These insider tips are the true highlights of Gamescom
"Ghost Hunting", "Ravioli Planet", and "Bad Magpie" don't ring a bell? It's high time we introduced you to the hidden highlights of this year's Gamescom.
My head is still buzzing from days of continuous audiovisual bombardment. Once again, Gamescom in Cologne has proven that it is not only the largest gaming trade fair in the world, but also the most important. We undertook epic marches through gigantic exhibition halls and crowds of people. By comparison, Frodo's struggles on the way to Mordor were a walk in the park. In addition to the major highlights, we played plenty of smaller games that we don't want to keep from you.
Philipp's Insider Tips:
«Ghost Haunting»
When a developer is called Three Headed Monkey Studios, you can guess what kind of games they develop. «Ghost Haunting» looks like it fell out of a 90s time capsule. Just like its great role model «Monkey Island», it relies on beautiful pixel art and plenty of humor. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to play the demo myself.
You take on the role of the bright 8-year-old girl Gigi, whose grandma Gundi recently passed away. But because this world contains things like demon-possessed talking pumpkins, toilet goblins, and ghost hunters, it is clear to Gigi that she can bring her grandma back from the dead.
The scenes shown are bursting with creativity, one character is quirkier than the next, and the puzzles promise just the right amount of brain-teasing fun. It seems perfect for retro fans, especially those with younger children, who hopefully won't be too inspired by the cheeky Gigi.
For all its retro charm, numerous modern conveniences are used, such as highlighting clickable objects, a hint system, and more, all of which can be customized. Exemplary.
When: 2027
Where: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Switch 2
«My Cannibal Family»
Perhaps the weirdest game I played: I am put into glowing slime and wake up as a monster – hungry for revenge and human flesh. So I do what any sensible monster would do: I build an amusement park. Unlike at Europa-Park, my attractions are deliberately crazy. In the demo, I design my park and pack it with traps. I hide a pressure trigger under a rug and connect it to a hammer that snaps down from above when visitors walk over it.
I gut corpses and breed new «employees» from them in my bathtub, to whom I can assign tasks. A wonderfully grotesque game idea with an exciting mix of tower defense, crafting, and action. Because I can also intervene in the action myself with melee and ranged weapons, and there is co-op too. Keep an eye on this one!
When: 2026
Where: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Switch 2
«Bad Magpie»
At the other end of the gaming spectrum is «Bad Magpie». A cute indie game in which I control a magpie with only one wing. Instead of flying, I hop around and do what magpies love to do: I follow my obsession with shiny objects. I stop at nothing to get them.
With my beak, I start fires on stones. This allows me to set entire meadows on fire to clear obstacles out of the way. By the time I find a megaphone and use it to scare other animals, the parallels to «Untitled Goose Game» are unmistakable. The game is bursting with charm, and the entertaining puzzles I use to unlock the next area feel motivating.
When: 2027
Where: Xbox Series X/S, PC
Domagoj's Insider Tips
«Alien Deathstorm»
My Gamescom award for the best name at the fair goes to «Alien Deathstorm». So simple. So good. It tells you everything you need to know about this trashy (I mean that as a compliment!) sci-fi horror game from Rebellion («Sniper Elite», «Atomfall»).
I play the technician of a space station on an alien planet. The station has been devastated by a disastrous mega-storm – only a few have survived. To make matters worse, all sorts of ugly alien critters are crawling around and want to get at me. In the roughly one-hour demo, I run around the station to reactivate a failed reactor. Similar to «Atomfall», the game doesn't give me clear instructions on where to go or how to solve a problem. I have to analyze the environment, think, and search.
I like the small details in the presentation. For example, I have to wipe my helmet regularly. Every exploding alien leaves bloodstains, and the raging storm makes dust and dirt stick to my visor.
Source: Rebellion
I don't have to worry about ammunition or resource scarcity. The main thing is to shoot. However, the action doesn't always feel quite right – especially the smaller alien critters annoy me with extremely small hitboxes and movements that are too fast. But hey, Rebellion still has time to tweak the gunplay before release.
When: Spring 2027
Where: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
«Scritchy Scratchy»
Do you like scratching off lottery tickets? Then «Scritchy Scratchy» is the game for you. This strange title belongs to the genre of incremental games. Meaning: I start by doing tedious tasks, collect resources, and use them to unlock automations and other bonuses that allow me to collect exponentially more resources. The best-known example in this category is «Cookie Clicker».
