In this first October recap, most of the noteworthy new releases I have to share are aimed at console players, though PC players still have something interesting. Before we jump into all the new RPGs and turn-based strategy games available, I want to remind you that I’m slowly working, one step at a time, on building a database that aims to be as complete as possible.
I know it’s going to take time, but even at this early stage, you’ll already find links for many games leading to their dedicated game page: a sort of hub where I’m collecting the main information, including release date, platforms, screenshots, and trailers, along with all the content we’ve published about that specific title. I would love to have some feedback on this.
With that said, let’s get into this week’s new releases. The first two Octopath Traveler games have arrived on Switch 2, Keep Driving has brought its road trip to consoles, and PC has welcomed new adventures set in corrupted fantasy lands, featuring a robot dog trying to find its humans.
A tactical RPG is also reaching version 1.0, and a group of free demos cover everything from managing an MMA gym to keeping an Antarctic research station alive. Below, I’ve rounded up the latest releases and a few playable projects to watch, including an older demo you may have missed.
The Bell Echoes
- Developer: 七颗枚
- Release Date: September 27, 2026 (version 1.0; date listed on Steam)
- Steam: The Bell Echoes
Let’s start with an SRPG I honestly forgot about after its Early Access launch. This week, The Bell Echoes finally reached version 1.0, so now is a good time to revisit its unique approach to tactical combat.
You control a party of three, chaining abilities within each turn’s available resources. Knockbacks, collisions, elevation, cover, and interactive objects all shape a fight, so the order of your actions can be as valuable as the attacks themselves. Setting up a target for a teammate is part of the appeal.
Its roguelite structure ties repeated expeditions to character development and story progress. Skill Insights alter abilities, while equipment, gems, and talents help shape different builds. Collecting Echoes opens the way forward, and memory fragments reveal more about your companions and the world.
Octopath Traveler and Octopath Traveler II
- Developer: Square Enix, ACQUIRE Corp.
- Release Date: October 1, 2026 (Nintendo Switch 2 versions)
- Steam: Octopath Traveler · Octopath Traveler II (PC versions)
If you’re among those who have never played one of Square Enix’s most iconic JRPG series, and you also happen to own a Switch 2, then this could be the perfect week to finally jump in. The first two games share a familiar start: choose one of eight protagonists, then travel the world to discover the others and follow their stories.
Their turn-based battles reward learning enemy weaknesses, breaking defenses, and deciding when to spend saved Boost Points. Job combinations give you plenty to experiment with as you work out which characters should handle damage, support, and breaking an enemy at the right moment.
The original takes place in Orsterra, while Octopath Traveler II introduces a new cast in Solistia. The sequel adds a day-and-night cycle that changes how characters interact with the world, and its independent setting means you can start there without completing the first game.
Both arrived on Nintendo Switch 2 with improved resolution and frame rates. Returning Switch owners should check the purchase details: these are separate versions with no upgrade pack, and existing Switch saves aren’t compatible with the Switch 2 editions.
Havoc Heirs
- Developer: Jay Sugarman
- Release Date: October 1, 2026
- Steam: Havoc Heirs
Next up is a true passion project from solo developer Jay Sugarman, and I’m happy to finally share it now that his dark fantasy RPG Havoc Heirs has officially launched on PC. It has clear Dark Souls influences, a combat system built around timing-based mechanics, and, most importantly, a corruption system that slowly takes hold of our hero.
The game calls this force Psychosis, and spending more time in the wilderness increases its influence. Campfires restore your health and reset that rising corruption, making exploration a recurring decision: when to keep going and when to seek safety.
Jay Sugarman’s fantasy RPG spans four interconnected continents, with six classes, different weapons, and a large selection of Rings and Blessings to develop your character. Randomized attacks add another variable to its turn-based encounters.
That relationship between exploration and corruption is the game’s core. Finding another route or hidden reward also means considering how long you can stay away from a campfire.
Dog in the Machine
- Developer: Studio Chahut
- Release Date: September 29, 2026
- Steam: Dog in the Machine
I love Into the Breach, so Dog in the Machine immediately caught my attention with a combat system that seems to take a few or more cues from it. Throw robot dogs into the mix as the heroes, and you have something that’s very hard for me not to find interesting.
In Dog in the Machine, you have a straightforward goal: escape Automatown and reunite with the humans forced out. Getting there involves compact tactical encounters filled with machinery, hostile robots, and opportunities to turn the environment against them.
I mentioned Into the Breach because this game lets you preview an action sequence before committing, so you can test how a push, collision, or environmental interaction might spark a larger chain reaction. Conveyor belts, explosives, and other reactive objects give those small battlefields plenty to work with.
Your AutoDog also learns tricks you can combine into more elaborate attacks. Between battles, you expand that collection and look for abilities that work well together, while different dog breeds and permanent unlocks give you reasons to try another escape. For sure a game to try now that is available on PC via Steam.
Keep Driving
- Developer: YCJY Games
- Release Date: September 28, 2026 (Nintendo Switch, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S versions)
- Steam: Keep Driving (PC version)
I like the idea of a turn-based RPG finding its challenges in the ordinary frustrations of a road trip. In Keep Driving, getting stuck behind a tractor can become an encounter you solve with skills and whatever useful items you have brought along.
YCJY Games places you in the early 2000s with your first car and a festival somewhere across the country. You choose the route, pick up hitchhikers, take odd jobs, and keep your vehicle running. Your passengers bring their own personalities and stories, while supplies, repairs, and car upgrades shape how far you can comfortably travel.
