Total War: Warhammer 40,000 — First Gameplay at PC Gaming Show 2026: 4 Factions and Closed Beta

Fri, 19 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT

PC Gaming Show 2026 Delivers the First Real Look

Nearly six months after the official reveal at The Game Awards 2025, Creative Assembly has finally shown Total War: Warhammer 40,000 in motion. At PC Gaming Show 2026, the studio dropped both new in-development gameplay footage and a behind-the-scenes developer breakdown — enough to confirm this is a real game with real factions doing real Total War things, only with bolters instead of crossbows.

The gameplay shown puts Astra Militarum troops against an Ork invasion on the Shattered Expressway — a war-torn stretch of polluted Imperial city that gives an immediate sense of scale. Infantry columns, heavy armour, artillery fire. The sci-fi setting doesn’t dilute the series’ core identity; it just rewires the vocabulary.

Four Confirmed Launch Factions

Creative Assembly has locked in four playable factions for launch, each with distinct tactical DNA:

Space Marines — the elite of the Imperium. Few in number, capable of holding ground against entire armies. Quality over quantity, always.
Astra Militarum — the Imperial Guard in its full mass-mobilisation glory. Cadian Shock Troops, Kasrkin, Ogryns, Sentinels, and the iconic Baneblade super-heavy tank fill their ranks. A faction built on weight of fire and human lives.
Orks — organised chaos. Boyz, Gretchin, Stormboyz, Deff Dreads, and Stompas crash into enemy lines with overwhelming aggression. The WAAAGH! never retreats.
Aeldari — the mobility faction. Their standout mechanic is Webway Travel, allowing rapid repositioning of units across the battlefield. Surgical strikes over sustained combat.

Each faction plays differently, which is exactly what a multi-faction strategy game needs to avoid the “same game, different skins” problem.

Armageddon and Iconic Lore Leaders

The game is set during the Wars of Armageddon — one of the most famous conflicts in Warhammer 40,000 lore. Two legendary commanders are already confirmed:

Commissar Yarrick — the Old Man of Armageddon, hero of the Astra Militarum, whose very name inspires dread in Ork warbands. Bionics and all.
Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thrakka — the Prophet of the WAAAGH!, the Ork Warboss who launched both great Armageddon invasions. The largest Ork threat the Imperium has faced.

Pitting Yarrick against Ghazghkull is the kind of lore-faithful casting that immediately tells you Creative Assembly understands the source material.

Closed Beta Sign-Ups Now Open

Alongside the gameplay reveal, Creative Assembly confirmed a closed beta is coming later in 2026. Sign-ups are live now on the game’s Steam page. No date was given, but opening registration at this stage suggests the beta isn’t far off.

To register: Steam → Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000 → “Get Beta Access”.

What We Still Don’t Know

The reveal showed only real-time battles — no strategic campaign map, no diplomacy screen, no post-battle upgrade menus. How the turn-based layer works in a 40K context remains entirely under wraps. Potential post-launch factions (Tyranids, Chaos, Necrons?) were also conspicuously unmentioned.

The game runs on Warcore, a brand-new engine built from the ground up for the scale of 40K warfare. Our Total War: Warhammer 40K mid-2026 breakdown covers what was known about the technical side before this reveal.

Cautiously Impressive

PC Gaming Show 2026 landed exactly what it needed to: proof that this is a functioning game with visually differentiated factions and a setting that feels earned. The beta will be the real test of whether the strategy depth lives up to the spectacle.

The ranged-combat systems listed in the Alpha Strike livestream are covered in Total War: Warhammer 40,000 battle mechanics.

Sources

Stronghold 4 Revealed at PC Gaming Show 2026: Free Steam Demo on June 23

Tue, 16 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The Legendary Castle Sim Is Back — Built on Unreal Engine 5

Firefly Studios officially unveiled Stronghold 4 at the PC Gaming Show on June 7, 2026 — the most significant new entry in the franchise since Stronghold: Warlords (2021). Built from the ground up on Unreal Engine 5, it’s a narrative prequel set in medieval England, featuring the largest maps in the series’ history and a gameplay overhaul covering everything from castle construction to siege mechanics.

