Gaming News · Issue #10 · 17 August 2026

TL;DR

• ARC Raiders' Phantom Targets Part 2 drops August 18, and it rides in with a roughly $20 cosmetic store bundle that has extraction players arguing about pricing.
• PUBG's first LMG meta rotation and the new RPD reach consoles August 20, reshaping close and mid-range fights.
• Sony's State of Play gave Phantom Blade Zero a 20-minute combat look and an October 29 date, with preorders live now.
• Elden Ring Tarnished Edition brings Shadow of the Erdtree to Switch 2 on August 28.
• Path of Exile 2 goes free for everyone August 29 to September 1 on PC, PS5, and Xbox.

🎯 Extraction shooters

ARC Raiders' Phantom Targets Part 2 Lands August 18 With a Roughly $20 Tick Hunter Store Bundle

ARC Raiders, Embark Studios' PvPvE extraction shooter where squads scavenge a hostile surface and race to extract loot before rival players or robots kill them, unlocks Phantom Targets Part 2 with live Update 1.42 on August 18. Part 2 closes out the Phantom Targets project that began August 4 and ends September 6. The same update adds a store bundle, the roughly $20 Tick Hunter set with an outfit in four colors, a backpack, a charm, a tattoo, and 2,400 Raider Tokens.

Player impact: If you want the Phantom Targets rewards, Update 1.42 opens a short window before the project ends September 6. The roughly $20 cosmetic set is the argument: reasonable for a live game, or one paid skin pack too many on top of the grind.

Sources: ARC Raiders · Timesaver.gg

🔫 FPS

PUBG's Update 42.3 Opens Its First LMG Meta Rotation and Adds the RPD, Consoles August 20

PUBG: Battlegrounds Update 42.3 adds the 7.62mm RPD light machine gun and opens the game's first LMG-focused Meta Rotation, a stretch where Krafton buffs one weapon class so it dominates loadouts. The update went live on PC first and reaches PS5 and Xbox on August 20. It also brings a summer Survivor Pass and map-rotation changes that shift which maps show up in matchmaking.

Player impact: Console squads should relearn their drops for August 20, since the RPD and buffed LMGs change close and mid-range fights, and the new rotation decides which maps you actually queue into. Players who hate spray meta have something fresh to complain about.

Sources: PUBG · The Tech Outlook

🔜 Coming soon

Phantom Blade Zero Shows 20 Minutes of Combat and Opens Preorders for Its October 29 Launch

Sony ran a State of Play on August 17 dedicated to Phantom Blade Zero, the fast action game from Chinese studio S-Game, showing roughly 20 minutes of new combat and confirming an October 29 release on PS5 and PC. Preorders opened the same day. Preordering unlocks the Treasure Basin accessory and Legacy outfit early, both of which can also be earned through normal play.

Player impact: If you want a weapon-heavy character action game this fall, you now have a hard date and a preorder decision. Nothing in the bonus is locked behind money, so there is no real reason to prepay unless you want it.

Sources: PlayStation Blog

The Sinking City 2 Launches August 18 as Frogwares' Lovecraftian Survival Horror Sequel

The Sinking City 2, the survival horror sequel from Ukrainian studio Frogwares, launches August 18 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, with 24-hour early access on August 17 for Premium Edition buyers. It keeps the open investigation of a flooded, monster-haunted city but leans harder into horror and resource scarcity. Frogwares confirmed launch-day New Game Plus and a free HDR patch, and a one-hour demo is already on Steam.

Player impact: If you liked the first game's detective work or want a creepy single-player break from live-service grinds, the demo lets you test the combat and horror before paying. Frogwares self-publishes, so a purchase directly backs a small studio.

Sources: Rely on Horror · Notebookcheck

Kingdom Hearts IV Returns at D23 With a Coco World and a Late 2027 Launch

Square Enix showed a new Kingdom Hearts IV trailer at Disney's D23 event on August 15, revealing a world based on Pixar's Coco and pinning the action RPG to a late 2027 release. It is coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC. The trailer showed playable segments as Donald and Goofy plus an exploration section following King Mickey as he hunts for the missing hero Sora.

Player impact: Fans finally have a rough window and a Switch 2 confirmation after years of near silence, but late 2027 is far enough out that the date could still move. Nothing to buy yet, plenty to theorize about.

Sources: RPG Site · Siliconera

🕹️ Console specifics

Elden Ring Tarnished Edition Brings Shadow of the Erdtree to Switch 2 on August 28

Bandai Namco and FromSoftware release Elden Ring Tarnished Edition on Nintendo Switch 2 on August 28 for $79.99. The package bundles the base game, the 2024 Shadow of the Erdtree expansion, and new starting classes, weapons, gear, and Spectral Steed (the game's mount) customization options that will also reach other platforms. Preorders for the physical Switch 2 version are open now. It is the first time Elden Ring runs on a Nintendo system.

Player impact: Switch 2 owners who skipped Elden Ring get the full game plus its expansion on the go, though $79.99 is steep and handheld performance is the open question. Existing owners on other platforms get the new classes and gear separately.

Sources: Bandai Namco · Bleeding Cool

📦 Other

Path of Exile 2 Goes Free for Everyone August 29 to September 1 Alongside Its Third Edict League

Grinding Gear Games is opening Path of Exile 2, currently a paid early-access action RPG, to everyone for free from August 29 to September 1 to launch its new league, The Third Edict. The trial runs on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S with no level cap and full access to all current content. Any progress you make carries over if you buy the game afterward.

Player impact: This is the cheapest way to test one of the biggest action RPGs before deciding to buy in, and a new league means a fresh economy where returning players and newcomers start closer to even. Mark the last weekend of August.

Sources: Path of Exile · Steam

Read the full issue on the site →

7 stories in this issue. Same digest goes out in the Warhogy Discord — reply to this email if there is a story I missed.