Echoes of Aincrad: Bandai Namco announces new action RPG for July 10, 2026

Bandai Namco has announced Echoes of Aincrad — an action RPG featuring a custom-created hero, real-time combat, and the floating castle Aincrad as its setting. Release date: July 10, 2026.

This week, Bandai Namco revealed the mystery behind a long-kept secret project: Echoes of Aincrad is a new action RPG that sends you to the floating castle of Aincrad — a world where every battle could be your last. The special twist: instead of playing a predefined hero, you create your character entirely from scratch.

Your hero, your rules

In Echoes of Aincrad, you customize the appearance, equipment, and combat style of your avatar according to your own preferences. The gameplay focuses on fast-paced real-time combat, where you combine weapons, attributes, and special abilities. Whether you prefer speed, strength, or stamina is entirely up to you. As you level up, you unlock more powerful skills and fine-tune your stats.

You won’t be fighting alone: you select an AI partner whose tactics and equipment you can also customize. Charge aggressively into battle or provide support from the background — the choice is yours. The deeper your bond with your partner grows, the stronger their abilities become in combat.

The world of Aincrad expands as the story progresses: new regions, towns, open areas, and dangerous dungeons gradually unlock. Quests, rare items, and increasingly powerful enemies ensure that Echoes of Aincrad never becomes boring.

For players who enjoy higher stakes, the Death Game Mode — where a single death deletes your save — can be unlocked early through the Deluxe Edition and Ultimate Edition. Pre-orders are already live on Gamesplanet, including a weapon pack as a bonus.

Buy Echoes of Aincrad – on Gamesplanet with bonus weapon pack

Pre-order and receive the Proto-Eluzidator Series weapon pack.

This set of 6 weapon types, inspired by the prototype of the Elucidator — the iconic weapon of the Black Swordsman — gives you an advantage in the early stages of the game.

Includes:

• 6 weapon types + shield
  
• 6 weapon blueprints
  

Additional bonuses are included in the Deluxe and Ultimate Editions.