The Warhammer Skulls event, new RPGs announced, and all the major news you need to know about in the weekly recap
Welcome to the latest weekly recap, which I’ll aim to publish regularly every Friday—or Saturday morning at the latest. This is my way of catching up on all the news and happenings in the world of RPGs, strategy games, roguelites, and everything under the turn-based umbrella, with the occasional RTWP exception thrown in.
This week is packed with exciting updates, starting with Warhammer Skulls 2025, where several new titles from the iconic franchise were announced. Plus, we’ve got fresh indie game reveals and must-see trailers—all rounded up right here in this May 23, 2025 edition of the weekly recap.
Let’s dive in with Warhammer Skulls, which once again delivered in a big way this year. Hosted once again by Rahul Kohli, the 2025 edition was packed with new game reveals, DLC announcements, and more reasons to purge heretics from your digital backlog. First up, Warhammer 40,000: Dark Heresy got its big debut—a brand-new tactical CRPG from Owlcat Games, the folks behind Rogue Trader. I’ll be putting together an overview of the title soon, but in the meantime, you must need to know that this time you’re stepping into the boots of an Inquisitor’s acolyte, navigating the shadows of the Imperium through turn-based combat, narrative investigations, and moral decisions. No release date yet, but it’s coming to PC and current-gen consoles.
Speaking of Rogue Trader, Owlcat also unveiled Lex Imperialis, a major new expansion landing on June 24. It adds a 15-hour campaign, introduces the Adeptus Arbites as a playable background, and brings in a brand-new companion. Even better, the announcement came with the reveal of a Season Pass 2, hinting at two more expansions in the pipeline.
As I mentioned in a previous article, there were indeed new updates on Mechanicus II, and they’ve now been confirmed. In fact, along with a new gameplay trailer, it’s been confirmed that Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus II is officially on the way for a 2025 PC and consoles release, introducing a new faction, Leagues of Votann. And to sweeten the event there’s a massive Warhammer sale running until May 29 across Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, Epic, and GOG—some discounts hitting up to 85%. Plus, GOG is giving away a digital goodie bag packed with wallpapers, music, and lore treats.
If you missed the full stream, it’s worth catching up. Warhammer Skulls 2025 Showcase – YouTube.
Leaving Skulls 2025 behind, let’s talk about Critical Shift, a just-announced story-driven tactical RPG from Rhinotales that blends tactical combat with a strong dose of sci-fi survival horror. Set in a secret Antarctic facility buried under the ice, the game revolves around a rescue squad investigating a blackout. You’ll face threats ranging from rogue AI to grotesque biomechanical creatures, managing your squad’s positioning, gear, and morale in grid-based combat. The narrative is penned by Guiltythree, the mind behind the web novel Shadow Slave, and it promises deep world-building across over 30 missions and multiple factions. Here you can find my overview to learn more.
Sliding into a different tone and setting, Successor is gearing up for its Early Access debut on May 29, and it comes from the team behind Wartile. It mixes real-time tactics with pause-and-play depth, all set in a dark fantasy realm. The game is built around beautiful miniature-style dioramas where you command a band of warriors across procedurally generated kingdoms featuring roguelite elements, randomized loot, and deep progression mechanics. And for those with VR gear, the entire experience is also playable in SteamVR. More details here.
Let’s stay in the RTWP borders, with Band of Crusaders, one of the most anticipated Tactical RPGs for me, which is preparing for a private playtest, and while details are still under wraps, the devs recently opened sign-ups for those interested in getting early access. We are talking about a sort of Battle Brothers set in a demon-infested 1350s Europe, where you assume the role of the Grandmaster of a knightly order, leading a crusade against heresy and chaos. The game features real-time tactical combat with a slow-motion system, allowing for planning during battles. The world evolves based on your actions, with a dynamic map influenced by changing seasons, a day-night cycle, and the encroaching demonic forces. Honestly, I’m very excited about this one.
Another major highlight of the week is definitely Legends of the Round Table, a stylized turn-based RPG rooted in Arthurian legend that just dropped a fresh trailer and a public demo. Developed by Artifice Studio, this one combines tactical combat with hand-painted visuals and a character-driven storyline where you manage all the legendary knights of the Round Table. The demo gives a taste of the early campaign, and the art direction already sets it apart. Meanwhile, Shuffle Tactics, the roguelite tactical deckbuilder from Club Sandwich, is now locked in for a June 24 launch. A new demo went live, bringing in a playable hero named Fletch, several new bosses, and fresh mechanics to test. The game blends positional combat with card-based synergies. I tried it and here you can find my preview.
The action doesn’t stop there as Stolen Realm is getting its first major DLC this June. Titled the Chaos Pack, the expansion adds a whole new skill tree with over 30 abilities focused on unpredictability and raw power. Whether it’s transforming weapons mid-battle or twisting time and space, this update leans into chaotic builds and tactical curveballs that shake up the meta. Speaking of comebacks, Campfire Cabal, the team behind the Expeditions series, confirmed they’re still alive and deep into development on their next historical CRPG.
After some radio silence, the devs published a candid update stating they’ve been working non-stop and the upcoming game will feature both a new time period and upgraded gameplay mechanics. No details for now, but it’s great to see them back at full strength. Mech-heads also got a treat this week with the demo footage of Super Robot Wars Y. The new installment in the famous franchise introduces new original characters and an updated interface. Bandai Namco showed off early demo footage and laid out the foundational story world, and the game looks poised to capture the tactical spirit the series is known for while pushing into some new territory.
And to wrap up this weekly recap, there’s a new announcement regarding a Celtic-mythology inspired CRPG called Shrouded Aspect, set to launch later this year. Drawing inspiration from classics like Baldur’s Gate, it promises a dark, lore-rich campaign with turn-based combat and strong RPG progression systems. I plan to share more thoughts on this one after I’ve had a chance to try the demo available.
That’s everything I had jotted down in my trusty notebook. If I missed anything, feel free to reach out on social media or over on the brand-new Reddit channel. Have a great weekend—talk soon!
