E3 might be dead, but in its absence, a number of replacements have emerged over recent years, even if they’re exactly like-for-like. A number of companies will of course be hosting their own showcases, from Xbox and Ubisoft to Capcom and more, but before that, we’re once again going to have Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest event, which will be bringing together several announcements and updates from a number of companies. And with the showcase right around the corner, here, we’re going to take a look at a few major games that have already been confirmed to be in its lineup, before then moving on to a few that we believe, for one reason or another, might also have a chance of showing up.
GAMES THAT ARE CONFIRMED
MORTAL KOMBAT 1
Probably the biggest game that has been confirmed for Summer Game Fest so far, Mortal Kombat 1 was announced just a couple of weeks ago with a CG trailer, and unsurprisingly, the reboot has instantly jumped to the top of many people’s “most anticipated” lists. At Summer Game Fest, NetherRealm boss Ed Boon will be taking the stage to showcase Mortal Kombat 1’s gameplay debut, which means we can expect to learn more about some of its new mechanics and get a taste of the series’ trademark brutality.
ALAN WAKE 2
Remedy Entertainment has insisted time and again that Alan Wake 2 is definitely going to launch this year, and released a new in-engine trailer of the survival horror title at the recent PlayStation Showcase. Clearly though, the developer is ramping up the game’s hype cycle, because it’s confirmed that it will be showing it off again at Summer Game Fest. Creative director and writer Sam Lake will be on-stage, and he’ll be showing raw gameplay footage.
CYBERPUNK 2077: PHANTOM LIBERTY
CD Projekt RED has been working on Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty for a while, and confirmed not too long ago that it will kick its marketing into gear this summer. More recently, it was confirmed that Phantom Liberty will be part of the Summer Game Fest lineup as well. Meanwhile, the expansion is also going to be at SGF Play Days, where media will get to go hands-on with the game behind-closed-doors. Impressions and new gameplay details will likely follow not long afterward.
BALDUR’S GATE 3
After spending nearly three years in early access, Larian Studios’ RPG Baldur’s Gate 3 is finally going to launch in full on August 31, and sure enough, the developer has plenty more to show off in the lead-up to its release. Not only has Larian confirmed that it will be revealing a new Baldur’s Gate 3 character with a trailer at Summer Game Fest, the RPG is also set to be shown off at the PC Gaming Show on June 11.
IMMORTALS OF AVEUM
We’ve seen quite a bit of Immortals of Aveum over the last couple of months, and it’s pretty clear that EA and developer Ascendant Studios are positioning it as a major release. The magic-based shooter has certainly looked like an intriguing prospect in all that we’ve seen so far, and in the lead-up to its launch in July, we’ll be seeing yet more of it with a new trailer at Summer Game Fest. Exactly what we can expect from this trailer or how meaty it’ll be remains to be seen.
LIES OF P
Neowiz’s Bloodborne-inspired Pinnochio Soulslike action RPG has been on many of our radars for some time now, and has looked increasingly promising with each of its showings. With a launch set for August, it’s won’t be too long before we finally get our hands on it, though before that, we’ll be getting a taste of what’s to come with a new trailer at Summer Game Fest. Lies of P doesn’t yet have a specific August release date, so hopefully that’ll change soon.
GAMES THAT COULD SHOW UP
DEATH STRANDING 2
Summer Game Fest host and producer Geoff Keighley’s friendship with Hideo Kojima bore fruit with the announcement of Death Stranding 2 at The Game Awards in December last year, and we’re hoping they join hands again for an encore at the upcoming event. Kojima, of course, loves releasing a consistent stream of trailers for his upcoming games, and with PlayStation listed as one of SGF’s official partners this year, we’re hoping Death Stranding 2 will be taking the stage once again.
