Gamescom 2021: dates, conference times, attendees and announcements so far

Gamescom 2021 is a go! After Microsoft kicked off the week of gaming reveals with its Xbox showcase on Tuesday, we were practically spoiled by what was shown at Gamescom Opening Night Live, hosted by Geoff Keighley. The festivities are now well underway, with the second biggest gaming event of the year drawing to a close on Friday, August 27.

Naturally, the show is looking a little different this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Organizers had initially planned to make Gamescom 2021 a hybrid event with some in-person opportunities alongside virtual access, but the physical presence has since been dropped due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic.

Just like last year’s Gamescom, this year presented an all-digital event, but there were some in-person interviews sprinkled in this time. Organizers have also revealed that there will be some new features this year, including a community activity called Gamescom Epix. This year, the Geoff Keighley-led Opening Night Live, which ran for about two hours and featured a healthy mix of indie and AAA announcements, ended up being a big highlight of Gamescom so far.

Had to miss out on parts of the show? Fear not, as we’ve gathered all of the best info and announcements that’s happened during the week so far, including when and where it's happening and details of what's been shown as the week progresses. Read on for everything you need to know about Gamescom 2021.

Gamescom 2021: cut to the chase

What is it? The world’s largest gaming event
When is it? August 25 to August 27
Who is attending? Confirmed publishers include Xbox, EA and Ubisoft

Gamescom 2021 reveals so far

Gamescom Opening Night Live

Where can I re-watch it?
YouTube, Twitter, Twitch and Facebook.

What was shown?
Credit where it’s due. Gamescom Opening Night Live, hosted by the face of gaming Geoff Keighley, was a corker. The two hour long show was full of world premiere announcements, some genuinely unexpected surprises, and was delivered at a pleasing cadence that ensured we never felt bored or bemused by what was on screen.

In fact, the only criticism we’d have were the weird Gamescom awards that were sprinkled through the show, which saw Elden Ring snag the prize as the ‘Best Sony PlayStation Game’. Elden Ring is a multiplatform game for starters, and hasn’t even been released yet. Weird.

Apart from that, though, Gamescom Opening Night Live exceeded our expectations. But if you missed all the gaming goodness from Cologne, Germany (delivered virtually, of course), you can catch up with the biggest announcements below.

TechRadar's take: Opening Night Live did a great job of introducing us to a slew of new trailers for some of the most anticipated games coming soon, as well as some surprise announcements we're very much looking forward to. Host Geoff Keighley put a big emphasis on "holiday" releases, and he wasn't wrong. We received release dates for games coming out around the November/December time period including Halo Infinite, as well as slew of titles slated for early next year.

Saints Row
Saints Row is returning to (hopefully) shake up the open-world subgenre once more. Doing away with the shark jumping insanity found in the series’ latter games, this rebooted Saints Row looks like it maintains the silliness that made it so special, while being grounded in a way that’s more true to the original two games.

The Saints Row coverage at Opening Night Live was almost wholly focused on the CG reveal trailer, but Volition had also prepared a short gameplay snippet of what we can expect when it launches on February 25, 2022.

Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker
Say what you want about the last few Star Wars films, but if anything can make George Lucas’s expansive universe fun and exciting again, it’s a Lego makeover. Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga received a new gameplay trailer at Gamescom Opening Night Live, and it featured the comical quips, slapstick moments and surprisingly gorgeous visuals that we’ve come to expect from the Lego video game series.

Unfortunately, the release date for Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is still far, far away. The game is due to arrive in ‘Spring 2022’, which falls between March and June. Let’s just hope it doesn’t slip again.

Death Stranding Director’s Cut
Death Stranding: Director’s Cut was shown in detail at the end of Gamescom Opening Night Live. The PS4 release, now updated for PS5, includes a number of pleasing updates like a 60fps performance mode, 4K visuals and some completely unexpected additions.