In the case of «Scritchy Scratchy», I start as a dishwasher. Using the mouse, I move a sponge over dirty plates, scrub away the dirt, and earn a minimum wage for my drudgery.
Once I've collected enough money, I unlock the option to buy lottery tickets. These have to be scratched off manually with a virtual coin. If I lose too much money gambling, I have to go back to the dishwashing job. As my winnings increase, I unlock gadgets like the scratch robot, which I feed with tickets. While I scratch manually, the robot continues to scratch automatically in the background. Or I unlock a larger coin that lets me scratch faster. Or I permanently increase my chances of winning on the tickets with a buff.
Source: Funday Games
I only played for 20 minutes, but I'm already addicted to scratching. At Gamescom, I tested the as-yet-unreleased Switch 2 version – including mouse control with the Joy-Con 2 controller. When the title will appear on Nintendo's handheld is still unclear. If you want to start scratching immediately, you can already do so on Steam, iOS, or Android.
When: available now
Where: PC, Mobile, Switch 2 (date not yet known)
«Cronos: Lazarus»
It always makes me sad when excellent games don't get the recognition they deserve. One such game is «Cronos: The New Dawn».
In my review last year, I called the game a «nearly perfect horror masterpiece». Not many critics shared this opinion.
Now the Polish developer studio Bloober Team is back with an expansion. «Cronos: Lazarus» is supposed to be significantly more action-packed and faster. A developer tells me that I can imagine the difference like this: the main game is like «Resident Evil 2» and the expansion is like «Resident Evil 4».
I slip into the role of a «Warden» – an elite agent of the mysterious «Collective» that I got to know in the main game. The Warden knows the post-apocalyptic Polish world of New Dawn inside and out. For him, the ruins are a playground where he can use his deadly gadgets. These include a new teleportation ability as well as a holographic decoy that confuses enemies.
Unfortunately, the Gamescom demo was far too short to draw an initial conclusion about the more aggressive playstyle. However, what I saw makes me curious. I hope that despite more action, Bloober maintains the oppressive horror atmosphere of «Cronos: The New Dawn». And if you haven't played the main game yet: definitely catch up on it!
When: sometime in 2027
Where: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2, PC
Kevin's Insider Tips
«Forge of the Fae»
Man, that looks awesome. «Forge of Fae» is totally my thing. A JRPG in 2D pixel art like in the best days of the Super Nintendo and Playstation 1. The game from a solo developer is inspired by «Final Fantasy IV». The developer, formerly active in the AI industry, is making the game for his daughter. She was so sad after the end of «FFIV» that he wants to give her another game of this kind. The graphic style is reminiscent of the great «Sea of Stars», and in terms of gameplay, it goes in the direction of the equally brilliant «Chained Echoes».
In a half-hour session, I play the beginning of the game. I explore a mine as Macklin. As is typical for the genre, there are many convoluted paths to explore. The turn-based battles take place in a fixed order. I can fill up a bar by attacking and taking hits, which I can use to perform specific abilities. Macklin, for example, gathers his strength, which makes his attacks stronger and can stagger enemies.
After I am attacked and cornered by an oversized wild boar, I take on the role of Fiora. She wakes up from a restful sleep and sets off in search of Macklin. In doing so, I first go through a forest dungeon. Here I experience the day progressing. «Forge of the Fae» has a day-night system. At night, I encounter other, stronger enemies. As soon as I have found Macklin, we fight the wild boar together. That ends my session. I am looking forward to the finished game. It is supposed to take about 20 hours. Cool, I like shorter JRPGs.
When: sometime in 2027
Where: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Luca's Insider Tips
«Rollercoaster Tycoon: Wonderworks»
«Rollercoaster Tycoon» was the first game I was truly addicted to as a child – my mother, by the way, too. That's probably the reason why she has kept her hands off computer games ever since. That, or «Rollercoaster Tycoon» was just a damn good game. I was accordingly skeptical about «Wonderworks»: Does it really need a remake? You can still play the original on Steam. After an hour at Gamescom, my answer is: apparently so.
The indie studio Springloaded, which has about 35 employees, is strongly oriented towards the first two parts, without just rebuilding them to look prettier. The slightly pixelated graphics, the tiny plastic figures, even the icons feel immediately familiar. At the same time, «Wonderworks» turns up the wonderfully absurd sandbox humor of the original to the max. I can build rollercoasters whose cars shoot off the tracks, make a pirate ship swing so fast that it does loops, or make employees work faster with free energy drinks – after which, however, they have to go to the toilet twice as often.
