Good morning gamers! Welcome to our Gamescom edition of the Weekly Recon. Last week Geoff Keighley hosted Gamescom: Opening Night Live in Cologne, Germany showcasing new games releasing this year and beyond. Here’s a comprehensive list of all the major announcements.
Everywhere, a new multi-world game experience from the producer of Grand Theft Auto Leslie Benzies revealed their first trailer. Benzies established the studio Build a Rocket Boy in 2016. The game is set to be released in 2023 and is not yet rated.
Dune Awakening, an all new Open World Survival MMO is in development at Funcom. The gameplay is set on a vast and seamless Arrakis that will be shared by thousands of players. You can sign up for the beta here.
The Callisto Protocol, the survival horror game developed by Striking Distance Studios and published by Krafton showcased new gameplay. The gameplay trailer highlighted the combat system and the brutality from the mind of Glen Schofield. The game is releasing on December 2nd.
Hogwarts Legacy revealed a new trailer with a focus on an optional companion quest where players are given the choice to befriend Slytherin student Sebastian Sallow and to accept or reject the Dark Arts. The game is releasing on February 10th, 2023 for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
New Tales From The Borderlands developed by Gearbox Software showcased a trailer with Anu, Octavio and Fran, three new characters who are taking on a planetary invasion, battling vicious monsters and trying to change the world. The game is releasing on October 21st for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
Gotham Knights released a new trailer showcasing the villains Harley Quinn, Clayface, the Court of Owls and Mr. Freeze. The game will now be released four days earlier than previously announced on October 21st for Xbox Series X/S, Microsoft Windows and PS5.
Sonic Frontiers, an upcoming platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega showcased a new trailer. Sonic is stranded on an island and has to team up with unusual creatures to uncover mysteries hidden across the Starfall Islands. The game is releasing on November 8th for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
Moonbreaker is an all new turn-based sci-fi strategy game by Brandon Sanderson and Unknown Worlds Entertainment, the developer of Subnautica. The game is designed to capture the experience of playing a physical miniatures game without real-world limitations. Early access will begin on September 29th.
High on Life revealed brand new gameplay during their world premiere. The upcoming comedic biopunk FPS game from Squanch Games was developed by Justin Roiland, the co-creator of Rick and Morty. The game is releasing for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Microsoft Windows on October 25th.
Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game is a 3 vs 7 multiplayer game where a team of humans fight against a team of alien Klowns. The game was created by Teravision Games and led by Randy Greenback (Friday the 13th: The Game). The game is releasing early 2023 for Microsoft Windows, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
Dead Island 2, the sequel to Dead Island is currently in development from Dambuster Studios. Dambuster Studios is the third developer to work on the project since it was initially announced at E3 in 2014. Dead Island 2 begins with a zombie outbreak and is releasing on February 3rd, 2023 for Microsoft Windows, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
Here are some other amazing games that also made appearances at Gamescom Opening Night Live.
Goat Simulator 3, the third-person action video game is set to be released on November 17th for Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X/S and PS5.
Return to Monkey Island features legendary adventure games and will be released on September 19th for Microsoft Windows and the Nintendo Switch.
Dying Light 2: Bloody Ties, the first story DLC is releasing for Microsoft Windows, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on October 13th.
Lies of P, an action RPG based on the classic tale of Pinocchio solving mysteries about the disaster in the city of Krat, is releasing on Xbox Game Pass in 2023.
Atlas Fallen, an action RPG from Deck13 Interactive is coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC in 2023.
Where Wind Meets is a PC open world RPG with a focus on hand-to-hand combat set in the Ten Kingdoms period of medieval China.
The Expanse: A Telltale Series sees players take on the role of XO Camina Drummer who makes choices to determine the fate of the ship, launching in Summer 2023.
Destiny 2 Showcase 2022
Last week, Destiny 2 held their 2022 showcase to present their next major expansion called “Lightfall”, launching on February 28th, 2023. Lightfall is already available for pre-order, and you can instantly unlock a new Exotic Ghost and Legendary emblem.
Destiny 2: Season of Plunder is officially underway as Guardians will take on a pirate-themed journey. Players can now Fight Oryx in the King’s Fall raid, available for free. The King’s Fall raid is considered the best raid from the original Destiny game. Bungie also announced that they will not be removing any more Destiny 2 expansions.
Destiny 2: Lightfall is a stand-alone campaign that will be a crucial step towards the end of the Light and Darkness saga. Once the campaign is complete, players will have new activities, a new raid, new Exotics and more. The new expansion will also add Strand, the Darkness-based subclass that allows players to take control over their surroundings and shape new abilities. Bungie will be launching a Fireteam Finder tool in 2023 to find players to complete activities.
Epic Games is officially collaborating with Destiny 2. To celebrate Destiny 2 being available on the Epic Games Store, players will receive a 30th Anniversary pack, Destiny 2 cosmetics in both Fall Guys (as of September 17th) and Fortnite and Fortnite Armor in Destiny 2.
Esports Corner
🥇Congratulations to Rogue for being crowned champions of the Six Berlin Major 2022.
The ESL have revealed details surrounding the qualification process for the upcoming Intel Extreme Masters RIO Major. All RMR events will be simultaneously held between October 4th to 9th, with 16 teams from Europe (held in Matla), 6 teams from North and South America (held in Sweden) and 2 teams from Asia (held in Australia) qualifying for IEM RIO.
In a recent blog post, Valve gave some rare insight behind the numbers of their revenue sharing model for CS:GO teams and players. According to their data, Valve has raised $70 million through community sales of in-game digital cosmetic items (ex: weapon stickers) over the last 12 months. Additionally, CS:GO has experienced an average of 20 million unique monthly players, and a peak of 2.7 concurrent viewers for Majors, over the same time period.
Gaming Roundup
The Game Awards will be returning for their ninth edition on Thursday, December 8th live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
PlayStation VR2 headset will be released in early 2023.
Call of Duty: Warzone 2 has been rated M by the ESRB. According to the description, the game includes “battle royale, plunder-style skirmishes/DMZ”.
Patrick Mahomes, NFL and Super Bowl MVP has been added to Fortnite as a playable character as part of their Icon Series.
NHL 23 Official Reveal Trailer was released, Anaheim Ducks center Trevor Zegras and Canada’s Sarah Nurse are the cover athletes.
Forspoken released a 10-minute extended gameplay overview trailer which showcased the games story, combat and magical abilities.
Game Review - Saints Row
Saints Row (2022) is jammed with thrilling chaotic action and a variety of character customization options but the story leaves a lot to be desired. The game serves as a decent entry point for players who never experienced a Saints Row game, and is definitely entertaining, but fails to meet expectations due to its censored storyline, outdated mechanics and predictable missions. Saints Row doesn’t push the boundaries like its beloved predecessors but Volition did us all a favor and brought back a serviceable Saints Row game with a decent foundation. With the help of user feedback, bug fixes and some additional content down the road, the Saints Row reboot has a unique opportunity to mold itself into the game Saints Row fans were hoping for.
You’ll have fun if you play it, and you won’t miss anything special if you skip it. We give Volition’s Saints Row reboot a score of C+.
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