Update: That was the world of video games today on 18th August. A full transcript of everything that occurred today is available below if you wish to digest it all at your leisure.
It’s 18th August, and we’re back with another daily live report. We’ll be running down all the day’s news and events, checking in with what you are up to, and providing some hopefully entertaining commentary on the world of video games.
Today we’ve got some great articles going live on the site, but we’ll also discuss Gamescom, which takes place this week, and look at the games releasing in September that you’ve got your eyes on.
Our live coverage of this event has finished.
Coverage
Comments
08:09 am
UTC
Morning everyone! I hope you’ll join us today as we look ahead to Gamescom, round up the day’s news and events, and think about the games we’re all looking forward to in September.
Tom Orry
08:15 am
UTC
Kane & Lynch 2 – remembering the most miserable game of all time
If you’re looking for something to read on a quiet Monday morning, and you missed what we published over the weekend, here’s a round-up:
Tom Orry
08:31 am
UTC
Tony Hawk on his life and his video games
Image credit: TonyHawk.com
Has a video games series had a bigger impact on people than the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series? Talk to anyone who was playing video games and growing up in the late 90s/early 00s and I bet most of them have fond memories of those early games.
Tom Orry
08:33 am
UTC
rmx87 says: It’s the 18th Tom! Morning!MarcusJ says: Flip your desk calendar over, Tom!
Looking forward to this week’s EG. Should be some good stuff.
Well done you two! Test passed. You both win a day of live reporting. Congratulations!
Tom Orry
09:00 am
UTC
New Pokémon Legends: Z-A trailer shows off Link Battles
If you are keen for every single morsel of Pokémon Legends: Z-A info, as some of the team at Eurogame are, then this new trailer and info released over the weekend will be of interest. This latest game update focuses on the game’s Link Battles.
Watch on YouTube
Tom Orry
09:16 am
UTC
Gamescom ONL, time to get hyped via a trailer?
We reserve the right not to get hyped about Gamescom ONL, the show taking place tomorrow evening (7pm BST in the UK), but that hasn’t stopped Geoff putting out a trailer designed to do just that.
Watch on YouTube
Tom Orry
09:50 am
UTC
2much says: Presumably _this_ is the night we’re gonna see the Bloodborne remaster
Thanks for this, 2much. I needed a good laugh this morning. ONL is tomorrow night, and I will be gobsmacked if anything near this level of game reveal is there.
Tom Orry
10:00 am
UTC
Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War is one of the greatest strategy games of all time
Image credit: Relic Entertainment
Chris is well into Space Marines and that, and he has a special place in his heart for the Dawn of War series. The original game was a little tricky to get running nicely on modern hardware, but the newly released Definitive Edition fixes all that and comes with a bunch of new refinements and tweaks.
To quote Chris, verbatim, from a definitely real conversation I had with him about Dawn of War: “It’s orksome.” What more do you need to be told?
Tom Orry
10:15 am
UTC
On the subject of games people are looking forward to in September (and end of August, if you want):
Danzig85 says: I’ve got my eye on Metal Gear this month and Hell Is Us next month. Plenty to finish before then though.
So many games, so little time.
Both potentially great games. We’ve got a MGS3 Delta review coming later this week, and Hell is Us has impressed at preview.
Tom Orry
11:02 am
UTC
These games are set to leave Xbox Game Pass at the end of August
Image credit: Sabotage / Eurogamer.
Xbox has revealed which games are leaving Xbox Game Pass at the end of August. A few good ones in this list.
- Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition
- Sea of Stars
- Paw Patrol Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay
- This War of Mine: Final Cut
- Ben 10: Power Trip
Tom Orry
11:39 am
UTC
chesterBox says: PS Store added a discount called “Gamescom 2025” and there’s Bloodborne… that must mean something, right? Right?! 😀
(99% it does not mean anything)
Don’t do this to yourself, Chester. It’ll just bring pain.
But… what if?
Tom Orry
11:44 am
UTC
A delve into the Eurogamer archive
Image credit: Valve
My brain can’t always go back far enough to bring out the real classics, but this superb article from Simon Parkin popped into my head this morning, so I’m sharing it with you all now.
At 6am on 7th May 2004, Axel Gembe awoke in the small German town of Schönau im Schwarzwald to find his bed surrounded by police officers. Automatic weapons were pointing at his head and the words, “Get out of bed. Do not touch the keyboard,” were ringing in his ears.
Get this read if you haven’t already, or maybe read it again.
Tom Orry
12:22 pm
UTC
Euro Truck Simulator 2 PS5 and Xbox versions spotted
Cult hit Euro Truck Simulator 2 is seemingly coming to PS5 and Xbox consoles. The news comes via PSN and Xbox store listings for the game, which is yet to be officially announced for the two consoles.
Tom Orry
13:17 pm
UTC
Surprise! Shenmue 3 is back
Image credit: Ys Net
Shenmue 3 is coming back for a second bite at success with the Enhanced Edition. This reworked and improved version of the original release will be available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series consoles, and Nintendo (presumably Switch 2). A full reveal is coming at Gamescom this week.
