Zagreb, Croatia – 5 November 2026 – Ocean Media, in partnership with acclaimed global indie publisher Light Up Games, is proud to announce that Blackthorn Arena: Reforged – Deluxe Edition is available today on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One. The acclaimed gladiator-management RPG returns with new content, new graphics, quality-of-life improvements and every DLC packed into one package – Blackthorn Arena as it was meant to be experienced.
Players enter The Freelands, a realm of adventurers and fortune seekers where the hunt for wealth comes before everything else. Having just inherited the Blackthorn Arena, they must buy slaves, train them into gladiators, and lead them to glory – or ruin. How the arena is run is entirely up to them.From Steam to Console: A Partnership Built to Shine
The Xbox launch of Blackthorn Arena: Reforged is the first milestone in a strategic partnership between Ocean Media and Light Up Games, the Stockholm-headquartered indie publisher with a second home in Shanghai, behind a growing catalogue of standout Steam titles, including Blackthorn Arena, Mark of the Deep, Disposable Corps, Folklands and Rainbow Legends. Guided by the conviction that “great games deserve a global stage”, Light Up Games has built a reputation for discovering distinctive, deeply replayable games and championing them across Western and Chinese markets.
Together, the two companies are on a mission to take that stage further than ever before – from the PC screen to the living room. Light Up Games brings its eye for exceptional indie talent and its passionate PC communities; Ocean Media brings years of hands-on console development and porting expertise, rebuilding each title from the controls up so it feels native on console. The result is a pipeline designed to deliver an entire series of beloved PC titles to console players worldwide.
Blackthorn Arena: Reforged is only the opening act. 2027 is set to be a landmark year for the partnership, with a slate of exciting console releases already in the works. Players who have been waiting to experience Light Up Games’ acclaimed catalogue on console will not have to wait much longer – more announcements are coming soon.
— Vedran Klanac, CEO of Ocean Media
Every gladiator in the world of Blackthorn Arena lives and fights dynamically – not only those in the player’s own stable, but rival fighters in arenas across The Freelands. They compete every day, grow stronger, get injured and can die. When a rival falls, the arena master decides whether to spare or execute them, and each choice can lead to unexpected consequences.
A deep cRPG character system lets players shape their fighters through attributes, weapon mastery, around 200 combinable skills and traits earned over a gladiatorial career. Promising recruits can also become valuable auxiliaries – cooks, healers, drillmasters and blacksmiths who keep the arena running.
Key Features
- 15 arenas, each with its own unique style, and 26 Legendary Champions to challenge and dethrone.
- 12 gladiator classes and 7 weapon types with around 200 skills to combine into the ultimate fighter.
- More than 100 enemy types across arena competitions and side exploration missions.
- Around 500 pieces of equipment, including Legendary Weapons and Armor Sets, each reflected on the game’s advanced character models.
- Real-time combat with tactical pause – stop the action at any moment to issue orders – plus an optional auto-battler mode you can switch to at any time.
- Varied arena rules – from 1-on-1 duels to 4-on-4 team fights, exhibitions, tag fights, throne challenges and tournaments.
- Venationes (beast shows) – send expeditions to capture rare, powerful creatures and unleash them as the grand finale of your shows.
- Events and side missions – highway robberies, dungeon exploration, beast hunts and daily arena emergencies that can be an opportunity or a disaster.
- 30+ hours of gameplay, with full controller support, Xbox achievements and cloud saves.
Claim Your Glory
Victories bring gold and reputation. Gold buys new recruits, better gear and upgrades for the arena; reputation drives the arena’s income. Climb the ranks, defeat the champions of rival arenas, take their place and become the most powerful arena master in The Freelands.
Availability
Blackthorn Arena: Reforged – Deluxe Edition is available now on the Microsoft Store for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One.
- North America: $29.99 USD – rated ESRB TEEN (Violence, Blood, Drug Reference, Language)
- Europe: €32.99 – rated PEGI 16 (strong violence, discriminatory language)
Buy now (EU): https://www.xbox.com/hr-hr/games/store/blackthorn-arena-reforged-deluxe-edition/9nm4414fcwcl
Supported Languages
Blackthorn Arena: Reforged is fully localized into 11 languages:
- English
- French
- Italian
- German
- Spanish
- Dutch
- Portuguese
- Japanese
- Korean
- Simplified Chinese
- Traditional Chinese
Fact Sheet
- Title: Blackthorn Arena: Reforged – Deluxe Edition
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One
- Release date: 5 November 2026
- Publisher: Ocean Media
- Partner: Light Up Games (PC publisher)
- Genre: Role-playing, Strategy, Simulation
- Players: Single-player
- Rating: ESRB TEEN / PEGI 16
- Price: $29.99 USD / €32.99
- Languages: 11 (EN, FR, IT, DE, ES, NL, PT, JA, KO, zh-Hans, zh-Hant)
About Light Up Games
Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with a team in Shanghai, China, Light Up Games is an indie game publisher for developers who want a real partner, not just a distributor. Bringing together more than 30 years of combined experience in publishing, development and marketing, the company publishes and scales PC, console and mobile games across the West and China, with a focus on “forever” games and high-replayability titles that players return to for years. Beyond publishing, Light Up Games offers market-entry and marketing services between the West and Asia, platform partnerships through its network of 300+ vetted developers, and publishing advisory. Its catalogue includes Blackthorn Arena, Blackthorn Arena: Reforged, Mark of the Deep, Rainbow Legends, Disposable Corps and Folklands, with more to be announced. Learn more at www.lightup.games.
About Ocean Media
Ocean Media is a Croatia-based video game publisher dedicated to bringing outstanding indie games to new platforms and audiences worldwide. With a portfolio spanning PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and PC, Ocean Media combines publishing with in-house console development and porting expertise, giving cult classics and hidden gems the console releases they deserve.
Learn more at oceanmedia.hr.