The third day of the Summer Game Fest hit like a truck with two whopping 2 hour presentations from both Xbox and PC Gamer Show. There’s a lot to unpack in these two shows both in what was shown and also what these shows kind of reinforced for the weekend, so let’s get to it.
Summer Game Fest resumed on Sunday and presented both a day that felt packed with content and yet also, somehow, not exactly overall exciting. That might sound odd given the amount of new games announced, but a good bulk of Xbox’s showcase was dedicated to games that had already been announced one, two, or even three years in a row at this point. It also began to show that the “big” titles in the industry aren’t where you’re going to find much in the way of new and exciting things anymore. Also, Microsoft was at the center of quite a huge slew of layoffs, which has not been a fantastic way to approach a showcase that showed remarkably fewer “small” games. As for the PC Gamer Show, RTS and Citybuilders seem to be on the rise again, like it’s 1999 baby. First, let’s jump in to the Xbox show.
Xbox Games Showcase 2024
Marcy: I think my take on this showcase is that I saw things I want to play but nothing really caught me and made me sit up in surprise. There are a lot of of interesting games here and things that I absolutely will want on the first day, but in some cases these are games I’ve been hearing about for a few years now. This was also the first big year of really solidifying the Microsoft / ActiBlizz merger, mostly shown in the World of Warcraft trailer than anything else. If you’d like to see a full rundown of the showcase and other trailers, you can check the VOD above, but here are some of the standouts:
Gears of War E-Day
Developer: Microsoft
Release Date: 2025(?)
Platforms: Xbox, Likely PC
Marcy: Perhaps the biggest surprise announcement was that of a new installment in Gears of War, Microsoft’s flagship cover shooter that helped define the 360 era. The downside to this trailer is that it is a prequel and not a sequel, which mostly seems like a way to tap into some of the fan pushback from Gears 5 and the way it reduced the presence of Marcus and the “classic” crew. The trailer shown here is listed as being “in engine” but we got no release date, gameplay changes, updates, or expectations, so we’ll probably hear about this again next year with more details.
Jonathan: Ah, Gears of War has finally reached the same place as the Purge and Quiet Place franchises: bent by degrees to finally head back to the inciting incident that the original, better installments skipped over because you don’t need to show it.
South of Midnight
Developer: Compulsion Games
Release Date: 2025
Platform: Xbox Series X/S, Steam
Marcy: Returning from last year is South of Midnight, now with actual gameplay footage. While We Happy Few was kind of aesthetically brilliant but gameplay wise a flop, it did prove that Compulsion Games had some fun and interesting ideas that could result in something great. South of Midnight might be that thing. The stop-motion animation really gives the game a vibrant sense of life that it might not have otherwise, and the setting–a mystical deep South–is also great. The biggest hurdle here is likely how it feels to play, but we’ll have to wait to find out more.
Jonathan: This is in a rough place with the transitions between the stop-motion cutscenes and the full 60 FPS gameplay. They’ve made their aesthetic choice and it is what it is, but I don’t think it works.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Developer:Sandfall Interactive
Release Date: 2025
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Steam
Marcy: A “reactive turn-based RPG”, Clair Obscur was another brand new title shown off for the first time, and the seemingly dark fantasy setting shows a lot of promise. I love games that have a specific aesthetic vibe that they look to bring to life in the game itself, and Sandfall Interactive mention France’s La Belle Epoque as having a large influence on the title; I can’t say that the trailer explicitly shows this when fighting large monsters, but it is somewhat visible in the settings and character designs, so we’ll have to see how far that aesthetic influence goes in 2025.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Developer: BioWare
Release Date: Fall 2024
Platforms: PS5, Xbox X/S, PC
Marcy: The dark fantasy (not to be confused with ‘dark fantasy’) world of Dragon Age returns with The Veilguard, a new game in the series that, surprisingly, is going to launch sometime later this year. EA promised more footage of the game on June 11th, so this trailer focused instead on cinematic reveals of the new characters players can expect to encounter. Dragon Age’s vision of fantasy worldbuilding was always what made it stand out, so it’ll be curious to see how that plays in this new game as well, and how the tried and true BioWare formula of games has evolved or not since then.
