JAPAN GAMING & ENTERTAINMENT 
Chinese-developed Arknights: Endfield launches on Steam, the team behind A-Train 9 PRIME LINE sits down with the developer of Transport Fever 3, and Japanese Swordsmith and Touhou Renju both get demos.
Arknights: Endfield Launches on Steam on October 14
Arknights: Endfield, from China’s Hypergryph, launches on Steam on October 14. Set on the planet Talos-II, it is a 3D real-time strategy RPG in which you play as the Endministrator, building a base and automating its factories. It is free to play, with English voice and subtitles. The Steam launch arrives alongside the Sanctuary of Ink update, which adds two new operators and a new area. Steam wishlists have passed 300,000, and as a reward for hitting that mark, every player will receive a serial code.
Source
AUTOMATON (October 6, 2026) / Steam “Arknights: Endfield” (accessed October 7, 2026)
A-Train Developers Talk Shop With Transport Fever 3’s Urban Games
The developers of ARTDINK’s A-Train 9 PRIME LINE sat down with a publishing manager from Swiss studio Urban Games. Urban Games released Transport Fever 3 on Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S on September 29. The conversation touched on how Urban Games’ founders were influenced by A-Train. Urban Games likened Japan to a real-life Transport Fever, and ARTDINK said that even in a game, you get scolded if the timetable slips a little. A-Train 9 PRIME LINE launches on Steam on December 9, with English support.
Source
AUTOMATON (October 7, 2026) / Steam “A-Train 9 PRIME LINE” (accessed October 7, 2026) / ARTDINK official site (publication date unconfirmed)
Japanese Swordsmith, a Katana-Forging Game Set in Bakumatsu Kyoto, Gets a Demo on October 9
A demo of SENSE SHARE’s swordsmithing sim Japanese Swordsmith arrives on Steam on October 9. The game is set in Kyoto during Bakumatsu (the end of the Edo period) and covers the process of turning tamahagane into a katana. The demo includes seven steps: Sumikiri, Wakashinobe and Sunobe (drawing out), Hizukuri (fire shaping), Tsuchioki (clay packing), Yakiire (the quench), and Togi (polishing). You work by watching the flames of the forge and the color of the heated steel, and the game focuses on the stretch from Tsuchioki to the moment the hamon appears. There is also a mode for admiring finished swords, plus a feature for arranging the forge’s equipment and furniture. English text, voice, and subtitles are supported.
Source
4Gamer.net (October 7, 2026) / Steam “Japanese Swordsmith” (accessed October 7, 2026)
Touhou Renju Puts Gensokyo’s Girls on the Board, With a Steam Demo Out Now
A demo of Touhou Renju, a fan-made game based on Touhou Project, is out on Steam. It is not an official work of Team Shanghai Alice. The game is a competitive digital board game that layers card mechanics onto renju, a variant of gomoku. You place girls from Gensokyo on a 9×9 board and compete for points. Winning depends on whether neighboring girls get along, and card effects change the board’s conditions, so lining up five isn’t enough on its own. The demo offers deck building and matches against the AI, and online play arrives with the full release in December 2026. The Steam page lists English support.
Source
gamebiz (October 7, 2026) / Steam “Touhou Renju” (accessed October 7, 2026) / Developer’s official X account (publication date unconfirmed)