Best of Gamescom 2026

The biggest gaming show in the world by a large margin—350,000 attendees spread across eight gigantic halls—has wrapped, and IGN Gamescoop's Damon Hatfield and Nick Limon are broadcasting from the show floor in Germany with Sam Clayborn and Justin gone home early. Konami's Castlevania: Belmont's Curse booth looms behind them, and the energy is unmistakable: this year's Gamescom felt like the old E3, extravagant and over-the-top, open to a public that filled every hall. The hosts each picked five favorite games from the show, and they're revealing them live without knowing if they doubled up.

Xbox's Affordability Pivot and Nintendo's No-Show

Microsoft's gaming CEO Sarah Bond gave an interview with the BBC that caught attention. "This next generation we have to be thinking about efficiency and affordability alongside performance," Bond said. "All of the industry needs to start to innovate on affordability and efficiency." This comes as the new Xbox 25th Anniversary console launched at $900—the same power as the $500 Series X, just with 90s styling. Scalpers immediately snatched pre-orders and listed them on eBay for $1,500. Damon noted the contrast with earlier messaging: "Back in the Sarah Bond days, they said the next generation console would be very premium. That was before AI was causing price hikes." Nick interpreted "efficiency" as developers f