October 2026 is set to be another busy month for video game releases, with publishers continuing to avoid launching their games near GTA 6 in November. Highlights include the return of Castlevania, a new Star Wars racer, and the first Xbox console exclusive in years.
Major Franchises Return
Ace Combat 8: Wings Of Theve (October 2) brings the flight sim series to current gen hardware, seven years after Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. Bandai Namco's latest promises photorealistic graphics and varied mission structures, based on preview sessions.
Star Wars: Galactic Racer (October 6) is the first racing game in the franchise since 2002, featuring pod racing, land speeders, speeder bikes, and skim speeders. Developed by Fuse Games, which includes alumni from Burnout and Need For Speed, the game impressed in previews with its controls and sense of speed.
Gears Of War: E-Day (October 6) is a prequel adventure for Xbox Series X/S and PC, bringing back the original cast. It is one of Microsoft's two major first-party releases this month, and notably has no PlayStation 5 version planned.
Horror and Indie Offerings
Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival (October 8) is a first-person survival horror game with an original story about a biker rescuing his girlfriend from Hell. Clive Barker is involved, and Doug Bradley reprises his role as Pinhead.
Valor Mortis (October 13) is a first-person Soulslike set in a fantasy Napoleonic era, where players control a resurrected British soldier fighting undead monsters. It is priced at €39.99 (about £34.99 in the UK) to stand out among bigger releases.
Castlevania: Belmont's Curse (October 15) marks the franchise's 40th anniversary and returns to the 2D Metroidvania formula. Developed by Evil Empire, known for Dead Cells' Castlevania DLC, the game focuses on Rose Belmont and features Graham McTavish reprising his role as Dracula. A demo is available on October 1 with progress transferable to the full game.
Nintendo and Square Enix Highlights
Ratatan (October 15) is a rhythm roguelike spiritual successor to Patapon, crowdfunded by former Japan Studio staff. It features online co-op for up to four players.
Stupid Never Dies (October 21) is the debut title from GPTRACK50, founded by Capcom veteran Hiroyuki Kobayashi. This action role-player roguelike stars a weak zombie named David who absorbs abilities from stronger monsters.
Final Fantasy Resonance (October 22) returns to traditional turn-based combat with HD-2D graphics. It adapts the first story arc of the defunct mobile game Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius. A demo covering the first chapter is available now with progress transferable.
Nintendo Switch Sports Resort (October 22) brings 12 minigames to Switch 2, including new ones like jump rope, skateboarding, and thumb wrestling. It revisits the setting of Wuhu Island.
Call Of Duty and Action Games
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (October 23) is the first in the series to launch strictly for current gen consoles and marks the series' debut on Switch 2. It is also the first post-acquisition Call Of Duty game not to launch on Game Pass. Its new Kill Block mode randomizes map layout and loadouts.
Phantom Blade 0 (October 29) is a wuxia action game from Chinese developer S-Game, described as faster than a typical Soulslike. It offers multiple difficulty levels and follows a protagonist cursed to die in 66 days.
