‘Beast Of Reincarnation’ review: the most forgettable game of 2026

Japanese developers Game Freak are the masterminds behind most mainline Pokémon titles. Despite racking up millions of sales across nine eras and multiple spin-offs (including Pokopia and Legends) regular trainers have long complained about the franchise’s underwhelming graphics, which have always existed at least two generations behind the current standard. You’d think the acclaimed studio would want to right those wrongs with Beast Of Reincarnation, their first non-Pokémon console game in seven years, but dodgy visuals are just the beginning of a long list of fun-killing issues. READ MORE: The best games of 2026… so far! Set 2000 years in the future, the action RPG’s post-apocalyptic world is a version of Japan that’s been ravaged by a mysterious infection known as The Blight, caused by the titular brute. After a millennium of fighting (and losing) against this creeping threat, the surviving humans have all but given up – until destiny marks badass samurai Emma out as the key to victory. This stern, stoic warrior has been infected with The Blight too – a parasitic disease that turns friendly woodland creatures into rampaging killers – and while it’s robbed her of her memories, it...