We’ve only got three months left in the year, but our list of upcoming 2026 games has enough October releases and updates to tide me over until this time next year. I just installed Silent Hill: Townfall, but who knows if I’ll get to it before we start decking the halls or whatever the song says. I was hoping to deck a few monsters in Scotland. Alas.
It’s a very my-steak-is-too-juicy complaint, but I’ve already overcommitted my October schedule to more survival crafting with Enshrouded’s 1.0 update. I’m also trying to make time for MMO nostalgia when MapleStory Classic is out, and Final Fantasy Resonance will have to squeeze in there somewhere.
My own calendar is already buckling under the weight of this month’s treats, so in the spirit of spooky season, I haunted a few colleagues with threats of dead pixels and ghosting until they shared their staff picks for the month. I’m pacified, for now. But I’ll be back again next month with a turkey and the world’s most mumbly protagonist.
October 2026 PC Gamer picks
October 6
Star Wars: Galactic Racer
Steam | I’m not a big Star Wars fan, but I have a soft spot for 1999’s Star Wars: Episode I Racer and other sci-fi racing games of the era, like F-Zero. I’m hoping for cool crashes—like 50% of the fun of these things is exploding spectacularly—and I’m curious to know what the ‘run based’ structure entails. — Tyler Wilde
October 9
Car Park Capital
Steam | There’s nothing more American than cars and this satirical city builder, like so many US cities, centers around them. Turn a walkable town into an automotive paradise by using car-positive propaganda to convince citizens their homes should be bulldozed in favor of towering parking garages. — Christopher Livingston
October 13
Valor Mortis
Steam | My appetite for Soulslike games is not enormous these days, but first-person takes are more intriguing to me, especially when they pick a setting as original as the Napoleonic wars (except supernatural). The creators of the Ghostrunner games have picked a new and exciting lane with Valor Mortis – I just hope it’s not too difficult. — Samuel Roberts
October 2026 gaming events and sales
LudoNarraCon begins its digital celebration of narrative indies on October 8
Brasil Game Show kicks off its four-day convention in São Paulo on October 9
PAX Australia returns for three days of gaming, cosplay, and panels on October 9
League of Legends Worlds begins its quarterfinal and semifinal tournaments on October 15
Paris Games Week celebrates its 15th anniversary with new programming starting on October 22
Gamescom Asia x Thailand Game Show returns for its second four-day convention in Bangkok on October 29
Final Fantasy 14 Fan Fest makes its next (and final) stop in Japan on October 31
As always, you can grab more Epic Store free games every Thursday, and check out weekly Steam sales for themed deals:
Oct. 1 – 8: Steam Autumn Sale
Oct. 12 – 19: Cooking Fest
Oct. 19 – 26: Next Fest (October Edition)
Oct. 26 – Nov. 2: Steam Scream 5 Fest
October 2026 game updates and DLC highlights
October 2
City Never Sleeps
Deadlock
Steam | Deadlock releases the first round of characters from its City Never Sleeps update.
October 8
Frozen Trail
Arc Raiders
Steam | Arc Raiders gets its next major update, adding an icy new map, more enemy types, and amplified weapons.
October 9
Dark Arisen
Dragon’s Dogma 2
Steam | Dragon’s Dogma 2 adds more character creator options, additional challenges, and a new storyline when its Dark Arisen expansion heads to the Snowy North.
October 15
1.0 update
Enshrouded
Steam | Enshrouded begins its 1.0 chapter with a major combat overhaul, optimization fixes, QoL changes, and more.
October 21
Isles of Abyss
Once Human
Steam | Once Human becomes seaworthy when its Isles of Abyss expansion adds new ocean regions, floating bases, and a sprinkle of ancient evil.
October 29
Raiders of the North
Age of Empires 4: Raiders of the North
Steam | Age of Empires 4 expands Crucible Mode and throws the Vikings and Scots into the fray with its Raiders of the North update.