Tom Orry
13:21 pm
UTC
Kirby Air Riders Direct tomorrow
Tune in tomorrow Tuesday, August 19th at 2pm UK time for a livestreamed Kirby Air Riders Direct featuring about 45 minutes of information about the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 game.
Boom! 45 minutes of Kirby tomorrow? What a treat.
Kirby Air Riders Direct is airing tomorrow at 2pm BST in the UK.
Tom Orry
13:42 pm
UTC
45 minutes of Kirby Air Riders? I love a bit of Kirby as much as the next fan of alien entities that take on the abilities of the objects they consume, but that’s a long time to spend on one game. I’m excited to see what Nintendo has cooked up, though.
Tom Orry
13:47 pm
UTC
Endling – Extinction dev reveals its next game
Image credit: Herobeat
Developer Herobeat has announced its next game, Rewilders: The Lost Spring, which has been inspired by the works of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli films.
Tom Orry
13:54 pm
UTC
Any Shenmue fans in the comments today? I won’t pretend I’m a big fan. I played the original game on the Dreamcast and simply couldn’t get into it. And that is as a huge Sega fan who had grown up as a Sega kid. Just wasn’t for me.
Tom Orry
14:23 pm
UTC
The Battlefield 6 party continues in… Battlefield 2042
Connor has been on the blower to moan about how sad he is that the Battlefield 6 beta has finished. “Don’t worry,” I said in reply, cutting through his tears. “You can just play Battlefield 2042 and earn some stuff to use in Battlefield 6.”
He turned to me (not that I could see as we were on a phone call, not a video call), and he said: “Tom, you are so wise. I will play Battlefield 2042 as I am the exact target audience for this type of marketing campaign. I’ll also write up my thoughts on such an event in a story to publish on Eurogamer.net.”
Thanks, Connor. Here is that story:
Tom Orry
14:46 pm
UTC
Today’s Blast from the Past: Flights, Co-op Tomb Raiding, and more
Image credit: Xbox / Microsoft
Another day presents another opportunity for us to look back at gaming history. Here’s some milestone anniversaries for today, 18th August:
- Microsoft Flight Simulator’s grand reboot leads the pack of gaming anniversaries today – the reimagining of the franchise first released five years ago. I recieved the coveted Eurogamer Essential, back when that was the parlance – and it sits alongside Animal Crossing as a perfect game for the then all-consuming pandemic, allowing a sort of digital tourism at a time when we were all trapped inside. It’s a shame that the much more content-rich 2024 edition has run into various troubles, but hopefully that team can eventually recapture the spirit of the 2020 edition over time.
- Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is fifteen years old today. A cool, well-reviewed spin-off of the franchise inspired by the likes of Diablo and Gauntlet, it first launched for Xbox 360’s Live Arcade and then made its way to PS3, PC, and even mobile. It brings to mind that era when downloadables were always smaller, bite-sized games, which led to interesting spin-offs of big-name brands like this – something we now don’t see as often. A shame.
- And here’s a trio of further recent anniversaries: Rogue Legacy 2, Mortal Shell, and Spiritfarer all hit on this day in 2020 – the same day as Flight Simulator! There was clearly something in the water on this day five years ago. I’m also now just realizing I can’t write “on that day five years ago”, or a variation thereof, without hearing this.
Alex Donaldson
15:04 pm
UTC
I actually really liked Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, not that I can remember a single thing about it – although I think you had to push a large ball around at one point?
Tom Orry
15:15 pm
UTC
Crazyreyn says: “Any Shenmue fans in the comments today?” hello
Here he is! The Shenmue fan has logged on.
Tom Orry
15:38 pm
UTC
Sword of the Sea review
Image credit: Giant Squid / Eurogamer
Liked this one quite a bit folks.
It’s the latest from Giant Squid, the developer behind Abzu and The Pathless, with creative director Matt Nava having also worked heavily on Journey as art director back in the day. He teams up again with renowned game composer Austin Wintory here. It’s a game that mixes a bit of light Zelda-ing with serene platforming, ludicrously pretty views and a sense of movement, mindfulness and flow that’s right up there with very best of ’em. Big fat five stars from me.
Chris Tapsell
15:44 pm
UTC
Mortal Kombat movie is 30 years old today
As the clock ticks ever closer to 5pm in the UK and I can see the fajitas I’m about to cook for my dinner drift into view, now is the perfect time to remember the original Mortal Kombat movie which turns 30 today. I know this film has gained a large following in the years since its release, but I never liked it that much. That said, it probably captured the video games better than the recent movie did. You can’t say anything negative about this music, though, which is superb.
Watch on YouTube
Tom Orry
16:03 pm
UTC
That’s your lot for today. Big day tomorrow, everyone, so don’t stay up too late tonight. Chances are there’ll be at least one good game shown during Gamescom ONL, which kicks off at 7pm BST tomorrow – although there is supposedly also a bit of a pre-show before that.
Thanks for joining us today. See you all tomorrow.
Tom Orry