Jonathan: The bright boys in marketing decided that what the kids were hot for right now was a hero shooter, so they had the trailer done up like it was unveiling the roster of an Overwatch clone. Judging by the fact that the Dragon Age account is now posting direct screencaps of the game as damage control, once again the bright boys in marketing screwed it all up.
FragPunk
Developer: NetEase
Release Date: TBA, Demo Out Now
Platforms: PC
Marcy: Another new 5v5 FPS squad-based shooter, and another question about whether this game can compete against Valorant and Overwatch 2. The answer is very likely no, but that doesn’t mean someone shouldn’t try. The aesthetics here are at least interesting and new, so it will likely fall to NetEase and how they wish to implement this game and what sort of support it gets. FragPunk is also going to likely survive or die based on what kind of competitive scene it can garner; even if it isn’t the next huge eSport, these types of games have to fight and claw for relevance against very entrenched games.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure
Developer: Duck Nine Games
Release: October 29, 2024
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, PS5, Steam
Marcy: Perhaps an actual surprise–and one with such a close release date!–was the return of Life is Strange and series protagonist Max Caulfield. The original Life Is Strange was a formative and somewhat memorable game in the CYOA/Choices Matter series, one that also had a slightly dubious and odd legacy from constant reports of how the game was meant to both queerbait and also be “less” gay. Once again Life Is Strange centers around Max after a departure True Colors, and Max will need to use her abilities to warp time to uncover the truth of her friend Safi’s murder, and possibly even prevent it.
Jonathan: Love the premise, love going back to Max — her power set is really tangible for both gameplay and narrative.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
Developer: Konami
Release Date: TBA
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Steam
Marcy: No, you are not still in a dream; Snake Eater’s remake is nearly here, and the trailer showed off the graphical updates to the legendary 2004 era game that came to define many people’s memories and expectations of the Metal Gear Solid series. Audio in the game uses the same recording from the original game, so while you are indeed hearing David Hayter once again, you aren’t getting a new recording session. There was no date shown, but the gameplay shown at least looks good for now, and gave a few nods to classic and expected parts of the Snake Eater experience, including Snake screaming while firing the M63 and the crocodile hat.
Jonathan: Fans have been screaming for something like this ever since Konami did all the cutscenes from MGS3 up in HD for a gacha machine but never bothered making an actual game with them. I’m confident the game that comes out of this will be soulless and not very good, but it might get new fans to track down the old version of this classic.
Doom: The Dark Ages
Developer: Bethesda
Release Date: 2025
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Steam
Marcy: Doom 2016 revitalized the series, bringing two amazing titles to the market, but if I can be really honest with you, dear reader… this trailer didn’t do it for me. Controversies over music not helping (the beats were NOT fire here), Doom: The Dark Ages is a prequel, featuring… mech combat and aerial dragon riding? I don’t know either. I really enjoy shooters, but I am going to place Doom: The Dark Ages on my “cautiously watching” list for now; your mileage may vary.
Jonathan: Doomguy is slowly being bent by degrees into Captain America. Which is good news for Captain America skins in fighting games.
Fable
Developer: Playground Games
Release Date: 2025
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, Steam
Marcy: Did you know that this version of Fable was first announced at 2020’s Xbox Showcase? It is starting to almost feel a little bit like this game will never actually exist, but this trailer is at least getting us closer and closer to that not being the case. It does help that this trailer actually seems to show some in-engine footage and perhaps what the game will actually look like, so we’re likely on the right path. And if I sound pessimistic, it isn’t really that–I really love the take that Fable is trying to go for here and the atmosphere it is looking to evoke, so I’m excited to eventually get to play it.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Developer: Machine Games and Lucasfilm Games
Release Date: TBA
Platforms: Steam
Marcy: I am going to get a criticism out of the way first: That is not Harrison Ford, and I think they really should not have tried to make the character Indiana Jones look like him, because the voice acting is very obviously trying to evoke Ford and failing, to the point that at least asking the question if they are using AI is fair, but no, that’s Troy Baker doing… something (Also the Nazi villain’s fake German accent is SO bad, so we’re getting the Indiana Jones tone right at least). That said, the graphics on display in these cutscenes are impressive; all that remains to be seen is how this game will actually play, although my gut is that it will be a cinematic action game like Uncharted.
