An Incredible Elder Scrolls-Like, Cozy Life-Sims, and So Much More - New RPGs! May 12 and May 19, 2025
Including the successor to one of the secret best Castlevania entries, a remastered Gundam action-RPG, and a game where you play as a pirate
The bad news? I’m late on posting last week’s new RPG releases because I was under the weather last week.
The good news? Well, I’ve been kind of wanting to shift the “new releases” post to the start of the week before the games come out rather than the end of the week after. So what better time for that than now?
With that in mind, this week’s post I’ll go over all the new RPGs that came out last week (the week of May 12, 2025) and those coming out this week (the week of May 19, 2025). Going forward, I’ll be aiming to publish the new releases post on Sunday or Monday of each week.
Thanks as always for your patience, and feel free to leave a comment if you have any thoughts on the scheduling plan! Now, let’s get to the good stuff.
Blades of Fire
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
Developer: MercurySteam
Publisher: 505 Games
Release Date: May 22, 2025
Wow, ok, here is a game I didn’t guess I would be hype for, and yet I absolutely am hyped beyond belief. At first glance, Blades of Fire may strike viewers as a fairly generic-looking fantasy action-RPG with some of the requisite Dark Souls influence. But when I look at this game, I see one thing and one thing only: a successor to 2010’s deeply underrated Castlevania: Lords of Shadow.
There’s a good reason for the similarities too. Blades of Fire comes from Lords of Shadow developer MercurySteam and shares that game’s director, Enric Álvarez. And sure, Lords of Shadow 2 may have been a massive letdown, but this team more than deserves another swing at things. Besides, almost no one makes this type of epic, cinematic, entirely single-player-focused action-RPG anymore. I’m absolutely planning to try it for myself.
(Note: I used a screenshot rather than a trailer for this entry, because the trailer is age-restricted, so it cannot be embedded/played outside of YouTube. You can check out a gameplay trailer for yourself at this link.)
Death End Re;Quest: Code Z
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 (PC later this year)
Developers: Compile Heart, Idea Factory
Publisher: Idea Factory International
Release Date: May 13, 2025
I haven’t dipped my toes into the Death End Re;Quest franchise before, but I’ve always been curious. I love Japanese RPGs, and I also love the horror aesthetic and the blend of visual novel storytelling that this franchise is known for.
Code Z twists that formula in a new direction, though, by replacing the traditional third-person RPG exploration and combat with a traditional, top-down roguelike approach. It sounds like it follows a new protagonist and a side story from the main games to go along with the gameplay shift. I could always use more roguelikes for my Steam Deck, so I’ll check this out when it makes its way to PC later this year.
(Note: I used a screenshot rather than a trailer for this entry, because the trailer is age-restricted, so it cannot be embedded/played outside of YouTube. You can check out a gameplay trailer for yourself at this link.)
Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series (Nintendo Switch 2 later)
Developer: Level-5 Inc.
Publisher: Level-5 Inc.
Release Date: May 21, 2025
I was obsessed with the original Fantasy Life when it first came to North America on the 3DS way back in 2014. It was a game that had all the cozy life-sim elements that fans of Story of Seasons and Stardew Valley love, but it also had some more traditional RPG elements. And best of all, I didn’t have to stick to just one way of playing: I could swap between playing on the life path of a chef to that of a blacksmith to that of a mercenary to that of an angler, based on whatever I felt like progressing at the time.
Fantasy Life i looks to carry on that lovely blend of crafting, gathering, combat, and exploration, except this time it is wisely available on all major platforms. On top of that, The Girl Who Steals Time promises a much bigger open world and expanded multiplayer options. Barring disastrous first impressions from reviewers, this is a no-brainer day-one purchase for me!
Lynked: Banner of the Spark (leaving Early Access)
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
Developer: FuzzyBot
Publisher: Dreamhaven
Release Date: May 22, 2025
This cartoony action-RPG has been in early access on Steam since October 2024, but as of this week, it will enter its full 1.0 launch, as well as arriving on consoles. The game promises a mix of roguelite progression with chill life-sim elements. Think of it as something like Hades meets Animal Crossing with an art style reminiscent of Ratchet & Clank.
For what it’s worth, the reaction to early access on Steam has been “Very Positive.” User reviews have praised the game’s cute aesthetics, good vibes, and fun combat, as well as the ease of dropping in and out of co-op with friends. The 1.0 launch will include a bunch of new story chapters, missions, and enemies. I just hope it doesn’t go under the radar the way some early access games tend to.
Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Battle Destiny Remastered
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC
Developer: Bandai Namco Forge Digitals
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.
