A new contender for Game of the Year in 2026 seems to have emerged, and it’s a title almost no one would have expected. With the year now past its halfway point, we’ve already seen a number of fantastic games released. Titles like Forza Horizon 6, 007 First Light, Pokemon Pokopia, and Resident Evil Requiem have already arrived in 2026 to rave reviews, and are undoubtedly going to be joined by other highly-rated games like Marvel’s Wolverine and Grand Theft Auto 6 in the months ahead. In the immediate future, however, a new game will be launching this week that’s now seemingly in the running for GOTY.
Coming by way of developer House House, Big Walk is a new co-op puzzle game that is launching on August 4th. The project was first announced back in 2023 and has been eagerly anticipated by some as it’s the follow-up to the popular Untitled Goose Game. Given House House’s pedigree with this past release, Big Walk had some high expectations, but it seems to have soared past those expectations in a way that almost no one would have anticipated.
Prior to its release, reviews for Big Walk hit the internet today and they have been stellar, to say the least. Currently, Big Walk boasts a staggering 93/100 rating on Metacritic, with many outlets praising it for its inventive approach to co-op. On the year, Big Walk now stands as the highest-rated game to launch in 2026, coming in at a higher review average than Forza Horizon 6, Mina the Hollower, Resident Evil Requiem, and Pokemon Pokopia, all of which scored between an 89 and 90 average on Metacritic.
On paper, Big Walk should now be the frontrunner for Game of the Year in 2026 based on this Metacritic score alone. That being said, indie titles like Big Walk, especially ones that are co-op in nature, typically don’t seem to get much of a look for GOTY honors. While Big Walk could certainly end up bucking this trend, it seems more than likely that attention will be focused more heavily on major, AAA titles once Game of the Year conversations begin in the final months of 2026. Still, anyone who has been looking forward to Big Walk has to be thrilled to see how well the game has panned out.
For those looking to check out Big Walk in the wake of these high reviews, it’s worth noting that it will be available for “free” on PS5 to those subscribed to PlayStation Plus as one of the monthly games on the service. In addition, it will also be coming to Nintendo Switch 2 and PC platforms when it drops in the coming day.
