It’s a fine idea, really. The Sword Art Online series has never fully captured the imagination of western gamers the same way as in Japan, and so the latest entry of this anime adaptation has re-branded itself as Echoes of Aincrad – a fantasy affair more seasoned to western tastes, complete with monsters to slay, treasures to plunder, and a floating castle world to explore.
After creating a unique character, you’re paired with a partner that grows in skill alongside you, and more of the world opens as you progress. This comes from a new developer from previous games too – the blandly titled Game Studio Inc, who created SYNDUALITY Echo of Ada.
Echoes of Aincrad is up against a similar fantasy themed action RPG, in the form of Granblue Fantasy: Relink – Endless Ragnarok. It promises a 25 hour playtime (it’s an expansion of sorts) along with six new characters. Surprisingly, it has four-player cross play across PS5, PS4, Switch 2 and PC. On that note, it’s skipping Xbox Series entirely. There is an alternative though as the memory reclaiming open world RPG Wuthering Waves gains a belated Xbox release, just in time for its Cyberpunk 2077 crossover. Check out the trailer below.
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced meanwhile is coming to PS5, Xbox Series and PC. This is more than a simple HD conversion, refining the combat, improving stealth sections, adding more shipwrecks, introducing new firing modes to naval battles, and seeing a general spruce up all around. A Switch 2 version would have been welcome, but oddly, isn’t on the cards presently.
The Switch 2 does however gain Digimon Story Time Stranger. Continuing the theme for this week, this is an RPG with turn-based battles. This version reportedly runs at 4K with HDR and has 60fps in performance mode. The PS5 version from late last year garnered a 79% Metacritic, standing out for its story and visuals. Creature battling fans may also want to keep an eye on Palworld 1.0, which sees a slew of new content.
Other releases for this week include EA Sports College Football 27 – which reintroduces mascot mashup mode – DOOM: The Dark Ages’ Revelations DLC, vertical retro shooter Red Titans, supernatural life-sim Moonlight Peaks, WWI survival adventure The Caribou Trail, the flashlight dependant horror Escape from Umbra, and the Diablo 3 inspired Hell Clock. The positively reviewed MOUSE: P.I. For Hire meanwhile heads to retail on PS5 and Switch 2.
New release trailers
Granblue Fantasy: Relink – Endless Ragnarok
Echoes of Aincrad
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced
Wuthering Waves
DOOM: The Dark Ages – Revelations
Digimon Story Time Stranger
EA Sports College Football 27
Moonlight Peaks
Escape from Umbra
The Caribou Trail
Hell Clock
Palworld 1.0
Red Titans
The Fissure
New multiformat releases
- Echoes of Aincrad
- Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced
- DOOM: The Dark Ages – Revelations
- EA Sports College Football 27
- Moonlight Peaks
- Escape from Umbra
- Palworld 1.0
- Red Titans
- The Fissure
- Viking Frontiers
- Educational Family Games
- Quest Arrest
- Tower Dominion
New on PSN
- Granblue Fantasy: Relink – Endless Ragnarok
- Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX 1+2 Dual Collection
- The Caribou Trail
- Forest Escape: Last Train
- Taishogun: The Rise of Emperor
- Rally Car Mechanic Simulator
- Forward to the Sky
New on Xbox Store
- Wuthering Waves
- Welcome to Kowloon
- Winds of Arcana: Ruination
- Wall World 2
- Frogging Up: Frog Climb Rage Game
- Sokocat: Castaway
- Book It! (Xbox Series)
- Hell Clock
- Black Spades
- Cuboy Adventure
- Damways (Series)
New Switch retail releases
eShop round-up coming Thursday
- Granblue Fantasy: Relink – Endless Ragnarok Day One Edition – Switch 2
- MOUSE: P.I. For Hire – Switch 2
- Digimon Story Time Stranger – Switch 2
- Hunt The Nigh
Next week: The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu, Denshattack!, Teeto, D-topia, Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit, K-pop Idol Stories: Road to Debut, Farlands, ShapeHero Factory, eBaseball: PRO SPIRIT 2026, 70s-style Robot Anime Geppy-X, The Mermaid Mask, Wreck Runners, Biomechnical Toy, Instant Sports 2, Puppergeist, and Forensics: Crime Scene Detective.