ARMORED CORE 6: FIRES OF RUBICON
Kojima Productions isn’t the only prestigious developer to have revealed a major new game at a Keighley event. At Summer Game Fest in 2021, we got our first real look at Elden Ring, and FromSoftware is a developer we’re always desperate to hear more from. Luckily, the studio has a new title coming out imminently, with Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon set to launch in August. Given how close we are to its release, we wouldn’t be surprised to see a trailer at SGF.
ELDEN RING: SHADOW OF THE ERDTREE
Of course, Armored Core 6 isn’t the only thing FromSoftware has in the works right now. The studio is also working on Shadow of the Erdtree, a full-fledged Elden Ring expansion, and it goes without saying that millions are dying to know more about it. Its announcement earlier this year was barely even a tease, after all, and even though it looks like it might not be out until next year, we’re hoping FromSoftware and Bandai Namco will at least show a brief trailer at the upcoming event.
FINAL FANTASY 7 REBIRTH
With Final Fantasy 16 right around the corner, one might think that Square Enix might not be ready yet to begin the marketing for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, though recent events have perhaps changed things a little bit. Over the last few days, Square Enix has been dropping brief (and often entirely undescriptive, to put it mildly) quotes from the sequel’s development team on Twitter, and the seventh tweet will fall on the same day as Summer Game Fest. Could the company be building up to a trailer, perhaps one that confirms a specific release date? One can certainly hope.
KINGDOM HEARTS 4
Another Square Enix game, though perhaps not as likely to show up as Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. Kingdom Hearts 4’s announcement last year came as a bit of a surprise, and at the time it was said to be in early development- which, of course, means it’s going to be a while before the game releases (to say the least). Even so, series mastermind Tetsuya Nomura said last year that Square Enix would be sharing updates on the game sometime in 2023- could Summer Game Fest, which has listed Square Enix has one of its partners, be the stage for another new trailer? Or might the company perhaps hold off until something later in the year, like TGS?
SKATE
Full Circle has been plugging away at the free-to-play Skate reboot for quite some time now, and the developer has made solid progress up to this point, based on what we’ve seen and learned of it from early development footage, alpha tests, and more. Exactly how far away it is from launch remains to be seen, but we’re hoping that the game has made enough progress in development that EA feels prepared to showcase it with a trailer that also confirms a release date (or at least a release window).
NEXT TOMB RAIDER
It’s been a while since Shadow of the Tomb Raider came out, but we do know for a fact that the series won’t be resting for too long. In April last year, Crystal Dynamics confirmed that it was working on the next Tomb Raider game, and later in the year, suggested that it’d have something to show for the title at some point in 2023. Amazon Games, the publisher of the next Tomb Raider, is also listed as a confirmed SGF partner, so the chances are good that the title gets formally unveiled.
JET SET RADIO REBOOT
Over a year ago, it was claimed in leaks that a reboot of Jet Set Radio had entered early development at Sega, while earlier this year, early gameplay footage for the title also seemingly emerged. If a Jet Set Radio reboot is indeed in the works, given the IP’s devoted cult following, it’s the sort of announcement that could really the steal the show at a major event. Is there a chance that the game – if it does indeed exist – isn’t far enough along in development yet to be shown off? There sure is- but dreaming is free, so dream away.
TEKKEN 8
This one almost seems like it’s guaranteed to show up, even though it hasn’t been confirmed for the show. Tekken 8 has received a steady stream of trailers over the last few months, and with Bandai Namco listed as an official Summer Game Fest partner, it’s very likely that the publisher will once again show off more of the upcoming fighter. It might even be an appropriate time to confirm a release date for the game.
PAYDAY 3
Starbreeze Studios’ Payday 3 has been in the works for a while, but the co-op heist shooter is finally set to launch later this year, which means it’s very likely that it’ll get fully unveiled in the not-too-distant future. Earlier this year, a Payday 3 gameplay debut was set for summer, and though there’s no concrete indication of it yet, it’s very likely that Summer Game Fest is where the shooter will end up with that reveal.
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