Feature: 30 Xbox Series X|S Games To Look Forward To In May-December 2026

Hmm... not actually that many I am really excited about yet, at least without knowing more. But then the same was probably true at the start of 2025 and that ended up being a banging year!

There will be many surprises, some we will know little if anything about right now, as well as some disappointments, but I hope it matches or betters 2025, that would be great.

Is Beast of Reincarnation an Xbox exclusive?

@ZeD Last years Xbox showcase. But assuming you did see it then, I don't blame you for not remembering, it looked nothing like APT only the name. We are also inundated with hundreds and hundreds of announcements that week so some get lost/forgotten.

@somnambulance No, PS5 as well.

@Cakefish Trust me, it was so hard to narrow down the list! Plenty of other great games on the way in 2026

A fair few games listed here that I am interested in, and that I will definitely be buying each of them for my Xbox day one:

Resident Evil: Requiem
Crimson Desert
Pragmata
007: First Light
Beast Of Reincarnation
Halo: Campaign Evolved
Prince Of Persia
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy
Tomb Raider: Legacy Of Atlantic

When it comes to Gears Of War: E-Day, I have every Collector's Edition in the series, so really hope that they do one for this game too. My only hope is that they do one for the UK too this time, because I had to import the Gears 5 one from the US, due to them not doing one for the UK, which adds a lot to the cost.

I may buy Star Wars: Galactic Racer, but want to see more of it before I decide as racers are not usually my thing. I like them for a short while, but after a while my interest wains.

I will buy Fable should it release, but I highly doubt that it will. I am pretty confident that GTA 6 won't release this year either, but doubt I will buy it anyway, as it holds no interest for me.

I think Fable is looking odds on for releasing next year, @ILuvGames & @Darylb88. The distinct lack of any gameplay, or indeed, any updates, has me seriously doubting that we will see it this year. I think we will see some gameplay in the June Xbox Showcase, but that's about all I'm expecting to see...

I'm highly sceptical that Fable will release this year, @ILuvGames, but one thing is for sure, we will know more within the next few months. If we hear nothing once the June Xbox Showcase has been and gone, then I think it safe to say the game is delayed into 2027.

Personally, I'm really looking forward to it, so the sooner it comes the better, albeit, I want it to arrive in good shape...

I'm hoping that Solasta 2 comes out this year too, @Jenkinss. I'm not sure if it's going to do what it did with the first game and come out on PC first or have a simultaneous release across all platforms, but I really enjoyed the first game so am very much looking forward to the sequel.

Is Warhammer 40k: Dark Heresy a turn-based game? I do like my Warhammer games, though I have just fallen off Chaos Gate because I kept hitting annoying bugs...

That was pretty much my thinking, @ILuvGames. I just think the game is so anticipated, that Microsoft would have already mentioned if we were going to see it soon (albeit I don't think they have even confirmed the January showcase yet)...

Thank you, @Jenkinss. Definitely interested in that then.

I bought both 40k Rogue Trader and Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous end of last year, but have yet to play them.

Personally, I'm really excited for Osiris Reborn as what they've shown of it thus far looks amazing. Just have to hope that the rumours of a 2028 or 29 release are wrong, though that said, I'd prefer they take their time and get it right...

Cool, @ILuvGames. They have done a January showcase for the past couple of years, so I would have been surprised if they didn't do one this year. I'm a huge Gears fan, and that's the game I am most looking forward to. Fable is second on my list. It will be good if we get both this year, but I can wait for Fable if it means them getting it right...

Yes, @Jenkinss, I love Mass Effect, and have beaten the game a number of times. I was, at one time, in the top 1% for the Mass Effect 3 multiplayer (on the PC). That was so good, but it was nowhere near as good when they tried again in Andromeda (which was much better than people give it credit for, just not as good as the original trilogy).

I also love the Expanse television series. Tis great Sci-Fi, which is easily my favourite genre. I have high hopes for Osiris Reborn...

I'm not going to lie, @ILuvGames, I'd prefer them to have finished with the current trilogy before moving on to E-Day, but I am looking forward to see how they deal with the story. I'm going to assume that we will see some new characters that may end up being killed off in a few games time, unless they rigidly keep to just Dom and Marcus. Or whether the campaign will follow two stories, one with Dom and Marcus, and the other with Cole and Baird. Obviously the two duos don't meet until 14 years after E-Day, so that cannot happen in this game.