Jonathan: I think Troy Baker’s Harrison Ford sounds fine, but I also have significant voice blindness to the point I can’t tell the color guys on the Mets broadcast apart, so. Here’s my big problem with this game: they seem really scared of showing us how it actually plays, and what they have shown looks like very janky First Person Melee.
Mixtape: Nothing But the Hits.
Developer: Beethoven & Dinosaur
Release Date: 2025
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Steam
Marcy: The third stop-motion animation game of the weekend, Mixtape is a beautiful and surprising entry in the showcase, looking to evoke a very specific type of teenage existence both in terms of time (the music selections are incredibly 90s) and emotional resonance, the period in which your teenage life seems like it going to last forever until you realize that it isn’t, with the set-up for the game focusing on a group of friends who are about to have their final party together before this chapter of their life closes. Vignette style games are great, games with big thematic and aesthetic themes are great, and games with artistically picked musical visions are great, so I have high hopes that Mixtape will have nothing but bangers on it when it releases in 2025.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
Developer: GSC GAme World
Release Date: September 5, 2024
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, Steam, Epic, GOG
Marcy: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is one of my favorite games, certainly in my top 25, and so I’ve been excited and a little hopeful for how the second official game in the series would handle things. The trailer on display here seemed to focus on and show a lot of gunplay and cinematic moments, but there were also periods in which heavy and open exploration are implied, so I’m looking forward to getting my hands on the game when it releases later this year, with promises of further looks into the game coming soon.
PC Gaming Show
Marcy: The second mammoth showcase of the day was the 10th anniversary of the PC Gaming Show, replete with the cringeworthy humor that has permeated the show for the last few years. I realize that the joke is that they know it is bad and a riff on how gaming shows often are, but that doesn’t make it any less painful to watch (I’m sure everyone who works there is lovely). This was another gigantic barrage of titles, with many new RTS, management, civilization, and building simulations on the horizon. If you’re curious to see the full show, the VOD is here, but here’s some of the standout titles.
Among the Wild
Developer: Nuggets Entertainment
Release Date: TBA
Platforms: Steam, PC
Marcy: A crafting/creature collecting game, Among the Wild doesn’t seem to be doing anything extraordinary, but I did like the bizarre little creature designs that were shown off, and the aesthetics were quite nice. An alpha is currently taking applications, so it will remain to be seen how exactly this game looks to differentiate itself from the pack, but the first snapshots are cute enough to keep me interested, and I like the less chaotic and non-combat focus the game is presenting. Also picking up the weird little creatures and having them look at you makes me laugh. I’m easy sometimes.
Ale Abbey
Developer: Shiro and Hammer & Braves
Release Date: 2024
Platforms: Steam
Marcy: Simulation and building games were all the rage this year, and Ale Abbey is one that stood out to me mostly for the aesthetics and the hinted at depth in the game. The cute pixel graphics help round out the package for sure, but the idea of building your beer brewing empire in the middle ages was a nice swap from farming, collecting, and terraforming. The 2D nature also stood out to me, bringing to mind Fallout Shelter (but probably less mundane) and Lobotomy Corporation (very likely less mental breakdown inducing).
Fallen Aces
Developer: Trey Powell and Jason Bond
Release Date: Chapter 1: June 14th 2024
Platforms: Steam
Marcy: Fallen Aces is a game I’ve been following since it as first announced; I’m an avid New Blood Interactive fan, with Ultrakill being a game I will not shut up about if you let me start talking to you about it, and don’t even get me started on FAITH. Fallen Aces falls really well into the catalog that New Blood promotes, but what is it? Well, a FPS shooter with a crime noir setting, what really sets Fallen Aces apart to me is the use of a flat, noir comic book art style for enemies that really gives the game a specific charm and slight silliness, which is funny, because the game also looks to be quite gory and violent. You won’t have to wait to get your goon murdering skills on since the first chapter debuts next week on Steam.
