Liquid Swords gave fans their first look at the upcoming Steam game Samson at the PC Gaming Show, and it looks like GTA 4 and Max Payne had a baby. There’s still a lot that players don’t know about the game, but if its first trailer and the pedigree of its developer is anything to go by, PC gamers are in for a treat. As the wait for a new GTA or May Payne continues, Steam users could have something special to tide them over.
The lead-up to Samson‘s release has been longer than it may seem at first. News first broke that Just Cause creator Cristofer Sundberg started his own studio, Liquid Swords, all the way back in 2020, one year after Sundberg announced he was leaving Avalanche Studios, which he had co-founded. Since then, Liquid Swords has periodically teased its debut game, though much has remained a mystery. Even if there are still some lingering questions, fans finally have a proper look at Samson, and fans of classic crime titles should get excited.
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Liquid Swords Unveils GTA 4 Look-Alike Samson at the PC Gaming Show
During the PC Gaming Show on December 4, 2025, Liquid Games showed off the announcement trailer for Samson, immediately drawing comparisons to GTA 4 for its gritty, New York City-esque setting and car chase-filled gameplay. The one-minute trailer features at least four shots of cars rolling after a fast-paced crash and one jump as a car drives over a wall, making the Grand Theft Auto inspiration hard to ignore. If those bits of gameplay are representative of the full game once it releases, it could be a welcome addition to Steam as gamers wait after GTA 6‘s latest release delay to November 2026. Samson doesn’t have a firm release date yet, but Liquid Games has said it’s eyeing an early 2026 release, so it should beat GTA 6 to the punch.
Grand Theft Auto isn’t the only beloved crime game Samson has reminded people of. While the specifics of the story remain unclear, the themes of an aging, hardened man fighting his way through a criminal underbelly call the Max Payne series to mind. While there are remakes for the first two Max Payne games in the works, it’s been 13 years since Max Payne 3 came out, so Samson may fill the void left by that trilogy ending. It will also offer players an open world to explore and a seemingly complex combat system, which could provide a lot to sink their teeth into.
Samson also has quite the team behind it. Many consider the Just Cause games some of the best games for letting off some steam, and Liquid Swords also boasts other team members from Just Cause‘s Avalanche Studios and Grand Theft Auto‘s Rockstar. While the studio did suffer layoffs earlier in 2025, it has quite the pedigree, which may drive all the more excitement for its debut game when it arrives in 2026.
Currently, Samson has only confirmed it will launch on PC. Liquid Swords has not commented on a console version yet, but that also means the company hasn’t ruled it out. It’s not uncommon for debut games to release on Steam first before getting a console port down the line, so any Xbox, PlayStation, or Switch fans should keep their eyes open for more news. The game also carries a price tag of just $25, which may come as a bit of a relief as other games and systems get increasingly expensive.