Delivering your cargo – which is still weirdly the core mechanic of Hideo Kojima’s latest creation – should be a lot more seamless and streamlined in Death Stranding: Director’s Cut. You’ll have new equipment and means of transport to help you take the strain off Sam Bridge’s aching back, as well as new activities to take part in – a new racing mode is included that probably no one saw coming, and there’s also a Metal Gear Solid VR Missions-esque mode that looks pretty promising.

It’s still Death Stranding, though, so if you didn’t riff with the game when you first played it, or still have no idea what’s going on, the Director’s Cut is unlikely to change your opinion when it releases on September 24, 2021.

Call of Duty: Vanguard
Another year, another Call of Duty? When it comes to Vanguard, that lack of enthusiasm might be misplaced. While another entry in Activision’s long running series won’t interest everyone, what we saw of the game at Gamescom Opening Night Live told us one thing: Call of Duty: Vanguard looks spectacular – from a graphical perspective at least.

Whether it’s the game’s realistic lighting or the impeccable, almost tangible textures, this is undoubtedly the most convincing recreation of World War 2 we’ve seen to date. Like it or loathe it, Call of Duty: Vanguard is sure to be one of the biggest games of the year.

DokeV
One of the more eye-catching announcements at Opening Night Live had to be DokeV. Coming from Black Desert Online developer Pearl Abyss, DokeV is an upcoming open-world action adventure that’s part Pokémon, part Jet Set Radio, with a bit of K-Pop sprinkled in for good measure.

Players take control of a kid who has access to dreamlike monsters known as ‘Dokebi.’ These creatures can aid you in battle against robotic-looking enemies. Their designs are equal parts adorable and bonkers, so we’re looking forward to seeing just how wacky Dokebi can get in the full release.

Halo Infinite
Halo Infinite was surprisingly absent from Microsoft’s Xbox stream at Gamescom, but developer 343 Industries more than made up for it at Gamescom Opening Night Live. Not only did we finally get a release date for the game, December 8, but Microsoft also revealed a Halo Infinite limited edition Xbox Series X and a Halo Infinite limited edition Xbox Elite Wireless Series 2 controller would go on sale, which have since promptly sold out.

But that’s not all. A new cinematic trailer for the game’s multiplayer mode, which will be free-to-play for the first time in the series, was shown off in all its glory. The wait for Halo Infinite is going to be a long one.

Marvel’s Midnight Suns
Firaxis Games, creators of the beloved XCOM reboot series, is back with a new tactical RPG, this time taking on the vast and unpredictable world of Marvel. While we’ve only got a (lovely) CG trailer to go off for now, Marvel’s Midnight Suns won’t just feature the heroes we’re familiar with in the MCU, but several X-Men like Wolverine are also joining the fray.

Marvel’s Midnight Suns is releasing on all platforms in March, 2022, and will feature loads of iconic heroes as well as a player-created avatar. Check out the trailer below to see if your favorite superhero made the cut.

Gamescom 2021 Xbox stream

Xbox stream announcement — (Image credit: Xbox)

Where can I re-watch it?
YouTube, Twitter, Twitch and Facebook.

What was shown?
Microsoft’s Gamescom 2021 presence was something of a snoozefest, devoid of any updates on anticipated titles like Halo Infinite and Fable. But that doesn’t mean it was completely lacking when it came to interesting announcements.

From more Dying Light 2 footage to a deep dive on a rather peculiar Age of Empires 4 mode, the Xbox stream had its highlights. But its thunder was largely stolen by the following day’s Opening Night Live showcase.

That said, we got a good deal more gameplay footage for Forza Horizon 5, which continues to look utterly incredible. While it closed out the show, we’d say the Xbox stream was still worth tuning into for Forza alone.

TechRadar's take:
No Starfield, no Halo, no Elder Scrolls... the list goes on. It would have been expecting quite a lot for Microsoft to go all-in on Gamescom after it delivered such a stellar E3 2021 showing, but it was hard not feel a bit disappointed by the lack of new footage of most-wanted games, nor mic-drop reveals of new games. Still, it remains a good time to be an Xbox gamer, with a busy release schedule for the console family on the way. So we'll give Microsoft a pass here.