Toads of the Bayou
Developer: Fireshine Games
Release Date: October 2024
Platforms: Steam
Marcy: There sure were a lot of games using “deckbuilder” and “roguelike” this year, but of those, Toads of the Bayou stood out to me thanks to a very, very important third element: American South Bayou aesthetics and anthropomorphic frogs. The in game pixel art also looks pretty fun, but wow is that banner image iconic looking. Hopefully the game will live up to the hype of the trailer when it releases in October of this year.
All Systems Dance
Developer: Mighty Yell
Release Date: 2025
Platforms: PC
Marcy: Described as a “nonviolent combat game”, All Systems Dance is a cheeky little game where players are tasked with using sick dance moves to disrupt an Amazon-esque mega corporation from taking complete control of the world. The gimmick is cute and interesting, so the only real possibility is if the “combat” doesn’t live up to the hype of the premise, but the art and graphics also look very vibrant, so certainly one to keep eyes out for next year.
Killing Floor 3
Developer: Tripwire
Release Date: Coming Soon
Platforms: PC
Marcy: Killing Floor is back and today’s trailer focused on showing off how the zed focused horde shooter planned to approach its third iteration. Killing Floor is a great time co-op time, one that focuses on far more over the top shooter action than survival focused Left for Dead 2, and a new iteration in KF3 might help shore up the somewhat dire state of co-op horde shooting action; most games in the genre that have come out lately have flamed out or just been absolutely terrible, so please, Tripwire, we’re begging you.
Unbeatable
Developer: D-Cell Games
Release Date: 2025, Demo “White Label” out now
Platforms: PC
Marcy: Unbeatable might be the surprise hit trailer of the show for me. The aesthetics are beautiful, the theme–a world in which music is illegal and your character fights against the law (ACAB)–is a great sell, and what gameplay is shown seems like really great ways of blending action, rhythm, and music focused gameplay together. If anything, Unbeatable looks like a hit that is only going to be hampered by really bad gameplay, but the demo, White Label, has me thinking that won’t be the case. Keep
Mullet MadJack
Developer: HAMMER95
Release Date: Now!
Platforms: PC
Marcy: Have I mentioned I love shooters? Mullet Madjack is an 80s/90s inspired shooter that absolutely whips ass, and I’m glad this trailer exists so it gives me an excuse to talk about it, because you can go pick up the game right now. And if you like stylish shooters, I really suggest you give the game a look. Enjoying the retro anime aesthetic helps, but I promise you that even if that’s not your entire bag, Mullet Madjack is a great time in a neon-colored world of violence.
Wrap Up of Day 3
A huge day of trailers and teasers, day 3 really helped pump some excitement into a show that had a slight cloud of “mid” hanging around it. But, truthfully, I think that cloud is deserved. Many of the things shown off here, as exciting as they are, have nebulous release dates and some have been in production for years now, making it hard to get excited for another set of trailers with no concrete dates. Xbox has secretly had the strongest showcase of games in the past few years, bolstered by Microsoft acquiring every studio they can get their hands on (and then gutting them. Oops), but the wallpaper is starting to peel a little bit as this is yet another showcase of “great” games that have no set timetables; Fable has been in these showcases since 2020, for example.
The PC Gaming Show had a lot more vibrant things to display, and although there’s some glut in the genres of building/management/collecting sims, there’s a lot of really interesting games coming out of smaller developer spaces that make it worth keeping an eye on how they develop. As the industry continues to hemorrhage, the dichotomy between “big studio premiers” that don’t promise anything concrete and indie showcases of actual games you can go play right now feels like it might become more and more the norm.
We’ll be back for any further news from Ubisoft and keep an eye out for further gaming industry updates! Until then, get to work on your gaming wishlists, because I know I’m way behind already.
