Gamescom will not open its doors to the public until August 14, Thursday, but the festivities begin on Monday the 11th with a reveal of the multiplayer mode for
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, scheduled for 7 p.m. The following day, the two press conferences from manufacturers
Microsoft and
Sony will take place. The day after that, it will be
EA and
Konami's turn to put on their shows, with
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain being the main attraction for
Konami. After that, the various publishers/developers (
Deep Silver,
Square Enix,
Konami,
Bandai Namco, Warners Bros., Ubisoft ) will show their games at the
stands provided for this purpose.
For clarity's sake, here is the complete schedule:
- Monday, August 11 - 7 p.m.
First look at the multiplayer mode of
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare .
- Tuesday, August 12 - 2 p.m.
In the early afternoon,
Microsoft's conference will kick off the festivities. The American company is expected to deliver major announcements, exclusives and surprises.
It will likely be an opportunity to revisit the end-of-year releases, including
Forza Horizon 2 and
Sunset Overdrive, with the highly anticipated
Quantum Break particularly expected to receive a presentation.
Link to the official Xbox website
- Tuesday, August 12 - 7 p.m.
In the evening,
Sony will take the stage for its conference. Find the
lineup here, with hopes for a few surprises, such as the mysterious game teased numerous times by the Japanese manufacturer.
The Sony conference held as part of Gamescom is always an event. Price cuts, announcements of new games or new console models are some of the things the Japanese manufacturer has accustomed the public to during its German presentations.
To separate fact from rumors, backstage chatter and other speculation, here is what can be expected tonight.
-
Silent Hill on PS4
Very likely
- DriveClub: Although it has been rather quiet lately, the racing game should be back in the spotlight. And since Sony has just revealed the special edition of DriveClub, while its release date is rapidly approaching, everything suggests that the title will be present at the conference.
- New project from Media Molecule: The British studio recently began teasing its new IP. It is practically certain that it will be officially presented during Sony's conference.
- PS4 versions of Journey and The Unfinished Swan: Sony made a small mistake by publishing, earlier than planned, a list of the titles that will be playable at Gamescom. Journey and The Unfinished Swan were listed in the PS4 category. It therefore seems likely that both ports will be discussed during the conference.
- Until Dawn: Originally, Until Dawn was a PS3 title designed to be played with the PlayStation Move. But it disappeared from the radar immediately after being unveiled. Thanks to the list mentioned above, it is nevertheless possible to bet on an announcement of its arrival on PS4 during Sony's conference. Indeed, the title also appears on the list accidentally published by the Japanese manufacturer. In addition, teasers posted just recently seem to be related to it.
Likely
- Uncharted 4: A Thief's End: Neil Druckmann, the game's director at Naughty Dog, recently stated that the public would hear about Uncharted 4 again "soon." The Sony conference held alongside the German show seems to fit that "soon." It nevertheless seems a little early for the Californian studio to unveil a gameplay sequence from its new production. Viewers can therefore expect to discover a new cinematic.
- Beyond: Two Souls Remastered: Rumors suggest that Quantic Dream's latest game will be coming to PS4. Several retailers also listed this remastered version of the game a few weeks ago. While it seems a little early for the French studio to unveil its next original project, it would not be far-fetched for it to announce a port of Jodie Holmes' adventures.
- PlayStation Now: Until now, every mention of Sony's game-streaming service has been linked to the American market. So far, the Japanese giant has not revealed its plans for the European continent. It would therefore not be far-fetched for it to do so during its Gamescom conference.
- Project Morpheus: The last time Sony presented its virtual reality headset to the press was at E3 last June. There is therefore a chance that Kaz Hirai's company will give the public an update on this new accessory. For his part, Plume firmly believes that Until Dawn will be one of the first games announced as compatible with Project Morpheus.
- New IP from Guerrilla Games: Several factors suggest that the Dutch studio could use Sony's Gamescom conference to finally unveil its next game. First, it has been working on it for more than two years, so it is not too early to talk about it. Second, the game has been discussed several times recently. Finally, Guerrilla Games is a European studio. Gamescom therefore seems like the perfect time to showcase a local product. That said, the studio is still recruiting people to work on this new title. It may therefore decide to keep it under wraps for a while longer.
- Wednesday, August 13 - 10 a.m.
The following day,
EA will showcase its catalog and projects in development, along with possible surprise announcements. This is also when
Gamescom will open its doors to industry professionals.
- Wednesday, August 13 - 8 p.m.
Then,
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain will have an event all to itself, bringing the conferences to a close and leading into the show's opening to the public the following day.
Gamescom 2014 will run from August 13 to 17.
