2026’s Most Anticipated FPS, Wardogs, Finally Has a Release Date

Get ready for 2026's most anticipated FPS

If you play first-person shooters but you haven't heard about Wardogs yet, now's the time to get clued up because it finally has a release date: developer Bulkhead's new game will be coming to Steam Early Access on Thursday, Sept. 10, and it will cost $39.99.

This news follows the recent closed alpha which took place from Aug. 7-9, and had outstanding player feedback online, much like the previous playtest. FPS content creator TheTacticalBrit thinks it could be "incredibly successful," noting that it has "wow moments" in a "pick-up-and-play" format, unlike other shooters geared towards realism.

Meanwhile, another creator, GhostGamingGG, claims that flying helicopters in Wardogs "absolutely destroys Battlefield 6's air mechanics." A third, Melandryu, considered the weekend to be "one of the best experiences" they've had with a beta in "many, many years" (it was technically an alpha, but the message is the same).

If you pre-order Wardogs, you'll also be able to partake in an upcoming closed beta weekend, taking place from 21-23 Aug. According to a press release, "the beta will give players the opportunity to experience the game ahead of its early access launch and put its large-scale warfare, servers and core systems through their paces."

Wardogs is aiming to fill the niche between FPS games that are considered to be more casual, such as Call of Duty and Battlefield, and more realistic, hardcore games, such as Squad and Escape From Tarkov. In development by Bulkhead, previously of Battalion 1944 fame, it's aiming to do things a little differently.

For example, you can become an arms dealer by selling weapons to your teammates. In-game cash is a major part of Wardogs, and this mechanic allows you to essentially run a business. When I spoke with the Wardogs' CEO, Joe Brammer, he explained that this is an FPS for "dad gamers," because everything you do in-game, whether you're actually killing enemies or not, still contributes to the team effort. It also has permanent progression, where XP is earned by your actions, like in RuneScape.

So there's not long to wait before everyone can get stuck in… although, Wardogs will have to contend with a plethora of other video games that are releasing in September to escape GTA 6's looming shadow.