Next week, the picturesque German city of Cologne will become the centre of the world as far as gamers are concerned. It’s time to brace yourself for 2026’s instalment of Gamescom, which, since the demise of Los Angeles’ E3, has become comfortably the biggest and most significant videogames show on the calendar.
Gamescom will take place between 26 and 30 August with, as is customary, Wednesday 26 being reserved for trade admissions only, while the public will be admitted between Thursday 27 and Sunday 30 August. If you’re going to be in the vicinity of Cologne during that time, general admission tickets are still available.
But the show’s traditional curtain-raiser, Opening Night Live – hosted by the ubiquitous American Geoff Keighley, as has been the case for the past eight years – takes place on August 25. It will kick off at 7 pm BST, with a half-hour pre-show build-up starting at 6.30 pm, and you’ll be able to stream the show.
In a pre-briefing given by Keighley and various members of the show’s top brass, Keighley confirmed that, among other games, this year’s ONL will showcase the likes of Gears of War E-Day, Final Fantasy VII Revelation (whose director, Naoki Hamaguchi, will make a stage appearance), The Witcher 3’s new Songs of the Past expansion and Metro 2039. He added that ONL will include a live performance of the music from Mewgenics, and there will no doubt be a welter of other games making their first public appearances.
Sold out for the first time
Given its modern pre-eminence in a world in which countless video game shows have fallen by the wayside, Gamescom likes to hail every new iteration as record-breaking in some way, and the 2026 show, according to Gamescom Director Tim Endres, will see a record number of exhibitors, with over 1,600 games companies booking stands -- the first time the 1,600 mark has been surpassed. Endres added that it will also be the first time the show has been completely sold out to exhibitors: it would be literally impossible to accommodate any more.
Which is a tad daunting for those of us attending – Gamescom’s venue, the Koelnmesse, is so huge that we often have to cover huge distances between meetings. According to Endres, it will occupy “Over 233,000 square metres, about the size of 33 football fields.” The show has always taken a major toll on shoe-leather.
One of the joys of Gamescom is discovering unexpected gems of games, often on the back of word- of-mouth recommendations and found on the stands of obscure publishers and developers. But for the three (inevitably gruelling) days in which I’ll be in attendance, gaps in my schedule are already more or less non-existent.
However, I’m excited about many games I have booked to either play or see for the first time. Most notably Final Fantasy VII Revelation, the third and most ambitious remade instalment of the nonpareil JRPG; Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, the second remake of Lara Croft’s original starring vehicle; Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival, Turok: Origins and Stuntman: Hollywood from Saber Interactive; Microsoft’s Ontos; a new Rebellion title; and Ritual Tides, an as-yet-unannounced Wicker Man-influenced game from British developer Vertpaint.
Online presence and themes
Most of the games industry’s big guns will be at Gamescom, although one glaring absence is that of Rockstar Games, with GTA VI fast approaching. Nintendo, Microsoft, Square Enix, Sega, Bandai Namco and Electronic Arts will be there, while CD Projekt Red, of The Witcher fame, will return after a hiatus. Gamescom’s Endres said that 2026 will see 420 indie exhibitors, up 16 per cent on last year.
That plays into one of Gamescom’s two themes for this year, as described by Felix Falk, Managing Director of game, the German games industry’s official body: “Small teams having huge success.” The other theme, Falk says, is: “Saving the world through play.” A lofty ambition, but Gamescom will have a tangible strand reinforcing the idea: a series of events, watchable via the Gamescom website, in collaboration with Games Done Quick (GDQ), a charity that raises money through bonkers speedruns with all manner of handicaps, such as blindfolded participants.
Endres adds that a constant feed of news and updates (in four languages including English) will run on the website, along with the Awesome Indie show, which aims to take an in-depth look at many of the best indie games on show and the stories behind them, plus the video-based show Gamescom Studio.
And we will, of course, report back with our own personal observations and highlights after the show. Meanwhile, strap yourselves in and get ready for what is now the biggest event of the year as far as gamers – and the industry they love – are concerned.
