Gamescom 2023 begins today, and the Cologne-based gaming gigashow has a swanky, likely trailer-rich launch event to mark the occasion. Our Gamescom Opening Night Live 2023 liveblog will be up and running for the full two hours, and we – vid bud Liam and myself – will be reporting every scrap of news it feeds us. Care to join?
Gamescom Opening Night Live goes curtains-up at 7pm BST / 2pm EST / 11am PDT, with a pre-show scheduled for 6:30pm BST / 1:30pm EST / 10:30am PDT. You can watch along with the video stream embedded above, and/or follow the liveblog via the widget below. We should be going live ourselves a few minutes before the main even begins, probably while excessively, maybe even dangerously caffeinated. See you then!
G'afternoon. Join us back here at 7pm BST / 2pm EST / 11am PDT, when we're be liveblogging the Gamescom Opening Night Live main event. It'll be fun, probs.
– James Archer
Hello. Hello. I'm here. I just ate an absurdly large pizza for dinner in 20 minutes which will probably prove to be a mistake. How are we all? Are we excited for Geoff?
– Liam Richardson
WarderDragon says: I was going to be at Gamescom in person, for work - and for the second year in a row it fell through. I'll watch along with RPS though!
A shame you can't be there in person, but happy to have you here!
– Liam Richardson
I'm excited to hear what James had for dinner.
– Liam Richardson
Popeye's, spicy chicken sandwich. Perfect every time, I don't know how they do it.
– James Archer
Hi everyone, by the way.
– James Archer
Here we go! Geoff rises.
– James Archer
Strong trainers. 8/10.
– Liam Richardson
A musical number to open, appaz. Starfield's composer is here, tinkling the ivories.
– James Archer
That arch they keep showing in Starfield looks like exactly half of a massive MccDonald's was destroyed.
– James Archer
CGI trailer for Starfield now, looks like.
– James Archer
A live action trailer! For a video game! It's 2008 all over again!
– Liam Richardson
Correction: the trailer has a real man, green-screened onto many, many CGI backgrounds.
– James Archer
He looked weirdly gleefull about blasting another spaceship to smithereens, presumably extinguishing the lives of everyone oncreen.
– James Archer
Oop, a stage invader. He's juiced to play GTA 6, it seems. Geoff can barely hide his rage.
– James Archer
At least they noticed this one?
– James Archer
Todd is here! His jacket is blue!
– Liam Richardson
Todd Howard onstage now. He's actually meant to be there, so Geoff is calmed.
– James Archer
WarderDragon says: Stage Invader didn't really get his message across, I feel.
Absolute scenes.
– Liam Richardson
Bethesda have apparently built, at Gamescom, a 300-person theatre for people to watch Starfield's intro scenes. Presumably no matinee showing of Barbie.
– James Archer
Todd's talking about Starfield's story, but is being intentionally cagey about specifics.
– Liam Richardson
OK, here we go. First proper reveal of the evening.
– Liam Richardson
Two children wearing masks are exploring a delaptidated, grimy environment while being stalked by gigantic, monstrous humans. It's Little Nightmares 3! Made by Supermassive Games, instead of series creator Tarsier Studios.
The Sounds Of Nightmares - a six episode podcast set within the world of Little Nightmares - is also a thing.
First two episodes are available now.
– Liam Richardson
New trailer for Black Myth: Wukong next. Lots of beasties for Sun Wukong to fight, it seems, including a massive pig-headed fella I'm fairly sure I killed in Resident Evil 4.
A very poorly looking creature is having its chest sawn open before recieving implants that transform it into a horrific murder machine. A player is fighting them off using various guns.
Oh, it's Killing Floor 3! Didn't expect that!
– Liam Richardson
Zack Snyder is here to talk about his new film, Rebel Moon. It's not called FILMScom, Geoff.
– Liam Richardson
Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition is out today on Xbox, btw. Got new console controls - wonder if those could come to the PC for Steam Decking?
– James Archer
I just realised I've gone until right now without knowing what Zack Snyder looks like.
