Opening Night Live Gamescom 2021 Roundup

Gamescom 2021 is here! As usual with these sorts of things, Geoff Keighley has set up another Opening Night Life showcase with lots of announcements and reveals. I’m not sure why the showcase that is meant to open up everything came after Xbox’s showcase yesterday, but let’s just not question it. Anyhow, here is the news roundup of everything showcased at the Opening Night Live Gamescom 2021 show.

Initially, I assumed I’d just be covering the main show. However, the pre-show came with some announcements as well. The first announcement was a trailer for King of Fighters XV, which will release in February of 2022. It will contain past characters from the series, as well as new characters, totaling a roster of 39 fighters.

After that, we got a world premiere trailer for a new 3v3 Tactical Shooter called Nine to Five. There was no release date given for Nine to Five, but you can wishlist it on Steam now. Then there was a really weird gag involving safety protocols for watching a gaming showcase. Seriously? Get to the trailers and announcements, we don’t need the fluff!

With that pointless interlude aside, the next world premiere was a trailer for Bus Simulator 21. We’ve been keeping an eye on this one, and I’m excited to see a new trailer for it. Bus Simulator 21 will be releasing on Xbox One, PC, and PlayStation 4 on September 7^th.

Next up was some coverage of House of Ashes, the next part of the Dark Pictures Anthology. We got to see a World Premiere trailer, which is more than the scraps that the developers wasted our time with at E3. House of Ashes is gearing up for an October 22^nd release date on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles.

Afterward, we saw a world premiere trailer for Dolmen, a cosmic Horror Action-RPG. There wasn’t much info provided about the game beyond a bit of exposition. However, Dolmen will release on Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles sometime in 2022.

Then they wasted our time again with “10 Reasons to Look Forward to Opening Night Live” which makes me feel like Geoff Keighley needed them to stall for time for some reason. Drinkbox Games freed us from the idiocy for a bit with a new trailer for their upcoming game Nobody Saves the World. The trailer showed off some gameplay, along with an announcement for co-op multiplayer. Nobody Saves the World is coming to PC and Xbox Consoles when it launches in Early 2022. Hopefully, it comes to Switch eventually, it looks pretty awesome.

After a short interview with Geoff Keighley, we transitioned into a trailer for a Rhythm Combat game called Soundfall. What’s the deal with games having fall in the title lately? Soundfall looks like a 3D Crypt of the Necrodancer, only in real-time rather than turn-based. No release window was given, but it will be releasing on Steam, Epic, and consoles at some point in the future.

The last bit of pre-show news came from a world premiere trailer from the creator of Tomb Raider. Not Eidos, but the man who created Lara Croft herself. Dream Cycle seems to be a First-Person Action game set in a dream-like world. It will be coming to Early Access on Steam on September 7^th.

Kicking off the actual Opening Night Live show, we started with a world premiere announcement for the new Saints Row reboot. The reboot, titled Saints Row, will release February 25^th, 2022. It is coming to the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

After the stunning trailer came a few words from Bryce Charles, who portrays the player character in Saints Row. The game was created entirely from scratch and is a full reboot. There are new characters, a new city, new weapons, and a new story about building your gang from the ground up and being self-made.

They concluded the Saints Row section with a short taste of gameplay, and I do mean short. Then we were on to more new announcements, beginning with a new Marvel title. Marvel’s Midnight Suns is a cool-looking experience that shows off the more occult side of the Marvel universe. Developed by 2K and Firaxis, Midnight Suns is a Tactical RPG that puts you and the darker side of the Marvel universe against demonic forces trying to destroy the world.

Midnight Suns contains characters like Wolverine, Blade, Ghost Rider, Doctor Strange, and more. You will play The Hunter, a character designed with Marvel to be fully customizable. You’ll command the team of Marvel heroes as you go up against Lilith, the mother of demons. It looks really awesome and there will be a full gameplay reveal on September 1^st. I can’t wait to see more. Midnight Suns will release in March of 2022.

Next up came Call of Duty Vanguard’s time in the spotlight, with the PlayStation Alpha coming this weekend ahead of the November 5^th release date. A full look at the upcoming campaign was showcased by Laura Bailey and Dave Swenson from Sledgehammer games. I’m not the market audience for this game, but Vanguard is purported to showcase World War II in big battles and shine a spotlight on the birth of Special Forces teams.

An extended gameplay video was shown, showcasing Polina Petrova, one of the characters in the game, during the events at Stalingrad. Transitioning from Call of Duty into another (arguably more interesting) First-Person Shooter, we have Halo Infinite, which showed off a world premiere of its multiplayer, starting with a gorgeous trailer.

The trailer was a teaser for Halo Infinite’s first multiplayer season, which involves Commander Agryna, who supervises a new team of Spartan warriors. Each season will seemingly add more to the story of your personal Spartan journey. The team also announced that Halo Infinite will release with its Campaign and Multiplayer modes on December 8^th, 2021.

