Despite being just over six weeks into 2026, gamers have already gotten an excellent Developer Direct from Xbox and a Partner Showcase from Nintendo. Not to be left out, Sony dropped its first State of Play for 2026 on Thursday. It was a stacked lineup, showing off no fewer than 30 games that are headed to the PlayStation 5.
There was a lot to digest, and before we get to the top 10 moments from Sony’s State of Play, here are some additional notes and honorable mentions:
On the news front, we learned that Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is coming to PC, and Beast of Reincarnation, which was featured at the Xbox showcase, will arrive on Aug. 4. Konami’s Darwin’s Paradox is releasing on April 2, Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is coming out on Aug. 6, and Sony’s Ghost of Yotei is getting a free multiplayer DLC entitled Legends on March 10.
For other announcements and reveals that didn’t quite make the top 10 cut, 4:Loop showed off more of its gameplay, and it’s looking like there might be something there. We got a couple blasts from the past with Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered, which is releasing next month, and Dead or Alive 6 Last Round. Project Windless was announced with an interesting trailer, though it’s unclear when we’ll see more.
Mina the Hollower, a new IP from the developers of Shovel Knight, emerged after vanishing for a bit, offering up a release window in the spring and a playable demo this week. The show opened with Kena: Scars of Kosmora, a sequel to 2022’s Kena: Bridge of Spirits, and its strong trailer set the tone for a loaded State of Play.
10) Castlevania: Belmont's Curse
One of my favorite genres is metroidvania, so to see a new game from Castlevania, one of the originators, being developed, at least in part, by the team that did Dead Cells has me all kinds of excited. It's coming later this year, so we won’t have to wait too long.
9) Marathon
While it hasn’t been the smoothest development cycle for Bungie’s latest creation, it feels like things have been trending in a positive direction in recent months. That continued here with an intriguing trailer that provided a deeper look at the lore. Sure, there are still unknowns, but we’re talking about the developers of Halo and Destiny. I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to crafting a shooter.
8) Saros
As with a number of titles on this list, Saros was a previously announced game that provided a deeper dive via a new overview trailer. We got an extended taste of the combat, a look at the progression system, and a brief explanation of the gameplay modifiers. All Housemarque does is make good games. I see no reason this will be any different.
7) Silent Hill: Townfall
Initially announced via a teaser trailer back in 2022, Silent Hill: Townfall got a full reveal here, and I’m going to classify my feelings about what I saw as cautious optimism. The partnership with Annapurna Interactive, publishers of quirky artsy games like Kentucky Route Zero, Twelve Minutes, and Stray, is an interesting one. The atmospheric elements look great. The tiny snippets of gameplay... suffice to say I need to see more.
6) PRAGMATA
After not showing anything new at the Nintendo Direct despite having several games featured, Capcom broke out a pair of new trailers for State of Play. The first showed more of the world of PRAGMATA, making it clear that the Earth-like setting we’ve seen is not actually on Earth. It also had more dialogue to provide a taste of the relationship between the two main characters. Each time I’ve seen something new from PRAGMATA, I’ve come away more intrigued.
5) John Wick (Untitled)
In what was the biggest new IP shown at State of Play, the untitled John Wick game looked every bit a AAA title, albeit with the caveat that precious little gameplay was shown. Publisher Saber Interactive doesn’t have anything of this level in its portfolio, and there’s no timetable for release, so a lot remains unknown. Still, was it a good first impression? Yeah.
4) CONTROL Resonant
Three of my six most-anticipated games for 2026 showed off new content here, starting with Remedy Entertainment’s CONTROL Resonant. Rather than a new trailer, we got actual gameplay that showed off fast-paced melee combat and zero-gravity maneuvering that gave things an Inception vibe. No release date was announced, however, so the clock is ticking—avoiding Grand Theft Auto VI’s launch window is doubtless on every publisher’s mind.
3) God of War Trilogy Remake / God of War: Sons of Sparta
When I saw the God of War logo, I was ready to plug this in atop the list. Then it turned out to be a remake of the first three games, and there wasn’t even a proper trailer to accompany it. As good as the original trilogy was, the Norse games were better, and I wonder if it’ll be hard to go back. I’m still interested, obviously, but not as much as I would’ve been for a sequel to God of War Ragnarok. The one-off Sons of Sparta didn’t move the needle for me, though Santa Monica Studios has earned the benefit of the doubt.
2) Resident Evil Requiem
I won’t bother breaking down the new trailer for Requiem. Instead, I’ll just point to an article I posted hours before State of Play that included the line, “the redesigned Raccoon Police Department remains one of my favorite locations in any game.” To have the new trailer end with Leon opening the door to the RPD turned my excitement level up to 11.
1) 007 First Light
Based on what was shown here, First Lightwill be channeling the Daniel Craig version of James Bond. The hand-to-hand sequences looked like they could’ve been pulled directly from the parkour chase in Casino Royale, full of crisp, explosive movements. On the story side, the voice acting sounded good, and the idea of bringing down a rogue operative is promising. Combine all that with those Hitman-style visuals and I’m in (dramatic pause), all in on 007.
Related: The Top 10 Nintendo Switch 2 Games Shown at the February Nintendo Direct
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