July has turned into one of the busier months on the gaming calendar, with developers clearly timing their releases to land well ahead of Grand Theft Auto 6, which isn’t due until November 19. That scheduling gap has left plenty of room for smaller and mid sized titles to grab attention without getting buried under the hype of gaming’s biggest upcoming release.
The month has already delivered a strong run of titles, including Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced and the full launch of Palworld, both of which set a high bar early on. While the past week leaned heavily on indie titles, the week ahead looks even bigger, with several major franchise releases all landing on Thursday, July 23.
What’s launching on July 23
Among the most anticipated releases is Avatar Legends, The Fighting Game, finally arriving after a three week delay. The title will be available across Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC and Xbox Series X, offering a 1v1, 2D fighting experience built around characters from Avatar, The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. Players can choose from twelve fighters, including fan favorites like Sokka, Kyoshi and Zaheer, and can pair them with support characters that meaningfully change how each fighter plays. A dedicated mode for newcomers to the fighting game genre is also included, making the title more approachable for players who haven’t spent much time with traditional fighters.
The same day brings Splatoon Raiders, the first true single player entry in the Splatoon franchise. Players take on the role of a mechanic whose helicopter crash lands on the Spirhalite islands, where they team up with the musical trio Deep Cut from Splatoon 3 to raid islands, battle enemies and collect loot used to upgrade equipment. The game leans into weapon upgrades and customizable gadgets as players fend off waves of Salmonids, giving longtime fans of the series a very different kind of experience compared to the franchise’s usual multiplayer focus.
Also arriving July 23 is Halo, Campaign Evolved, an early access remake of the original Halo, Combat Evolved, timed to celebrate the franchise’s 25th anniversary. The remake will be available on Windows PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, featuring modernized gameplay mechanics, redesigned missions and significantly upgraded visuals. Anyone who pre orders the premium edition will gain up to five days of early access ahead of the official launch, giving dedicated fans a head start on revisiting the campaign that helped define the series.
More titles rounding out the week
Beyond the three headline releases, several other titles are also set to launch on July 23. Final Fantasy X, X-2 HD Remaster is getting a new port for Switch 2, bringing the classic remaster to Nintendo’s latest hardware. Disgaea Mayhem will launch across PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and Windows PC, while Theropods, a dinosaur themed point and click adventure, arrives on Windows PC for players looking for something outside the usual action and fighting game mold.
Taken together, the July 23 lineup covers an unusually wide range of genres and platforms, from competitive fighting games to single player raid based adventures to a nostalgic first person shooter remake. That variety gives players plenty of options regardless of what kind of experience they’re looking for heading into the back half of summer.
What it means for the rest of the summer
With so many titles converging on a single release day, July is shaping up as one of the more crowded stretches of the year for new game launches, a pattern that seems deliberate given how much attention Grand Theft Auto 6 is expected to command once November arrives. For now, though, gamers have a genuinely varied slate to choose from, whether that means jumping into a new fighting game roster, exploring Splatoon’s first solo adventure, or revisiting a reimagined version of one of gaming’s most influential shooters.