The best part: During my demo, Springloaded boss James Barnard stands next to me and is as happy as a little child at every bit of such nonsense. At some point, I realize that I feel the same way. Suddenly I'm the little kid again who can barely see over Dad's desk. Only today I know: for every bad rollercoaster, there is a good lawyer (you can hire one of those in «Wonderworks» too!).
When: Winter 2026/27 (Early Access)
Where: PC, consoles
«Alien: Isolation 2»
The predecessor from 2014 is still considered one of the best «Alien» games to this day. Twelve years later, not only is the same studio working on the sequel with Creative Assembly, but the same Creative Director, Al Hope, is also on board. After 30 minutes at Gamescom, I understand why fans have waited so long for this sequel.
My demo begins as Blake on a storm-lashed planet. Rain pelts my face, thunder rumbles through the landscape, and somewhere there is a spaceship wreck. Of course, I go inside. Of course, that's a shitty idea. Not ten minutes later, the Xenomorph appears, and exploration turns into a merciless game of cat and mouse.
The beast follows no discernible pattern. Sometimes I hear its footsteps on the left, then on the right, suddenly above me. If I run, it finds me. If I sneak, maybe too. So I peer around every corner, listen for every sound, and crawl through vents while desperately looking for the exit. I die several times. By the end of my session, I don't even make it out of the damn wreck.
Afterwards, I write to my colleagues that I will probably never play «Alien: Isolation 2» again. I mean, imagine it: in the evening, alone, and with a headset – no way. That is probably the greatest compliment I can give a horror game.
When: unknown
Where: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Switch 2
«Saw: Genesis»
Apparently, I decided at Gamescom to make horror games my insider tips of all things. After «Alien: Isolation 2», then «Saw: Genesis» – an asymmetrical 3-vs-1 horror game that takes place about 100 years before the films. Three «Accused» try together to escape the deadly trials. The fourth plays the «Judge». With us, this role is taken by one of the developers, who visibly enjoys torturing us.
The procedurally generated levels follow a macabre cycle: we search corridors for clues, tools, and weapons, defuse traps, and solve puzzles to open the next door. Meanwhile, the Judge makes our lives hell. Once, he grabs me and puts me in a death machine that is about to rip off my lower jaw. My colleagues could save me. Takes too long for me. So I choose the faster solution and let all my fingers be ripped off my hand one by one. Tendon by tendon.
With that, I am free, but I didn't get away unscathed: for the rest of the session, my fingerless hand hurts so much when handling tools and traps that I have to take breaks again and again. That noticeably slows me down. A wonderfully nasty mechanic because it fits «Saw» perfectly: no one gets out of here without sacrifice.
After three such puzzle rooms, our half hour is over. «Saw: Genesis» is intense, tactical, and as bloodthirsty as it should be for «Saw». I especially like the London of the 1920s: the dirty corridors and sadistic trials exude a wonderfully eerie Jack-the-Ripper vibe. Together with the idea of telling a kind of prequel to Jigsaw's murderous philosophy, this could be exciting, especially for fans of the films.
When: End of 2026 (Early Access)
Where: PC
Michelle's Insider Tips
«Ravioli Planet»
I took this Swiss game to my heart immediately thanks to its cute artwork. The hand-drawn cozy game lets me immerse myself in the tasty world of ravioli. As an elderly lady, I conjure up ravioli menus for my customers from delicious recipes. With a mouse click, I carry out every cooking step, from boiling water to roasting onions to packaging and selling the dumplings. And because I want to be inspired again and again, I drive my food truck all over the world to learn new recipes.
When: sometime in 2028
Where: PC, consoles
«Crowfish»
This shooter adventure deserves attention for its absurd backstory alone: I am a cute crow who meets a magic frog. He needs my help: flying fish are spawning everywhere in his environment. I am supposed to kill them with my still sparse arsenal of weapons and collect their souls. From the collected fish souls, I treat myself to absurd weapon upgrades to pass the next levels.
It turns out: the magic frog can't actually do magic, and the fish are a failed experiment by some cats. So my dexterity and tactics are urgently needed to cleanse the world of the fish. But be careful: they come from all sides, and different weapons are useful in every level.
When: unknown
Where: PC, consoles
As a child, I wasn't allowed to have any consoles. It was only with the arrival of the family's 486 PC that the magical world of gaming opened up to me. Today, I'm overcompensating accordingly. Only a lack of time and money prevents me from trying out every game there is and decorating my shelf with rare retro consoles.
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