Although Gamescom 2024, and, more topically, Opening Night Live is already a week old, I was only able to watch it over the weekend as this week has been insanely busy for one reason or another. Then again, Gamescom wasn’t exactly on the top of my priorities as I really didn’t expect any blockbuster reveals from Opening Night Live anyway. Well, like I said, I did watch Opening Night Live, hosted by Geoff Keighley, and, while I will say the show was filled with a lot of “meh,” there were a few things that did catch my attention.
So, in no particular order, let’s go look at five of the most intriguing reveals of Gamescom 2024’s Opening Night Live show.
Although I do like playing video games, there are some genres that I’ve never really gotten into. I’ve never fallen in love with the entire “farming simulator” style of games. I’ve also never cared about most first person shooters, which does mean the new Call of Duty isn’t going to be on this list. I’ve also never understood why the “walking simulator” became huge hits. But, despite all of these things, We Harvest Shadows did pique my interest.
As described by David Wehle, the game’s lone creator and programmer, We Harvest Shadows is a “first person farming horror allegory” and it’s a weird mishmash of first person walking simulator, monster shooter and farming simulator. This is a mix of genres that shouldn’t work but, for some strange reason, the trailer makes the idea work.
There is a general lack of polish to the game, even in the trailer, but it’s forgivable being a very indie game as it’s only being made by one solitary person. In fact, it actually gives We Harvest Shadows kind of like a B-movie vibe, which can be endearing. While the trailer doesn’t really reveal if there’s an end goal or even a story to We Harvest Shadows, the concept is actually kind of brilliant and I’m hoping David Wehle can make it work.
I’ve been burned by Peter Molyneux before. He does come across as a guy with pretty big ideas when it comes to gaming but sometimes he tends to overreach so the final product never meets up with what he’s selling. However, that does tend to make me lean towards giving him more chances than normal as, at the very least, he’s trying to push the boundaries of how we play games. So, when Peter Molyneux joined Geoff Keighley to promote Masters of Albion, his latest god simulator game, I was willing to listen.
I will say the game looks lacking in a lot of areas. I would have to say it looks more like a mobile game rather than a full-fledged PC title. Even the combat where you take control of the hero looks janky! I will be generous and say maybe this is a very early build of the game but, once again, with Peter Molyneux, there’s always the expectation of being disappointed in the end. Even so, I do think the concept is good. The execution? Well, that’s another story, isn’t it?
Another gaming genre I don’t really play are all those MMORPGs. I used to play them way back when but, as Internet speeds in the world has improved, the Philippines is just catching up. So, playing something where having a good connection speed is imperative, like an MMORPG, has fallen by the wayside for me. Well, I do think my Internet at home is pretty adequate enough to actually get into one now. And I do believe Monster Hunter Wilds might be a good one to start with.
Even though I’m not a Monster Hunter fan since I’ve never played one before, I will say Monster Hunter Wilds deserves a lot of credit for making the game look incredible. The battle system looks pretty cool and, honestly, I’m glad they diversified the monsters here as all I kept on seeing were dragons and giant lizards. So, seeing a giant spider with a rose up his butt is a pretty unique and cool design that immediately caught my attention. I do hope there’s a good single player campaign involved though. Once again, I’ve never played a Monster Hunter game so I don’t know if the earlier games had one. Still, if I do get a chance, I might pick this one up.
I gotta hand it to Geoff Keighley as he’s out there hustling. Why do I say that? Because I really don’t believe there was a need to have a trailer for Black Myth: Wukong to have a trailer made for Gamescom’s Opening Night Live. I mean, the game is already out, sold a whopping ten million copies on its first day and is getting generally favorable reviews all around. Even with all of that, Geoff Keighley still had to play a new trailer for the game for Opening Night Live.
Even without the spiffy new trailer, Black Myth Wukong looks like a fabulous game to play. It may not be a Soulslike game based on what I’ve read but it still looks like a really good action-adventure game. Gameplay and combat look really good and, well, the graphics speak for themselves. The trailer may not have been necessary but I do appreciate the effort in making a really good one here.
#5 Mai Shiranui reveal for Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves
I know a lot of you are probably not as excited to see a new character for Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves as I am. But I am for a couple of reasons. For one, this is the first genuinely new character shown who wasn’t from Garou: Mark of the Wolves. Second, that new character is fan favorite (no pun intended) Mai Shiranui. Oh, there’s another reason and that she actually has a new outfit! After almost thirty years, the actually game Mai Shiranui an update costume. Sure, the original costume is still cool. But it’s also about time she got some new duds!
Aside from the sleek new outfit, it does seem like Mai Shiranui is going to play a whole lot like her previous iterations from the earlier Fatal Fury and King of Fighters games she’s appeared in as it appears she has most of her classic special moves… although I do think it was weird we never did see her throw her fan projectile in the trailer. Hopefully, that’s just an oversight there.
What was your favorite trailer shown during Gamescom 2024’s Opening Night Live? Let me know in the comments section below!
3rd World Geeks 