Thousands of gamers will gather until Sunday in Cologne, Germany, for the annual European Gamescom exhibition, where they will put to the test the great productions that will be launched before the end of the year, despite the fact that there are no giants Japanese Nintendo and Sony there.
Fans will be able to experience original titles such as “Star Wars Outlaws”, from Ubisoft, which is expected to be released on August 30, and the highly anticipated “Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero” from Bandai Namco much by fans of the saga, before its release. August 8.
But to do that, sometimes they have to wait in long lines.
Divided over ten large Koelnmesse pavilions, more than 1,400 exhibitors including studios, publishers and specialist stores occupy an area of more than 230,000 m².
“After last year’s strong growth, we hope to set new records for Gamescom, with even more exhibitors and more international participation,” Tim Endres, its director, said in July.
The hall received around 320,000 visitors in 2023, according to the organizers, who hoped to return to pre-Covid-19 visitation numbers of 370,000 people.
This is also the first edition of the German exhibition since it was announced that E3 was definitively closed in Los Angeles, its American competitor, which did not survive the pandemic’s cancellation.
After full news in 2023, excited by hits like “Hogwarts Legacy” and “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom”, and waiting for the giant “Grand Theft Auto VI” scheduled for the next year, 2024 showed – if it was much more shy. in the case of obvious titles.
But the end of the year is getting more interesting for players, with the arrival of “Assassin’s Creed Shadows” from Ubisoft, on November 15, and “Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle”, from the Machinegames studio, on December 9. .
Tuesday’s opening night also revealed new titles such as “Borderlands 4” and “Mafia: The Old Country”, due in 2025.
Japan’s Sony and Nintendo suspended their participation in this year’s fair to broadcast announcements of their new products online.
With that, they left the field clear for Microsoft and its Xbox, which promised “the biggest stand in history” in the hall, with more than 50 games.
But the Cologne fair is also an opportunity for some developers to test their creations with the public.
“This is the first time we’ve shown our games at a big event before they launch next year,” said Marina Diez, who went on to present “The Berlin Apartment” , from independent German studio BTF, told AFP.
“I was able to see what they like and what they struggle with,” explained the developer. “This helps us identify problems.”
– “Cannes Festival” –
Behind the scenes, the game is different.
Behind the stands, creators and directors gather to give ideas, find funding for some or see the future success of others.
“It’s like the business side of the Cannes Film Festival,” said David Carabinera, director of independent Parisian studio Romo Luden.
He believed, however, that this year’s budgets are “a bit smaller” and that publishers who fund game production are more selective.
In fact, the video game industry has suffered this year with studio closures and massive layoffs.
According to the Ame Industria website, at least 11,000 professionals in the sector lost their jobs worldwide in the first seven months of 2024, more than the 10,500 in all of 2023.
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2024-08-22 11:42:11
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