Tonight’s Play Issue 1 · Late Sept 2026
RuneScape: Dragonwilds screenshot
RuneScape: Dragonwilds cover art

RuneScape: Dragonwilds

Jagex: The RuneScape Company

ReviewedNewXbox Series X|SPCCloud

Art: Jagex press kit

Tonight’s Play review · Day One · Co-op Survival

RuneScape: Dragonwilds review

Jagex’s survival spinoff leaves Early Access and becomes the first RuneScape game on console, magic and all.

The OuterhavenNo aggregate yet
Player scoreComing soon
Wait a patch (console)

Editorial review · AI-assisted. Player reviews are by real players. AI-assisted reviewWritten with AI help and checked against the critic, performance and accessibility sources linked on this page. How we work · Player reviews are by real players.

On the forgotten continent of Ashenfall, dragons have awoken. RuneScape: Dragonwilds asks you to gather, build, skill and craft your way toward the Dragon Queen, alone or with up to three friends, and its 1.0 launch is the first time a RuneScape game has shipped on console, with crossplay.

As of GameDaily’s Sept 19 roundup, neither Metacritic nor OpenCritic had enough reviews for an aggregate, with individual critic marks ranging from 65 to 90, so we show a single outlet score instead. The Outerhaven (4/5, played on Series X) calls it an entertaining survival RPG that gives the franchise a new identity. It singles out the skill system (levelling through use), magic that’s useful both in and out of combat, and flexible building that works well on a controller.

Gfinity’s 1.0 review is a useful counterweight: breathtaking visuals and a highly rewarding magic system (“the magic system gives it its own flair to stand out”), undercut by vague tutorial quests, punishing enemy aggression and a stingy stamina bar that make solo play overwhelming. Both reviews agree the game is at its best with friends.

One caution: shortly after launch, console players reported corrupted world saves. Jagex acknowledged the issue and said the team was working flat-out to resolve it. Check the latest patch notes before you sink in the hours.

“The magic system gives it its own flair to stand out.”— Gfinity

Hits

  • Inventive, rewarding magic
  • Satisfying skill progression and base-building
  • Strong co-op for 1–4 players with crossplay

Misses

  • Vague quests and cumbersome inventory
  • Punishing for solo players
  • Launch reports of console save corruption
Play it if…

…you’ve got a crew ready for Valheim-style co-op and a soft spot for Gielinor.

Deep dive

Time to beat

23½ hMain Story
28 hMain + Sides
43½ hCompletionist

Small sample (7 / 6 / 1 players polled), largely from Early Access builds.

Play now or wait?

Wait a patch (console)

The co-op fun is real, but check that the console save-corruption fix has landed before you commit a long-term world.

Tonight’s Play’s call Play now or wait?Tonight’s Play’s call, based on the sourced reviews and performance reports on this page.

How it runs

Xbox Series X

Targets 60fps and generally feels responsive, with brief drops in busy areas or around elaborate settlements and some texture pop-in when travelling fast.

Xbox Series S

Not yet reported

PC

Gfinity reports it ran smoothly with no frame drops on an ASUS TUF Gaming A15 laptop.

Source:Gfinity

Also reported

Console save corruption was reported after launch. Jagex acknowledged it (as of Sept 19).

Accessibility

Settings for subtitles, audio, camera behaviour and controller sensitivity, plus custom world options to adjust hunger and thirst. The Outerhaven notes that some small text and icons are hard to read from a distance.

About the game

Read the publisher’s descriptionHide description

On RuneScape's forgotten continent of Ashenfall, dragons have awoken. Gather, build, skill and craft in this co-operative survival adventure. Only by mastering survival and uncovering ancient secrets can you hope to face the ferocious Dragon Queen.

RUNESCAPE AT ITS CORE!

Embark on quests, level your skills and explore a beautiful hand-crafted world.

This all-new adventure blends high-fantasy and iconic RuneScape lore on a brand new continent. RPG systems reward you with unique abilities and spells as you progress through each skill. Battle legendary RuneScape creatures like Zogres, challenge Black Knights and the entirely new and fearsome Garou, all set to a sweeping soundtrack of reorchestrated RuneScape classics and hours of brand new music.

GRIND SKILLS, SLAY DRAGONS

Locate them, throw down the gauntlet and carve your path to the Dragon Queen herself.

Your progress will be under constant threat from the looming shadow of the Dragons, as you arm yourself and prepare to rise to face them. Follow the trail of destruction and uncover the mysteries of the continent to learn not just how to confront the dragons, but how to overcome them. Prepare potions, craft gear and push yourself to do battle with the most powerful force on the continent.

The smart money's on the dragon. But we do love an underdog!

SURVIVAL THROUGH SORCERY

Summon a spectral axe to fell trees in an instant! Blink away from danger in a cloud of magic. Turn bones into... peaches?

The Anima-rich landscape of Ashenfall offers you a power unlike any other. Conjure a tornado of fish from a lake! Explode ore veins with a snap of your fingers! Journey through the vibrant regions of Ashenfall, discover why wild magic spills from the fractured lands and harness that power to survive!

COMMUNITY DRIVEN, PLAYER CENTRIC

Description from the publisher’s Microsoft Store listing.

Trailer

Official trailer · XBOX on YouTube · Watch on YouTube ↗ Trailer & privacyLoads from youtube-nocookie.com only when you press play.

Gallery

Tap to expand · swipe to browse · Art: Jagex press kit
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Details & art: official Microsoft Store listings and press kits; art © the respective publishers. Details & artGame details and art come from each game’s official Microsoft Store listing (cover images are cropped from those official images, or from publisher press kits, with our title overlay; nothing is AI-generated); art © the respective publishers, used for editorial review. Game Pass membership from Microsoft’s public Game Pass catalog, checked Sep 30, 2026. Critic scores appear only where a real aggregate exists; otherwise “Not yet reported”.