3 Up, 3 Down – August 2026
August 2026 was another great month for video game releases. All the heavy hitters scored in the 75-85/100 range, except for one high scoring high profile game. So aside from that one, all the highest and lowest scoring games are hidden gems (or lemons). We included a low scoring game from the very end of July that didn’t get released in time for the writing of that month’s article. It scored much lower than anything that came out in August, so its inclusion in The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026 was a no brainer.
The Good
Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls
***click here for our review***
Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls is the high profile game that scored 90/100 this month. It’s a 2D 4 persona tag fighting game from Arc System Works. A new Arc System Works game is typically cause for celebration. But it’s also a sight to behold their wacky take on the Marvel universe. Our reviewer praised “With a focus on assembling your team to unleash mighty combos and huge assists, this team-based battler adds a fresh spin on the genre”. Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls was the most obvious inclusion in The Good section of The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026.
Mortal Shell 2
***click here for our review***
Mortal Shell 2 is the sequel to the (very obviously) Soulslike Mortal Shell. This sequel is an improvement over the original in almost every way, making the first game feel like a proof of concept in comparison. Our reviewer compared the two by stating “If Mortal Shell was a short story, Mortal Shell 2 is a richly textured epic novel”. Fans of Soulslikes should take note, as the Mortal Shell games are very much third-person action RPGs, without other genres mixed in. Mortal Shell 2 was a pleasant surprise, and it’s great to see it in The Good section of The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026.
ReStory: Chill Electronics Repairs
***click here for our review***
ReStory: Chill Electronics Repairs is an electronics repair sim. The game takes place in early 2000s Tokyo, and has players deconstructing gadgets from that era, like PSPs. The gameplay loop completely sucked in our reviewer. They concluded “ReStory: Chill Electronics Repairs takes a genuinely niche premise and turns it into one of the most relaxing and surprisingly fun simulators I’ve played in a long time”. If the premise sounds at all appealing, ReStory: Chill Electronics Repairs is a must-play. It’s always such a pleasure to see indie titles represented in The Good section of articles like The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026.
The Bad
Dark Scrolls
***click here for our review***
Dark Scrolls is a 2D platforming game with 8-bit aesthetics. The levels are procedurally generated, and they auto scroll. Unfortunately, the game lacks polish. And even if it was free of bugs, our reviewer noted the game “doesn’t have fleshed-out technical underpinnings and gameplay variety to make it stand out in a crowd”. Dark Scrolls didn’t impress, and was an easy inclusion in The Bad section of The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026.
Hell Let Loose: Vietnam
***click here for our review***
Hell Let Loose: Vietnam is a first-person shooter from the war sim Hell Let Loose series. The developers crafted an incredibly immersive WWII shooter with the first Hell Let Loose game. Unfortunately, Hell Let Loose: Vietnam is basically unfinished. Our reviewer wrote the game “often feels like an early-access build that hit the streets way, way before it was ready. To their credit, the developers have already outlined a roadmap of what they’re working on, but that doesn’t change the situation at launch”. Hopefully industry practices of releasing games that aren’t ready come to an end someday. Hell Let Loose: Vietnam is the lowest scoring game in The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026.
The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu
***click here for our review***
The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu is a first-person shooter that takes place in a period Lovecraftian world. While the game is very gorgeous, our reviewer found it incredibly boring to play. They concluded “Strip away the fog, the ruins, and the booty, and what’s left is a gameplay loop so thin it barely qualifies as one”. The gameplay just isn’t very interesting. This solidly landed The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu in The Bad section of The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games August 2026.
Do you agree with our The Three Best (and Worst) Video Games from August 2026? What were your favorite games that didn’t make our top 3? Let us know in the comments.
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