Summer Game Fest 2026 once again delivered what makes these events worth watching live: several sure hits, plenty of trailers, and a few announcements we didn't necessarily expect right now. Among the biggest surprises were Stellar Blade: BLOOD RAIN, Hot Wheels Infinite Rush, SAW: Genesis, Gundam Rogue Orbit, and the return of the almost mythical project 1666 Amsterdam.
One of the most unexpected announcements of Summer Game Fest 2026 was Stellar Blade: BLOOD RAIN, a new chapter in the action-adventure series from SHIFT UP. The game is set in the same world as the original Stellar Blade, but this time introduces a new protagonist, Evie, and continues the story after the events of the first game. The project is still in the early stages of development, and platforms and release date have not yet been confirmed. However, the announcement itself was strong enough for BLOOD RAIN to immediately establish itself as one of the highlights of the evening.
Something completely different is brought by Hot Wheels Infinite Rush, a new arcade racer from Milestone. Instead of a classic series of tracks, the game promises a more open Hot Wheels world with four islands, various challenges, free exploration, collecting over 150 vehicles, and building your own tracks. Hot Wheels Infinite Rush will be released on September 24, 2026, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC, and will include single-player, local multiplayer for up to four players, and online multiplayer with cross-play support, except for the Nintendo Switch 2 version.
Horror fans were surprised by SAW: Genesis, an asymmetric multiplayer game from Bloober Team, Broken Mirror Games, and Anshar Studios. It is a 3v1 horror that takes players to a dark period after World War I. One player takes on the role of the Judge, an early architect of Jigsaw's philosophy, while three accused try to survive a deadly maze full of traps. SAW: Genesis will first arrive in Early Access on PC via Steam, and the concept sounds like a logical but quite risky attempt to turn the SAW license into a tense multiplayer game.
Among the smaller but memorable surprises was An Eggstremely Hard Game. The very title clearly indicates the tone of this game: it is a deliberately frustrating challenge where humor, precision, and player nerves collide in a simple yet potentially very addictive idea. The trailer immediately caught attention precisely because it did not try to look like just another big blockbuster, but like a game that knows very well what it wants to be – uncomfortably hard, absurd, and created for audience reactions.
Bandai Namco introduced Gundam Rogue Orbit, a new action game set in a completely new Gundam universe. The game is described as high-mobility action with fast and cinematic battles, and players will control Gundam Helix and join a group of soldiers facing an unknown threat. Gundam Rogue Orbit will be released in 2027 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, and the announcement particularly targets new players who may not have followed the Gundam series until now.
Perhaps the biggest surprise for long-time followers of the industry was 1666:Amsterdam. The project by Patrice Désilets, the creative director of the original Assassin’s Creed, had a nearly legendary status among canceled and lost games for years. A new trailer was shown at the Summer Game Fest 2026, and it was confirmed that the prologue is available on Steam. The game is expected to arrive in Early Access later this year, which was completely unexpected for many after everything that has happened with this project over the years.