A free playable demo hits Steam on June 23, 2026 during Steam Next Fest, giving fans their first hands-on opportunity to experience the game well ahead of its planned H2 2026 release.

A Prequel That Restarts the Story
Weather, Economy and Modular Castle Building
22 Missions and Up to 8 Players Online
Free Demo on June 23 — Steam Next Fest

A Prequel That Restarts the Story

Stronghold 4 follows Penryn of Wethel, a shepherd whose peaceful life is shattered, forcing him through trial by fire to become the lord he was meant to be. The events take place before those of the original Stronghold (2001), letting Firefly Studios wipe the narrative slate clean while keeping the mechanical DNA fans have loved for over two decades.

The isometric perspective returns, now supercharged by Unreal Engine 5’s lighting, particle effects and terrain deformation. Firefly Studios describes the maps as the biggest in series history — large enough to make siege battles feel genuinely large-scale.

The voice cast is notably strong: Ben Starr (Clive in Final Fantasy XVI), Samantha Béart (Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3), Walles Hamonde and Harry McEntire lend their voices to the campaign, signaling a clear step up in narrative production values for the franchise.

Weather, Economy and Modular Castle Building

The heart of every Stronghold game is the tension between building a thriving economy and defending it from everything the game throws at you. Stronghold 4 preserves this loop while adding several new layers:

Dynamic weather with real gameplay impact: snowfall slows crop growth, heavy rain reduces archer range and affects troop morale
Modular castle construction: walls, towers and gates now upgrade independently, giving players far more architectural freedom than the fixed upgrade paths of previous entries
Classic defenses reimagined: moats, traps, sappers and various fortifications return with sharper strategic weight
Terrain deformation: sieges leave physical marks on the map — collapsed walls, dug-out moats — altering the battlefield as combat unfolds

The dynamic weather system is the standout addition: planning your granary capacity before winter or positioning your archers out of the rain becomes a genuine tactical decision rather than a visual detail.

22 Missions and Up to 8 Players Online

The solo campaign spans 22 fully voiced missions built around Penryn’s rise from shepherd to lord. Skirmish modes let players refine siege techniques outside the narrative.

Multiplayer supports up to 8 simultaneous players in PvP or cooperative battles against AI opponents. Firefly Studios hasn’t detailed specific multiplayer modes yet, but the large map sizes point to room for proper large-scale siege battles between human players.

Free Demo on June 23 — Steam Next Fest

Mark the date: June 23, 2026. Firefly Studios is releasing a free playable demo on Steam as part of Steam Next Fest — the community’s first real test of the new castle mechanics, economy systems and siege battles before the full game’s second-half 2026 launch.

The Steam page is already live and open for wishlisting. Just 25 days between announcement and demo is a tight window — a strong sign the game is already in a polished, playable state.

If you’re looking for medieval strategy to play in the meantime, Manor Lords remains the best medieval city-builder of 2026, while Tempest Rising delivers a sharp classic RTS experience. Stronghold 4 occupies its own niche: the pure castle sim where economy and siege are inseparable — a design space that very few studios have ever mastered.

The Early Access date and contents are covered in Stronghold 4 Early Access launching December 7 with a full campaign.

Pc Gaming Show 2026 — After Strategy

Total War: Warhammer 40,000 — First Gameplay at PC Gaming Show 2026: 4 Factions and Closed Beta

PC Gaming Show 2026 Delivers the First Real Look

Four Confirmed Launch Factions

Armageddon and Iconic Lore Leaders

Closed Beta Sign-Ups Now Open

What We Still Don’t Know

Cautiously Impressive

Sources

Stronghold 4 Revealed at PC Gaming Show 2026: Free Steam Demo on June 23

The Legendary Castle Sim Is Back — Built on Unreal Engine 5

Table of Contents

A Prequel That Restarts the Story

Weather, Economy and Modular Castle Building

22 Missions and Up to 8 Players Online

Free Demo on June 23 — Steam Next Fest

Sources