GAW Picks: Summer Game Fest 2024
ALL THE GAMES
Summer Game Fest 2024 is (mostly) in the books! (We’re waiting to hear on Nintendo’s plans for a Direct this month at time of publishing, but it’s coming!) We got together to share some of our favorite games from all the events, from the Guerrilla Collective online showcase to the Ubisoft Forward.
Amanda Gorecki // Social Media, News, Reviews
Where do I start? I have mixed feelings about SGF this time around, as many of my friends here at GAW do as well. In fact, nothing from my picks this year even came from Keighley’s event.
Bogdan’s Cross - The visuals immediately intrigued me, but learning that YOU ARE A BEAR sold the deal. A bear trying to become a Knight. Yes, please.
Tiny Bookshop - I love me some cozy games, and I’ve always wanted to run a bookstore. I’m not sure how long neoludic will leave the demo up, but play it while you’ve got the chance! It’s really short.
Mixtape - I wrote ANNAPURNA BANGER ALERT in our GAW group chat immediately after seeing the logo. As a huge fan of the John Hughes era of movies, I’m excited to see how the story, music, and gameplay all weave together. And it’s from the folks behind The Artful Escape!
Life is Strange: Double Exposure - MAX CAULFIELD! I think I lost my mind here for a moment. I didn’t expect to see Max back in video game form, but I’m so glad Deck Nine got Hannah Telle back to voice her.
The Star Named EOS - A story-rich puzzle adventure with an emphasis on photography? I think they made a game just for me, folks. (Not to mention I immediately downloaded the demo and it’s oh-so-good.)
Nic Stevenson // Staff Writer
Gestures wildly at the Xbox showcase (only 5?! BUT THERE ARE SO MANY MORE ;-;)
South of Midnight - I am a sucker for southern gothic and my oh my did this hit that itch. Since the tone trailer we saw at last year’s Xbox showcase it’s been high on my list and while the different frame rates were kinda weird this year seeing gameplay pushed it even higher.
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn - We’ve had no shortage of “soulslikes” over the past decade, one of which came from Ashen developers A44. This is their sophomore effort, and looks to be all the more bombastic than the chill vibes of their previous title. FACE ME AND DIE. We won’t have to wait long, either!
Gears of War: E-Day - Where do I even begin. Gears of War is one of those special franchises I feel gets overlooked. Maybe it’s the huge dudebros but there is such an intimate story of brotherhood amidst unfathomable loss in the series, and seeing it go back to the day the world of Sera fell still just conjures up so many emotions. Dom and Marcus back together and a rendition of Mad World to boot; who’s cutting onions and why is it so dusty in here?
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - What a trailer. What a concept. Ben Starr of course helped set the mood with his impeccable narration, but the idea every year this painter paints death in the form of a number, and everyone that age gets thanos-snapped? oh that makes the creative heart sing. Then they go show a stylish turn-based combat? Sign me up.
Perfect Dark - Joanna Dark is one of my childhood crushes, also there were a lot of really REALLY cool guns and gadgets back in the day. If the game turns out half as good as the trailer looked, we’re in for something special.
Chris Laffen // Staff Writer
Dragon Age: The Veilguard - The quality of your companions can make or break a Bioware game, and this crew looks ready to barge their way into my heart. I’m already planning characters and builds for multiple playthroughs, assembling team compositions and even romance options. I’ve been wanting to see Tevinter up close for a long time now.
Gears of War: E-Day - While I’m frustrated that we have to wait to see what happens with the ending of Kait Diaz’s story and where it left off in Gears 5, the concept of facing the locust without the iconic chainsaw lancer fills me with euphoric dread. I can’t wait to grab my battle bro and return to Sera.
Perfect Dark - Some of my earliest memories centered around GoldenEye for the Nintendo 64, and I always thought that Perfect Dark didn’t get enough credit for improving upon that game in almost every way. After the middling installment on the Xbox 360 (Perfect Dark: Zero), perhaps this will be the one that gives Joanna Dark her day in the sun.
