It’s summer show season in the gaming world, and so you can expect a slew of new announcements and updates on existing games this week.
Regardless of the year, it’s never difficult to find someone who says shows from the likes of Xbox, PlayStation, and Devolver Digital were disappointing, but we think there’s plenty to chew on this year, at the very least.
It’s not all about the shows, either. Let’s take a look at what’s been happening in the gaming world this week, both within Summer Game Fest and without!
A new single-player Dungeons & Dragons game is coming
This week, it was revealed that Giant Skull, the studio started up by Star Wars Jedi and God of War head Stig Asmussen, is working on a new Dungeons & Dragons game.
As announced on the official Hasbro website, the new game will be a “single-player action-adventure game with an immersive story set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe”.
It joins games in the works by the likes of Payday 3’s Starbreeze and Disney Dreamlight Valley’s Gameloft, as well as Invoke Studios, which you might know under its previous name of Tuque.
IO Interactive officially unveils 007 First Light
That James Bond game on which Hitman developer IO Interactive has been working finally has a name: 007 First Light. It’ll be arriving sometime next year.
The game will focus on a younger, more inexperienced Bond as he works to obtain his 00 status, which, in the universe of Ian Fleming’s novels, grants an agent the license to kill.
It’ll also feature new interpretations of iconic Bond characters like Moneypenny and Q, but it won’t be based on any one of Fleming’s books or the iconic movies; instead, it’ll tell an all-new, original story.
Elden Ring Nightreign is, in fact, getting a duos mode
If you’ve played FromSoftware’s multiplayer-centric spinoff Elden Ring Nightreign, you might be one of the many wondering whether the game will get a duos mode, and happily, you’re in luck if you are.
This week, FromSoftware announced that a duos mode is indeed in development for Nightreign, although we don’t yet know when it’ll arrive; the studio simply says it’s coming “at a later date”.
Additionally, the game is getting “enhanced fights against existing Nightlords” starting later in June, as well as a major DLC expansion later this year.
PlayStation’s State of Play show brings announcements galore
The first of the major shows this week belonged to Sony, and its State of Play show held plenty of announcements and reveals for Sony fans.
Announcements included a third Nioh game, for which a demo is available now, as well as a VR-centric Thief followup and a release date for upcoming chiller Silent Hill f.
Not only that, but Arc System Works and Marvel also announced Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, an anime fighter that combines the Guilty Gear studio’s signature breathtaking visual style with Marvel’s massive roster of heroes (and villains!).
Xbox Game Pass’ first June wave has been revealed
This week, Xbox revealed its first wave of Game Pass games coming to the service in June, and you’ve got plenty to keep you busy this month.
EA Sports FC 25 is arriving on the service just ahead of the new game’s likely launch later this year, and 11 bit’s weird-looking The Alters will also be available via the service on day one.
Not only that, but you’ll also get to enjoy wacky platformer Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time and classic RPGs Baldur’s Gate and Baldur’s Gate 2. Aren’t you lucky?
Black Myth: Wukong is finally coming to Xbox
Game Science’s Soulslike action game Black Myth: Wukong is finally coming to Xbox Series X/S, and it only took the game…well, exactly one year, funnily enough.
The game, which sees simian warrior the Destined One attempting to follow in the footsteps of the great Monkey King himself, launches on Microsoft’s consoles on August 20th.
Some have speculated that the timing may mean that the oft-mooted exclusivity deal purportedly signed between Game Science and Sony is real, but we’re honestly just glad Xbox fans will get to experience Wukong. It’s a very good game!
Summer Game Fest sure did happen this year
The central column around which all other shows gravitate this week is, of course, Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest extravaganza, and it was…well, it certainly happened this year, at any rate.
Announcements included Resident Evil 9 (which came complete with a fun fakeout from Capcom early in the show), as well as the true identity of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s Project Century, which is now Stranger Than Heaven.
Otherwise, it was a show fairly light on major earth-shattering reveals, although there were some fun indie titles (Felt That: Boxing leaps to mind), as well as Soulslike sequels Code Vein 2 and Mortal Shell 2.
Borderlands games are getting ripped apart on Steam
This week, Borderlands publisher Take-Two updated its terms of service, and fans aren’t happy about some of the new phrases contained within said terms, prompting negative reviews across the franchise on Steam.
The fan backlash caused Take-Two to issue a statement via Steam responding to some of the claims, with the company denying it uses “spyware” in its games and suggesting its restrictive mod policy is only for “abusive” mods.
We can’t imagine this will be a particularly effective salve for fans, and we suspect another EULA change might be on the cards for Borderlands, but time will tell.
Xbox’s showcase closes out Summer Game Fest in style
Okay, okay, so technically Xbox’s show isn’t actually the very last thing you’ll see in this year’s Summer Game Fest period, but it’s arguably the final major show of the season.
Happily, things were a little more exciting for Xbox’s show than they were for Sony or the main Summer Game Fest event, with reveals for a Persona 4 remake, a new Call of Duty game, and a release date for Ninja Gaiden 4 among the major announcements.
We also got a fresh look at InXile’s Clockwork Revolution, which looks like a lot of fun, as well as new games from Don’t Nod, Double Fine, and Obsidian.
