In an effort to escape the Grand Theft Auto VI hype event horizon, which is sure to crush everything in its path to the most infinite point possible, games are currently being packed into the prior months like sardines into a tin.

I’m having a small bout of deja vu here, as I remember six years ago writing an article about a particularly packed release day in February. Of course, a vast majority of those titles turned out to be duds, so it was all for naught, but to say this year’s September is becoming a sight for sore wallets is an understatement.

Unlike that dark day from six years ago, I do think every game in September has made a compelling case to be the tentpole release in a month full of tentpole releases. Perhaps something was lost in the publisher group huddle as they all sought to navigate Rockstar’s upcoming money-printing mega game, and we might yet see a game or two slide from the schedule.

And the below doesn’t even include the likes of Halloween, Dune Awakening, which is getting a console release, or Hell is Us, which should, fingers crossed, find some success on Nintendo Switch 2.

But here’s a look at what’s coming out in the modest thirty days of September, and why it is, or isn’t, going to be deserving of your time and hard-earned.

The Blood of Dawnwalker

Perhaps the largest unknown quantity of the lot, but backed up by an incredible pedigree, The Blood of Dawnwalker is a tantalising new action RPG headed up by Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, whose past credits include The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Cyberpunk 2077.

As you’d expect from a team made up of CD Projekt Red alum, it’s a game that’s big on player freedom, taking advantage of the protagonist’s daywalker credentials to offer two duelling planes of action depending on whether it’s day or night to complete non-linear, time-sensitive quests in an adventure to save his family within just thirty days.

Rebel Wolves is clearly confident in this new IP as they envision it to be the beginning of its own saga, and the studio, which has grown to 160 staff since its inception, has claimed the game has anywhere between 50 and 70 hours of content.

The Blood of Dawnwalker is set to get its foot out the door first with its September 3 release date.

Phantom Blade 0

This is perhaps the game I know least about, simply because it isn’t in my wheelhouse. It has a bit of a Soulslike veneer, though the game is billed as more of an action game.

From the Chinese studio S-GAME, Phantom Blade 0 casts the player as Soul, a high-calibre assassin who acts in the service of The Order, a most sinister-sounding and not at all duplicitous organisation. Based on wuxia traditions, which Western audiences have observed in films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the creator has pondered the possibility of Phantom Blade 0 being the birthing place of its own action subgenre.

His name, by the way, is Soulframe Liang, which, I don’t need to emphasise, is bad ass.

Ultimately, as a fan of action games, I do hope this skews more toward something Devil May Cry, which I find keeps you in the action more than something like Elden Ring, which punishes missteps with exhausting runbacks.

Phantom Blade 0 is expected to release on September 9.

Marvel’s Wolverine

After the State of Play gameplay reveal, I’m so in on Marvel’s Wolverine. It’s everything I’d want a game starring Logan to be. It’s action-packed, brutal, and exceedingly visceral. I don’t know what this game is going to be rated, but I’ll be shaken to my core if it isn’t R.

It’s a completely different kind of superhero game from Insomniac’s Spider-Man games; if anything, it looks to emulate PlayStation’s more action-focused, linear portfolio in games like The Last of Us or Uncharted. I also love how they’re not holding back at all in building out the larger X-Men world, with Jean Grey being revealed early on.

I couldn’t be more excited for this one, having seen a good chunk of gameplay. The action looks unrelenting, and it’s pretty confronting in its gore, although Wolvie’s healing factor is seen to be working a treat throughout.

Although I’ve still got some questions as to how they’ll ultimately handle the character’s veritable immortality, it’s pleasing to see our Liam McIntyre pick up the mantle from our Hugh and show us his James Howlett through a fresh lens. Go get it, bub.

Marvel’s Wolverine is releasing on September 15, 2026.

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