We're E3-less again this year but, believe it or not, videogame marketing hasn't ground to a halt, so all of us consumers will still have plenty of new trailers to munch on. The summer showcase season is nearly upon us and, yes, I'm very open to a name for this week in June that rolls off the tongue better than that does. Whatever we wind up calling "not-E3" this year (seriously, my ears are open) there is going to be a fast and stacked set of gaming showcases during the second week of June.
Several publishers are doing their own showcases as they have been for the last few years. Our own PC Gaming Show and our sister site's Future Games Show are both back too. And yup, the Summer Game Fest is back as well, attempting to fill the non-denominational power void that E3 has left in its absence. Pull up your calendar app and start scheduling your watch parties with your pals because June is nearly here.
Videogame summer announcements 2023
| Showcase | PDT | PDT | BST | AEST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State of Play | May 24 (Wed) | 1 pm | 9 pm | 6 am (May 25) |
| Guerrilla Collective | June 7 (Wed) | 9 am | 5 pm | 2 am (June 8) |
| Summer Game Fest | June 8 (Thurs) | 12 pm | 8 pm | 5 am (June 9) |
| Day of the Devs | June 8 (Thurs) | After SGF | After SGF | After SGF |
| Devolver Digital | June 8 (Thurs) | 3 pm | 11 pm | 8 am (June 9) |
| Access-Ability | June 9 (Fri) | 8 am | 4 pm | 1 am (June 10) |
| Wholesome Direct | June 10 (Sat) | 9 am | 5 pm | 2 am (June 11) |
| Future Games Show | June 10 (Sat) | 10 am | 6 pm | 3 am (June 11) |
| Xbox & Starfield | June 11 (Sun) | 10 am | 6 pm | 3 am (June 12) |
| PC Gaming Show | June 11 (Sun) | 1 pm | 9 pm | 6 am (June12) |
| Ubisoft Forward | June 12 (Mon) | 10 am | 6 pm | 3 am (June 13) |
| Capcom Showcase | June 12 (Mon) | 3 pm | 11 pm | 8 am (June 13) |
| Black Voices in Gaming | June 13 (Tues) | 3 pm | 11 pm | 8 am (June 14) |
When is E3 2023?
In case you'd not heard, E3 is canceled again in 2023 meaning there's no official expo this year. Luckily, though, publisher and curator showcases have all mostly localized around one weekend in June so we'll still be getting a very tight burst of announcements this summer. Read on below to find out what we're expecting to see at all of the confirmed shows scheduled for this season.
Full list of showcases
State of Play
Livestream: Wednesday, May 24 @ 1 pm Pacific, 9 pm UK on YouTube
What happened: Getting out ahead of its peer programming this summer, PlayStation's event was a sequel-heavy showcase bringing over an hour of first-and-third-party games. Headline announcements included a reveal of the long-rumored Metal Gear Solid 3 remake, first gameplay showings for Assassin's Creed: Mirage, Spider-Man 2, and Dragon's Dogma 2, and the extraction shooter revival of Bungie's Marathon series. For the full rundown, check our list of every PC announcement from PlayStation's 2023 State of Play.
Guerrilla Collective
Livestream: Wednesday, June 7 @ 9 am Pacific, 5 pm UK on YouTube and Twitch
What happened: The Guerrilla Collective indie games showcase brought a metric ton of trailers for games in all shapes and sizes. Between all the new reveals and release date announcements, we saw open-world feudal Japan survival in Sengoku Dynasty, a cozy take on Breath of the Wild exploration in Europa, and a heap of fast-paced FPS options like Deadlink and Blood West.
Summer Game Fest
Livestream: Thursday, June 8 @ noon Pacific, 8 pm UK on YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, and TikTok
What happened: As expected, Keighley brought a heap of previews for his Summer Game Fest show-and-tell. We got our first look at gameplay in the new continuity of Mortal Kombat 1, some unedited playtime footage of Alan Wake 2, and the reveal of the legendary namesake city of Baldur's Gate 3—now with its own robocops! Hooray! And to top things off, we got a surprise trailer for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the second installment of the FF7 Remake saga. There were plenty of other games in the lineup, so be sure to visit our full rundown of every reveal at Summer Game Fest 2023.