Dying Light 2
Zombies. Parkour. On their own, neither are that exciting. But when combined, you’ve got the foundations for some truly satisfying gameplay mechanics.

That’s where Dying Light 2 shines, as the latest trailer from the game shows off how you can use your body’s momentum to springboard off enemies, dropkick foes in the face, and generally cause havoc like some sort of violent circus act. Keep your eye on this one as it’s releasing soon on December 7, 2021.

Age of Empires 4
While we only saw a snippet of gameplay for Age of Empires 4 during the Xbox stream, the good news is that we did learn some things about medieval warfare. The focus of this Age of Empires 4 showing wasn’t really gameplay-oriented, then, but if you really wanted the rundown on how a trebuchet operates, then this may have just been the best gaming presentation of all time.

All joking aside, Age of Empires 4 is catering to history buffs with its new ‘Hands-On History’ feature. Less of a mode and more of a collection of documentary snippets, the feature will provide video deep dives into many of the units and buildings you’ve been using across Age of Empires’s various releases. Could be something to fall back on whenever you’re salty that an enemy monk converted your entire cavalry.

Forza Horizon 5
We already got a good look at Forza Horizon 5 during its E3 2021 reveal, but who are we to say no to seeing more of the follow-up to one of the greatest racing games ever made? This time, we got a look at Forza Horizon 5’s introductory sequence, which in typical fashion previewed the game’s flagship vehicles bombing it through the lush and varied locales of Mexico.

The nine-minute showcase went by in a blink of an eye, and was complemented by non-intrusive developer talk that gave a bit of insight into improvements made over previous Horizon entries. If it wasn’t clear enough already, we can’t wait to get back behind the wheel and return to the Horizon Festival on November 5, 2021. Oh, and there's also a custom Forza Horizon 5 controller coming out on the same day.

The Gunk
While we’re sure The Gunk won’t be the first game on everyone’s mind after the Xbox stream, it nonetheless looks like an utterly gorgeous title. Coming from SteamWorld creator Image & Form Games, The Gunk throws you onto a beautiful planet infested with the titular substance, and it’s your job to clean it up while finding out what’s happened on the planet.

We genuinely can’t wait to try out The Gunk for ourselves, and the premise alone has us wondering what kind of game it will ultimately turn out to be. We’ll find out when it launches in December, 2021, and it’ll be available from day one on Xbox Game Pass.

Microsoft Flight Simulator expansions
Microsoft Flight Simulator is more often than not a truly calming experience. Flying over the Sahara Desert or the Palace of Versailles is a real treat, especially after you’ve learned to properly keep your altitude under control. But if you’re looking for something a bit more high-octane, it turns out that Microsoft Flight Simulator will soon have something in store for you.

During the Gamescom 2021 Xbox stream, it was revealed that Microsoft Flight Simulator is partnering with RARA (Reno Air Racing Association) to bring STIHL National Championship Air Races to the game. These will be playable in an online multiplayer environment, exceeding speeds of 500mph.

The game’s free Top Gun DLC is also on the way later this year, as well as another free world update that improves locations like Germany, Austria and Switzerland. World Update 6 is coming to Microsoft Flight Simulator on September 7, 2021.

Humble Games coming to Xbox Game Pass
Fancy a trailer that packs in ten announcements in one? Humble Games had us covered there, revealing that 10 games it’s publishing will be coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one. Among the selection of promising indie titles was Dodgeball Academia, which is already available to download.

Elsewhere, we have Midnight Fight Express, the solo dev venture that made another appearance during Opening Night Live. Other much-anticipated indie games arriving on Xbox Game Pass include Unsighted, Bushiden and Chinatown Detective Agency. After this, you can never say Xbox has no games to play ever again.

Gamescom 2021 upcoming schedule and conference times

August 26 - Future Games Show at Gamescom

When is it?
August 26 at 1pm PT / 4pm ET / 9pm BST (or August 27 at 6am AEST)

Where can I watch it?
Twitch, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, GamesRadar.com.