Interestingly, Cole actually has the most tumultuous E-Day, because his entire family is killed during that period, so to some extent, his story would be pretty interesting, if not somewhat bleak.

I cannot help but wonder whether we will see a young Hoffman and Bernie, or whether Tai, Kim or Dizzy will make an appearance. Also, will they kill off another Carmine in the game? 😂

I do also wonder whether we will see the Chainsaw Lancer in the campaign, because that was not available at the time of E-Day, but I hope that is one thing they do not stick to because I am not a fan of the Retro Lancer.

What I am looking forward to is seeing the return of Corpsers, Tickers, Cerinpedes, and Wretches, among others (at least I assume they will return), though I am curious to see what they introduce in place of a Berserker because obviously Marcus and Dom didn't encounter their first one until Gears of War 1.

So yes, as a Gears of War fanatic and nerd, I am very much looking forward to E-Day. I just have to hope that I hit re-up 60 in Gears 5, as I am currently on re-up 55, and I am only levelling up once or twice a month right now as it takes so much XP. I should have the time, depending on when E-Day releases...

Absolutely agree, @ILuvGames. To my mind, the Mad World trailer for Gears of War 3 is probably one of, of not the, all time greatest reveal trailers and theme.

I play Horde with my youngest son (22) and a mate each weekend, and we do a Master Horde with just the 3 of us in Gears 5. It's easily my favourite mode. I don't touch the PvP at all. I tried it once or twice when the first game came out, but it wasn't for me. It's Horde that I am most looking forward to in E-Day. I'm excited to see how it evolves, and what enemies we will face. There should be no robots, at least, which suits me as they are the biggest pain in the backside in Horde, and have ended many a run for us.

I play through all the campaigns on an annual basis, and have all the Collector's Editions available, plus both of the Gears of War Consoles. I have GoW blankets, and also the huge Chainsaw Lancer replica (which is about 5ft long!). I also have a canvas from Gears of War 3 featuring the dynamic foursome that is 6ft by 4ft, I just don't have a wall big enough to put it on! Lastly, I also have two of the limited edition life-sized Locust busts that are numbered and cost £500 each, and are now worth around £1500 each. So when I say I love my Gears of War, I really do mean it...! 🤣

Yes, @ILuvGames! It really is very cool when you meet someone as passionate about Gears of War as yourself. I think they will do a Collector's Edition of E-Day, as they did one for Doom and Indy, so it makes sense to do another. My hope is that they make it available in the UK this time, as I had to import my CE for Gears 5 because for some reason it was only available in the US.

I'm also quietly hoping that they do a Series X console too, as even though we will soon be getting the PCBox, I will still buy a Collector's Gears of War: E-Day Series X console. My Gears of War 3 360 (I actually have 2!) and my Xbox One Gears of War 4 console do still work, as do the controllers, plus I bought extra controllers for them both too. Being somewhat older, I do tend to look after my stuff, and so everything is still in good condition. I haven't even opened the boxes on most for most of my Collector's Editions.

As an aside, I do have the Halo 360 console, and the game that came with the life-sized helmet (I forget which one it is now). Although I do really enjoy Halo, for me it takes a backseat to Gears of War...

This list has now been updated for February! Only a few changes to mention (took out January's games, added a couple of recently-announced titles, and altered some dates based on the Xbox Developer Direct showcase).

Update: Hello! We've now updated this guide for March onwards, taking out a bunch of the previously released games and adding others such as Aphelion, He-Man, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2, Directive 8020, FF7 Rebirth and others.

There are obviously loads more we couldn't fit in here, so we'll keep updating this guide on a monthly basis with new entries.

Is there any chance that when you repost this each month that you could wipe all the comments, @FraserG? Over time, some comments will relate to games that have already released, plus it just seems to me that it's almost pointless to read someone's comments posted many months previously. Just a thought. Most of the comments are from me anyway... 😂

@Fiendish-Beaver It's certainly possible, but not something we tend to do as a rule — will keep it in mind for the next refresh.

It's only because I like to read all the comments on pretty much everything you post, @FraserG, but then you see a whole load of out of date comments, from people like myself... 😂

Hello everyone! This feature has now been updated for April.

The old comments are still here for now... they're not something I can easily archive myself, but if enough people really want us to get rid of them, I'll ensure it happens in the near future.

Update: Feature has been refreshed for May!

10 games have been added to the list (with 10 also removed from April's selection), along with a few changes to release dates for titles like Star Wars: Galactic Racer and He-Man.