This week's game Launches on PC, PS5, Xbox: August 2026 (Week 34)

You have barely recovered from the last wave of releases, but the gaming calendar has apparently decided that mercy is overrated. This week brings a particularly strange assortment of games, ranging from cosmic horror and time-travel drama to punishing Soulslike combat, enormous mechs and another trip into the radioactive nightmare of the Zone.

August 17 - 23 releases

Things get properly unpleasant on August 18 with The Sinking City 2, Frogwares' latest descent into Lovecraftian horror. The sequel takes the original game's fascination with eldritch mysteries and pushes it further toward full-blown survival horror, meaning investigating creepy places is now accompanied by the small but important question of whether you have enough ammunition to survive them. Set in the flooded city of Arkham, the game mixes exploration, combat and grotesque supernatural encounters while attempting to make every trip into the darkness feel like a particularly bad life decision. If tentacles, ancient gods and atmospheric horror sound like your idea of a relaxing Tuesday, this one has your name on it.

On August 19, things get considerably more complicated with STEINS;GATE RE. The beloved visual novel returns with redesigned visuals, new artwork and additional content, once again inviting players to meddle with time and discover that messing with the timeline is generally a terrible idea. The reboot retains the original's mixture of science fiction, comedy, drama and increasingly serious time-travel shenanigans. In other words, expect conversations that seem harmless at first before suddenly making you question the fabric of reality.

If your preferred form of entertainment involves repeatedly being humbled by enemies that look like they haven't had a pleasant day either, Mortal Shell II arrives on August 20. It expands the Soulslike formula considerably, offering a larger interconnected world, tougher encounters and deeper combat systems. It is also significantly more substantial than the first game, with a playthrough expected to take considerably longer. Naturally, that means there are more opportunities to triumph gloriously, and considerably more opportunities to wonder why you decided to fight that particular monster.

Meanwhile, Brigador Killers is preparing to turn August 20 into a very good day for people who believe giant robots solve most problems. The isometric mech action game launches into Early Access, building on the brutal tactical combat of Brigador: Up-Armored Edition.The sequel adds an interesting twist to the formula by allowing players to leave their mechs and fight on foot. Because apparently stomping around in a heavily armed war machine wasn't stressful enough, now you can also experience the battlefield from the perspective of something that can be stepped on. The game is expected to remain in Early Access through at least the end of 2026 as the developers continue expanding its systems and content.

And then there is the Zone. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope arrives on August 20, giving players another excuse to return to one of gaming's most unpleasant holiday destinations. The expansion continues the story of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, introducing new content while launching alongside the substantial Update 2.0. GSC Game World is using the update to deliver broader improvements to the game while Cost of Hope gives veterans a fresh reason to venture back into the irradiated wilderness. Naturally, the Zone remains the sort of place where curiosity, radioactive anomalies and heavily armed strangers tend to converge with spectacularly bad results.

From the drowned streets of Arkham to the radioactive wasteland of the Zone, this week's releases seem determined to make ordinary vacations look considerably more appealing. STEINS;GATE RE provides a more cerebral alternative, while Mortal Shell II is ready to test the patience of anyone who enjoys their victories served with several defeats beforehand.

The biggest problem isn't finding something to play. It's finding the time to play all of it. Of course, if you want to purchase any of those games at the best price, our comparator is a very useful and safe tool to access the best deals available.