From April 27 to May 2, 2026, this selection brings together three games that look very different on paper but are all defined by a strong structural identity. There is a free-to-play open world built around driving and urban exploration, a third-person roguelite focused on pace and risk, and the return of a strategy series that still leans on maps, castles and turn-based battles.
Neverness to Everness
Neverness to Everness is the hardest game here to pin down with a single label, because it pulls from several genres and folds them into an urban-fantasy frame. It is a free-to-play game set in a city you can drive through, with shopping, co-op and multiplayer races already present in recent tests. The main structure, though, still leans on single-player, while multiplayer is described as always available but never mandatory. That makes it feel less like a shared-only project and more like an urban adventure that uses driving, movement and unexpected encounters as part of its rhythm.
The city itself is divided into themed districts, with Bridge Crossings serving as the first area players visit. The tone is just as distinctive: supernatural anomalies break into everyday settings, creating a constant contrast between normal life and something more unsettling. On the gacha side, the system is described as one where only a limited portion of lower-rarity Arcs acts as filler, while S-rank Arcs and most A-rank ones are earned through gameplay or bought with a special currency that can also be accumulated by playing. The idea is clearly meant to reduce frustration, though it still needs to prove itself in practice. There is also a City Tycoon layer tied to progression, property ownership and character interactions: apartments, businesses and houses unlock new possibilities, even if the final shape of that system is still evolving. The city is not just a backdrop; it is the framework that holds together movement, collection and progression, and that gives every system a place in the same urban loop.
Saros
Saros is the game that most clearly centers on combat tension. It is a third-person roguelite set on the planet Carcosa, where Arjun Devraj, a Soltari Enforcer, searches for the missing crew of a previous expedition. The structure is built around repeated returns to base, with each run moving through hostile biomes, fast encounters and a progression loop designed to keep the player balanced between control and danger. The core of the experience is a bullet-absorption system: some shots can be absorbed, others dodged, and others parried, turning encounters into an aggressive choreography where standing your ground can be more effective than backing off.
The game also makes strong use of the DualSense on PlayStation 5, with adaptive triggers, haptics and carefully tuned feedback for movement and impact. Structurally, Carcosa is more than just a hostile backdrop: its monumental architecture, the The Passage base and the eclipse cycle triggered by terminals give the journey a very clear shape. Saros mixes Soltari weapons and Carcosan abilities, with pistols, shotguns, assault rifles and a power weapon charged by absorbing enemy energy. The story also seems built to leave a mark, with a more direct sci-fi setup than Housemarque has used before. Its release is listed for April 30, 2026 on PlayStation 5. What stands out most is how the game turns defense into offense: you do not simply avoid danger, you absorb it, store it and send it back out as force. That choice changes the tempo of every fight and makes encounters feel more physical, more demanding and more immediate once the action starts to spiral.
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era brings classic turn-based strategy back into focus, with a structure built around heroes, cities, resources and hex-grid battles. The demo shown during Steam Next Fest sticks closely to the series formula: you explore the map with a hero, capture mines and other buildings to gather gold, wood, gems and extra resources, then build one structure per turn in your city, recruit troops and fight battles where initiative, speed and positioning matter a great deal. Magic remains central too, with spells and abilities that change depending on the hero and class.
The game is set as a prequel to the original entry and takes place on the continent of Jadame, with six factions named in the available material: Temple, Necropolis, Sylvan, Dungeon, Schism and Hive. Several modes have already surfaced in the preview build, including an extended tutorial, arena, classic mode and single-hero mode, while the campaign was not accessible in that version. Auto-resolve is also part of the setup for players who want to speed up turns. Early access is planned for 2026, but the final content picture is still taking shape. For now, the appeal lies in how faithfully it restores a familiar formula, with a map full of objectives and a combat system that still asks for attention to unit placement, counterattacks and army composition. It is a return that does not try to reinvent the series from scratch, but instead puts the emphasis back on slow decisions, resource management and the tactical reading of terrain.