What are we expecting?
This special Gamescom edition of the Future Games Show will feature more than 40 games from a variety of publishers including Frontier Developments, Team17, Koch Media, and Tripwire Interactive. Better yet, if you’re a fan of Resident Evil Village, the show will be co-hosted by two of the game’s voice actors: Maggie Robertson, who plays Lady Dimitrescu, and Aaron LePlante, who voices The Duke.

In addition, the Future Games Show will feature expanded ‘Virtual Show Floor Booths’, which let gamers access a wide array of demos that you can play from the comfort of your own home.

TechRadar's take:
Our friends at GamesRadar always put on a cracking show when it comes to the Future Games Show. Expect gameplay clips, developer walkthroughs, and world premieres at this year's showcase.

Gamescom 2021 attendees and predictions

At the time of writing, 20 publishers are confirmed to be attending Gamescom 2021. Beyond the list below, there will also be 80 indie titles showcased via virtual booths during the event.

Some significant publishers like Sony and Nintendo are currently missing, but we’re yet to fully confirm that they won't feature any games during the event. Last year, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart appeared during Opening Night Live, so who knows?

We may see a State of Play from Sony or a Nintendo Direct from Nintendo closer to the event to see what they have coming up away from the show itself, though with the latter just around the corner, both those scenarios seem unlikely.

505 Games
Activision
Aerosoft
Assemble Entertainment
Astragon Entertainment
BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment
Bethesda Softworks
Electronic Arts
GAMEVIL COM2US Europe
Headup
Indie Arena Booth
Koch Media
NExT Studios (Tencent Games)
SEGA Europe
Team17
Thunderful Games
Ubisoft
Wargaming
Xbox
Konami

So far, Xbox is the only publisher to confirm its own independent showcase during Gamescom 2021 - which is sure to include Bethesda titles, too. But what are we expecting from the other publishers confirmed to attend Gamescom? Here's what we're expecting to see from the likes of EA, Activision and Ubisoft:

Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts is sitting on several big projects that could be alluded to during Gamescom 2021. There are faraway heavy hitters like Skate 4, Dragon Age 4, the Dead Space Remake and the next Mass Effect project, but EA also has a few big games still to come this year.

Battlefield 2042 and FIFA 22 are out in October, so we could see some news there, alongside some updates for the publisher’s service games like Knockout City and Apex Legends. And who knows, we may hear about the “brand-new single-player adventure” Respawn is reportedly working on.

Ubisoft

Ubisoft has a few games coming out close to the show, like Far Cry 6, Riders Republic and Just Dance 2022, so it’d be reasonable to expect some updates there, but the publisher also has a few interesting irons in the fire.

Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora are currently slated to launch in 2022, so Ubisoft may want to tease towards its future. There’s also the untitled Star Wars Project that The Division’s Massive Entertainment is squirreling away on.

Alongside potential game reveals, we’ll likely see some updates regarding Ubisoft’s ongoing service games like Tom Clancy’s XDefiant and Rainbow Six Siege, too.

Bandai Namco

Ohhhhhh…Elden Ring! All eyes are on Bandai Namco at this year’s Gamescom as, beyond The Game Awards later this year, there aren’t that many huge opportunities to show off From Software’s next game. Elden Ring is coming in January 2022, so we may well see something from the Soulsborne x George R. R. Martin collaboration during Gamescom 2021.

Beyond one of the most hotly-anticipated games of 2022, Bandai Namco also has a few games coming later this year, like the JRPG Tales of Arise in September and The Dark Pictures: House of Ashes in October. Digimon Survive is also on the horizon, too — the game is currently without a firm release date but is slated to land in 2021, so we may see some updates there.

505 Games

Control's Jesse using supernatural ability — (Image credit: Remedy)

505 Games has confirmed that it has not one, but two Control projects in the works - including both a multiplayer spin-off and a sequel.

Details on both games are thin on the ground but we do know the multiplayer spin-off will be a 4-player PvE co-op game set in Control's world – and it sounds like it won't be set in the Oldest House. Meanwhile, a "bigger-budget Control-game" is also in the works. Developer Remedy Entertainment has called this game "ambitious" and has hinted that we could see a new protagonist and setting.