Release Date: May 21, 2025
Lore reveal: I’m kind of a Gundam nut. I haven’t watched all of various Gundam shows—not even close—but I really love a lot of the older series. Moreover, I’m always looking for a great video game adaptation, which it feels like we haven’t had for quite some time.
Enter Battle Destiny Remastered, an updated version of a Japan-only Vita game from 2012. As you might expect, the game’s action-packed missions have players facing off against other mechas in support of one of three factions. Between missions, players can modify and level up their Gundam, or jump into more than 100 different Mobile Suits from across the history for the franchise. If the trailer is anything to go by, it looks great in action!
(Now can we please get another Dynasty Warriors: Gundam game, or even just a PC rerelease of the originals?)
Palia: The Elderwood Expansion
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
Developer: Singularity 6 Corporation
Publisher: Singularity 6 Corporation
Release Date: May 13, 2025
May 13 was a big date for cozy MMO Palia! First off, the game arrived for the first time on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series. On top of that, developer Singularity 6 introduced Elderwood, a huge free expansion that adds a new adventure zone full of springy mushrooms to jump from and bizarre artifacts to ponder. There’s also a whole new Relics equipment system. I spent a fair bit of time checking out Palia last year and really enjoyed it. Maybe this is a good time to check back in!
Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon (leaving Early Access)
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
Developer: Questline
Publisher: Awaken Realms
Release Date: May 23, 2025
Let’s get this out of the way first: PLAY THIS GAME. Yes, this is one of the rare cases where I have had a chance to play one of the games on this list prior to launch (in this case, through its early access release on Steam, which has been live since March 2023). As such, I can happily confirm that Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon is a very special CRPG, and it deserves your attention.
The quick pitch for The Fall of Avalon is that it’s sort of like an Oblivion-era Elder Scrolls game but built around a very dark, very interesting take on Arthurian legend. I played the game when it first hit early access, and even in that most rough of states, I was blown away by how much more it captured my imagination than anything Bethesda has put out since Fallout 3.
After playing five to ten hours in early access, I decided to set Tainted Grail aside until the full launch. Now that is almost here, and it will include an estimated fifty to seventy hours of gameplay, hundreds of sidequests, unique weapons, and NPCs to interact with, dozens of dungeons to conquer, and more. Developer Awaken Realms also promises that the branching main story quest leads to “hundreds of different endings,” which seems like an awfully tall order, but I like to see the ambition at least.
Tales of Seikyu (Early Access)
Platform: PC
Developer: ACE Entertainment
Publisher: Fireshine Games
Release Date: May 21, 2025
Tales of Seikyu is an adorable-looking life-sim where players use powers granted from yokai1 to help take care of their crops and explore the island of Seikyu. It looks like the game will feature some combat and dating sim elements as well. The look of the game is great, at least. If everything else about it lines up, I could definitely see this game getting interest from a wider audience.
Trident’s Tale
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series
Developer: 3DClouds
Publisher: 3DClouds
Release Date: May 22, 2025
It feels safe to say that there has never been enough pirate-themed RPGs. Trident’s Tale seeks to fill that void with a very Fable-meets-Sea of Thieves look that could be quite nice. It also appears to have plenty of ship customization, which is a must for a pirate game.
That said, I don’t know much about 3DClouds, the Italy-based developer behind this title. It seems that most of their past games have been licensed titles based on kid-friendly IP like Paw Patrol, Transformers, and Hot Wheels. They previously tested the pirate RPG waters with 2021’s King of Seas, but reviews for that were mixed, noting a lack of variety and a bland world. Fingers crossed that the studio has had time to improve on some of those ideas in the years since.
Yasha: Legends of the Demon Blade
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
Developer: 7Quark
Publishers: 7Quark, Game Source Entertainment
Release Date: May 14, 2025
I’ve had my eye on this very stylish, Japanese myth-inspired roguelite since it was successfully funded on Kickstarter late last year. Unfortunately, the launch has been more than a little rough. Yasha: Legends of the Demon Blade currently has a rating of “Mixed” on Steam, with negative user reviews pointing to some major bugs and a lack of content.
To developer 7Quark’s credit, they did launch with a roadmap promising at least two meaty-sounding updates this year—one for August and one for November. And there are a fair number of positive reviews as well, so hopefully they can turn the ship around. This is one of those rare cases where I wonder if the game may have been better off launching in early access to properly set expectations.
And that’s it for this week! …And last week!
Besides Tainted Grail (which I again implore you to check out at some point if you enjoy Elder Scrolls-style RPGs at all), is there anything on the list you’re looking forward to? Leave a comment with what you’ll be playing, and I promise to put down Fantasy Life i long enough to respond!
Supernatural spirits in Japanese folklore
Tainted Grail looks amazing. And yet made by a smaller studio than the usual triple-A crowd.