A new video game showcase event, dubbed For One Night Only, has been announced and is described as “the biggest UK games showcase ever hosted”. The event will take place on 29th July 2026 and will primarily focus on showcasing British games on a global stage.
A number of companies have already signed on to show up for the showcase, including Criterion, Bossa Studios, Firefly Studios, FuturLab, Huey Games, Huskrafts, IO Interactive, Salix Games, Spiderling Studios, Team 17, Two Point Studios, and Yogscast Games.
The event is being hosted by UK Interactive Entertainment—better known as Ukie—which has confirmed that the showcase will be joined by a Steam sale featuring more than 100 discounted UK-developed games. It will be filmed at the UK’s “most visited cultural destination”, Outernet, in front of a VIP audience before being livestreamed.
“The UK is home to some of the best games development talent in the world, from innovative indie favourites to globally successful blockbusters,” said Ukie CEO Nick Poole in a press release. “For One Night Only will be a unique celebration of these amazing creative businesses and a showcase of their games to a global audience of game players. So, tune in for a night of fun, games, developer interviews, and exclusive reveals.”
The firm is joined by creative agency Liquid Crimson, which is helping the company with hosting the event. “There’s a huge amount of talent in the UK, and we see it up close every day,” said Liquid Crimson’s communications director, Lauran Carter. “This is about giving those teams a proper stage and letting the work speak for itself.”
For One Night Only will be hosted by Australian comedian Bec Hill, who praised the level of talent that will be on display at the event in his statement.
“It is an absolute honour to be invited to host this event,” she said. “I am in awe of the talent which continues to emerge from and within the British games industry, so it will be a refreshing (and humbling) experience to host something where the attendees’ level of creativity and skill outweighs my own.”
Considering the companies that have been confirmed to be part of the event, we will likely see, among other things, IO Interactive’s post-launch plans for 007 First Light, a new entry in the historical strategy game series Stronghold Crusader, and perhaps even a brand new management simulation game by Two Point Studios.
Unfortunately, since Criterion is listed in the press release as being “A Battlefield Studio”, we are unlikely to see a new entry in the Burnout racing series being announced at this event.
For One Night Only will take place over a month after one of the bigger gaming events of the summer, Future Games Show, which is slated to be livestreamed on June 6th from Los Angeles at the Summer Games Fest campus. Along with a bevy of “world premieres and exclusive trailers,” the event will also feature a gameplay deep dive for Archetype’s much-anticipated RPG Exodus. Similarly, Summer Games Fest will go live just a day earlier, on June 5th.
