By Aimee Rogers 
Being a roguelite fan is exhausting. Every time it feels like you’ve finally got your backlog under control, a fresh wave of releases arrives and sends you right back to square one.
There’s an endless supply of roguelites and roguelikes competing for attention right now. The games that break through tend to have something a little different about them. A mechanic you’ve never seen before, a premise that sounds slightly ridiculous, or a combination of genres that somehow works despite all common sense suggesting otherwise.
From games that require you to become a dark-web weapons dealer, to a roguelite where time itself becomes a resource, here are the 10 upcoming roguelite and roguelike games we’re most excited for right now…
Rock, Paper, Scissors isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think of great roguelike mechanics. In fact, it sounds like the sort of idea that should fall apart the moment somebody tries to build an entire game around it.
Yet somehow, Rock, Paper, Scissors, SHOOT! looks like it might actually work.
The game takes one of the simplest hand games ever invented and turns it into a surprisingly deep roguelite built around strategic choices, upgrades, and run-defining decisions. What starts as a familiar game of chance quickly evolves into something far more complicated.
The best roguelites often take a simple idea and push it far further than anyone expects. Rock, Paper, Scissors, SHOOT! looks determined to do exactly that and with a June release date, you don’t need to wait long to test it out.
Expected release: June 15th 2026
Dark Scrolls makes it onto this list for its sheer sense of chaos.
The upcoming fantasy roguelite combines action platforming, co-op play, procedurally generated runs, and a growing roster of heroes, but what immediately stands out is how quickly everything seems to get out of hand. Enemies swarm the screen, projectiles fly in every direction, and successful runs eventually resemble a fireworks display with monsters hidden somewhere underneath.
It’s an interesting combination of roguelite progression and bullet hell action. Most games would probably try to keep things under control, but Dark Scrolls appears far more interested in seeing how chaotic it can become.
Release: June 22nd 2026
DarkBazaar makes it onto this list for having one of the strangest premises we’ve seen in a roguelite for quite some time.
Most games ask players to save kingdoms, slay monsters, or prevent the end of the world. DarkBazaar asks them to build a thriving weapons business on the dark web instead.
Players take on the role of an underground arms dealer, buying crates, managing inventory, fulfilling increasingly risky orders, and trying to stay profitable in a marketplace where every decision feels slightly questionable. The deeper you get, the higher the rewards become, but so do the risks.
It’s an unusual combination of roguelite progression, gambling mechanics, and economic strategy. More importantly, it feels genuinely different from almost everything else currently on the horizon.
And in a genre this crowded, that’s often half the battle.
Expected release: Q3 2026
Most time-loop games treat time as the setting but Clockfall treats it as a resource.
The dark fantasy action roguelite places players in a constant battle against the clock, forcing them to weigh every upgrade, every detour, and every opportunity against the time it takes to pursue it. The result is a progression system where becoming stronger is only half the challenge.
It’s an interesting combination of action combat and resource management. Every decision carries a cost, and wasting too much time can be just as dangerous as any enemy. After all, the clock never stops ticking.
Status: Early Access, development ongoing
At first glance, Hexgame: Hero Path looks like a classic fantasy adventure. Heroes travel across a sprawling hex-based world map, battling enemies, collecting rewards, and gradually growing stronger with every step of their journey.
The difference is that every route matters. Each choice shapes the rest of the run, forcing players to constantly weigh potential rewards against the risks required to reach them.
It’s an interesting combination of exploration, strategy, and roguelite progression. Some paths lead to powerful rewards. Others lead to encounters you probably weren’t ready for.
The challenge is figuring out which is which before it’s too late.
Expected release: 2026 – Exact date unknown
There’s been no shortage of chess-inspired roguelikes in recent years. Once a Pawn King is one of the few that immediately grabbed our attention.
The game takes familiar chess pieces and transforms them into the foundation of a run-based adventure built around upgrades, synergies, and strategic decision making. What begins as a humble pawn can gradually evolve into something far more powerful as players experiment with different combinations and builds.
It’s an interesting combination of chess-inspired tactics and roguelike progression. Every run presents new opportunities to strengthen your pieces, adapt your strategy, and approach the board in a completely different way. After all, pawns aren’t usually the stars of the show.
While technically not completely new, the game has been in ongoing development with early access and finally has a release date of June 15th.
Expected release: 15th June 2026
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse feel surprisingly underused in videogames. Netherwyn is looking to change that.
The action roguelite RPG drops players into a plague-ridden world on the brink of collapse, where they must battle through procedurally generated levels filled with relentless hordes, deadly bosses, and ever-changing loot. Between runs, heroes can be upgraded and strengthened before venturing back into the cursed lands in search of answers.
This first chapter focuses on The Pestilence, the first of the Four Horsemen, whose corruption has spread throughout the kingdom. From swarming Ratkins to towering Plague Demons, every encounter appears designed to reinforce the scale of the outbreak players are fighting against.
It’s an exciting combination of co-op action, roguelite progression, and apocalyptic fantasy.
Expected release: Q4 2026
A frog-themed roguelite built around saving a tadpole’s birthday isn’t a pitch you hear every day. Then again, neither is a game that openly encourages players to break it. Yet beneath the frogs, birthday parties, and general absurdity, is a surprisingly interesting roguelite.
Inspired by Balatro, Slay the Spire, and Inscryption, the dungeon crawler revolves around collecting, upgrading, and combining powerful sigils to create increasingly absurd builds. The more you experiment, the more opportunities you uncover to stack abilities together and push the game’s systems to their limits.
The developers aren’t exactly subtle about their intentions either. One of the game’s biggest selling points is the ability to break it, encouraging players to discover increasingly ridiculous interactions and combinations.
And if there’s one thing roguelite fans love, it’s finding a build that probably shouldn’t exist.
Expected release: July 2026
Most roguelike heroes are hardened warriors, powerful wizards, or heavily armed space marines. In Featherless you’re a duck.
The fast-paced roguelike shooter throws players into chaotic arenas packed with relentless enemies, increasingly absurd weapon combinations, and enough power-ups to create builds that probably shouldn’t exist. Every run presents new opportunities to stack upgrades, experiment with different weapons, and see just how far you can push the game’s systems before everything descends into complete madness.
It’s an intentionally ridiculous premise, but that’s part of the appeal. After all, there’s something strangely satisfying about watching an armed duck tear through hundreds of enemies while the screen fills with explosions.
Sometimes a roguelike doesn’t need to be complicated, it just needs a duck with a gun.
Expected release: Coming Soon
Building the perfect monster-taming team is one thing. Building the perfect monster-taming team while managing multiple decks and positioning every creature in battle is another.
The upcoming roguelike combines creature collection, deckbuilding, and grid-based tactical combat, giving players plenty of opportunities to experiment with different monsters, strategies, and team compositions as each run unfolds.
It’s an interesting combination of ideas. Every new creature doesn’t just change your team, it changes the cards you bring into battle and the way you approach each encounter.
The more we see of Montabi, the more intriguing it becomes.
Expected release: 6th August