Highlights from Gamescom 2015

Though E3 2015 is a couple months behind us, fans had another opportunity to learn about some exciting new reveals and announcements from the video game industry. Here are some highlights from the conference.

Fallout 4

Fallout 4 is proving to be one of the most talked about games of the year, and fans are clamoring for the game’s November 10 release date to arrive. Ironically, the biggest news Bethesda released about the game wasn’t even a part of the Gamescom event itself. Through the company’s official Twitter account, Bethesda announced that Fallout 4 players will be able to continue exploring the game world after the campaign story is over and there is no level cap, which means players can continue to level up to their heart’s content. This is an exciting development because in previous Fallout games, once the campaign was over, the game was over. There was no more opportunity to level up.

Halo 5

For fans of the Halo series, the game’s campaign was announced to be twice as long as campaigns in the previous games in the series. There will also be a Halo 5: Guardians Xbox One Console available, which will include 1 TB of storage. The console will be available October 20 while the game will be released on October 27 for Xbox One.

Final Fantasy X

Final Fantasy XV’s presence at Gamescom turned out to be a bit of a disappointment when Square-Enix failed to reveal a release date, but they did give us the new “Dawn” trailer. The trailer shows us events fifteen years before the events of FFXV, and we’re introduced to the game’s main protagonist Noctis as a little boy with his father, King Regis. The trailer also shows the outlines of three massive figures standing behind a large palace. Square-Enix also showed footage of a Malboro attack. They also revealed that there will be another playable demo coming soon. While there wasn’t a release date announcement, the game’s director Hajime Tabata did confirm in an interview with GameSpot that the game would be released before 2017, which implies a 2016 release date.

Final Fantasy VII Remake

Though not a major player at Gamescom, Square-Enix did reveal that the remake of Final Fantasy VII isn’t being built on Square-Enix’s own Luminous Game Engine. The game’s director Tetsuya Nomura has also revealed that the game’s battle system will undergo some significant changes while remaining something that fans will recognize. No release date has been announced for the Final Fantasy VII Remake.

Halo Wars 2

Microsoft announced that Halo Wars 2 would be releasing exclusively on Xbox One and Windows 10. The game is being developed by Creative Assembly and will feature more strategy-based gameplay like its original 2009 release. The excitement over Halo Wars 2 further cements the popularity of the Halo franchise.

Dark Souls 3

A new gameplay trailer was revealed for Dark Souls 3, the highly anticipated sequel in the Dark Souls series. Players are once again thrown into a dark foreboding world to face some of the deadliest enemies, and an added addition to the game is the ability to use Battle Arts, with each weapon having its own unique Battle Art.

World of Warcraft

Blizzard, the developers behind the popular massive multiplayer online World of Warcraft, announced a new expansion pack for the game. The game’s sixth expansion is called Legion, and it features a whole new continent for players to explore. It also increases the game’s current level cap from 100 to 110 and adds a new Demon Hunter class. Blizzard has also added the capability to customize some of the game’s legendary weapons.

Star Wars: Battlefront

Electronic Arts put the Fighter Squadron mode in Star Wars: Battlefront on display at Gamescom. The most impressive part of the Battlefront trailer was Darth Vader. The trailer shows a rebel soldier aiming a blaster at Vader while he deflects the beams with his light saber. The trailer closes with Vader swinging his light saber and the screen cutting to black. This scene alone was enough to get fans excited about the game.

Quantum Break

A new gameplay trailer was revealed for Quantum Break, a third-person shooter that focuses on the ability to perform time manipulation. The game, which is supposed to coincide with a live-action television show that you watch in between playing the game, features the voice talents of Shawn Ashmore (X-Men), Aiden Gillen (Game of Thrones), Dominic Monaghan (LOST). and Lance Reddick (Fringe). The combination of game and television show should make this a unique gameplay experience. Quantum Break will release exclusively on Xbox One on April 6, 2016.

Mafia 3

Mafia 3 was revealed to take place in1960s New Orleans, as opposed to the 1930s setting of previous games. The game also has a new protagonist, Lincoln Clay. Fans of the series will be excited to see the game’s return.

While E3 tends to be the major event for gaming fans, Gamescom proves to a ripe time for gaming announcements as well, and this year was no exception. It looks like gamers have a lot to look forward to over the coming months.