It’s been a month since Gamescom 2025 lowered its shutters and despatched ninety thousand nerds squeezing into the tiny Cologne tram station outdoors. In newsworthiness phrases, a month’s time is roughly equal to 5 millennia, so this roundup of all of the video games I performed on the present (however haven’t already lined elsewhere) comes with an admission of tardiness.
Additionally: excuses. Who knew Silksong would come out whereas I used to be nonetheless unpacking?
Tremendous Meat Boy 3D
Regardless of the fashionable graffix and newly found third dimension, I used to be shocked by how a lot Tremendous Meat Boy 3D feels just like the precision platformer that so simply exasperated my 2010 self. It’s nonetheless demanding and relentless, however there’s a quick, spring-loaded high quality to the run ‘n’ leaping, and the near-instantaneous supply of a retry makes deaths seem to be momentary setbacks whilst you’re dashed on the identical spike lure fifteen consecutive occasions. The post-level replay of all of your makes an attempt operating without delay, with that one profitable Meat Boy powering via the dwindling pack, is simply as cathartic in 3D as nicely.
Cosmo Tales
Right here’s an sudden one from milsim specialists Bohemia Interactive: a Saturday morning cartoon of an area fight recreation, by which your chirpy AI-infused rocket van switches up its weapons and defensive instruments by phasing via dimensions mid-flight.
It’s all deliberately gentle and cold – as a substitute of exploding, enemy ships glitch out of the battle like malfunctioning holograms – and the gee-whiz dialogue is clearly written for younger’uns, however the shoots of an honest informal motion recreation are seen. The visible palette swaps for every dimension, specifically, are a pleasant contact. Swapping laser weapons for rocket cannons requires shifting right into a hyper-saturated otherworld, whereas time will be slowed with a visit to the “noir dimension”, appropriately rendered in moody black and white. It’s out in early entry subsequent yr.
Good Boy
A relaxing-out Metroidvania the place you’re a Curiosity-style house rover, rolling round an exoplanet amassing funky bugs, and likewise your thoughts has been implanted from a deceased canine. This, and the truth that one in every of your wider aims is to search out and meet different pooch-brained rovers, had me briefly worrying that it might need an identical downside to A Storied Life: Tabitha in providing an unintentionally macabre tackle grief. However, finally, Good Boy is extra of a celebration of pets as they’re, slightly than how they have been, with the still-barking canine of Observer Interactive builders serving as inspiration for the rover solid. It’s obtained coronary heart, this, and a few brains too: tying development into researching and upgrading your chassis implies that the flexibility gating isn’t merely a matter of capturing the suitable insect.
Rogue Level
Unusually, for a recreation whose Steam blurb declares that “teamwork is the whole lot”, my demo of tactical roguelike FPS Rogue Level tasked me with clearing an oil rig of baddies all on my lonesome. Nonetheless, this did assist ratchet up the stress, which I can simply think about is tangible even with a squad of 4 – enemies are good sufficient with flanking and grenades that you just’re continuously stretched between corner-checking and the necessity to preserve transferring.
Since gathering intel pickups helps establish routes and secrets and techniques in subsequent runs, these additionally act as an all-too-tempting prize that each encourages and rewards dangerous manoeuvres past securing the important thing aims. I don’t know if I’ve it in me to persistently endure eight missions of such stresses in a row, as per Rogue Level’s customary deployments, however I respect the deviousness of the way it pushes and pulls you round its arenas.
Hell Let Free: Vietnam
Talking of stress, right here’s the ‘Nam-themed spinoff to infamously unforgiving WW2 shooter Hell Let Free. What occurs when that recreation’s huge 50 vs 50 multiplayer battles and near-instant deaths are transplanted to a time of computerized rifles and shut air assist? Terror, it seems. I by no means really obtained KIA’d however solely as a result of the fixed cracking of near-miss photographs so simply suppressed me again to the relative haven of a protecting shed.
I’m all the time a bit sceptical of large, dozens-per-side matches like this, which may really feel like a recreation is merely taking place round you. Even for those who attempt to make a much bigger affect than simply taking potshots from a hut. However then, Hell Let Free: Vietnam’s mixed arms strategy does enable for distinct roles, and the uneven high quality intrigues. You’d suppose the Yanks, with their tanks and gunships, would have the sting, however I’m advised Expression Video games needed to “nerf the tunnels” employed by the Viet Cong facet as they have been simply too efficient for shock assaults. Which is one thing Lyndon B. Johnson by no means thought to do.
Ninja Gaiden 4
To not downplay Staff Ninja’s function in their very own recreation, however watching director Masakazu Hirayama tear via Ninja Gaiden 4’s half-robot, half-demon wretches with hitherto-unflipped acrobatic aptitude made the affect of co-developers (and confirmed exaggeration fanatics) Platinum Video games look clear as day.
As Masakazu defined to me through translator, Ninja Gaiden 4 continues to be about mastering a toolbox of sharp-edged ninja instruments and utilizing them to de-limb monsters. Given the ten yr hole because the final mainline recreation, although, there’ll be some elective concessions to newcomers, like computerized guarding and dodging toggles. Conversely, there’s additionally a Grasp Ninja mode for consultants and/or masochists, with all aids completely turned off and enemies programmed to swarm you in packs. Will or not it’s all issues to all ninjas? We’ll discover out on October twenty first.
Past These Stars
We’re beforehand lined how this sci-fi citybuilder, by which your property base lies on prime of a colossal house whale, seems to reject the colonial assumptions that comparable technique video games take with no consideration. You solely decide on planets your folks had beforehand been displaced from, and taking too many liberties together with your piscine host will see it push again in methods a non-sentient atmosphere couldn’t. It’s the latter that I discovered most fascinating throughout my Gamescom demo, with the whale taking their polluting company to process in what is actually a sequence of disillusioned cosmic DMs. You possibly can reply with acceptance, defensiveness, or admissions of ignorance, and whereas our explicit chat led to an amicable settlement to do higher, pissing off the whale is a really actual danger. They might even begin disregarding your navigational cues, dragging your civilisation off target.
Lego Batman: Legacy of the Darkish Knight
I can see the attraction of Legacy of the Darkish Knight: flowing Arkham-style punch-ups framed by comedy plastic remixes of Batman’s much less horrible movies. It wants some technical work, although. The punching is ok in a Child’s First Brawler form of method, however gliding and grappling round a brick-built Gotham Metropolis lacks the smoothness that Rocksteady had all the way down to an artwork. And the Batmobile dealing with – I attempted the Robert Pattinson mannequin – feels terrible, like attempting to iron a shirt in entrance of an industrial electromagnet.
Turok: Origins
There are encouraging indicators from Turok: Origins that it might be greater than one other weak reboot. Thwipping arrows into dinosaurs is a reasonably timeless pleasure, and from what I’ve performed, Saber do look like threading the needle of constructing a Native American/indigenous energy fantasy with out breaking out any apparent stereotypes. All the identical, a lot of my demo performed like a dozen different co-op FPS video games already sitting in my Steam library, with so-so taking pictures – usually in opposition to simply common dudes, sans the dinos – and primary, drama-deprived aims. Bursts of pleasure come from the Mantles, super-suits with extra artistic skills and ultimates (like dumping a thousand hungry bugs down an enemy’s pants), however once more, class powers are hardly a novel idea.
Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival
I need to be upfront in saying that Hellraiser’s particular flavour of physique horror, all flayed pores and skin and impaled nipples, was and stays Not My Factor. It’s gross, as it’s in Revival, however not strictly scary. Neither is the stunning emphasis on fight, be it pistol headshottery or the slower melee duels in opposition to knifey cultists. Now, being pursued via the stony Labyrinth by a teleporting Chatterer, for no higher motive than he thought it’d be amusing and that he knew I couldn’t do a factor about it? That’s scary. Hopefully these moments of real terror don’t get misplaced among the many knife fights and squelchy stuff.
John Carpenter’s Poisonous Commando
Whereas Poisonous Commando is plainly having one other go on the ultra-dense horde shooter technique that’s beforehand served World Conflict Z and House Marine 2, it additionally borrows from a far much less predictable nook of Saber’s again catalogue: the weighty vehicular play of RoadCraft and MudRunner. And credit score the place it’s due, it really works. Nearly all of my favorite demo moments concerned our crew’s adopted 4×4 not directly, form, or kind, from ploughing via zombie crowds to winching open provide caches because the reward for a herd nicely killed. By the tip of the run, it actually did really feel just like the fifth member of the staff, and who would’ve anticipated that form of real attachment in a love letter to meathead 80’s motion flicks?
Romestead
Stardew Valley meets polytheistic mythology. I respect how brisk Romestead feels – wooden turns into buildings, and buildings turn into cities, at a clip that precludes prolonged spells of gathering sticks. And it’s the identical story with its extra adventurous facet: the trail from chopping down a number of stray undead to preventing an enormous demigod is remarkably quick. The precise Roman gods get entangled too, accepting prayers in alternate for boons, although I’d hope these get a bit extra thrilling additional up the tech tree. New constructing sorts are good however c’mon, Jupiter lad, you are able to do higher than that.
Flask
“Roguelite technique autobattler” combines three issues I’m barely fascinated with typing out, not to mention enjoying. Nonetheless, Flask showcased sufficient persona to make for a genuinely compelling demo, and never simply due to its impressively revolting hand-drawn artwork.
You play as a closely indebted alchemist, ordering homunculi into battle to reap the dear blood of slain monsters. Every homunculus (nice phrase) will be outfitted with 5 empowering flasks that they’ll chug on a timeline, with every bottle related to a specific factor. Stacking components in a row will add extra highly effective results, so there’s some difficult decision-making to do over whether or not to rearrange your flasks by their direct results or construct across the factor bonuses.
There’s additionally a neat asynchronous multiplayer factor, the place the sport’s bosses basically symbolize different gamers – you’ll battle their minions, full with the flasks they final had outfitted. There’s no price if ‘your’ alchemist loses a battle in another person’s recreation, however a pleasant, capitalistic leaderboard will preserve observe of who’s bringing dwelling essentially the most blood.
Daimon Blades
There’s quite a bit to say about Daimon Blades that doesn’t strictly pertain to what you do inside it – the truth that that is Streum On Studio’s first recreation since regaining independence, as an example, or the way it’s a distant prequel to sci-fi shooter E.Y.E.: Divine Cybermancy. All you actually need to know, nevertheless, is that this: you will be buddies with the swords.
Second to second, Daimon Blades is a Darktide/Vermintide-style, first-person melee slasher, albeit one adopting a roguelike construction over fastened missions. At this, it appears wonderful, if maybe a little bit overtuned in the direction of among the extra blade-resistant enemy sorts. It’s the claymore relationship-building that I stay most interested by: every blade is possessed by a demon, who’ll grant bonuses for involving it in superb bloodshed, or debuffs for those who disappoint it by dying quite a bit. Possibly it’s only a twist on typical weapon XP techniques, but it surely feels like a enjoyable one.
The Lonesome Guild
Borne of loneliness through the Covid pandemic, The Lonesome Guild is a family-friendly ARPG about forging bonds first and slapping dangerous guys second. Celebration members, who’re all launched struggling their very own model of enforced solitude, have to be approached and chatted to earlier than they’ll stage up, so farming XP received’t do a lot good except you may get them to open up across the campfire. The buddy system nonetheless performs into fight, thoughts, with alternatives for extra highly effective team-up specials between characters that improve as your friendship with them deepens.
It would look, and even sound, an excessive amount of on the kiddywink facet. However The Lonesome Guild’s battles do require some sound putting and dodging fundamentals, and since you may possess and management any of your buddies at will (they’re cool with it, apparently), there’s a good dynamism even with the simplicity of particular person character’s movesets.
Planet of Lana II: Youngsters of the Leaf
I wouldn’t name the unique Planet of Lana’s brevity a weak point, however Youngsters of the Leaf is certainly seeking to make the whole lot larger. Together with the puzzles – you’re nonetheless juggling the human Lana and cat-monkey companion Mui roughly concurrently, solely now Mui will be directed nearly anyplace on-screen, increasing the size of this sequel’s button-pushing, wire-cutting conundrums. Some, together with an underwater maze I needed to navigate with each Lana and a Mui-hypnotised fish, span a number of screens.
With larger measurement comes larger complexity, and I’m a contact involved that this might decelerate the tempo; one other power of the unique, the place you’d by no means get caught on an answer for lengthy. Nonetheless, I used to be by no means outright annoyed by the demo’s puzzles, and even when I used to be, a minimum of I’d have one other recreation’s value of pretty, painterly background artwork to take a look at as a substitute.
Heroes of Would possibly & Magic: Olden Period
I don’t suppose Olden Period is particularly making an attempt to entice non-strategists, however as somebody and not using a HoMM-playing bone in his physique… I didn’t hate enjoying Olden Period. In addition to the pure aesthetic qualities of its richly vibrant overworld and elaborate fantasy battle animations, navigating its completely different strategic layers – exploring, recruiting, constructing and so forth – proved comfortably frictionless.
I used to be nonetheless crap in fights, clearly being higher suited as a peacetime faction lord, although the brand new Area mode feels like an agreeable method of getting some apply in: it enables you to draft hodgepodge armies of items and magical artillery that you just could be hours off unlocking in your predominant marketing campaign. And I’m hardly ever in opposition to video games together with a ‘make motion figures battle’ mode.
Take a look at our Gamescom 2025 occasion hub for all of the PC recreation bulletins and preview protection from Cologne.