Since it is the 20^th Anniversary of Halo this year, the team also revealed something special to commemorate it. A new Xbox Elite Wireless Controller modeled after Master Chief (Spartan 117) is now available for pre-order. Die-hard Halo fans are likely going to want to fight to the death over it too, it looks really nice. The last Halo announcement came in the form of limited edition Halo Infinite-themed Xbox Series X/S consoles which are now available for pre-order and will be available on November 15th.

A new Roguelike took the stage next, published by Devolver Digital. Cult of the Lamb is a cute (but dark) Action-Roguelike by Massive Monster Games that will be releasing next year. This adorable game looks like you’ll be the leader of a cult of cute animal characters, all worshiping some sort of dark god. It looks cute, weird, and awesome at the same time.

Next up came an announcement for a new game developed by one man, a father in Poland, called Midnight Fight Express. The game will be coming to PC, consoles, and Xbox Game pass next year. It puts you in the role of a variety of characters, all seemingly getting involved in violent, satisfying brawls. Specifically, Midnight Fight Express will release next summer on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam.

Are you ready for some turtle power? Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge took the stage next, showing off a new playable character and some gameplay footage. For the first time that I know of, April O’Neal is a playable character in a TMNT game! The trailer also showed off how you can revive other characters with pizza, which is a cool touch.

The next segment was hosted by Natascha Becker, a new host for Gamescom who is located in Germany. She discussed things for German viewers, as well as the GamescomNow website which allows people to find their own stream schedule tailored to their time zone and participate in giveaways to get various freebies.

Additionally, they showed off a very short development update for the video game tie-in to the Demon Slayer anime. In addition to showing a small bit of gameplay, they revealed an October 15^th release date. Then, a segment for Can I Play That, an organization designed to promote accessibility options in gaming, took a moment to speak. They discussed various workshops that are helping studios to develop games with inclusivity in mind.

After that short segment, we got a glimpse at some new Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania footage. The dev team at Sega showed off the 12 party games that will be available in the title such as tennis, billiards, racing, and more. Also, Morgana from Persona 5 was announced as a new playable character, chasing after chests instead of bananas. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania will release on October 5^th for PC, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation and Xbox consoles.

Splitgate got its moment in the spotlight next, revealing that Season 0 is now available to play. There is also a new map, a new mode called Infection, and all sorts of new content. The gameplay looks interesting, combining arena combat with portals and physics.

Another company embroiled in controversy peddled its wares here, with Ubisoft showing off new footage of Riders Republic. The new trailer showed off some of the environments and multiple methods of riding from biking and wingsuits to snowboarding. It also seems like Ubisoft is trying to add some sort of campaign or story mode in here as well. The Riders Republic beta is open until August 28th and will release on October 28^th, two months later.

Natascha came back to present the Gamescom Award for best Microsoft/Xbox game, which went to Halo Infinite. I’m a bit surprised that Elden Ring didn’t snag that award, though Far Cry 6 (the other nominee) didn’t stand a chance. Afterward, they showed off an advertisement for Game Pass before leading into more of the show.

The next world premiere trailer was for a new soccer (football) game called UFL, which will be free to play and is coming soon. UFL will release on all major gaming consoles, but didn’t have much else to show.

Next up was finally Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga’s moment to shine, revealing the first trailer and footage since we saw it a year ago before it was delayed. The scope of this game seems just as big as the stories it aims to tell, with lots of planets to explore and a galaxy’s worth of content. Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga will release in Spring 2022 for PC, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox and PlayStation consoles.

Synced: Off Planet was next on the agenda, a new companion Shooter from a Shanghai studio called Next Studios. Geoff Keighley is hosting a Gamescom showcase today that will give more information on the game, but it looks decent enough so far.

Now let’s get a little spooky with The Outlast Trials, the follow-up to the Outlast series in which you play a subject of the Murkoff Corporation. You can play The Outlast Trials alone or with up to 3 other people to try and take on the horrors that Murkoff has in store. Red Barrels will release The Outlast Trials sometime in 2022.

Moving away from the spooky games, we have DokeV, a new creature collecting open-world game from Pearl Abyss, a South Korean developer. This game is so colorful and cute that I want to know more immediately. Imagine Pokemon games but on a larger scale, with more mobility and action-based combat. DokeV doesn’t have a release date or platforms yet, but I am ready for it!

Circling back to games we’ve heard about already during E3, Jurassic World Evolution 2 showed up to give us a bit of an update on the game. The trailer shown here gave us new footage of gameplay, while also providing a release date. It looks absolutely stunning, and it seems like there are a lot of ways to customize and build your park. Jurassic World Evolution 2 will release November 9^th on Epic, Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles.

Ubisoft popped up again with another presentation for Far Cry 6, which is coming on October 7th. Specifically, they showed off a story trailer, which showcased more of the brutal story and gameplay that is coming. It didn’t showcase much more than what we already knew, but it was a nice trailer anyway.

Then we got an update on something I still don’t understand. Vampire the Masquerade: Blood Hunt is a Battle Royale game set in the Vampire the Masquerade universe, which prides itself on secrecy. What sort of secretive vampires are going to get into gunfights out in the open? Regardless, Blood Hunt changes your playstyle based on your vampire clan.

