Gamescom 2025 was fairly the expertise. It was the yr that we lastly bought concrete launch dates for the long-awaited Hole Knight Silksong and Bloodlines 2, and the yr that World of Warcraft added participant housing. In some ways, it felt just like the present through which myriad gaming ‘free ends’ have been finally tied up, presumably to dodge the specter of GTA 6, however who cares? We received because of this. Whilst you all watched Opening Evening Stay from the consolation of your houses – possible judging Geoff Keighley’s totally mid footwear – myself and Jamie, two of PCGN’s intrepid reporters, have been operating round previewing video games and taking names (actually, there have been a variety of interviews). After three days of chaos, camaraderie, and a variety of espresso, listed here are their prime six video games of Gamescom, they usually could not be extra completely different.
You see, right here at PCGamesN we delight ourselves on our capability to cowl an enormous array of PC video games. Jamie is a FPS fiend, who spends his nights popping heads, clutching rounds, and, now and again, getting a recreation of EA Sports activities FC in. I, in contrast, am a narrative-driven RPG savant. My time is spent whiling away the hours exploring sprawling fantasy worlds, roleplaying as a vampire, or, on the uncommon (learn ‘not uncommon’) event, hurling abuse at different gamers in League of Legends. It is no shock, then, that our Gamescom picks are markedly completely different, though they’re nonetheless perhaps not fairly what you are anticipating.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2
Lauren Bergin: In a shock to utterly nobody, Bloodlines 2 was my recreation of the present. After ready a very long time to lastly catch a glimpse of the subsequent chapter of the long-lasting VTM saga, I’ve bought excessive hopes for the ultimate launch. Whilst you can learn my full ideas in my Bloodlines 2 preview, having performed the sport’s subsequent quest at Gamescom, the motion simply retains ramping up and the mysteries simply preserve spawning. Now that I do know a bit extra about Pandora, I must know the way she matches into this huge, sophisticated mess that Phyre’s stumbled into. There’s momentum and pleasure; I can style the blood on my tongue and I would like extra. Plus, the particular look from White Wolf’s model supervisor and LA By Evening’s Jason Carl was a welcome shock – nonetheless not completed fangirling, ask Jamie.
Phantom Blade Zero
Jamie Hore: I bought to expertise Phantom Blade Zero for the primary time at Summer time Recreation Fest earlier within the yr. The motion recreation, which finds a candy spot between martial arts-inspired hack-and-slash and soulslike fight, left an enormous impression on me then. Simply a few months later at Gamescom, I discovered myself going wild for it over again. A extra fleshed-out demo awaited me this time, permitting for some correct exploration, which included the reveal of one of the vital lovely world maps I’ve ever seen and a few primary however passable traversal. New weapons – and by affiliation, extra mouthwatering fight animations – have been additionally current. However the factor that received me over (once more) was an unbelievable boss struggle. Regardless of it being towards the identical boss I confronted throughout my SGF preview, a choice I made earlier within the demo added a brand new (and intensely difficult) wrinkle to the encounter that blew me away. I will not go into particulars to keep away from spoilers, nevertheless it’s an early indicator of the extent of element S-Recreation is including to Phantom Blade Zero, and regardless of over an hour of hands-on time, I genuinely did not wish to go away the sales space. If PBZ is not already in your radar, it actually must be.
Witchspire
Lauren: In stark distinction to the moodiness of Bloodlines 2, Envar Video games’ Witchspire is a colourful, magical fantasy survival recreation that takes the spirit of style stalwarts like Valheim and blends it with vibrant, Breath of the Wild-esque aesthetics. As a self-professed crafting hater, I wasn’t precisely wanting ahead to an hour of reducing down timber and cooking meals, however Witchspire’s forgiving mechanics and cute roster of cuddly, collectible critters makes even essentially the most boring of chores really feel fascinating. Whereas fantasy typically looks like it takes a again seat in different survival adventures, Witchspire has magic infused into its very soul, and I am unable to wait to play it when it launches subsequent yr.
Anno 117: Pax Romana
Jamie: I’ve performed a good few metropolis builders in my time, however for causes unknown to science, the beloved Anno sequence has handed me by. Nicely, Gamescom compiled 28 years of remorse into one neatly-packaged, one-hour demo. Thanks, Anno 117. The brand new entry takes place on the time of the Roman Empire, and I used to be given the possibility to attempt the brand new Albion map, which depicts a harsh however lovely Celtic area with dense forests, rocky mountains, and precarious marshlands. Whereas constructing my settlements, enterprise enterprises, and infrastructure was a satisfying, therapeutic problem, I used to be left significantly impressed by the brand new mechanic that allows you to resolve whether or not to culturally align with the Romans or the Celts. Do you drive the locals into a historically Roman lifestyle, altering the best way they costume and draining the swamps to create extra buildable land? Or do you embrace and settle for the Celts’ traditions by investing in produce they take pleasure in (like cheese, which I additionally occur to take pleasure in) and go away them to farm their sacred lands as they’ve finished for years? Anno 117 was my huge ‘nice shock’ of Gamescom, and I am extraordinarily eager to get again to Albion quickly.
Valor Mortis
Lauren: I can brazenly say that I did not fairly count on a soulslike recreation to make it onto my checklist, however lo and behold, One Extra Degree’s Valor Mortis has finished simply that. From the inventive minds behind Ghostrunner, certainly one of my favourite franchises ever, Valor Mortis is hard-as-nails, fusing the style’s conventional ducking, dodging, and parrying with sensible platforming, whereas additionally including weapons. Solid as William, a fallen soldier from Napoleon’s Grande Armée, you need to struggle by means of hordes of plague-ridden monsters on the behest of your former patron, who simply so occurs to be wittering away in your head (it’s best to in all probability get that checked). In a world the place each second recreation is a soulslike motion RPG, Valor Mortis has managed to face out from the group – and that actually is saying one thing.
Hell Let Free Vietnam
Jamie: A sequel that we definitely did not see coming, Hell Let Free Vietnam takes the hardcore, super-realistic battles of the primary recreation to Southeast Asia. Regardless of solely a brief quantity of hands-on time, the Hell Let Free hallmarks have been instantly obvious: exact gunplay that requires set off self-discipline; low ranges of well being forcing you to recurrently discover cowl and take sneaky, covert routes; and wonderful and immersive audio that significantly shone after I was pinned down in a tiny shack with enemy bullets whizzing by means of the window subsequent to me and clattering towards the partitions. I am additionally intrigued by a brand new balancing act between the army capabilities of the American and Vietnamese armies. If you happen to play on the US facet, you may get entry to highly effective helicopters that may transport troops and be kitted out with weapons. However to counter this, the Vietnamese are capable of construct networks of tunnels, permitting them to not solely take shelter underground but additionally transfer to new targets undetected. I am unable to wait to see how that shakes out.
In order that’s our checklist of one of the best PC video games of Gamescom 2025. With the Hole Knight Silksong launch date simply across the nook, and a complete slew of upcoming PC video games so as to add to your checklist, it’ll be a fantastic few years. Within the meantime, nonetheless, regulate PCGamesN for extra Gamescom previews and interviews, and ensure to inform us what your favourite reveal was on our Discord – the weirder the higher.
