The New Game Plus Guide To Not-E3 2022
June 8, 2022
Written by Jamie Galea
It’s the most wonderful time of the year if you like video game announcements, feasting on cringe, genuine excitement and overall hype. That’s right, it’s E3…except not really, since E3 isn’t actually happening in the year of our lord 2022.
However, we’re at the point of the year where video games are usually set to be announced, because if Nintendo Directs and the current state of the world have shown us, there’s clearly no other time they could possibly be shown off. So even though we don’t have E3 in an official capacity, we still have a whole heap of showcases for the week E3 should’ve been held in. So with that, we have the event that we’re dubbing Not-E3.
Where last year saw an absurd amount of presentations from what felt like anyone who had something to show, Not-E3 has a significantly paired down showing from partners and publishers. There’s still plenty of showings from respected names and returning partners, so no matter what you’re into, there’s bound to be something to get keen for.
However, those of you expecting Nintendo to drop a surprise Direct or Ubisoft to bring their yearly dosage of press conference cringe will be disappointed. Yet this could change as we’re leading up to the first press conferences of the week, and we’ll be sure to update this post if any new events get announced.
So with all that said, here’s what you can expect to possibly wake up to over the next few days.
SUMMER GAMES FEST – 10 June, 4:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
The week of press conferences kicks off with the only man allowed to announce video games: Geoff Keighley. You might know him from The Game Awards, or Gamescomm Opening Night, or a million other things that he’s attached to.
Summer Games Fest has been kicking around for the last couple of years, with this being the third year of its existence. The event has matured from being this spread out series of announcements and events to being a lot more focused and a precursor of what’s to come from the Keighley stage later in the year.
This year, like last, Geoff Keighley will host Summer Games Fest Live!, a show with a variety of announcements, but will also feed into Day of the Devs, a indie game stream co-hosted by Double Fine & iam8bit. It kicks off from 4AM on day, setting the tone for how early you’ll need to wake up to catch most of these events live.
What to Expect: Seeing how long it’ll take for you to get sick of the words “World Premiere”.
DEVOLVER DIGITAL – 10 June, 8:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
If there’s anything you can say about Devolver’s E3 showings, they’re never boring. They’re tightly paced, audacious in the way you expect them to be, and usually have a few genuine surprises along the way. With the promise of this years show being hosted by Mecha Suda51 (who to be clear, is not the actual Suda51), and themed around pre-show countdowns, it should be a treat.
What to expect: Among all the batshit insane things, plus the continuing saga of Nina Struthers? Checking a look at the new Monkey Island game.
TRIBECA GAMES SPOTLIGHT – 11 June, 5:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
By far the most unique of the streams happening this week, the Tribeca Games Showcase runs as part of the Tribeca Festival, an iconic film festival co-founded by Robert De Niro. Unlike every other event where the games to be showcased are a mystery, the festival is upfront as to the nine games it’ll be showcasing.
Not only are there some exciting games being showcased, but you’ll even have a chance to actually play demos of these games from home via Parsec, which does require booking a session, but it sounds like a novel enough idea to at least try.
What To Expect: Rats, animation throwbacks and so much more.
GUERILLA COLLECTIVE – 12 June, 1:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
If you’re after more indie games after Day of the Devs, the Guerilla Collective is the stream for you. Debuting in 2020, Guerilla Collective’s unique selling point is that their events are multi-day affairs, and that also goes with their streams. This year, they’ll have a stream in the midst of the action, and a smaller stream on 14 June at 6:00AM AEST.
I’m all for another high profile showcase of indie wares, especially those that can’t get a place either as a full segment or a sizzle reel on one of the bigger shows. I don’t know if waking up at the ungodly hour of 1AM for this would be worth it, but you do you.
What to expect: Some cool games you might not have heard of!
WHOLESOME GAMES DIRECT– 12 June, 2:30AM AEST (Watch Here!)
One of two shows to debut last year to debut and still continue into 2022, the Wholesome Games Direct is pretty much what it says on the tin: highlighting lesser known games that are “wholesome”. What that means is that it’s a showcase for games that are chill, heavily into *vibes*, and possibly featuring people or animals that are cute, you get the idea.
It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I think it’s still cool that there’s a publicized showcase of games that are exclusively about a specific theme and completely free of violence. Again, whether or not that’s worth waking up at the ungodly hour of 2:30AM, is up to you.
What to expect: lots of pastel colours and low poly models
FUTURE GAMES SHOW – 12 June, 5:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
The aptly titled Future Games Show (hosted by Future Publishing, who own websites and magazines such as Edge, Games Radar, plus more) is the longest running media organized show dedicated to announcing new games or updates to games.
It’s always been a solid showing of games that you might’ve missed from some of the other shows, plus a few smaller surprises. I don’t think it’s essential viewing, especially compared to some of the other shows, but if you need a refresher on some games you’ve missed, this could help. That, or after the double header of Guerilla Collective & Wholesome Games, you’ve got a want to see some bigger budgeted titles.
What to expect: some games you’ve seen before!
XBOX & BETHESDA SHOWCASE – 13 June, 3:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
Arguably one of the biggest, if not the, biggest showcases of the week is Xbox & Bethesda. Their shows have always been a bit hit or miss for me, but I’ve never really regretted watching them. This year will be particularly interesting as two of Bethesda’s games, Starfield & Redfall, recently got delayed into 2023, so Xbox needs to show something big coming to their console this year.
This one’s on at the brutal time of 3AM AEST, but also happens to fall on the Queens Birthday public holiday for every state and territory barring QLD & WA. So if you’re wanting to catch this one live and you’re feeling brave enough to do so, this is one of the ones I think will be worth staying up for.
A second stream was also recently announced for the Wednesday following this showcase, so if you’re after more Xbox & Bethesda goodness that just couldn’t fit into the main show for whatever reason, consider that as another potential 3AM wakeup.
What to expect: At the barest minimum, lots of games coming to Xbox Game Pass.
PC GAMING SHOW – 13 June, 5:30AM AEST (Watch Here!)
While PC games are technically shown throughout these events, there’s only one show dedicated to showcasing nothing but PC games, and that’s the creatively named PC Gaming Show. Helmed by Future Publishing’s PC Gamer, it’s been one of the longer running showcase events over the last few years, and one of the more consistent ones too, quality wise.
I’ve never usually found it the most compelling show to watch, but it’s a decent show for announcements and a few genuine surprises. After all, this is the show where Sega announced that Persona 4 Golden was finally leaving its Vita prison.
What to expect: Some cool games that may or may not have some exclusivity to everyone’s favourite PC gaming storefront, the Epic Games Store.
CAPCOM – 14 June, 8:00AM AEST (Watch Here!)
After a less than stellar debut show last year, Capcom are back with another showcase of their upcoming wares. This year, Capcom are putting the expectation out that they’ll be spending 35 minutes focusing on announced games.
With Street Fighter 6 already extremely well documented at this point, and Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak coming out at the end of the month, it wouldn’t be a bad time to hear more about Exoprimal or, if the heavens truly align, whatever the hell Pragmata is…
What To Expect: No word on Dragons Dogma 2, although I’d like to be proven wrong. Maybe Capcom resurrects Resident Evil Re-Verse? Remember that?
It’s sure to be a wild and weird few days, so here’s to some cool announcements and anything worth waking up at stupid o’clock for.
