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Geoff Keighley, organizer of The Game Awards, today announces the Summer Game Fest, a four-month season of game news events from all major platforms and game publishers.
The new festival will be a substitute for the now canceled Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), and will be organized around an online hub for announcements from May to August. One of the big events will feature content related to the May 7 news for the Xbox X Series, and will culminate with Keighley’s broadcast of the opening night of the now all-digital Gamescom.
Top participating gaming companies include 2K, Activision Publishing, Bandai Namco Entertainment, Bethesda, Blizzard Entertainment, Bungie, CD Projekt Red, Digital Extremes, Electronic Arts, Microsoft (more details next week), Private Division, Riot Games, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Steam, Square Enix and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
Even before the pandemic brought down E3, Keighley said in February that he was skipping this year’s show, as he disagreed with his direction and was heartbroken when Sony decided to leave the big show, which normally takes place in June. in Los Angeles every year.
To fill that gap, Keighley will use the Summer Game Fest to collect news for players, support in-game events, launch playable content and demos of selected titles, and reveal other surprises players can experience from the comfort of home, Keighley said. in an interview with GamesBeat.
“E3 was a unique week, but now that things are digital, we can put it all together in one season from May to August for video game events,” said Keighley. “I found all the gaming companies scattered outside of E3, but they all wanted some unifying principle to unite the industry. I felt the need and this idea occurred to me and I talked to everyone. It’s a great way to let fans know what’s going to be out there. “
Keighley said that she is funding the Summer Game Fest as a non-profit effort to help the gaming industry. He described it as a free, global and all-digital festival, and a prototype for the future in case we are stuck in all-digital events for a long time.
“We will superimpose the idea of playable demos and content that you can download as part of this, taking all the best aspects of a consumer trade show but completely digitizing it,” he said. “We are going to do a lot of in-game events and other things that encourage people to participate in games during the summer. It’s all free and you can do it from home. This is like the New World Order.”
The festival is not a singular show, but an entire season for events. The specific details and times of the event will be shared by each gaming platform and individual publisher. We will see many other events, such as the IGN and GameSpot summer event.
“We are not trying to compete with publishers’ events, but we are trying to amplify them,” Keighley said. “They create their own event, but we will amplify it with our website, which is like a hub for events. The end will be the Gamescom show I do. “
Above: Geoff Keighley, creator of The Game Awards.
Image credit: The Game Awards
As it spreads throughout the summer, more games will be noticed than at E3, where so much is happening that it’s easy to miss things, Keighley said.
“I think there will still be a center of gravity in June and July with big announcements, but it just won’t line up in a week,” Keighley said.
Game specific content will vary by platform. The Steam Game Festival: Summer Edition will take place from June 9 to 14, and other platform dates will be announced. With that type of event, Keighley will add supportive scheduling that will add context or delve into the announcements happening there. Because the event is digital, Keighley said, “I don’t have to build a multi-million dollar stage.”
The programming that is part of the Summer Game Fest will be distributed on all major streaming platforms, including publisher-owned and operated channels on Facebook, Mixer, Twitch, Twitter, YouTube Gaming, and more global media and media partners.
As part of the Summer Game Fest, Geoff Keighley will produce and host special pre and post shows for select iconic revealing events, in addition to producing and hosting Gamescom: Opening Night Live on Monday, August 24. Iam8Bit will serve as producers and curators for more programming to be announced.
As for The Game Awards, Keighley said it will definitely happen this year, but the shape it takes will depend on how the pandemic unfolds. If no one is allowed to meet, the awards will be digital, but Keighley said they have about five different contingency plans in the works, depending on what happens.
“We are going to produce the show this year in December,” he said. “99% of our audience is digital worldwide. 5,000 people have been gathered in a physical place. But I’m realistic that you have to have backup scenarios. “
