Gamescom 2012 is Here!
We dispatch Gareth "Gazimoff" Harmer to the world's biggest gaming event.
This week undoubtedly marks the high point in every European gamer’s calendar, as Gamescom 2012 is finally with us. Situated in Cologne, Germany, the five day event will be dominating the Koelnmesse expo center. And we’ll be there, bringing you all the latest news from this gaming extravaganza!
Last year saw over 270 thousand visitors flood in to get their hands on the latest games, and it’s easy to see why the organizers think they’ll beat that high score this year. With developers eager to showcase their upcoming games to a ravenous audience, the excitement on both sides is huge. Here’s just a sample of what’s going to be happening during the week ahead:
- Trion Worlds is letting players go hands-on with four new titles. There’s RIFT: Storm Legion, the first full expansion pack for their existing MMO. Free to Play MMORTS End of Nations will be on the show floor, as will their upcoming MMO third-person shooter Defiance. Finally, the team will be bringing Crytek’s free to play shooter Warface to a western audience.
- Blizzard will debut the intro cinematic for World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria at 2PM (local time) on Thursday. The gang will also have competitions, Starcraft and Warcraft PvP tournaments, live orchestral music and more throughout the weekend.
- BioWare will be previewing the Ancient Hypergates warzone for Star Wars: The Old Republic. There will also be collectibles and codes for in-game swag, and the 501st Legion will be there for photo opportunities with your favorite Star Wars characters.
- Wargaming.net will be offering gamers the chance to go hands-on with World of Tanks and World of Warplanes. There’s also a heavy mix of eSports events, Q and A sessions and competitions to look forward to.
- Square Enix will be demonstrating Final Fantasy: A Realm Reborn, giving us a first look at the revitalized MMO.
- Gameforge will have Aion’s new 3.0 update available to play, alongside both RaiderZ and TERA
- Red 5 Studios will have a FireFall tournament hosted by the Electronic Sports League, with ten thousand euros in prize money up for grabs!
On top of all that gaming goodness, we’ll be grabbing chances to talk with the developers themselves, bringing you a peek into the future of MMO gaming. I’ll be patrolling the show floor, so if you have a burning question you’d like put in front of a developer then sound off in the comments!
Gareth “Gazimoff” Harmer, Staff Writer