– James Archer
"Anthony Hopkins plays this robot"
– James Archer
Geoff just called a film an IP. That's it. That's the post.
– Liam Richardson
They're also making a game with Super Evil Megacorp on development duties.
– Liam Richardson
I can hear Anthony Hopkins but he doesn't sound like a robot.
– James Archer
Anthony Hopkins is one of our greatest living actors, yet whenever I hear his voice all I can think about is Nate's impression on the EWS.
– Liam Richardson
Eulrich says: Anthony Hopkins as a robot seems like a bit of a waste
really don´t understand why actors having enough money for several lives still take such roles
You can always buy another house, I guess.
– Liam Richardson
Time for an update on medievel open-world RPG, Crimson Desert. The trailer is mighty fighty so far.
– James Archer
Eulrich says: love the sheep scene, whatever this game is
Some truly excellent sheep, I agree.
– Liam Richardson
And pretty! Some lush hills in whatever fantasy world this is.
– James Archer
Hot air balloons, magic puzzle solving, climbing trees, this has a bit of everything.
– James Archer
...also we're fairly sure the main guy just drifted his horse.
– James Archer
Robots as well? What is happening
– James Archer
MEDIEVAL BREATH OF THE WILD WITH HORSE DRIFTING. SIGN ME UP.
– Liam Richardson
Alright, I knew nothing about Crimson Desert and now I'm excited for it. Absolutely squirrel-mad game, judging from that trailer.
– James Archer
Eulrich says: the pitch seems to be "just cause, but medival"?
I mean that sounds better than "Just Cause, but Killer Bean"
– James Archer
Ice-T is here promoting his heist in Payday 3. We're watching a group of very naughty people shoot a lot of guards in a warehouse. It all looks suitably heisty. That's out September 21st.
– Liam Richardson
Looks like Assassin's Creed Mirage next. Back to basics stabbin' is nigh.
– James Archer
Pretty standard AssCreed-ing, save for the full Arabic voice acting. Quiet shanking, climbing walls, jumping off roofs to the sound of an eagle etc.
– James Archer
Jasmin Gnu has taken to the stage to talk more about Gamescom the in-person event. If you're not in Germany, you can visit the website and vote for games and stuff.
You can also read this website, of course. Our Ed and Katherine are there at the moment, and they'll have loads of lovely words for you over the coming days.
Harada is here to talk about Tekken 8. He's wearing - and I can't emphasise this enough - a WONDERFUL shirt that comprises of classic Tekken character potrait renders.
Oh and there's a new story mode for Tekken 8 that seems to take a lot of inspiration from Street Fighter 6. You can create a custom avatar and wander around a hub area playing on arcade cabinets.
We're about to see some in-game Modern Warfare 3 stuff.
– James Archer
But first, a bit of chat about 'Open Combat Missions': singleplayer missions that are a bit more open-ended than usual COD fare. You'll have more of a choice between stealth and action, and how to move about the map.
– James Archer
Into a campaign mission now, with our shooty lads about to sneak out of a submarine.
– James Archer
Sneaking up the side of a castle now. Certainly looks COD-ish so far.
– James Archer
More walking around quietly. Tum tee tum.
– James Archer
I've just eaten a tube of Smarties. It was significantly more interesting than this.
– Liam Richardson
Scratch that, a gunfight's broken out. Our guy runs out of ammo almost instantly - not very special forces of him.
– James Archer
Ah, this looks like a remix of the gulag mission in the original MW2. Which is to say, we're in a gulag.
– James Archer
A bit more shooting, a door explodes, and we're done. I don't mind the occasional COD but that wasn't exactly a vintage trailer.
– James Archer
Oh! Some Nightingale news, now. This is the dimension hopping survival game that's been floating around for a few years. You travel through portals, gather resources, build bases and fight some really inspired looking horrors.
– Liam Richardson
The Mary Poppins umbrella bit in that Nightingale trailer is killing me. Comedy gold.
– James Archer
We're watching some pretty epic fights right now. A player whipped out an umbrella and used it to float into a fight. It looks really cool! That enters early access on February 22nd 2024.
