10 BEST GAMESCOM 2025 LAUNCHES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

Europe's biggest gaming show had a stacked AAA lineup this year - but there were plenty of indie efforts you should probably wishlist as well...

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With E3 officially dead and buried, Cologne has become the new mecca for gamers – and you don't need a press pass to get in. Gamescom is the world's largest video-game event open to the public, and this was an especially big year.

Nintendo marked its return to the show after a few years away, letting visitors get their hands on lots of upcoming games for the Switch 2 – not to mention the console itself. This was one of two places you could trial the eagerly anticipated Hollow Knight: Silksong – the other being the Xbox booth, where it was running on Asus's new ROG Xbox Ally (more on that in this month's cover feature, from p39).

But there was a lot more to this Gamescom than that. Beyond the giant booths promoting big releases such as Borderlands 4 and Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater were hundreds of indie developers and foreign publishers looking to get themselves a foothold with European gamers.

Having trekked across the many halls for several days (and with a ridiculous step count saved to my iPhone as proof), here are my 10 highlights. They span beloved franchises from revered Japanese publishers to surprise hits from much smaller teams.

10 Onimusha: Way of the Sword

If you loved the look of Sekiro's swordplay but lacked the skill to master it, the return of Capcom's samurai slasher might be more up your street. There's a similar kind of stagger mechanic, where depleting the gauge prompts you to land a killing blow, but parry windows are more generous...as are the dodges, with more emphasis on just making you look badass. PS5, XSX, PC/2026

09 Super Meat Boy 3D