At Summer Game Fest 2024, we saw a ton of impressive games – both well-known favourites and new ones that are now on the radar. Along with extensive gameplay reveals for Monster Hunter Wilds and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, we’ve also got some hands-on time with knockout titles like Phantom Blade Zero, Path of Exile 2, and Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, which rounded out the showcase happening in Los Angeles.
Since the end of E3, Summer Game Fest and the other adjoining events surrounding it have been slowly but surely making the summer period something to anticipate for new games once again. In this roundup, we’re highlighting several games from Summer Game Fest 2024 and its partnership with Day of the Devs that made a significant impression on us at the show.
Here’s our rundown of the most exciting games we saw during Summer Game Fest 2024.
Our favourites from Summer Game Fest 2024
Monster Hunter Wilds
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: TBD 2025
Monster Hunter Wilds looks like the massive, open-world experience the series has been slowly building toward. After the huge breakthrough the franchise had with 2018’s Monster Hunter Worlds and the following Monster Hunter Rise showing off more advanced traversal options with mounts, the next game expands upon the scope and thrills of the series in a big way – all while plunging the player further into the experience of being a hunter adapting to a changing environment.
The early gameplay from Monster Hunter Wilds at Summer Game Fest showcased a more open and seamless experience – moving away from the fragmented, expedition-style excursions on which the series has been largely built. In Wilds, you’ll have more of a sense of freedom with how you take on hunts, many of which can be picked up while exploring the different zones. These zones see various weather and environmental changes that shift the types of monsters and collectibles that can be found.
Capcom’s next entry in their popular action series was one of the most impressive games we saw during Summer Game Fest, and Wilds looks to be the kind of ambitious next-level upgrade that the series has been building toward.
Read: Monster Hunter Wilds preview – Beauty, brutality, and birbs
UFO 50
Developer: Mossmouth
Release Date: September 18, 2024
Coming from a collective of developers who’ve worked on Spelunky, Downwell, and Time Barons, UFO 50 is a bizarre and incredibly clever tribute to the 8-bit era of gaming. As a collection of retro games made by the fictional developer UfoSoft, the package features 50 games that span across different genres like platformers, classic ‘shmups, puzzles, side-scrolling beat-em-ups, Metroid-style action games, and even retro roguelikes.
Each game has its own style and unique gameplay twist that ties it into the larger package, which reveals a more extensive narrative message the more games you play. UFO 50 has been a long time coming, and it’s finally making its release later this year – giving retro fans and recent gamers a chance to explore a wild ride back into gaming’s early years.
Marvel Rivals
Developer: Netease Games
Full Release Date: TBD 2024
It’s totally fair to sum up Marvel Rivals as an Overwatch-style multiplayer game with Marvel characters on its roster. However, what Marvel Rivals is especially great at is leaning into that superhero fantasy for its 6v6 battles that really taps players to find the right synergies with their ragtag squad of Marvel heroes and villains.
Playing as the Punisher, Groot, and Black Panther, I was able to dive into some fierce battles against the likes of Magneto, Loki, and Storm that showed a lot of clever use of skills to create choke points against the enemy team and line up some stylish ultimate attacks. Marvel Rivals places some of comic-book history’s most well-loved characters into a multiplayer action game, and it does so in a way that’s both fun and creative. Now that Summer Game Fest has finished, I can’t wait to play more once the closed beta goes out later this summer.
Harmonium: The Musical
Developer: The Odd Gentlemen
Release Date: TBD 2024
The type of whimsy and good vibes you get from Harmonium: The Musical is not something you see often from adventure games these days, which made it a striking addition to Summer Game Fest. In a style and tone similar to a Disney animated movie, Harmonium focuses on the story of Melody, a young deaf musician who gets transported to a magical world, and she’ll have to use sign language and her talents for music to communicate with new friends to find a way home.
Developer The Odd Gentlemen, previously helming the King’s Quest remake, worked with creatives from the deaf communities to make an accessible adventure game that helps bridge the gap between deaf and hearing audiences. Playing Harmonium is an adventure game with the added focus on using American sign language to communicate and with the good vibes of a musical theatre to keep the energy and good vibes going. It’s a really clever and charming adventure game with a lot of heart, and it’s worth keeping an eye on as it releases later this year.
