Summer Game Fest 2023 is happening today! Geoff Keighley's gaming extravaganza is kicking off at 12PM PT / 3PM ET / 8PM BST / 9PM CET on YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, and even on TikTok.
The event is lined up on the E3 2023 schedule with a run time of around two hours.
Keighley has said to expect new game reveals, updates, announcements, and developer interviews to drop over the course of the show. It's usually a big event, so we're excited to see what new games for 2023 and beyond are unveiled.
What time is Summer Game Fest 2023?
The Summer Game Fest start time is at 12PM PT / 3PM ET / 8PM BST / 9PM CET.
So let's count down to the big showcase by running through some of the things we expect to see, and some that we really hope make an appearance. It's Sam here again from the very sunny UK today to get excited with you.
If Geoff's hype trailer is anything to go by, this could be quite an explosive show. Alan Wake 2, Cyberpunk, Hellblade 2, Crash Bandicoot, and more can be seen here!
Thursday, #SummerGameFest streams LIVE!Here's the hype trailer edited by @geoffkeiglhey to get us in the mood.Thanks to @depechemode Watch SGF live LIVE starting at 3p ET / Noon PT / 9p CEST from YouTube Theater, with SGF events continuing all weekend long. pic.twitter.com/SbzjLQw5fiJune 4, 2023
Geoff has confirmed that he has over 40 partners for Summer Game Fest. It's not entirely clear whether all of them will have a presence at today's showcase, but the thought of 40 announcements over the course of a two-hour show is not inconceivable.
What we 100% do know is going to make an appearance though is the major expansion for Cyberpunk 2077. Known as Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty. , developer CD Projekt Red has said it'll "start talking about Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty this June", with the first hands-on previews for the DLC available for press at the Summer Game Fest Play Days. GamesRadar+ will obviously be in attendance and are very excited to see what's going down in Night City.
Phantom Liberty will be taking us to an entirely new location in Night City, which I'm so excited to see. Fans are suggesting it'll be the Pacifica Combat Zone, but that's not actually been confirmed, but if that is true it's one of the most dangerous areas of the city. It's actually walled off from the rest of Pacifica!
Keanu's back for the Phantom Liberty DLC reprising his role as Johnny Silverhand, with the John Wick star stating that it's "awesome to be back playing the role of Johnny, and I hope you're excited to see him rocking out once more in the dark future".
But, Reeves is joined by Idris Elba too, who's joining the Cyberpunk 2077 world as Solomon Reed, an FIA Agent who's working for the NUSA. That's particularly interesting as this DLC is described as a "spy-three" where we'll be taking on an espionage mission.
Mortal Kombat 1 is another game guaranteed to make an appearance at the Summer Game Fest, with Netherrealm promising a first look at the game in action. And I don't know about you, but I'm ready to see what level of ultra-violence can be unlocked by the power of the PS5 and Xbox Series X.
What'll be key to watch out for is how Mortal Kombat 1 is navigating the decision to not remake the original game but reboot the timeline, meaning that old favorite characters will potentially sport new rivalries, costumes, and movesets. Then again, so long as Sub Zero can still rip spines I don't care all that much about the story.
It's easy to forget, but Mortal Kombat is the best-selling fighting game franchise of all time, with MK11 among the most profitable in the franchise's history. What does that mean? It means that whether you like fighting games or not, this gameplay reveal for Mortal Kombat 1 is guaranteed to be one of the biggest showcases of the night.
Another title that's going to get a spot in the showcase line-up is Remedy's Alan Wake 2. Sam Lake, Remedy creative director, will be taking to the stage to give us "the first look at raw gameplay". The game recently got an October 17 release date at the PlayStation Showcase, where it also revealed it would have a second playable protagonist in FBI Agent Saga Anderson.
According to Remedy, Saga's "a profiler with a reputation for solving impossible cases with uncanny leaps of logic", and is a newcomer to the Pacific Northwest who's here to investigate a series of ritualistic murders. But, as the latest trailer hints, she's about to find herself in the middle of a horror story.
And on that note, I'm going to investigate some lunch! Be back in an hour folks.
I'm back with a full belly and gently sun-bronzed from the garden, so let's go back into it!
As a reminder, here's a rundown of the Summer Game Fest schedule after Keighley's showcase later today:
-
Day of the Devs
Date: June 8
Time: 2PM PDT / 5PM EDT / 10PM BST -
Devolver Digital
Date: June 8
Time: 3PM PDT / 6PM EDT / 11PM BST -
Tribeca Games Spotlight
Date: June 9
Time: 12PM PDT / 3PM EDT / 8PM BST -
Wholesome Direct
Date: June 10
Time: 9AM PDT / 12PM EDT / 5PM BST -
Future Games Show
Date: June 10
Time: 10AM PDT / 1PM EDT / 6PM BST -
Xbox Games Showcase / Starfield Direct
Date: June 11
Time: 10AM PDT / 1PM EDT / 6PM BST -
PC Gaming Show
Date: June 11
Time: 1PM PDT / 4PM EDT / 9PM BST -
Ubisoft Forward
Date: June 12
Time: 10AM PDT / 1PM EDT / 6PM BST -
Capcom Showcase
Date: June 12
Time: 3PM PDT / 6PM EDT / 11PM BST
Also, can we take a minute to appreciate how badass Idris looks in this Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty tease?
