Innopede @ Gamescom’23: A Look at the Latest and Greatest in Gaming
25 AUGUST 2023 / Gamescom 2023, the world’s largest trade fair for computer and video games, is currently taking place in Cologne, Germany from August 23rd to 27th. The event featured over 1,200 exhibitors from all over the world, showcasing their latest games and hardware. More than 260,000 visitors are expected.
This year, Gamescom was officially opened by Minister of Trade and Commerce Robert Habeck, despite the announcement that the federal government is likely to cut state funding from €70 million to under €50 million next year. This news sparked a debate about the future of gaming industry in Germany.
Big Publishers
Nintendo was one of the highlights, with a focus on its Switch console. The company showed off several new games, including “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of Kingdom”, “Pikmin 4”, and “Sonic Superstars” (planned release 17 Oct).
Microsoft also had a strong presence at Gamescom, with a large booth for its Xbox console. The company showed off several new games, including “Ages of Empires 4” for Xbox. In one corner of the booth Bethesda Game Studios was presenting the highly anticipated “Starfield” (Release is on 6th of September – so we will soon find out if it will live up to expectations).
Other big publishers that were present at Gamescom included SEGA (“Endless Dungeon”, “Hyenas”), Ubisoft, Bandai Namco (“Tekken 8”). Even Netflix and Disney+ had their booths (e.g. Stranger Things, Witcher, Squid Game).
Hardware
In addition to games, Gamescom also featured a large number of hardware exhibitors. Several companies showcased their latest gaming monitors, processors, laptops, and PC cases. EVA, a Belgian company that operates virtual arenas, also had an impressive booth, where attendees could try out games with VR glasses.
Indie Games
The real highlight at this year’s Gamescom was the indie game scene. Different countries (Spain, Poland, Turkey) and some German Federal States had extra booths to present their Independent Developers. Beside that many smaller companies and start-up presented their titles.
Question is why still lots of Indie games use pixel art? To give a retro touch?
Our highlight of the indie game scene was “Gift”, a game from developer Toydium about escaping from a sinking ship (…and water is rising). Not a completely new idea, but beautifully made – especially the artwork and graphics. Planned release is in 2024 – a Demo is already available on Steam. We are curious how the finished product will look like.
Conclusion
Gamescom 2023 was a great showcase for the latest and greatest in gaming. There were plenty of new and exciting titles on display – new ideas more in the Indie Game section.
We believe that there is still a missed opportunity regarding casual gamers. There are many people who want to play games (and played them in their youth), but don’t have the time or energy to commit to long and complex game controls.
Where are the simple and short games that serve this audience?
We hope you enjoyed our look at Gamescom 2023!