Backbone has been on our radar since we first noticed it in 2021, due to its John Wick-meets-Batman: Arkham-inspired third-person fight. Our anticipation grew after playing it at Summer Game Fest 2025. It has been an extended wait, however we lastly know Backbone is launching subsequent summer season.
Developed by Nekki, Backbone takes place in a cyberpunk world, the place gamers management a graffiti artist named Redline. Sporting a sentient (as in speaking) cybernetic implant known as a Backbone, Redline rebels towards her metropolis’s AI regime after it captures her brother. Paradoxically, she’ll must depend on the bodily enhancements granted by her mechanical implant to battle town’s synthetic oppressors.
Backbone’s free-flow close-quarters fight emphasizes countering incoming assaults and utilizing environmental interactions to handle massive crowds of enemies. She will be able to take down foes utilizing flashy, martial-arts melee offense and use numerous firearms to maintain distant foes at bay (and incorporate gunplay into her hand-to-hand offense à la John Wick). It’s higher to observe the fight in motion within the sport’s newest trailer under.
When Backbone launches in the course of the summer season of 2027, it will likely be accessible for PlayStation 5, Xbox Collection X/S, and PC. The previously announced Switch 2 version doesn’t have a launch window.
To examine extra information popping out of Gamescom, which is occurring this week, learn our piece gathering every notable announcement from Opening Night Live in addition to our rising listing of hands-on impressions from the event’s show floor.