VIDEO GAME CONVENTIONS have had a strange few years. The Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles went virtual for a couple of years during the pandemic but was canceled this year, before being handed over to new management for the 2023 show.
Similarly, Gamescom in Cologne, Germany, has had no in-person show for the last couple of years, which was even more disappointing as it’s also open to the general public. This year, the convention returned to its in-person form, welcoming 265,000 gaming fans into the halls of the city’s convention center to see new games, new hardware, and more than a few cosplayers.
Most of the big publishers were present, including Ubisoft, Sega, and 2K Games, in addition to hardware manufacturers such as Xbox, Razer, and Samsung. We fuelled up on salted pretzels, weaved through the armies of cosplayers, and scoped out the 500 exhibitors to find all the very best games and hardware. There’s plenty to look forward to, but here’s the creme de la creme of what we saw.
Wreckreation
It’s felt like there’s been a Burnout-shaped hole in the arcade racer market for some time, which is probably why producer Alex Ward, who worked on the original franchise at EA, is ready to return to the genre with Wreckreation. To be fair, he kind of already did with 2019’s Dangerous Driving, and this is essentially the sequel, although with a much bigger online focus and the resulting shift to building and remixing tracks. Thankfully, the over-the-top crashes that made Burnout so much fun are also present and correct.
• Out: 2023 • www.wreckreation.thqnordic.com
Moonbreaker
All you really need to know about Moonbreaker is that it’s from Unknown Worlds Entertainment, the creators of the brilliant Subnautica. However, don’t expect anything similar to that underwater adventure game as this is a complete departure. It’s a tabletop-style miniature-focused turn-based sci-fi game similar to something like Warhammer 40,000. In the video game world, the closest comparison is probably , by the developer’s own admission, with strategy and unit selection being key. The game is available in Early Access now.
