With the 2022 edition, Gamescom is back to full capacity with rivers of spectators present and many games. The closure of the envoy.
From Cologne – The first day is always full of confusion when it comes to figuring out where to go in the Koelnmesse. We show our digital ticket to a security member, and he yells at his colleague: “P?”. We are disoriented and look at her partner, who points to a very long corridor and confirms: “Yes, P!”. We are inside.
Gamescom 2022 kicks off with a touch of nostalgia as we make our way into the venue, setting foot in the relative safety of the business area. It is quieter here than on the main floor, and there is usually air conditioning. Perhaps due to the energy crisis, the air was not as well controlled as you would usually expect and there really didn’t seem to be a way to escape the heat of the August Colony.
Hiding from the crowd isn’t everyone’s favorite activity, though, as DayZ creator Dean Hall passionately explains. “Well, for me, days open to players are everything. Gamescom was the first place we showed the standalone version of DayZ and let the public try it out. All this business stuff doesn’t make sense, it’s not the good part of Gamescom, ”he says. “The sand of the Colosseum is seeing people playing. That, for me, is Gamescom ”.
Great despite the absences –
Koelnmesse’s size makes Gamescom seem like a huge event regardless of any external factors, but there were fewer games on display this year as publishers like Sony, EA, Nintendo and Activision Blizzard refused to attend. Yet, even without those heavyweights at the table, it was seemingly impossible to see everything, even with multiple days to spare.
The biggest announcements saw Dead Island 2 return from the grave, and new trailers saw games like Lies of P shine during Gamescom Opening Night Live hosted by Geoff Keighley. On the consumer side, a Pikachu-signed electric Mini Cooper sat in a toy-style box, full-scale only. Giant stands have advertised titles like One Piece Odyssey and Goat Simulator 3, while brands like McDonald’s have also found curious ways to get noticed.
“We needed it” –
The Callisto Protocol director Glen Schofield comments on how the event feels like a celebration of gaming. “The video game industry needs this. The growth that the industry has seen over the past 30 years is incredible. I think we did a good job, our generation, of passing the baton to the next generation and saying ‘take care of it,’ ”Schofield explains. “The industry continues to grow and improve, and I love what I do. I love the industry, and why we do it ”.
The Metal: Hellsinger concert kicked off the show in the best possible way on Thursday night, thanks in part to the participation of numerous superstars who lent their voices to the game’s soundtrack. Some mixing problems gave the impression that the Opening Night Live sound system was not ready for an actual metal concert, but few things are more metal than listening to music where you can hardly hear every instrument.
Goodbye, Gamescom –
Events like this really made Gamescom 2022, to use Schofield’s words, look like a celebration of gaming, a festival rather than a dry business meeting – even if it was that too. The exclusivity of the old E3s is a thing of the past and, by contrast, Gamescom makes room for both the choosy press and fans who make the industry what it is. In a world where the restrictions due to Covid have been relaxed, Gamescom is one of the events that raise the bar that the E3 of the future will have to face.
Written by Dave Aubrey for GLHF
September 11, 2022 – 11:40 am
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