Hosted by Evil Empire, which is developing Belmont’s Curse, the inclusion of the latter makes sense, but there’s much more to look forward to. Dead as Disco, Risk of Rain 2, Windrose, Alkahest and Alabaster Dawn will also appear while sunset visitor (1000xRESIST), tinyBuild, Daedalic Entertainment, 11 bit studios, Klei, Outersloth and Devolver Digital are confirmed.

Overall, you can expect eight world premieres and gameplay reveals alongside release dates for already-announced titles. If that wasn’t enough, the “zero fluff” showcase will feature deep dives on select titles in the post-show.

At this point, release dates for titles like Dead as Disco and Windrose, both of which received overwhelmingly positive responses during their respective Steam Next Fests, seem a given. Radical Fish Games also promises a big announcement, which could mean an early access release date for Alabaster Dawn (previously slated for last year). Stay tuned for all the updates and announcements when the show rolls around.

Of course, that’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to releases. Deep Field Games’ Abiotic Factor, which exits Steam Early Access on July 22nd, will also be available on day one on the service for PS5. There’s also Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, Planet Zoo and New World: Aeternum to look forward to on July 15th.

PS4 (and PS5) players can check out Risk of Rain 2, Bluey: The Videogame and Tropico 6. If that wasn’t enough, Premium subscribers receive access to Twisted Metal 3 and 4 on both platforms, each title featuring quick save, rewind and up-rendering alongside custom filters.

Alongside the collaboration, Risk of Rain 2‘s next major update, titled the Devotion Update, has also been detailed. Check out the trailer below.

The Devotion update will be bringing with it a new map to Risk of Rain 2, dubbed Verdant Falls. The update will be free for all Risk of Rain 2 players, and the new map will also be affected by the upcoming Seekers of the Storm expansion.

Risk of Rain 2‘s second expansion, Seekers of the Storm, was originally unveiled back in November 2023. The DLC will bring with it new stages, enemies, items, and Survivors. This time around, the expansion will focus on a new antagonist named The False Son.

Risk of Rain 2 is available on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

As you might expect, Risk of Rain 2: Seekers of the Storm will feature new stages, enemies, plenty of new items, and new Survivors. The expansion will revolve around a new antagonist named The False Son.

Constructed by the Lemurians, The False Son was corrupted by Mithrix’s Beads of Fealty, and the expansion will focus around stopping his machinations. One of the new stages in the expansion will also be the introduction of the game’s day and night phases.

Risk of Rain 2: Seekers of the Storm doesn’t yet have a release date, but is slated for release on PC, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. The game and its new expansion are also playable on the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S through backwards compatibility.

Even the store page’s description indicates very little, though there are five “packages” which are still untranslated. Perhaps these will become more discernible over time. It’s worth noting that Gearbox Software is the developer instead of Hopoo Games, which makes sense since it purchased the Risk of Rain IP and also co-developed the previous expansion, Survivors of the Void.

Stay tuned for more details in the meantime. Risk of Rain 2 is available for PS4, PC, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One and has sold over four million copies on Steam as of 2021. Check out our review here. As for Risk of Rain Returns, a remaster of the original developed by Hopoo, it’s coming to PC and Nintendo Switch.

RETURNAL

One of the more recent releases in this feature, and also one of the more obvious entries. Housemarque has always been known for developing old school arcade bullet hell shooters that aren’t afraid of testing the skills of their players and pushing them to the absolute limits, and Returnal translates that formula into a full blown AAA 3D experience perfectly. From the very first second right until the last, this is a game that can be extremely punishing- but overcoming the challenges it throws at you never fails to delight, thanks to its tight shooting and movement mechanics, its perfectly balanced roguelike structure, and its progression mechanics, which strike the perfect balance between progress resets and permanent upgrades. It’s not for the faint of heart, no, but if you do like a little bit of challenge in you games, Returnal is unmissable.

In a recent Steam post, the developer explained that “Gearbox has been the trusted publisher of Risk of Rain 2 for many years now, they have a love for Risk of Rain that matches our own and is the best fit for taking the franchise into the future.” While Hopoo is working on Risk of Rain Returns, Gearbox will “both develop and publish potential future titles in the series.”

There may be some concern among hardcore fans about whether the latter can do justice to the franchise. However, Hopoo revealed that Gearbox co-developed the Survivors of the Void expansion. It created the Aphelian Sanctuary and Siphoned Forest, along with the Void Jailers, all received very well.

In conclusion, the developer said, “We are ready to move on to new challenges and welcome the exciting and fresh ideas Gearbox will bring to Risk of Rain. Completing the console versions of Survivors of the Void remains a top priority for Gearbox, and we can’t wait to see what the future brings for Risk of Rain with them at the helm! We know the IP is in excellent hands.”

As for Risk of Rain Returns, it releases in 2023 for Nintendo Switch and PC. Check out the first details and screenshots here.

Some of the new stages include Aphelian Sanctuary with its waterfalls and the Siphoned Forest which allows for some impromptu ice skating. Of course, there are also new threats with nine new monsters, three bosses and two new Elite types to tackle. To even the odds, 14 new Void items, four new Lunar items, five new Equipment pieces and 18 new Normal items have been added.

The new Survivors also bring some interesting new play-styles, whether it’s the Railgunner and her long-range damage, or the Void Fiend who receives more powerful abilities as more corruption builds. There’s also a new mode, The Simulacrum, for those who want to test their mettle against endless waves of foes.

Risk of Rain 2: Survivors of the Void is out on PC but console players can look forward to in the coming days. Stay tuned for more details in the meantime.

The Simulacrum is essentially endless with enemies gaining stronger as time goes on. The main objective is to survive though random mutators can come up in some waves. You may also have random Artifacts triggering for a round. Once a wave is complete, you can choose from three items and proceed on. A nice touch is that the safe zone where players fight in will move, thus allowing you to grab items from crates that were previously outside.

The Void Fiend is also interesting in this mode since Trespass provides a good means of damage avoidance while Flood and Void Corruption can do work on enemies clumped together. Risk of Rain 2: Survivors of the Void will be coming to PC first on March 1st, followed by other platforms later. Stay tuned for more details on the same in the coming weeks.

As a former Commando, the Void Fiend has been corrupted by the Void and gains new abilities in the process. Flood is a charged shot that decimates foes in an explosive radius while Trespass allows for teleporting a significant distance. Void Corruption allows for unleashing a powerful continuous beam on enemies and thankfully, one can teleport while using it to avoid damage.

For more information on the Void Fiend, check out the Dev Thoughts video below as well. Risk of Rain 2 is currently available for Xbox One, PS4, PC, Google Stadia and Nintendo Switch. Check out our official review for the base game here.