– Liam Richardson
Immortals of Aveum time. This came out today to... very mixed reviews. Alice thought it was merely fine.
– Liam Richardson
Action-packed trailer there for anime-style RPG Granblue Fantasy Relink - loads magic battles with some truly screen-filling monsters. Out Feb 1st 2024.
– James Archer
Next: new Hoyoverse game Zenless Zone Zero, an "urban fantasy ARPG".
– James Archer
Plenty of urban so far, the fantasy must be coming up...ah, there it is. Dogboy main character.
– James Archer
Also giant robot fights.
– James Archer
Only glimpses of how ZZZ will actually play, but looks a touch DMC.
– James Archer
A Honkai: Star Rail update now. A game I got dangerously addicted to for a week back when it launched. We've got a character that uses what appear to be mahjong tiles to fight? It's all very anime. As to be expected. It's coming to PS5 soon.
– Liam Richardson
Time for a look at Genshin Impact's watery new region. Some pretty underwater bits to explore, and ugly magma crabs to fight.
– James Archer
We're watching a story trailer for Lords Of The Fallen, now. Lots of large lads wearing grimy armour. Crumbling castles. Intense fights. An alternate reality. Blood. Lots of blood. This is a soulslike, after all.
– Liam Richardson
Eulrich says: that is quite the cut from lords of the fallen to sonic
Intense tonal whiplash.
– Liam Richardson
The tone change here, my goodness. From Lords of the Fallen we're now on Sonic Superstars, which now has a release date: October 17th.
– James Archer
Time for an update on my favourite game: Sonic Frontiers.
– Liam Richardson
October looking more rammed with every passing minute...
– James Archer
Cosplay contest now.
– James Archer
Sonic Frontiers is getting a final update that includes new challenges and playable characters. Hooray! That launches September 28th.
– Liam Richardson
WarderDragon says: So far, I'm not exactly thrilled with the showing. Many, many sequels to franchises that aren't for me.
Other than the horse drifting, same.
– Liam Richardson
(We've been joined in the RPS Slack by our on-the-ground reporters Katharine and Ed. A relief - I was worried they'd died of dehydration, given how hard it is to find non-sparkling water in Germany.)
– James Archer
Also I may have misjudged that cosplay situation, all four of them just left without declaring a winner.
– James Archer
Anyway, here's a fresh look at sci-fi shooter The First Descendant.
– James Archer
Eulrich says: >October looking more rammed with every passing minute...
oh boy, does it ever. Also the new mario 2d game in october (and i´m hype about detective pickachu, but that one might be niche)
I'm probably not allowed to talk about Super Mario Wonder but I'm so excited to play Super Mario Wonder.
– Liam Richardson
Looks a bit. I dunno. Floaty? Flashy though. There'll be an open beta September 19 - 25.
– James Archer
A trailer for... something new? A man is chatting on the phone to a woman as he scuba dives through a treacherous looking underwater environment. Under The Waves is out next month.
– Liam Richardson
Little sizzle reel for Game Pass there.
– James Archer
Troy Baker, Roger Clark and Julia Brown are here to talk about Fort Solis. Our Edwin thought it was merely fine.
Trailer there for Expeditions: A MudRunner Game - another offroading sim in Saber's series.
– James Archer
Time for Forza Horiz- sorry. I mean, The Crew Motorfest. A much smaller game in terms of scope, Motorfest trades the entire US for the island of O'Ahu. That launches on September 14th, and you can play a free five hour trial for a few days after launch.
– Liam Richardson
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty now. Trailer starts with some funky new weapons and...ooh, Human Revolution-style sword arms.
– James Archer
A look at some new perks as well. One appears to let you punch people so hard they fly off into the sky.
– James Archer
Aw, no Idris.
– James Archer
Another cute perk I forgot to mention: picking up enemies and throwing them at other enemies.
– James Archer
There's a lot of *stuff* in Phantom Liberty, no doubt - including stuff like overhauled AI. Much of it will come to the base game as well.