Robin Ghosh // Sr. Editorial Writer
Doom: The Dark Ages - There’s something so recognizable about a trailer for Doom: a montage of dreadful scenery, a close-up of a strange, otherworldly structure, a slow zoom-in on our character as they equip their weapon and then a flurry of action-packed carnage. That’s what audiences were treated to during the Xbox Showcase with the full-reveal of Doom: The Dark Ages, a prequel to DOOM (2016). You can’t even imagine the way I yelled out loud as we witnessed the Doom Slayer tear through enemies with his handy new Captain America-esque chainsaw shield or become environmentally conscious as he used the skulls of his enemies to fire bone fragments at his foes. Listen. It’s Doom. It’s iD. It’s going to be an absolute banger like 2016 and Eternal.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure - As a fan of DON’TNOD and Deck Nine and their incredible work on the Life is Strange series, I was very excited to see them debut a brand new game… wait… IS THAT MAX!? That’s right! Deck Nine’s next game in the series, Life is Strange: Double Exposure, marks the return of a fan favourite from the original series, Max Caulfield! Life is Strange 1 is a very special game to me, and seeing one of my favourite characters in gaming return (alongside the original VO Hannah Telle) was probably, not-so-shockingly enough my biggest surprise reveal of anything this year. I can’t wait to get back to that universe.
Clair Obscura: Expedition 33 - Speaking of surprise, Clair Obscura: Expedition 33 came out of nowhere and has quickly become one of my most anticipated games of 2025. Not only is the premise of the game so fascinating but it’s led by some incredible art direction, breath-taking visuals, a surprising turn-based system and of course, Ben Starr’s voice serenading us with an incredible performance. This game came out of nowhere but is now firmly entrenched in my mind.
Perfect Dark - After many stories of development hell, and delays, we finally got our first real look at the next entry in the Perfect Dark series and boy, does it look incredible. I don’t really have much of a frame of reference for the original games, but what I saw was an ode to Dishonored and Deus Ex and really, if you show me any sort of immersive sim elements in a hyper-futuristic world with such incredible audio and visual presentation, Game Pass won’t be the only thing that’s there Day 1.
South of Midnight - I really couldn’t decide between this or Gears of War E-Day for this part, but ultimately, South of the Midnight’s gorgeous, stylized world won out for me. Developed by Compulsion Games (We Happy Few), South of Midnight is a gorgeous, Southern Gothic tale filled with strange monsters and a compelling central character. That coupled with some great-looking combat, I’m very excited to sink my teeth into something very different.
Allen Saunders // Editorials and Reviews Manager
Perfect Dark - As someone who didn’t enjoy the original Perfect Dark (I played it way after most other players did) I am incredibly excited to see the new one. What was shown off recently looked top tier with gameplay feeling like a blend of Mirror’s Edge style parkour with Splinter Cell espionage-style gameplay. That to me sounds like a stellar mix that I can’t wait to lap up like a dehydrated pup on a hot summer’s day.
Gears of War: E-Day - Anyone who has known me for any length of time knows I adore the Gears of War franchise. It has been with me through so many terrible times in life and I would be lying if I said I didn’t tear up seeing Dom again in the trailer. I have high hopes for this prequel and as soon as that preorder goes up I am slamming down my card to preorder it. THERE BETTER BE PHYSICAL COPIES!
State of Decay 3 - Call me basic all you want but I love me some simple zombie slaying. I am still working my way through State of Decay 2 right now but I am eager to see what Undead Labs cooks up with the chaos going to a bigger area. The combat in State of Decay has always been satisfying and the power of the Xbox Series X seems to be letting us see dismembered bodies in new and impressively gory ways this time around. The new infected look absolutely terrifying. I have no idea what that massive one was at the end of the trailer but I already know I will be high tailing it back to my car as if I was once again a child fleeing back to my bed after turning off a light. (Lest those dastardly demons or a murderer grab me for calming walking to my bed.)