Gamescom 2021 Opening Night Live will be a 2-hour showcase

Gamescom 2021 will kick off in three weeks with a two-hour Opening Night Live showcase.

Producer and host Geoff Keighley said on Wednesday that the event will provide “a new look at this holiday’s biggest upcoming video games and what lies beyond”.

2020’s Gamescom Opening Night Live attracted over two million simultaneous viewers, representing a fourfold increase compared to the previous year.

Gamescom 2021’s main event days will take place from August 26-27, following the Opening Night Live showcase.

Major game publishers recently confirmed their participation in this month’s event including Xbox, EA, Sega and Activision.

The full list of confirmed “top international companies” includes 505 Games, Activision, Aerosoft, Assemble Entertainment, Astragon Entertainment, Bandai Namco, Bethesda, Electronic Arts, Gamevil Com2us Europe, Headup, Indie Arena Booth, Koch Media, NExT Studios (Tencent Games), Sega Europe, Team17, Thunderful Games, Ubisoft, Wargaming and Xbox.

In addition, the above companies will be joined by 80 “curated top indie titles”, according to Gamescom organisers Koelnmesse and the German Games Industry Association.

Gamescom 2021 will be an all-digital event for the second year running after its organisers abandoned plans to stage a hybrid show combining digital elements with on-site events due to restrictions around the Covid-19 pandemic.