Flock
Developer: Hollow Ponds
Release Date: July 16, 2024
If Journey was about exploring a lonely world full of mystery, then Flock from Annapurna Interactive is all about exploring a world full of weird characters and animals to meet up with. As a semi-open world flying game, you play as a shepherd on a flying mount, gathering roaming critters to add to their growing flock.
As a game about the cosy side of exploration, Flock leans into the joy of discovering weird animals and friends hidden around the world. It’s a really chill game that makes flying through a colourful and stylish world endearing and very relaxing, and I couldn’t get enough of just seeing what odd sights to uncover while enjoying it at Summer Game Fest.
Replaced
Developer: Sad Cat Studios
Release Date: TBD 2024
Sad Cat Studios’ Replaced is a stylish and moody action game that feels equal parts Cyberpunk 2077 and the classic adventure game Full Throttle. Taking on the role of a rogue AI trapped in a human body, you have to contend with being thrust into the real world among other humans, navigating the complex web of social interactions while also learning how to fight against thugs and scavengers hiding out in the city.
Mixing the storytelling of a classic adventure game with the gameplay of a 2D action-brawler, it really showcases a vibrant and living world to explore that’s filled with a lot of danger. I couldn’t help but admire just how slick the 2.5D visuals were, which really pulls you into its stunning sci-fi world – a definite standout from Summer Game Fest.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Developer: BioWare
Release Date: Fall 2024
It’s really exciting to see developer BioWare head back to its roots by making a single-player role-playing game with Dragon Age: The Veilguard – formerly titled Dreadwolf. At Summer Game Fest, I got to see an extended preview of the game’s opening prologue, which showed returning characters Varric and Harding teaming up with a new protagonist named Rook as they try to stop Solas from completing a dark ritual which is tearing the city apart. Along with some classic role-playing character creation – including choosing your background, body archetype, and classes – you can make some really interesting protagonists for this grand adventure back into the world of Dragon Age.
The Veilguard looks to stick with BioWare’s recent push towards more action-focused games, yet it also returns to its rich background of role-playing mechanics. During the Summer Game Fest presentation, we learned that the upcoming Dragon Age game will lean further into companion gameplay, with the developers stating that it will offer any BioWare game’s most robust party development. So far, Dragon Age: The Veilguard is looking to be a very stylish and exciting trip back to the world of Dragon Age, which has evolved and changed a lot with every entry. And The Veilguard‘s more adventurous turn in the series has intrigued me for what’s to come when it releases later this year.
Phantom Blade Zero
Developer: S-Game
Release Date: TBD
Playing Phantom Blade Zero is a thrilling blend of Sekiro’s fast-paced offence and defence combat with the action fundamentals of Nioh. Though not a traditional Soulslike game, developer S-Game’s new action still feels inspired by those games. Playing as a skilled warrior facing off against evil invaders, you’ll use your large arsenal to cut down foes and clear a path to the stage’s boss.
The core combat is high-speed, almost overwhelmingly so. Yet I still couldn’t help but be drawn in by how tense and visually stunning each encounter was. By the time the Summer Game Fest demo was over, I was thinking about what sort of weapons and combos I didn’t try out, and that’s a good sign that an action game has made its mark.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero
Developer: Spike Chunsoft
Release Date: October 8, 2024
With Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero, Bandai Namco returns to the popular arena action game that the Dragon Ball series put on the map. Focusing on Budokai Tenkaichi-style 1v1 fights in fully 3D spaces, you can play out the history of Dragon Ball Z and its spin-offs – but with the added twist of altering the course of history by making different choices. Such as seeing the consequences of what would happen if Goku didn’t team up with Piccolo in his fight with Radditz.
The core combat and a ridiculously large roster of Sparking! Zero sells just how DBZ is one-of-a-kind when it comes to action and spectacle, and the gameplay comes so close to watching the real series play out.
