All the news from Gamescom’s opening night including Horizon Forbidden West and Saints Row Reboot

Aug 26 2021
Written by Ed Nightingale

Horizon Forbidden West. (Sony)

It’s Gamescom week – the E3 of Europe you might say – which means plenty of gaming news.

Opening night had a two hour launch of trailers and news hosted by Geoff Keighley. Some previously-announced games got an extra look-in, but there were also some exciting new games revealed and essential release date news.

Here are the top Gamescom headlines you need to know.

Horizon Forbidden West finally has a release date

We already knew Aloy’s next adventure would be delayed from Christmas, but thanks to Gamescom we have a firm release date: 18 February 2022. No new gameplay was shown following the first footage State of Play in May, but we don’t want spoilers anyway right? What’s more, original PS4 release Horizon Zero Dawn now has a 60fps upgrade for PlayStation 5.

Halo Infinite arrives this Christmas

Another game that’s been previously delayed, Halo Infinite will be released on 8 December just in time for Christmas. The news was introduced with a CGI trailer for its free-to-play multiplayer mode, along with a fancy looking themed controller and Xbox console available from 15 November.

New Saints Row incoming

The Saints Row series has been lauded for its inclusive character customisation, LGBT+ representation and campy over-the-top storylines. This new reboot of the series looks to be dialling back a little on the latter, with a slightly more realistic take on its criminal open-world. Still, expect plenty of silliness too with its over the top weapons – though the oversized dildo from previous titles sadly won’t be appearing this time. It’s due on 25 February 2022.

DokeV is the next big monster hunting game

Pokémon meets Monster Hunter in a vibrant cartoon open world with skateboarding tricks, an original K-Pop soundtrack, and a rideable llama?! This is the kind of game that dreams are made of.

Not one but two Marvel games

First up is Marvel’s Midnight Suns, a tactical-RPG that sees you creating your own superhero with whom to form a team of Avengers stalwarts like Captain America, Dr Strange, and Captain Marvel. Not only do they fight alongside you in tactical combat, but – Fire Emblem style – who you spend your time with will affect their performance on the battlefield. Sadly romance isn’t available though, so we’ll have to settle with the friend zone with Captain America. It’s coming in March 2022.

Secondly there’s Marvel: Future Revolution, an open world action RPG on mobile. It’s available right now and looks like a very ambitious title for the small screen.

Death Stranding no longer a walking simulator

Death Stranding: Director’s Cut is out next month and it wouldn’t be a Geoff Keighley event without a little Kojima. We got an in-depth look at new additions to the title, such as robot companions and motorcycles that somewhat ruin the slow-paced walking simulator vibe of the original. There’s also a racing circuit, a boss battle mode, and a simulated training mode firing range that’s seemingly ripped right out of Metal Gear Solid. MGS Stranding anyone?

Best of the rest

Cult of the Lamb was also featured at Gamescom: a dark yet adorable roguelike game featuring a demonic-possessed lamb battling through dungeons and forming a community of cute critters. It’s coming in 2022.