2026’s Biggest GTA 6 Rival Isn’t Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake

Grand Theft Auto 6 will be, in all likelihood, the biggest video game release of all time. It’s easy to brush such statements off as marketing-speak, but there’s a lot of truth to them: just look at the groundbreaking sales of GTA 5. As games like Cyberpunk 2077 have shown, hype doesn’t always equal a strong reception, but it’s still probable that GTA 6 will break records and solidify itself as 2026’s most significant game.

But of course, GTA 6 is far from the only major game that’s going to release this holiday season, even if publishers have been tripping over themselves to rush out of Rockstar’s chosen release window. For instance, just two weeks prior to GTA 6‘s launch will be the release of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, a game that many anticipate as the second-biggest release of November, and indeed of all 2026. But while this new take on Ocarina of Time is sure to be significant, I wouldn’t even consider it the biggest non-GTA game coming out in the next two months. For that title, I’d have to recommend FromSoftware’s The Duskbloods.

The Duskbloods Is Still Slated for a 2026 Release Date

Many FromSoftware fans, myself included, are practically frothing at the mouth for new information about The Duskbloods, the upcoming Gothic PvPvE action extravaganza from the Elden Ring studio. While there’s still a lot that needs to be revealed about the game, including its actual release date, the public-facing stance of both FromSoftware and Nintendo (The Duskbloods is a Switch 2 exclusive) is that The Duskbloods is going to be a 2026 release. This broad window has not wavered since The Duskbloods was revealed back in 2025.

As one might expect, there’s been plenty of speculation that The Duskbloods will actually be pushed into 2027 or perhaps even beyond. It wouldn’t be the first time that a hotly anticipated game was delayed last-minute—Ken Levine’s Judas blew past its original March 2025 release window without much fanfare, for example. But it’s also not unheard of for a game to receive a release date in the 11th hour. Hollow Knight Silksong serves as a notable example of this, annoucing its release date weeks before launch, following years of anticipation.

There’s a strong chance that The Duskbloods will meet its 2026 release window. Aside from Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition, The Duskbloods is the only new game FromSoftware is releasing this year; it’s easy to forget, but FromSoft has adhered to an annual release schedule for many years now, and has indicated on several occasions that it has several projects in the pipeline simultaneously. Given the nature of the industry and the fiscal weight a developer like FromSoftware carries, it’s highly unlikely that it would let a full year pass without releasing a new game, thus breaking its streak, as it were.

FromSoft’s post-2022 pattern more or less mirrors its pre-2020 one: this is a very prolific studio, much more so than a lot of gamers think, likely as a result of more niche releases like 2018’s Deracine. It should go without saying that demand for the company’s games has only grown since Elden Ring, and the above release cadence reflects that. Also, keep in mind that, as a Switch 2 exclusive, The Duskbloods is just as much of a flagship release for Nintendo as it is for FromSoft—doubly so, when you consider how many gamers will sign up for Nintendo Switch Online solely to play Duskbloods.

The Duskbloods Could Be a Bigger Deal Than We Think

Although a lot of long-time FromSoftware fans were wary of Duskbloods‘ multiplayer backbone, especially since we just got Elden Ring Nightreign, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the project has a lot more going on under the hood. For one thing, reports have indicated that Duskbloods has actually been in development since 2019, and has received more gameplay prototypes than any other modern FromSoft game. The reason for this, according to reliable Chinese games insider Ziostorm, is Duskbloods‘ especial ambition and innovation. This information came in late 2025, and the official Duskbloods previews that have been released since then corroborate it.

Let’s not forget that The Duskbloods also marks the return of Hidetaka Miyzaki, being the first full project helmed by the director since Elden Ring itself. Everyone is fallible, of course, but Miyazaki is generally considered a master of his craft, and having him in the director’s chair is sure to make The Duskbloods special, memorable, and thought-provoking in the same way the man’s other works are.

Right now, it kind of feels like everyone is expecting The Duskbloods to be another Elden Ring Nightreign: fun and not without its fans, but ultimately a footnote more than a Game of the Year contender. Such an outcome is certainly possible. But perhaps we should also be prepared for the possibility that Duskbloods will be more like Elden Ring, achieving equally massive, global success and cultural appeal. If there’s any game that can take a chunk out of GTA 6‘s already secured market and media dominance, it’s a successor to Elden Ring; with Duskbloods, that could just be what we get.

Systems

Released

November 19, 2026

ESRB

Rating Pending – Likely Mature 17+