{"id":5628,"date":"2026-07-13T10:20:41","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T02:20:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/dragonsword-awakening-steam-july-23-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T10:20:41","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T02:20:41","slug":"dragonsword-awakening-steam-july-23-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/dragonsword-awakening-steam-july-23-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"DragonSword: Awakening Launches 23 July on Steam \u2014 No Gacha, Just Action"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If Dragon Nest defined your teenage years, the team behind it has been quietly building its spiritual successor \u2014 and it launches in ten days. <strong>DragonSword: Awakening<\/strong>, an anime-style open-world action RPG built with Unreal Engine 5, hits Steam on <strong>23 July 2026<\/strong> as a buy-to-play title priced at <strong>USD 29.99<\/strong> (SGD price to be confirmed in the Steam store). No gacha, no stamina bars, no monthly battle pass. You pay once and own it.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"gt-video\">\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bvqGAuu-ZIM\" title=\"Official Preview Trailer - DragonSword : Awakening\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0;\" allow=\"accelerometer;clipboard-write;encrypted-media;gyroscope;picture-in-picture;web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><figcaption>Official Preview Trailer \u2014 via DragonSword : Awakening on YouTube<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Dragon Nest DNA, Rebuilt for 2026<\/h2>\n<p>Developer <strong>Hound13<\/strong> was founded in 2014 by veterans of <a href=\"https:\/\/store.steampowered.com\/app\/4570720\/DragonSword__Awakening\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dragon Nest<\/a>, the beloved fast-paced action MMORPG from Eyedentity Games that had an enormous following across Southeast Asia \u2014 Singapore very much included. CEO Park Jeong-sik directed Dragon Nest before leaving to start Hound13 with the goal of carrying that fast, combo-driven action into a new era.<\/p>\n<p>The result is the Continent of Orbis: a radiant, warmly lit fantasy world that draws clear visual inspiration from classic anime and Japanese RPGs, running on Unreal Engine 5 for crisp lighting and detailed environments. Whether you are crossing rope bridges over sweeping gorges or tearing into cathedral-sized boss arenas, the production quality punches well above the game&#8217;s price point.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/dragonsword-awakening-open-world.jpg?w=474&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"DragonSword Awakening \u2014 open-world exploration across the Continent of Orbis\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><figcaption>Image courtesy of Hound13<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Tag-Team Combat and 19 Heroes<\/h2>\n<p>The combat system is built around switching on the fly between up to three active heroes drawn from a roster of <strong>19 characters<\/strong>, each with a distinct weapon archetype and status-ailment toolkit. Stacking ailments \u2014 bleed, freeze, poison \u2014 on an enemy builds up the conditions for a devastating <em>Signal Skill<\/em> chain that deals massive burst damage. It reads like a more deliberate, team-synergy version of the frenetic single-character action Dragon Nest fans know.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond the main story, the game supports <strong>online co-op<\/strong>, letting you bring friends in for tougher encounters \u2014 a welcome layer for Southeast Asian players who have always found Dragon Nest more fun with a party.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/dragonsword-awakening-boss-fight.jpg?w=474&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"DragonSword Awakening \u2014 boss fight in a cathedral interior\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><figcaption>Image courtesy of Hound13<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/dragonsword-awakening-tag-team.jpg?w=474&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"DragonSword Awakening \u2014 tag-team combat against an outdoor dragon enemy\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><figcaption>Image courtesy of Hound13<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>The Publisher Fallout That Changed Everything<\/h2>\n<p>DragonSword: Awakening&#8217;s journey to Steam has been anything but straightforward. The game originally launched in South Korea in January 2026 under publisher <strong>Webzen<\/strong> as a free-to-play live-service title. One month in, Hound13 announced it was terminating the publishing contract \u2014 citing, among other issues, unpaid fees. Webzen disputed the termination, and when Hound13 announced the buy-to-play reboot in April 2026, Webzen filed an injunction to block the release.<\/p>\n<p>The injunction does not appear to have succeeded: the game&#8217;s Steam page is live, the July 23 date is locked in, and Hound13 has not signalled any delay as of writing. <a href=\"https:\/\/simulationdaily.com\/news\/dragonsword-awakening-lawsuit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">As reported by Simulation Daily<\/a>, the reboot drops the gacha entirely \u2014 cosmetics and Familiars (collectible companions) can still be purchased, but core gameplay rewards are earned through play.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/dragonsword-awakening-forest-combat.jpg?w=474&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"DragonSword Awakening \u2014 character attacking a tree-golem enemy in a forest\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><figcaption>Image courtesy of Hound13<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>What Singapore Players Need to Know<\/h2>\n<p>At USD 29.99 this is firmly in the range of a premium indie release \u2014 cheaper than most AAA titles and priced to compete with games like <em>Genshin Impact<\/em>&#8216;s rough equivalent spend for a month of serious play. The SGD Steam price will be visible once the game goes live on 23 July; keep an eye on the <a href=\"https:\/\/store.steampowered.com\/app\/4570720\/DragonSword__Awakening\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Steam store page<\/a> for the confirmed local price.<\/p>\n<p>A free demo is available on Steam now if you want to try the combat before committing. Minimum specs are modest \u2014 an i5-9400F with a GTX 1660 will run it \u2014 so mid-range gaming PCs from the past few years should handle it fine. SSD storage (25 GB) is required, however.<\/p>\n<p>For <a href=\"\/blog\/category\/game-news\/\">more game news and upcoming releases<\/a>, stay tuned to GameTrader.SG.<\/p>\n<p><!--GT-SCOUT source=\"Web (English)\" theme=\"Video games\" flags=\"SGD price to be confirmed\"--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The ex-Dragon Nest team at Hound13 launches DragonSword: Awakening on 23 July \u2014 an anime open-world RPG on Steam with no gacha, 19 heroes, and tag-team combat built on Unreal Engine 5.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":5623,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[11],"tags":[94,762,763,764,438,124],"class_list":["post-5628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-game-news","tag-action-rpg","tag-dragonsword","tag-hound13","tag-open-world","tag-pc-gaming","tag-steam"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/dragonsword-awakening-key-art.jpg?fit=460%2C215&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p13AlF-1sM","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5170,"url":"https:\/\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/nte-neverness-to-everness-steam-launch-v1-2-999-nights\/","url_meta":{"origin":5628,"position":0},"title":"NTE Hits Steam Today \u2014 Version 1.2 \u201c999 Nights\u201d Brings New Map and Tabletop Mode","date":"July 8, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Neverness to Everness launches on Steam and Epic Games Store today with Version 1.2 \u201c999 Nights\u201d \u2014 a new continent, permanent tabletop RPG mode, new S-Class character Shinku, and full cross-progression with mobile and PS5.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Game News&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/nte-999-nights-shinku.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5079,"url":"https:\/\/www.gametrader.sg\/blog\/hololive-dreams-july-23-worldwide-launch-2026\/","url_meta":{"origin":5628,"position":1},"title":"hololive Dreams Launches July 23 Worldwide \u2014 1.3 Million Pre-Registered","date":"July 6, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"hololive Dreams, the first official mobile game featuring 50+ hololive VTubers across 150+ songs, launches globally on July 23 on iOS, Android, and Steam. 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