Santa Barbara Games has announced its first project, Voidwood, developed by a team from studios like Bethesda, Riot, and EA. The game combines fantasy and horror with an art style similar to Studio Ghibli. Players can team up with up to three friends to explore a cursed forest, focusing on strategy and stealth. During the day, players gather supplies and craft tools, while at night, they must evade The Beast. Communication is crucial, as players can use proximity chat to whisper, but shouting can attract danger. Players can regroup at a camp for safety, but The Beast can still attack if it detects them. Each session lasts 20 to 30 minutes, and the game features meta progression for character development. Voidwood is currently in development for PC and is expected to release in 2027.
The upcoming title, Prospice: Anomalous Logistics, features a playtest available on Steam for about one week. In the game, players take on the role of an employee investigating a cursed island, described as "cursed by the corpses of ever rotting gods" and "a place where the world itself unravels." The game aims to combine logistics with bizarre elements, offering a unique delivery experience.
From 4 PM BST on July 30, 2026, until 4 PM BST on August 6, 2026, players can download the games OTXO and Sol Cesto for free from the Epic Games Store. OTXO is a fast-paced roguelite developed by Lateralis Heavy Industries, where players navigate an abstract mansion to rescue a loved one, featuring precise gunplay and slow-motion mechanics. Sol Cesto, developed by Tambouille, Géraud Zucchini, and Chariospirale, is a tactical roguelite that emphasizes luck, where players choose heroes, upgrade them, and explore a labyrinthine dungeon that changes with each playthrough.
KeepUp Survival is currently available for free on the Epic Games Store until 5 PM BST on July 19. The game, developed by Witte Studio, features a narrative that begins with a global pandemic and involves players as the sole survivor of a crash on a remote island. Players engage in resource gathering, crafting, and base building in an open-world environment with no strict objectives. The game includes voice recordings from a character named Jill, hinting at sinister occurrences related to a research facility. A free beta for a zombie expansion is available on Steam. KeepUp Survival is typically priced at .99 / £12.79. Players can tame dogs, manage hunger, thirst, and exhaustion, and explore using various vehicles, with a dynamic day and night cycle enhancing the experience.
Hell Clock has gained popularity among action RPG enthusiasts, especially during the wait for Path of Exile 2. The developers at Rogue Snail delayed the Cursed War expansion to allow players to enjoy the new season of PoE 2 without feeling overwhelmed. Hell Clock offers a quick gaming experience with new content and features that enhance gameplay. It provides a refreshing alternative for players seeking excitement in the action RPG genre.
Pocketpair Publishing and Frontside 180 Studio are releasing an Android version of the 2D roguelike action game Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse. The game was initially launched for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC via Steam on March 5, 2026.
The decline of Destiny 2 has led to significant community frustration, particularly directed at Pete Parsons, the former CEO of Bungie, who resigned in August 2025. A parody account, Pete Carsons, created a humorous browser-based game called "The Vault of Cars," which satirizes Parsons and invites players to face him in a comedic raid. The game features mechanics inspired by Destiny, including throwing tomatoes at cars with names like Micro Management and Crunch Enforcer, and navigating a parody of the Oracles puzzle. A "World's First" completion event was organized, and players completed the raid within two hours of its launch, though there was no reward for the first completion.
In July 2026, notable game releases include:
- Assassin's Creed Black Flag: Resynced (July 9, Steam | Singleplayer): A remake of the original game with enhanced visuals.
- College Football 27 (July 9, Steam | 4-player co-op): The latest installment in the football franchise.
- Palworld 1.0 (July 10, Steam | 4-player co-op): A survival crafting game with new features.
- Halo: Campaign Evolved (July 28, Steam | 4-player co-op): A remake of the original Halo campaign with additional missions.
Co-op indie horror games releasing include:
- Cursed Cooking Mama - Happy's Burgatory (July 16, Steam | 4-player co-op).
- After Hours Puzzler - Storebound 1.0 (July 16, Steam | 3-player co-op).
- Asymmetric Rabbit Hunt - Carnival Hunt (July 23, Steam | 5 players).
- Killer Customer Service - Shift at Midnight (Release date TBD, Steam | 3-player co-op).
Gaming events include:
- Tennocon (July 10 – 11).
- Final Fantasy 14 Fan Fest (July 25 – 26).
- Various Steam Sales throughout the month.
Game updates and expansions include:
- Flight Simulator 2024 (July 4).
- Doom: The Dark Ages (July 7).
- Granblue Fantasy: Relink (July 8).
- Phasmophobia (July 21).
This week in gaming features a mix of nostalgia and innovation. "The Message from Deep Space" is a narrative set in the 1970s about translating signals from an asteroid, inspired by the Voyager Interstellar Record project. The arcade classic "Ninja Masters" returns on Steam with nine-player lobbies and rollback netcode. "Feed the Pit" invites players to explore cursed forests for sacrifices, while "Forgotten Blood" offers a dark journey through a valley with peculiar creatures. "Telluricene" is a visual novel with romantic choices involving a janitor and a plant creature. "Oblivion Maiden" is a dreamy mystery game, and "Cartesian Battle" teaches math through bullet trajectory challenges. "Cat Squeeze" is a lighthearted maze puzzler, and "Mosaic Garden" focuses on cultivating flower patterns. "Mycofall" is an early access bullet heaven adventure, while "Hollow Ground" offers a 90s-style action experience. "Laballatory" allows players to create Newton's Cradle toys, and "American Revolutionary War" is a turn-based wargame featuring strategic battles against George Washington. The RPS team is preparing for various topics, including insights on the Steam Machine and Tennocon.