We're hoping that these new Control games (or at least the spin-off) make an appearance at Gamescom 2021.

Koch Media

metro exodus — (Image credit: Deep Silver)

We already know that Koch Media is working on Payday 3 and a Timesplitters reboot, so we're hoping to hear more about these confirmed titles at Gamescom 2021. In addition, we may finally see Dead Island 2 again, which was initially revealed back at E3 2014 - though don't get your hopes up. Koch also owns the rights to Saints Row and Metro, and a recent tweet from Keighley suggests we could be treated to a brand new title (or remaster) of the former.

5 days until @gamescom #OpeningNightLive on Wednesday. We are “Bossing” it with our announcements this year 👀 https://ift.tt/3gm6KpV you live, Wednesday at 11 am PT / 2 pm ET / 7 pm BST / 8 pm CEST at https://t.co/FjoDbKD0sN pic.twitter.com/6zE974HW0QAugust 20, 2021

Konami

All eyes are on Konami this Gamescom as rumors are rampant that the publisher is working on a Silent Hill reboot. Though these rumors have been shut down several times, Gamescom 2021 would be as good a time as any to finally confirm the news - though, don't hold your breath. What we know for sure is that Konami will provide updates for the recently announced eFootball and Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel.

Activision Blizzard

After Call of Duty: Vanguard 2021 was finally revealed in August via an in-game Warzone announcement, we may see some gameplay - or more details, at least - for Sledgehammer's upcoming first-person-shooter, which is scheduled to arrive on November 5, 2021. Last year’s entry, Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War, was explored as part of Gamescom 2020’s Opening Night Live, so we may see something similar from the publisher this year.

We learned last year that Activision shuffled around Crash Bandicoot 4 and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 developers Toys for Bob and Vicarious Visions to work on other projects, but who knows what they may have up their sleeve for this year’s show?

It’s not clear how much of a presence Blizzard will have at Gamescom 2021, especially given the ongoing lawsuit surrounding the company, but with Diablo 2: Resurrected coming in September of this year, it may want to drop a new trailer or talk about potential DLC for some of Blizzard’s service titles. Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2 are still very much on the horizon.

What is Gamescom?

Gamescom is the world’s largest video game event, and it takes place annually (usually in August). In 2019, the show saw 373,000 visitors, with hundreds of exhibitors showcasing their latest gaming, esports, and tech projects.

When it has a physical presence, Gamescom takes place in Cologne, Germany, with gaming fans flocking from all over the globe to try new games before their release and engage with community activities like cosplay contests and esports competitions. It’s also a meeting point for the games industry’s retail, trade and media representatives.

Usually, the industry’s most prominent publishers are involved, and we often see a lot of gaming news revealed during the show, whether that be new game reveals, release date announcements or trailer drops.

When is Gamescom 2021?

Every year, Gamescom takes place at the Koelnmesse exhibition centre in Cologne, Germany. But this year, the show will have no physical presence due to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, Gamescom 2021 will be all-digital and take place entirely online.

Gamescom starts with Opening Night Live on August 25, a showcase event hosted by Geoff Keighley. A lot like the conferences seen at E3, this will likely be jam-packed with reveals and gaming news.

The main Gamescom show will roll out across three days, from August 25 to August 27. The developer conference, Devcom, will precede it, starting on August 23 for its content focus days and then switching to business focus days from August 25 to August 28.

New for 2021, there will also be a “joint quest journey” called Gamescom Epix. Details are slim for now, but it appears that fans will be able to engage with it prior to the launch of the event, and it will involve completing interactive quests and snagging prizes. This year’s E3 offered something similar with its online portal.

What happened at Gamescom 2020?

Gamescom 2020 played host to several big reveals. During Opening Night Live, we got our first proper glimpse at Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and a concept art teaser for Bioware’s Dragon Age 4.

We also received news about Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time and Star Wars Squadrons ahead of their launch. The release date for World of Warcraft: Shadowlands was also revealed during the show, before it wrapped up with a lengthy gameplay trailer from Insomniac Games’ Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart.