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In the past, Gamescom has proved that it can be one of the most significant gaming events of the year, and it looks to be gearing up to do just that again. The video game trade fair takes place annually in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and features several big-name studios and indie publishers.
This year, Gamescom has already announced the likes of Xbox Game Studios, SEGA, Warner Bros., etc., as part of its program, along with a few confirmed games. The show will be split into four main events: Gamecom Opening Night, Future Games Show, Xbox Booth Live, and Awesome Indies Show.
Along with the confirmed titles, Gamescom 2022 will contain a large assortment of new trailers for previously announced games and a handful of world premieres.
Note: This article reflects the writer’s opinions.
Five games fans can expect to see at Gamescom 2022
1) A Plague Tale: Requiem
Xbox Game Studios has confirmed to showcase more of A Plague Tale: Requiem at Gamescom 2022, which has an October 2022 release date. The game is a sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence and sees the return of siblings Amicia and Hugo as the protagonists.
The Plague seems to have returned to France while new forces try to capture Hugo for their own needs.
The title is set six months after the events of the first game, which ended with the siblings going off with their mother to start a new life. The re-emergence of the Plague is a curious aspect, as it had disappeared by the end of the previous title. Still, the story will possibly tie it into Hugo and his growing abilities.
Based on the previous trailers, it can be noted that the gameplay will remain mostly the same. Players will control Amicia through stealth-based sections wherein she has to evade soldiers and stay out of sight.
Lethal and non-lethal takedowns are an option to occasionally eliminate soldiers, while Hugo’s abilities seem to play a more integral role in combat.
2) Pentiment
Being developed by Obsidian Entertainment, Pentiment is an adventure video game that will be released in November 2022. It is a narrative focussed game with role-playing elements that sees users take on the role of Andreas, who must uncover the mystery behind the murder of a prominent person.
The title is set in Germany during Medieval times and takes place over 25 years. In this time, gamers must try to exonerate Andreas’ friend, who has been wrongly convicted of the crime. They can talk to characters in the game to find clues and investigate areas to gather evidence and progress the story.
At the start of the title, players can choose Andreas’ background and his place of study. These choices will influence his style of investigation as well as the options of various game-altering decisions that they can make.
Obsidian is confirmed to showcase more of the game during the upcoming Gamescom event.
3) Sonic Frontiers
The next Sonic game is Sonic Frontiers, developed by Sonic Team and published by SEGA. The publisher has announced that it will be present during their panel at Gamescom 2022, so hopes are high for some new gameplay reveal and release date news.
This will mark the first time a Sonic title will take place in an open-world setting, with the iconic hedgehog heading to the Starfall Islands to collect the Chaos Emeralds. The open world comprises a diverse landscape featuring fields, forests, ancient ruins, and deserts.
In this iteration, Sonic can also utilize combat attacks to fight enemies scattered around the map.
So far, the game does not have much background in the form of a story, which could be amended at Gamescom with a story trailer, accompanied by a release date revealed. Many have speculated that it could be delayed to 2023 as it has yet to specify a release date.
4) Layers of Fears
Bloober Team has been a mainstay in the horror game genre, and one of their very first titles is Layers of Fear, released initially in 2016. It was followed by a sequel titled Layers of Fear in 2019, establishing the game as a series.
A compilation of the two games, titled Layers of Fears, is set to be released in early 2023.
As per the developer, the title is set to include an expanded story and new gameplay built in Unreal Engine 5. The team said the project will further enhance the psychedelic experience from previous games and isn’t just a simple recreation of the two titles.
Seemingly taking a new approach to the story, the developers have teased that it is something fans are hoping for and will enjoy.
While no specific details regarding the game are known, its presence at Gamescom 2022 will surely shed some new light, possibly with a brand new trailer.
5) The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil In Me
Another upcoming horror game set to appear at the forthcoming Gamescom event is The Devil In Me, a part of the Dark Pictures Anthology. From developer Supermassive Games, this upcoming interactive drama and survival horror title will be released sometime in late 2022.
Supermassive Games has done phenomenally well with cinematic storytelling in the past, including the earlier titles from the Dark Pictures Anthology series.
