roguecraft DX advertises 30-minute runs and an “easy to learn, hard to master” ethos. Reviews for the original release were strong, and it now seems an even more accessible break into the world of retro(like) PC gaming.

Editor’s Note: I can’t help but also direct interested players to Hilary’s demo impressions, and her description of the game’s chicken mode:

The demo also offers an entertaining yet challenging bonus with the Chicken Run mode, where you play as one of the game’s “unnervingly aggressive chickens” to crush your enemies and descend into the (also five-level for the demo) depths. I had a lot of fun testing my patience and impulse control with this mode, as fighting as a chicken is often a bad idea.

by Matt Wardell

Welcome to Elderfield – September 10th (Windows)

A year or two ago, the combination of farming RPG (ala Story of Seasons or Stardew Valley) and survival horror was a strange and novel idea rarely explored, yet full of potential. It seems many indie developers came to the same conclusion, as 2026 plays host to an absolute deluge of titles iterating on that very concept. Welcome to Elderfield is one of the first to hit digital store shelves, and looks to be a successful marriage of two distinctly different genres. Utilizing a charming 2D pixel art style that evokes a spookier take on the SNES classic Harvest Moon, the denizens of the town of Elderfield act like it’s Halloween all year round.

Managing your fields and crops is core the experience, though equally important are first-person, turn-based battles with various spooks and ghouls. This is a novel approach, as most farming RPGs opt for Rune Factory-style action RPG combat rather than traditional turn-based encounters. I find the in-your-face approach of the game’s EarthBound-inspired combat system heightens the horror more than a real-time system would. Although the mechanical repetition of daily tasks could clash with the necessity to maintain tension in a traditional horror game, Welcome to Elderfield looks like it’s checking all the right boxes on both the farming sim and horror RPG ledger.

by Ben Love

Culdcept the First – September 8th (PS5, XBX, Switch)

It’s a Culdcept renaissance! After releasing about a month ago on PC via Steam, Culdcept the First is finally arriving on consoles this week. An emulated (and most importantly, English-language localized) re-release of the original Culdcept title for the SEGA Saturn, Culdcept the First is a charming board game RPG with strategic card-based combat and an excellent Yuzo Koshiro soundtrack. If you are a fan of card-based mechanics or just curious about classic SEGA Saturn titles that never made it to Western shores, this one is worth a look despite the primitive gameplay mechanics and limited features in comparison to more recent entries like Culdcept Begins.

by Ben Love

Mewgenics – September 8th (PS5, Switch 2, XBX)

First released on Windows in February of this year, Mewgenics is going multi-platform! You may recognize its cute/creepy art style from prolific game designer Edmund McMillen (Super Meat Boy, The Binding of Isaac). In keeping with McMillen’s games, beneath Mewgenics‘ simple, Flash-inspired aesthetic is hardcore, challenging gameplay rich in content and replayability. Breed generations of mutant cats in your house by day and send squads of varying kitty classes and properties down through randomly generated, grid-based tactical RPG dungeons by night. Like The Binding of Isaac, it seems it would take hundreds of hours to see all the possible combinations of weapons, classes, enemies, and events. What horrors await you on your next run? *Gulp* I got a bad feline about this…

by Matt Wardell

The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero & Trails to Azure – September 10th (PS5, Switch 2)

The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero & Trails to Azure HD ports seem like opportune chances to play through the Crossbell Duology in its entirety for anyone who hasn’t gotten the chance to do so yet! Our very own Caitlin Argyros’ reviews of both Trails from Zero and Trails to Azure paint the games in a very positive light, for those curious. Falcom’s Zemuria mythos constantly evolves, and Lloyd Bannings’ and the rest of the Special Support Section’s adventures make for a sincerely memorable component of said mythos that is not to be missed!  You can check these ports out when they release on the PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2 later this week.

by Audra Bowling