Don’t Nod – the studio behind the likes of Jusant, Life is Strange 1 and 2, and Lost Records: Bloom & Rage – has revealed its next game.
It’s known as Aphelion, and, in a change for the studio, will be Don’t Nod’s first human story in space. The developer promises a “powerful” experience on the game’s 2026 release, across Xbox Series X/S, Steam, and PlayStation 5.
“Set in a near-future where Earth is on the brink of collapse, Aphelion is an emotional journey to the edge of our Solar System to survey a planet that may be humanity’s last hope,” reads the official blurb. “As astronaut Ariane Montclair, crash landed on the newly discovered Persephone, players must brave harsh landscapes, master survival tools, and navigate reality-bending phenomena on a desperate mission to reunite with her wounded partner, Thomas Cross.” You can check out a trailer below.
The game is being developed in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), which will help ground Aphelion and its depiction of space exploration in “real scientific knowledge and humanistic values”, Don’t Nod has said.
“For fifty years, ESA has combined rigorous space science with the boundless imagination of science fiction to explore solutions to our planet’s greatest challenges. Aphelion captures that spirit – where research meets imaginative vision – to inspire the next generation to carry Europe’s space ambition into the future,” said Nadia Lüders, ESA Partnership & Brand Licensing Officer.
For everything else from this evening, be sure to check out our Connor’s Everything announced in Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase round up here.