October 29
On the Trail: Deep Water
Cairn
Steam | Cairn keeps its scenic survival challenge climbing with Aava and Marco, sending the pair to three new locations in On the Trail: Deep Water.
October 29
Charting the Unknown
Crimson Desert
Steam | Crimson Desert also gets an ocean-themed update when Charting the Unknown adds new ships for exploration, sunken treasures, and deep-sea enemies.
The October 2026 games calendar
Hellraiser: Revival (Image credit: Saber Interactive)
New game releases, events, and updates you can check out during spooky season.
October games, updates, and events
October 1
Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 1
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 1
End of Abyss (Epic)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 2
Deadlock – City Never Sleeps hero update (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 5
Aion 2 (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 6
Gears of War: E-Day (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 6
Star Wars: Galactic Racer (Steam)
⭐ HIGHLIGHT
October 7
Hunt: Showdown 1896 – Bound by Blood (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 8
LudoNarraCon begins (Site)
📌 EVENT
October 8
Arc Raiders Frozen Trail (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 8
Neon Abyss 2 (1.0) (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 8
Hellraiser: Revival (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 8
Invokyr (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 8
Forever Ago (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 8
Neon Abyss 2 1.0 (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 8
Order of the Sinking Star (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 8
Silver Pines (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 9
Brasil Game Show begins (Site)
📌 EVENT
October 9
Car Park Capital (Steam)
⭐ HIGHLIGHT
October 9
Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 9
Lost & Found (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 9
PAX Australia begins (Site)
📌 EVENT
October 9
Permafrost (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 9
Paperhead (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 9
Truckful (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 13
Attic Antiquities (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 13
Deep Dish Dungeon (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 13
No Such Place (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 13
Planet Zoo 2 (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 13
Valor Mortis (Steam)
⭐ HIGHLIGHT
October 13
Total War: Shogun 2 – Complete Edition (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 13
Trash Day (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 14
Among the Trolls (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 14
Over the Hill (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 14
Thank You Bus Driver (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 14
The Witch’s Bakery (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 14
Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
Harvest Moon: Echoes of Teradea (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
League of Legends Worlds begins (Site)
📌 EVENT
October 15
Beyond These Stars (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
Chained Beasts (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
DayZ Badlands (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 15
Disney Pixar Toy Story: Retro Roundup (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
Enshrouded (1.0) (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 15
The Jackbox Party Pack 12 (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 15
Tales of Eternia Remastered (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 16
Online: 404 (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 16
Penguin Colony (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 16
Tenebris Somnia (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 19
Athanasia (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 20
Mycopunk (1.0) (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 20
Star Trek: Outposts Unknown (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 20
We Were Here Tomorrow (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 21
Escape from Playtime (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 21
MapleStory Classic (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 21
Stupid Never Dies (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 22
Final Fantasy Resonance (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 21
Once Human – Isles of Abyss (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 22
The Dead We Knew: Open World Survival (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 22
Paris Games Week begins (Site)
📌 EVENT
October 23
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 26
Night Plane (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 26
Pao Pao (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 27
Emberville (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 27
Northgard Battlegrounds (Steam)
🔓 EARLY ACCESS
October 27
Virtue and a Sledgehammer (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 27
You Are Empty: Absolute Edition (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 28
Anomalith (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 28
Final Fantasy 14 patch 7.5x (Site)
💫 UPDATE
October 28
Phantom Blade Zero (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 28
Probably Stolen – Cyberpunk Shopkeeper Sim (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 29
Age of Empires 4: Raiders of the North (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 29
Cairn – On the Trail: Deep Water (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 29
Crimson Desert – Charting the Unknown (Steam)
💫 UPDATE
October 29
Danchi Days (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 29
Joe & Mac Retro Collection (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 29
The Wolf Among Us Remastered (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 30
Queen’s Domain (Steam)
🆕 NEW RELEASE
October 31
Final Fantasy 14 Fan Fest begins (Site)
📌 EVENT
