August may be winding down, but this seemingly endless summer of video game streams keeps on rolling. Gamescom kicked off today with an Opening Night Live stream hosted by Geoff Keighley of Summer Games Fest fame. While yesterday’s Gamescom-adjacent Xbox stream was a bust, today’s broadcast was more of a can’t-miss event.
The stream was loaded with news on new games, bringing some E3-type energy before the fall release season kicks off. The big news of the day is that Horizon Forbidden West and Halo Infinite finally got release dates. The latter was a no-show at Microsoft’s own show yesterday. That wasn’t all, though. Saints Row is getting a reboot, Deadmau5 is making a virtual world, and we got a closer look at the recently announced Call of Duty: Vanguard. It was more of an E3-caliber presentation than, well, E3 was this year.
In case you missed it, here are all the major announcements from today’s Gamescom Opening Night Live stream.
Halo Infinite finally gets a release date
After a full year of waiting, Halo Infinite is finally coming. The game is scheduled to launch on December 8 for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Multiplayer and single-player modes will both launch at the same time. News of the new date leaked earlier today when a rogue listing went live on the Microsoft Store. Halo fans had grown worried about whether or not the game would come out in 2021 at all after it was absent from yesterday’s Xbox Gamescom show. “No Halo” was a trending topic on Twitter yesterday following the event.
That wasn’t all we got during the segment. We also saw a new trailer for the game that gives a cinematic new look at its first multiplayer season. Plus, Halo is getting a custom Xbox Elite Series 2 controller that looks like Master Chief’s armor. Finally, the series is getting a special Xbox Series X console, which will be available for a limited time. Both of those new products are available for pre-order now.
… but Horizon Forbidden West is delayed
While Halo infinite got a 2021 release date, Horizon Forbidden West has been delayed. The open-world game will now launch on February 18, 2022, rather than during the 2021 holiday season. It’ll launch on both PlayStation 4 and 5.
In better news, Horizon Zero Dawn‘s 60 frames-per-second patch is now available on PS5.
Saints Row is getting a reboot
The Saints Row series is returning with a full-on reboot. Currently titled Saints Row, the game will be a slightly more grounded take on the Grand Theft Auto-esque crime game. It’ll still feature plenty of humor and the wackiness that’s core to the series (the debut trailer was filled with plenty of jokes and over-the-top stunts), though players shouldn’t expect to go to hell this time around. It will launch in February 25, 2022, for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Marvel’s Midnight Suns is a new Avengers tactics game
Marvel’s Midnight Suns is a new game set in the Marvel comics universe. The trailer showed off tons of classic characters such as Wolverine, Iron Man, and Blade. It’s being developed by Firaxis, which created the XCOM series. It’s described as a tactics RPG, which lines up with rumors of the game’s existence that surfaced around the time of E3 in June. It’ll launch in March 2022 and a gameplay reveal is coming on September 1.
Hideo Kojima gives an extended look at Death Stranding: Director’s Cut
It wouldn’t be a Geoff Keighley-hosted show without an appearance from Hideo Kojima. The director put together a trailer for Death Stranding: Director’s Cut that shows off the game’s new features. The upgraded game will feature new items that increase Sam’s mobility. Thrusters allow Sam to make gigantic leaps off cliffs, a cannon can launch cargo over long distances, and a buddy bot can carry more cargo.
Other new features include a firing range where Sam can test weapons, an online ranking system, a racetrack, and more. The game also adds “action-packed” delivery missions that involve sneaking around a facility, Metal Gear Solid-style. It’s looking like a significant update that speeds up the original game’s slow pace and adds some wacky new mechanics. The game is scheduled to launch on September 24 for PS5.
Call of Duty: Vanguard gameplay debuts
We got some new footage of Call of Duty: Vanguard, the upcoming World War II-set installment of the shooter series. The announcement included some casting news, with Laura Bailey now set to voice a female sniper named Polina. A new in-engine gameplay clip showed a first glimpse of Polina’s story. We see her breaking out of captivity and using stealth to stab enemies in the back and scale walls in first-person. Call of Duty: Vanguard is set to launch on November 5.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga finally reappears
After being indefinitely delayed earlier this year, we finally got a new look at LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. A new trailer showed several iconic locations and characters from the Star Wars series. The game doesn’t have a firm release date, but it’s now scheduled to launch in spring 2022 for consoles and PC.
Deadmau5 presents Oberhalsi
Electronic music artist and producer Deadmau5 is getting into video games with Oberhalsi. The ambitious project is described as a virtual world where fans of the artist’s music can gather. It will host live music events and feature different activities for players. Anyone will be able to create their own content and add it to the game as well. The project exists entirely in Core, a program filled with user-generated content. It’s downloadable via the Epic Games Store.
Valheim Hearth and Home is the survival game’s first update
Viking survival game Valheim is getting a new update called Hearth and Home. The expansion got a new animated trailer teasing what to expect from the new content, though no firm details were revealed. The update will be available September 16.
Everything else …
- Cult of the Lamb is a dark and cute new indie from Devolver Digital starring a little lamb.
- A new trailer debuted for indie title Midnight Fight Express which is being made by a one-developer team.
- April O’Neil wil join the roster of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge.
- We got a look at the 12 party games that will be featured in Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania. Plus, Morgana from Persona 5 is joining the game.
- Splitgate is getting a proper season, which will bring new modes to the game.
- We got a new trailer for Ubisoft’s Riders Republic. The game’s beta is now open to everyone.
- Century: Age of Ashes launches on November 18.
- UFL is a new free-to-play soccer game coming to all major consoles.
- Synced: Off-Planet is a sci-fi shooter that will be fully revealed tomorrow.
- The Outlast Trials is the latest edition of the horror franchise, coming in 2022.
- Dokev is a colorful, open-world monster-collecting game by developer Pearl Abyss.
- Jurassic World Evolution 2 is coming on November 9.
- Far Cry 6 got a new story trailer giving another look at Giancarlo Esposito’s villainous Yara dictator.
- Vampire: The Masquerade – Blood Hunt is going into early access on Steam on September 7.
- Park Beyond is an amusement park management game from Bandai Namco coming in 2022.
- Jett: The Far Shore is launching on October 5 for PS4, PS5, and PC via Epic Games Store.
- Amazon’s MMO New World is getting a public beta in September.
- Marvel Future Revolution, a mobile action RPG, lands on the App Store and Google Play Store today.
- Tales of Luminaria is a new mobile RPG coming to iOS and Android.
- Jumanji: The Curse Returns is coming to Nintendo Switch and PC.
- A new teaser for Lost Judgment debuted, giving another look at the game.
- We got a look at Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout‘s next jungle-themed in-game event.
- Age of Empire IV got another trailer following yesterday’s segment during Microsoft’s Gamescom stream.
- Xbox game CrossfireX got a new trailer showing off its fast-paced action.
- Sifu is launching on February 22.
