Overview
Dragonkin: The Banished is a hack-and-slash action RPG set in a world torn apart by dragons whose blood has seeped into the earth and spawned waves of corrupted monsters. Players take on one of four hero classes, each drinking dragon blood to gain powers of their own, then push through enemy hordes toward a single endgame target: eliminating the four Ancestral Dragons. The game released on March 16, 2026, for PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox, priced at $39.99 on PlayStation.
The structure will feel familiar to fans of the action RPG genre: kill enemies, collect loot, upgrade your character, and push deeper into harder content. What separates Dragonkin from a straightforward beat-em-up is how it layers the Ancestral Grid system and the city of Montescail on top of that loop, giving players two distinct progression tracks to manage simultaneously.
Gameplay and mechanics: how does the Ancestral Grid work?
The Ancestral Grid is Dragonkin's most distinctive system. Each of the four heroes has their own grid where players place skills acquired as loot from battles, then slot in modifiers around those skills to amplify or alter their effects. The grid is not a passive talent tree. Skills drop from enemies like gear, meaning build-crafting is tied directly to how and where you farm. Every slot can be optimized, and the number of possible skill-and-modifier combinations across all four heroes is substantial.
The four playable classes cover the standard combat range:
- Knight: close-range melee fighter
- Barbarian: heavy close-combat damage dealer
- Oracle: ranged spellcaster
- Archer: ranged physical attacker
Each class has its own Ancestral Grid, its own Wyrmling companion, and its own combat techniques, so switching heroes is not just a cosmetic choice.
City-building as a progression system
Montescail sits at the center of the game's second progression loop. Described as the last bastion of humanity, the city grows as players push through the campaign. Buildings can be upgraded, new residents unlocked, and services expanded. These upgrades feed back into character progression by unlocking new equipment and services that would otherwise be unavailable.
The city is also a shared space in co-op. Up to 4 players can work together to develop Montescail, which means the building decisions made by a group carry real weight when the whole party benefits from the results.
Multiplayer and co-op: is the whole game playable with friends?
Yes, the entire adventure in Dragonkin supports online co-op from start to finish. The co-op runs up to 4 players online, and every piece of content, from the opening arrival in Montescail through to endgame activities, is accessible in that mode. On PlayStation 5, PS Plus is required for online play. Local co-op supports 1 to 2 players.
This is not a game that treats multiplayer as an afterthought or locks co-op behind a separate mode. The campaign, city development, and endgame content all function in the same co-op session, which makes it a reasonable pick for groups looking for a shared action RPG experience.
Conclusion
Dragonkin: The Banished combines hack-and-slash combat with two distinct progression systems: the Ancestral Grid's loot-driven build customization and the city-building loop centered on Montescail. Four playable classes with individual grids, full co-op support across the entire campaign for up to 4 players, and a dragon-corrupted world that frames every fight with a clear narrative goal make this a solid option for fans of action RPGs who want more to do between combat sessions. The $39.99 price point on PlayStation, combined with cross-platform availability on Steam and Xbox, keeps it accessible for most players in the genre.