Day of the Devs
Livestream: June 8 immediately following Summer Game Fest
What happened: The Day of the Devs indie showcase might have been light on release dates, but there was no shortage of delightful previews. New reveals like the Pokemon-esque volleyball RPG Beastieball made instant additions to our wishlists, while already-anticipated games like Hyper Light Breaker delivered some fresh gameplay footage. Visit our 5 favorite Day of the Devs previews for more highlights.
Devolver Direct
Livestream: Thursday, June 8 @ 3 pm Pacific, 11 pm UK on Twitch
What happened: Devolver returned with its annual showcase antics, this year in the flavor of a fictional AI-driven game dev. The showcase featured four games, with sequels to fan-favorites in Human Fall Flat 2 and The Talos Principle 2, a gameplay preview for gunslinging sorcerer survival game Wizard With A Gun, and a reveal of Baby Steps: a fully physics-based, literal walking simulator from who else but QWOP creator Bennett Foddy, featuring a 35-year-old failson and "dynamic onesie soilage system." Magical.
Access-Ability Summer Showcase
Livestream: Friday, June 9 @ 8 am Pacific, 4 pm UK on Twitch and YouTube
What happened: The Access-Ability Summer Showcase highlighted upcoming releases and recent games from disabled game devs and games prioritizing accessibility. Developers shared features and options for current games like Sniper Elite 5 and Princess Farmer along with updates from the developers of Pine Hearts, Botany Manor, and more.
Wholesome Direct
Livestream: Saturday, June 10 @ 9 am Pacific, 5 pm UK on YouTube and Twitch
What to expect: As ever, the Wholesome Games showcase was packed, so we narrowed it down to the eight cozy games to wishlist including frog farm sim Kamaeru, city-building matchmaking sim Lakeburg Legacies, and the sidescrolling puzzle adventure Everdeep Aurora.
Future Games Show
Livestream: Saturday, June 10 @ 10 am Pacific, 6 pm UK on YouTube, Twitch, and Twitter
What to expect: The Future Games Show summer showcase was stacked with neat stuff which we pulled our 11 favorite Future Games trailers from. Keep an eye on space hauling sim Star Trucker, puzzle adventure thriller Reveil, the hilariously fun physics swordplay game En Garde! and a ton of others.
Xbox and Starfield showcase
Livestream: Sunday, June 11 @ 10 am Pacific, 6 pm UK on YouTube and Twitch
What to expect: Xbox has a double-header planned for June with a normal showcase of its games in progress followed immediately by the promised Starfied-focused showcase. During the full Xbox event we're hoping to get updates on big games like Obsidian's new RPG Avowed, the next Fable game, Everwild by Rare, Perfect Dark, and more. During the Starfield segment immediately following that we've been promised "tons of gameplay." We've mostly been coasting with the info from the first Starfield gameplay preview from last summer. This time we're hoping to see more of its 1000 planets and perhaps some non-combat gameplay too.
PC Gaming Show
Livestream: Sunday, June 11 @ 1 pm Pacific, 9 pm UK on YouTube and Twitch
What to expect: Our own PC Gaming Show is returning this summer with two hours and 55 game trailers all dedicated to PC players. You can expect to see Baldur's Gate 3, Frostpunk 2, Dune: Awakening, a brand-new game from Klei, and quite a few games that will be revealed for the first time.
Ubisoft Forward
Livestream: Monday, June 12 @ TBA on YouTube
What to expect: Ubisoft may be in a weird place with games floundering in supposed development like the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake and Skull & Bones, but there are things to be excited about. Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is still kicking around and there are several new Assassin's Creed games it announced last year.
Capcom Showcase
Livestream: Monday, June 12 @ 3 pm Pacific, 11 pm UK on YouTube and Twitch
What to expect: Capcom's showcase is planned to be a shorter 36 minute event, it says. It's confirmed that it will be showing more of Dragon's Dogma 2, which we saw last month at the PlayStation event, Exoprimal, and Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective. Okay, but what about some more Monster Hunter though?
Black Voices in Gaming
Livestream: Tuesday, June 13 @ 3 pm Pacific, 11 pm UK on YouTube and Twitch
What to expect: Black Voices in Gaming is another showcase partnered with the Guerrilla Collective, this one organized by Black game developers and focused on "culturally relevant games centered on Black, Indigenous and other People of Color (BIPOC) lived experience." Confirmed for this year's show so far are Hyper Light Breaker, Coreupt, Rollergirl, and Breeze In The Clouds.
