Launching in Cologne from the 18th – 24th August, Gamescom gives enthusiasts the chance to preview upcoming games, watch e-sports tournaments, and attend various events.
This year, Microsoft is giving fans the chance to play some of their most anticipated titles across Xbox and Windows 10. Gears of War 4, Forza Horizon 3 and Halo Wars 2 are some of the most popular.
For those lucky enough to attend, the booth will now be in Hall 8 of the Koelnmesse near the north entrance. ReCore and Sea of Thieves will also be on show there, as well as a selection of indie games.
The Indie titles announced so far include We Happy Few, Everspace, and Cuphead. All three are part of Microsoft’s ID@Xbox program, which enables qualified developers to self-publish their games on Xbox One and Windows 10.
Media Briefing
The media briefing from previous years has been cut and Microsoft will instead be planning a larger version of their Xbox FanFest. Details for this have not been announced yet but will come soon.
The move away from a briefing suggests that the company don’t have too many announcements and would rather focus on giving gamers a positive experience.
It’s interesting to compare this to last year, when there were several mid to low scale announcements. The release date of Quantum Break was revealed along with new footage, Windows 10 was confirmed for Xbox One and there was a huge surprise announcement of Halo Wars 2.
Without the press conference it may be hard for Microsoft to create the same amount of hype as last year, but personally, I am looking forward to seeing how well the games speak for themselves.