The Devil is Me is set to bring several new gameplay features to the series, including an inventory system, tool-based puzzles, and more dynamic controls.
Like previous Dark Pictures games, The Devil in Me will also include an ensemble cast of characters, whom gamers will switch between at various points in the story. Decisions made at specific points will determine how the story progresses and impact the game’s final ending.
Five titles that could appear at Gamescom 2022
1) Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League
Warner Bros. is set to make an appearance at Gamescom 2022, although what title they will showcase is not yet known. One good bet is Rocksteady’s upcoming game set in their version of the DC Universe: Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, which seemingly takes place after the events of Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Aside from gameplay, much of the game’s premise is already known and sees the Suicide Squad members go to Metropolis, where Brainiac has taken control of many of the Justice League members, including Superman and the Flash.
Sent by Amanda Waller, the Suicide Squad is required to contain the situation if possible, with their primary goal being eliminating the Justice League members under Brainiac’s control.
A featurette showing off live in-engine gameplay would be a welcome surprise for many fans waiting for more news regarding the title. A release date announcement could also be in the cards, and Gamescom would be a great place to reveal that.
2) Hogwarts Legacy
Another game by Warner Bros. likely to be showcased during the Gamescom panel is Hogwarts Legacy. The title is being developed by Avalanche Software and should release in late 2022, although an exact date has not been established.
Thus, a release date reveal would be nice at this time if the game is still aiming for a 2022 launch.
It is an action role-playing title set in the magical world of witchcraft and wizardry. Players will get to create their very own character who will attend Hogwarts during their fifth year and get swept up in a larger plot regarding a mysterious new power awakening in the magical world.
The title will seemingly include many different playable areas, chief among which will be Hogwarts Castle. Users can attend classes, learn spells, and make friends with various magical creatures.
A morality system will also play a role in determining certain elements, such as the gamer’s ability to learn unforgivable curses.
3) Starfield
Xbox’s lineup of games to be showcased during the Gamescom event is quite expansive already. The publisher is set to focus on the next 12 months of game releases and will reveal those titles arriving in the first half of 2023.
However, a surprise appearance by Starfield at the end is likely. The title did have a big reveal during the Xbox & Bethesda Showcase event, showing off some very promising gameplay and some bold claims by Todd Howard.
While the game managed to stun most of the audience with the reveal, many were left wondering what the release date would be.
Much speculation regarding this is flying around the internet, so a release date reveal for the game could do well to clear up much of this debate. As the lineup of games from Xbox does suggest mostly announced titles, Starfield has a good chance of making a last-minute appearance at Gamescom.
4) New Bioshock Game
2K Games is one studio that will be present during the Gamescom event, and much speculation surrounds what games it will bring to the stage. 2K is most famous for its Bioshock series, which initially ran from 2007 to 2013.
It was announced in 2019 that the developer had been developing a new Bioshock game, although updates on the project have been scarce.
Gamescom would be a great place to give audiences a reveal trailer for a new BioShock title. As it is a live event, the studio will have the added advantage of getting some direct response from fans if they do this.
A series as beloved as this will surely receive a tremendous response if a new game is revealed.
The series is traditionally a first-person shooter, set in a retro-futuristic world where users take on the role of various protagonists in each title. Role-playing elements are also present, which gives them a certain degree of freedom to approach different situations.
5) Assassin’s Creed Infinity
Ubisoft is one of the many notable publishers that will be present at Gamescom, and it is speculated that they will showcase Skull and Bones. While this is a very predictable move, with Skull and Bones’ release drawing closer, the publisher could also give audiences a teaser for the next Assassin’s Creed game.
Assassin’s Creed Infinity is the next big game in the series and will reportedly be a live-service title. How this will work into the gameplay formula of the franchise is a mystery at this point.
Various leaks and rumors suggest that Assassin’s Creed Infinity is Ubisoft’s plan for the future.
Since details regarding the title are only available via unsubstantiated sources, Ubisoft can use Gamescom as a platform to tease it to the audience and give out an official statement.
So far, this move on Ubisoft’s part has been quite divisive for fans, and clearing up some confusion would go a long way in earning them some good credit.
Note: This article is subjective and reflects the author’s opinion.
