2026 has been a strong year for critically-acclaimed new game releases, but there has been some confusion as to what actually qualifies as a 2026 game. I have seen multiple TikTok videos of people challenging their friends to guess the top 10 highest-rated games of 2026, only for the participants to be confused by some of the selections.
Oftentimes, the individuals in these videos don’t seem to understand what Metacritic is, thinking the site itself assigns the scores to the games as opposed to the scores being aggregated from various outlets. In their defense, Metacritic doesn’t exactly make things easy because it includes 2026 ports of older games and DLC releases in the top 10. Games that have also received hardly any reviews compared to others are scored higher than they likely would be otherwise, which helps more obscure titles get noticed, but also may leave some gamers scratching their heads.
- Big Walk – 91
- Forza Horizon 6 – 90
- Mina the Hollower – 90
- Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter – 90
- Schrodinger’s Call – 89
- Valheim – 89
- Pokemon Pokopia – 89
- Resident Evil Requiem – 89
- Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave – 89
- Star Wars: Galactic Racer – 88
To help alleviate some of the confusion, I have collected the real list of the top 10 highest-rated games of 2026 (so far) according to Metacritic. I have removed 2026 ports of older games, so titles like Sektori and Resident Evil 2 Deluxe Edition‘s Switch 2 port are not included. Remasters like The Witcher 3 Remastered have also been removed, but remakes, like Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter, are fair game. I have also removed games that did not meet the 15 review threshold that a title needs to earn Metacritic’s Must-Play badge, which is awarded to games with a 90+ rating. The end result is that Big Walk is currently the highest-rated new game release of the year, followed by Forza Horizon 6, Mina the Hollower, Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter, Schrodinger’s Call, Valheim (which had its 1.0 release just recently but was available in early access for years), Pokemon Pokopia, Resident Evil Requiem, Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, and Star Wars: Galactic Racer.
Click on the game with the higher OpenCritic rating.
Doom: The Dark Ages‘ Revelations DLC is included in the top 10 on the site, as is Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition on Switch 2, and both have the Must-Play badge. If you want to discount Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter because it’s a remake, then Denshattack would join the top 10 list. If you want to discount Valheim as well since it was first released in early access years ago, then Mewgenics would also be in the top 10. Regardless, the aforementioned games are a far more accurate representation of the top 10 highest-rated games of 2026 so far than what has been floating around on social media.
Even though we are nearing the end of the year, it’s entirely possible that the top 10 highest-rated games of 2026 list will change quite dramatically. There are some highly-anticipated games right around the corner, with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 and Nintendo Switch Sports Resort both set to launch in the coming week, and Phantom Blade Zero dropping at the end of the month. November, of course, has Grand Theft Auto 6 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Switch 2 remake, both of which have potential to become the highest-rated game of the year by the time it’s all said and done.
It will be interesting to see how the final top 10 list turns out, but for now, anyone looking for a high-quality new game to play should find those titles to be safe bets.
- Released
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August 4, 2026
- Developer(s)
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House House
- Publisher(s)
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Panic
- Multiplayer
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Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
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Full