– James Archer
Oooh, Stormgate is next, an upcoming RTS inspired by Warcraft 3 and Command and Conquer. We've been given our first look at The Infernal Host, a demonic faction that thrive within dark energy zones.
The Chainsmokers are also advising the team on their soundtrack.
– Liam Richardson
A break from games (which I think we could all do with) for the UN's Playing for the Planet scheme to take the stage. They're giving a sustainability award to Xbox.
– James Archer
Phil Spencer is here to accept, no less.
– James Archer
Time for Last Epoch, now. A fantasy action RPG. Each skill (all 100+ of them) has their own build-defining skill tree.
The game is recieving a new class: the Runemaster, a very powerful wizard from the looks of it. That class will be added in September.
– Liam Richardson
Oh, I remember this Ben Brode chap. Once again he is stood next to Geoff, being excited about Marvel Snap.
– James Archer
Actually quite a good animated trailer, this, to mark Snap's Steam release. That'll be the one that lets to actually play it in widescreen.
– James Archer
Armored Core 6 time. We're seeing a lot of big robots fighting one another across a bunch of grey enviornments. Looks flashy, though. That's out this Friday.
– Liam Richardson
Ed Boon is here to talk about Mortal Kombat 1. Mortal Kombat 1 is the 12th Mortal Kombat game, just FYI.
– Liam Richardson
A curiously rap-soundtracked CG trailer for Warhaven, Nexon's melee-focused multiplayer fighter. It's going into Steam early access on September 21st.
– James Archer
We're being shown a brand new trailer for the game. Shao Kahn (or his son...?) is the focus, but we're also seeing the likes of Sindel and Raiden battering people to death. It's graphically very impressive, and the new team-up mechanic looks like a lot of fun. That's out September 19th.
– Liam Richardson
Trailer now for history-spanning grand strategy Ara: History Untold.
– James Archer
Eulrich says: while there´s all the gamepass stuff - anyone here knows if you can use 1 subscription for all members of your house? for all the advertisement they do the gamepass website is not really a helpful source of information
Unsure if this helps, but I have a Game Pass subscription that my partner can use with her account on my Xbox? Not sure if that would work on PC, though.
– Liam Richardson
The scale of this looks enormous. Seems like it could cover every major civilisation from the past few hundred years.
– James Archer
The first season of Diablo 4 may have only just begun, but we're now being treated to a sneak peek for season 2, set to launch this autumn. Looks like there's a plague. Turns people into zombies. Honestly, I have no idea why anyone would live in this place.
Season of Blood will feature new vampiric powers alongside new quests and story content. That's out on October 17th.
– Liam Richardson
First look there at Dustborn, Quantic Dream's vaguely Road 96-esque road trip adventure. Out "early 2024".
– James Archer
An almost Monty Python-esque trailer for Thank Goodness You're Here, which looks like a comedy adventure game by Panic? Hard to process exactly what that was, but it looks grand!
– Liam Richardson
Well, the first trailer in a long, long while, anyway. First announced in 2020, Dustborn was.
– James Archer
Seems like we're ending on Alan Wake 2. Remedy's Sam Lake says this trailer will focus on Alan himself, who's stuck in The Dark Place.
– James Archer
AW2's stronger horror flavour very much evident here.
– James Archer
Alan will still be using light to fend off baddies, he'll just... be under psychic assault more often while doing it.
– James Archer
Aaaaaand that's it.
– James Archer
Any favourites from the show James?
– Liam Richardson
Got to give it to Crimson Desert, if I'm honest. A blooming flower of gleeful oddness.
– James Archer
Yeah I'm going to agree I think. They drifted on a horse. What more could you ask for?
– Liam Richardson
Eulrich says: Well, thanks mates, have a lovely week at gamescom and everywhere else
Thanks so much for joining us!
– Liam Richardson
Indeed, thanks all for tuning in. What did you think? You have about eight minutes to tell us (because that's I set the liveblog to close)
– James Archer
Thanks all! Bye!
– Liam Richardson
Alright maybe a few more trailers for the road. Warhaven:
