Summer Game Fest 2024: all the news, trailers, and announcements

Microsoft is back with another Xbox Games Showcase this year, and this time around, there’s a Call of Duty direct straight after the main show. This is Microsoft’s first Xbox Games Showcase to feature games from across Activision, Blizzard, Bethesda, and Xbox Game Studios, as well as third-party titles.

I think this is going to be a big Xbox showcase, with a runtime that could approach the two-hour mark. Get ready for new game reveals, lots of release dates, and some potential surprises.

Despite its cozy appearance, Wholesome Direct 2024 is actually shaping up to be the most packed event of Summer Game Fest. The hour-long presentation featured more than 70 different games. Some were brand-new announcements, some were previously known games that got a fresh trailer or release date, and a handful of titles even launched during the event.

Now, 70 is a large number, so to help, I’ve curated the games that stood out to me the most. You can also watch the full presentation right here to soak in every detail. Even better: many of the games have demos on Steam that you can check out. Anyway, here are my picks, in no particular order.

Devolver Digital’s keynote events tend to be, let’s say, unique. And the publisher’s presence at Summer Game Fest 2024 was no exception. Like last year, Devolver focused on just a handful of really interesting indie games, which ranged from a game about fighting through an interdimensional catastrophe to an expansion that somehow makes Cult of the Lamb even weirder. There was both a first-person kicker and a thirst-person shooter. If you missed it live, here are all the reveals.

A slick side-scrolling action game from the creators of Solar Ash and the Hyper Light games, Possessor looks absolutely gorgeous. It also sounds like it’ll be plenty challenging. Here’s the official setup:

The Day of the Devs showcase hosted by iam8bit is, to me, far more exciting than the main Summer Game Fest presentation. While it is fun to get hyped for the big releases, Day of the Devs represents something more concrete. The games featured get their own mini-spotlights with developer commentary and gameplay videos. It gives viewers a clearer picture of what these games are about, especially compared to the seconds-long (and apparently exorbitantly expensive) sizzle reels or teaser trailers shown during the Keigh-3 keynote. My only problem, though, is that there are a lot of games to get excited about, making it hard to narrow it down to the 10 best.

Rock climbing isn’t my thing. In fact, it looks terrifying, and that terror is what makes Cairn look so interesting. In Cairn, you must reach the summit of Mount Kami one piton at a time. You can climb anywhere, but just like in real mountain climbing, you’ll often face sheer walls and unpassable overhangs that force you to find another way up. One of the things I was immediately drawn to was the way the character’s legs shake as they climb, giving the game an air of urgency and danger that I want to experience for myself.

Riot’s tactical shooter Valorant has been a PC-exclusive since it launched in 2020 — but that’s changing very soon. The developer has finally provided some details on the console version of the game, which will be available in a limited beta on the PS5 and Xbox Series X / S starting on June 14th. You can register right here. The beta will be limited to the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Europe, and Japan, and Riot says that it will be “possibly rolling out to remaining global regions shortly thereafter.” There’s no word on when a full launch might happen.

Riot says the console versions of Valorant feature “custom-built gameplay” and that crossplay between console and PC will not be available for competitive reasons. That said, the game will support cross-progression if you choose to play on both PC and console, meaning your skins and progression will carry over between platforms.

The title sequence for the Among Us animated series made its debut during the Summer Game Fest on Friday. During the sneak peek, we got a glimpse at each of the characters and their various roles aboard the Skeld.

We first heard about the Among Us series last year, which is made in collaboration with CBS Studios, Among Us developer Innersloth, and Titmouse, the animation studio behind Big Mouth and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

It’s been a long wait, but the next Civilization has finally been revealed. At the main Summer Game Fest keynote, publisher 2K officially announced Civilization 7, the first new entry in the strategy series since 2016. We didn’t get any real details or actual gameplay, but instead a very brief teaser trailer that looked a lot like, well, Civilization. But there’s one thing we do know: the game won’t be launching until 2025. And it’s coming to a number of platforms, with the launch planned for PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch.

More details will be coming in August, according to 2K, with a “full gameplay showcase.”