The journey has multiple endings, and the developer estimates roughly one to four hours per route. That makes the premise especially appealing if you want an RPG adventure that lets you start over and see where a different decision leads.
Keep Driving is now also available on Nintendo Switch, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, following its September 28 console launch.
MMA Tactics – Martial Arts
- Developer: The Slanted Room
- Release Date: October 1, 2026 (demo)
- Steam: MMA Tactics – Martial Arts Demo
MMA Tactics – Martial Arts puts you in charge of a gym, where you recruit fighters, develop their abilities, and get them through increasingly demanding bouts. Matches use turn-based combat, with an optional automatic battle mode if you prefer to focus on management.
Earnings fund training, perks can strengthen specific fighting styles, and completing objectives unlocks strategies you can switch between rounds. Injuries and permanent death also mean that a promising recruit may never reach the championship you had planned for them.
Choosing a strong fighter is one thing; developing several fighters with different strengths could make the roster much more interesting to manage. The free demo launched on October 1 and is available on Steam.
Southern Lights: Broken Frequency
- Developer: Glynos Interactive
- Release Date: October 1, 2026 (demo)
- Steam: Southern Lights: Broken Frequency
Another game I’ve been following very closely is Southern Lights: Broken Frequency, which debuted this week with a substantial demo that gives us a taste of its mix of strategy, management, and survival mechanics, all wrapped in a dark setting. Very dark.
This strategy game asks you to manage the station while investigating a phenomenon that threatens far more than its equipment. Each turn splits your attention between repairs, research, emergencies, and your specialists’ condition.
Their physical health and sanity can deteriorate, and pushing someone to take on another task may have consequences beyond the immediate result. Neglecting damaged facilities can also create further problems.
You need to understand what is happening, but keeping the station operational buys you time to investigate. The free PC demo is available now while the full game is currently scheduled for November 1 on PC.
NOSTRA
- Developer: Runecraft Studios
- Release Date: September 30, 2026 (alpha demo)
- Steam: NOSTRA
I covered NOSTRA a few hours ago; you can find my full overview here. At its core, it’s a JRPG with a few interesting combat ideas and what could become a fairly deep character progression system.
It introduces a dark fantasy world where three kingdoms maintain an uneasy peace as mysterious portals and an older threat begin to disrupt it. You start in a remote village before setting out with a party into the wider conflict.
During combat, your boost strengthens attacks, Wards offer defensive options, and timed parries can trigger counters. Runic Power enables powerful abilities but doesn’t replenish on its own, so spending it requires thought.
Character development includes branching specializations and equipment with randomized properties and sockets, giving plenty of room to adjust a character as useful gear appears, while the changing time of day and weather add atmosphere during exploration.
Runecraft Studios has released a free alpha demo for PC on Steam. It is an early look at a project still in development, with the full release currently listed for 2027.
Becoming Knight
- Developer: Octowyth
- Release Date: April 21, 2026 (demo)
- Steam: Becoming Knight
I actually rediscovered this one in an email the developer sent me some time ago. Unfortunately, more and more often, a few emails slip through the cracks, and I stumble across them much later.
So, this isn’t a demo released in the last few hours; it’s been available for a while. Still, I thought Becoming Knight was interesting enough to share.
Octowyth’s turn-based dungeon crawler focuses on short, replayable runs in which you develop a would-be knight, find treasure, and unlock disciplines that change your approach. The emphasis on compact adventures may appeal if you enjoy experimenting with character development but have limited time for a longer campaign. The full game is still listed as coming soon.
Iron Verdict
- Developer: Seal Desk
- Release Date: September 23, 2026 (demo)
- Steam: Iron Verdict
Another interesting JRPG I announced a few hours ago is Iron Verdict. What stands out most here is the premise: we find ourselves on the wrong side of justice, in a world where trial by combat decides innocence, and you are the Crown’s undefeated champion.
That is an uncomfortable position when many of the people sent into the arena have done nothing wrong. You can execute some defeated opponents for the full reward or hand them over to the authorities for less, and people you spare may return later. Party relationships also unlock Duo Attacks, giving character bonds a role in combat.
Battles use familiar turn-based commands with optional timed parries, dodges, and inputs for Limit abilities.
Successful parries can produce counters, while missed defensive inputs increase the damage you take. You can also switch to Classic Turns, which removes the timing checks and their associated bonuses and penalties. Go check out the demo while we wait for an official release announcement.
Bad House
- Developer: Andrew Morrish
- Release Date: October 1, 2026 (demo)
- Steam: Bad House Demo
I don’t know exactly why, but Bad House really appeals to me. Maybe it’s the setting, or maybe I just love dungeon crawlers. Either way, a playable demo arrived a few days ago.
One instruction accompanies your new home in Bad House: leave the basement alone. Naturally, that basement is where Andrew Morrish’s dungeon-crawling auto-battler takes place.
Before heading downstairs, you choose skills and equipment from the previous tenant’s possessions. As you explore, you level up and improve your gear, with danger increasing the farther you push into the dungeon. You can return valuables to storage upstairs, adding a reason to think carefully about when to end an expedition.
The demo includes the first two basement floors, starts you as Blake, and introduces fellow tenant Rory. That gives you a defined portion of the game to explore while testing its approach to equipment, preparation, and automatic combat. The full PC release is planned for early 2027.
That’s everything I have to share about new RPGs and turn-based strategy games you can play right now. As always, I’d also love to invite you to join us over on Reddit, where we can keep talking about games and sharing our latest discoveries. See you next time. Ciao