Read: Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero preview – Bottled lightning
Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure
Developer: Furniture & Mattress LLC
Release Date: July 25, 2024
Arranger is a unique puzzle RPG from the creatives behind Braid and Carto. Playing as a young villager named Jemma, she feels stuck in place, and can quite actually only move across a grid of squares that apply to her. By manipulating the grid, she can slide and shift around the environment and characters, completing her epic mission of exploring the world around her and discovering where she came from.
Playing Arranger feels like an intriguing blend of a slide-based puzzle game with a retro 2D RPG. It’s a wild and inventive take on turning the basic movement of a classic RPG and turning into the core gameplay loop, where you’ll have to slide items and people across the environment with you to complete puzzles and finish quests. Off the back of Summer Game Fest, Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure is such a charming puzzle RPG, and I’m eager to dive in again to see more of where the sliding will take Jemma.
Fear the Spotlight
Developer: Cozy Game Pals
Release Date: TBD 2024
As the first game from the recently established Blumehouse Games, Fear the Spotlight was directly inspired by PS1-era horror games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil. Fear the Spotlight sees two high schoolers caught up in an unsettling nightmare as they’re trapped in their school at night. With only a flashlight and their wits, Vivian has to scour the dark and foreboding halls of the school, which slowly begins to twist and contort as evil forces begin to stalk the lone student exploring the school.
While initially released in 2023 as a self-published drop, developer Cozy Game Pals pulled the game back into development for a significant upgrade thanks to its partnership with Blumehouse. Playing Fear the Spotlight at Summer Game Fest brought me back to those days of being unsettled by the low-polygon visuals in Silent Hill. Even with modern advances in graphics, there’s still something super unsettling about seeing low-polygon environments and dark figures lurking about in a horror game. And so far, Fear the Spotlight has got the dark vibes and tone of a retro horror nailed down well.
Path of Exile 2
Developer: Grinding Gear Games
Release Date: Fall 2024 (Early Access)
There have been plenty of Diablo clones over the years, but one game that truly distinguishes itself from the rest is Path of Exile. While the current game is still going strong with updates, the upcoming sequel looks to be the big step forward that many loot-craving hack-and-slash fans have hoped for. Path of Exile 2 offers a pure, open-ended, action RPG where build-crafting and pushing the game’s weapon systems can bring your characters to the next level.
After playing the opening act of Path of Exile 2 at Summer Game Fest, I came away thinking that this sequel will be a significant upgrade over the original game with the proper sense of challenge and quality of life additions to put it over the original. It has the type of satisfaction you get when you can truly make your character feel so powerful that it feels like borderline breaking the game early on – and that’s always fun.
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: July 18, 2024
Since its reveal, I’ve been a bit confused about the type of game Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is. But after playing it at Summer Game Fest, it ended up being one of my biggest surprises at the show for just how fun and gorgeously weird it was. Feeling like a throwback to the inventive PS2-era action games from Capcom, Kunitsu-Gami blends tower-defense gameplay with a hack-and-slash adventure as you help the titular goddess reach safety across a land filled with demons.
It has such a deft mix of strategy and fun action gameplay, and seeing it all channels through a colourful art style has some strong Okami energy. I can’t wait to see more of this one when it is released later this year.
Read: Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess preview – it’s wild
Unknown 9: Awakening
Developer: Reflector Entertainment
Release Date: TBD 2024
Unknown 9: Awakening is the first game from a large cross-media franchise known as Unknown 9, and it shows some real promise as an inventive action-adventure game with some light strategic elements. Playing as Haroona, you’re a 19th-century explorer able to cross dimensions and channel energy from a source known as The Fold. While pursuing information on The Fold, she’ll conflict with secret societies and other plans for the mysterious dimensional powers.
The Unknown 9 game showcases some clever takes on traversal and combat, reminding me of classic 3D games like the Legacy of Kain: Soul Revear. Along with melee combat, Haroona can use force, push, style powers, and her possession abilities. When controlling other enemies, you can command them like units in a strategy game, opening up some neat combination attacks on elite targets. So far, Unknown 9: Awakening has some intriguing ideas for its take on an action-adventure game packed with some deep lore for those looking to discover more of this upcoming universe.
For a full list of all the games and announcements over Summer Game Fest, check out our full round-up.
