Skyrim in 2026, Valheim's "Beautiful Ugly," and Letting Games Breath | New Dad Gaming Ep. 382 | Ep. 282

Skyrim in 2026, Valheim's "Beautiful Ugly," and Letting Games Breath | New Dad Gaming Ep. 382 | Ep. 282

From New Dad Gaming by Trevor Alexander & Jeff Smalley

January 26, 2026 · 29 min · Episode 424

About this episode

Trevor and Jeff discuss their experiences after a year without new games and the state of gaming in 2026.

We are back for 2026! After a year-long challenge of purchasing zero new video games in 2025, Trevor and Jeff break down the aftermath. Did we survive the FOMO? What is the first game we bought in 2026? In this episode, we dive into the "Dad Dust" of getting back behind the mic, the joy of finally playing Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 and Hades 2, and the promising horizon of 2026 releases like Fable and potential Witcher 3 DLC. We also discuss the state of gaming in our households: from successfully banning Roblox, to our kids discovering Skyrim with heavy mods, to the hilarious realization our children had while playing WWE 2K24—that you used to be able to unlock characters just by playing the game. Finally, Jeff shares his newfound obsession with Valheim on the Steam Deck and why its "beautiful ugly" aesthetic is perfect for gaming dads. Timestamps: 00:00 – Dusting off the mics: We are back for 2026! 00:03 – The "No New Games in 2025" Challenge: The Verdict 00:06 – Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 & The Freedom of 2026 00:08 – The 2026 Gaming Horizon: Fable & Witcher 3 rumors 00:09 – The Great Roblox Ban & What the kids are playing now 00:10 – Review: Clone Drone in the…

People in this episode

Hosts: Trevor Alexander, Jeff Smalley

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Steam Deck

Products: Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, Hades 2, Fable, Witcher 3, Roblox, WWE 2K24, Skyrim, Valheim

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