Developer Sharkmob provided a new trailer, showing off the Toreador clan. The gameplay looks smooth and stylish, but I still have some questions about the choice to make it a Battle Royale. Blood Hunt will release in Early Access on September 7^th.

Bandai Namco and Limbic Entertainment have a new amusement park simulator in the works! Park Beyond is coming to PC and next-gen consoles in 2022. You’ll revitalize an old amusement park with new, visionary rides. It looks really cool actually.

Moving on, we transition into a presentation for Jett: The Far Shore, a space adventure where you explore a planet that you hope will be a new home for your civilization. Jett: The Far Shore is coming to Epic and PlayStation consoles on October 5^th. I’m not really sure how I feel about this one.

Guerilla Games dropped in next to provide an update on Horizon: Forbidden West. The game will release on February 18^th, 2022, and Pre-Orders will open next week on September 2^nd. After that, we transitioned into another bit of info about New World from Amazon Games.

New World will release on September 28^th, and they provided a brand new trailer for Opening Night Live, ahead of its September 9^th open beta. The game looks interesting, though I’m not all that interested in another MMO considering how saturated the market is. Geoff also took the time to interview the director of New World, Scott Lane. They discussed the upcoming open beta, which will be open from September 9^th through September 12^th as well as post-launch content.

Then we circled back to Marvel news, now that Marvel Future Revolution has been released. It is a mobile Action RPG that is now available and lets you customize your favorite superheroes to experience an all-new story. Marvel Future Revolution is available on iOS and Android. The game looks impressive, but I’d rather play it on PC or on a TV.

After that announcement came a performance by Lindsey Stirling to celebrate the upcoming September 10^th release of Tales of Arise. I love Lindsey Stirling’s performances, so seeing her perform a re-arrangement of music from the Tales of franchise was probably the best musical performance I’ve seen at one of these showcases. Not to mention, she was dressed as Shionne, the new female protagonist from Tales of Arise.

Following the performance, Bandai Namco revealed a new announcement to celebrate the Tales of franchise’s 25^th anniversary. Of course, it is a mobile title for iOS and Android, as if the Tales of franchise hasn’t done two of those already, one of which has already died. I digress, Tales of Luminaria is an Action RPG set in a new world. It is coming soon, though very little was shown from the trailer.

They also advertised the Tales of Arise demo, which is available now ahead of the September 10^th release of the full game. Then we went back to Natascha with more awards. The award for Best Nintendo Switch game went to Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope, though its only apparent competition was Just Dance 2022, another Ubisoft title. With that weirdness out of the way, the Best PC Game award went to Syberia: The World Before, which I had not even heard of.

This was followed up by an ad break, including ads for the diversity group I Need Diverse Games, Jumanji: The Curse Returns, Lost Judgment, and more. Deadmau5 is also apparently doing a concert in Core, the online game sharing and development platform. It will be called Ob3rhasl1 and will be available as a social hub inside Core. Deadmau5 fans will be able to enjoy interactive concert experiences and partake in a variety of cool activities. Ob3rhasl1 will be updated overtime to keep up with real-world events and will be coming soon.

Another world premiere announcement came in the form of a collab between Disney and Fall Guys, bringing The Jungle Book costumes and events to the online game. The King Louie event will be available between September 3^rd and September 12^th, offering multiple different skins and fun event modes.

Sad Cat Studios’ Replaced also had a short teaser after being revealed in June. They didn’t show much, but people interested in the game probably enjoyed the little tease. Age of Empires IV was next, with a quick segment involving a new gameplay reveal ahead of the October 28^th release. Age of Empires IV will release on Steam and Xbox Game Pass.

The new Valheim content update Hearth & Home was next on the showcase list with a new trailer. They also provided a release date for the update, which will come on September 16^th. The trailer was beautifully animated, and hopefully gives fans something to look forward to. Natascha then cut in with the award for Best PlayStation Game, which went to Elden Ring and led into another ad break.

After the ad break, Genshin Impact took the stage with its first crossover event. Aloy from Horizon: Zero Dawn and Horizon: Forbidden West is coming to Genshin Impact on September 1^st on PlayStation consoles. She will come to other platforms later in the 2.2 update. They also announced the 1 year anniversary Genshin Impact concert and event, called Melodies of an Endless Journey. It will be coming on October 3^rd alongside the anniversary.

Back to indie titles, we got to see more on Sifu, the Martial-Arts Action game. Alongside the new trailer, the developers announced a release date. Sifu will release on Epic and PlayStation consoles on February 22^nd, 2022. Natascha showed up again to discuss the Gamescom Reforestation Program, which aims to plant a whole forest to combat deforestation.

The Death Stranding Director’s Cut took the stage to close out the show, with an extended look at the gameplay and new content. The new version includes new delivery support in-game, such as new stabilizers that have thrusters to soften your landing when jumping or falling far distances. There is also a cargo catapult to launch your cargo over long distances if there is a difficult terrain area you need to traverse.

There are other new mechanics, new facilities, challenges, weapons, visual upgrades, and more. Honestly, the Director’s Cut has a lot of content, but I find myself confused as to what game it wants to be. With all that out of the way, Opening Night Live was done. It was a decent show, better than some of the others I’ve seen.