It's that time of year again. After an extended absence caused by uncertain plans on top of the COVID-19 pandemic, E3 is back as an all-digital event. Armed with a huge list of contributors, this year's show is looking to be a real return to form. The best part is, there's still more shows to be announced. Nintendo, Warner Bros. Interactive, Square Enix, and Namco are rumored or expected to hold their own events around E3 time, which really hammers home just how much the game industry is catching up on its news cycle this year. All in all, it's looking like June is going to be a packed month for everyone.
And that's not even all there is. The Summer Game Fest has also returned this year, and with it is a whole host of smaller events spread throughout June. Looking at the spread of the ones announced so far, it seems like the entire game industry (short of Konami, for the time being) has sprung to life to celebrate a summer of gaming together. Part of this may be due to Geoff Keighley's stated intent to keep the Summer Game Fest focused on one month, instead of running intermittently throughout the summer like last year. The catch-all banner of the Fest will also bring in some big names that aren't planned to be at E3 proper, like PlayStation. It's going to be a crazy month, so it's worth taking a minute to go over when the big events are happening.
E3 2021
- Ubisoft - June 12 at 12pm PT
- Xbox/Bethesda - June 13 at 10am PT
- PC Gaming Show - June 13
- Future Games Show - June 13
- Limited Run Games - June 14 at 1pm PT
- Nintendo Direct - June 15 at 9am PT
- E3 2021 Awards Show - June 15
Even without it's full schedule laid out, E3 2021 is already looking packed with four straight days of announcements. The proceedings will kick off on Saturday, June 12 with the latest Ubisoft Forward. The next day, Microsoft will take over with a massive Xbox Series blowout that will also feature exclusive reveals from Bethesda. The PC Gaming Show and Future Games Show will happen on the same day, bringing with them a variety of announcements. Finally, until more conferences are announced, Limited Run Games will show off its latest products on June 14.
After that comes a special event: the E3 2021 Awards Show. Coming in on the last day of E3, this show will see editors from IGN, GameSpot, PC Gamer, and GamesRadar determine the “Most Anticipated” game of E3 2021, as well as recognizing “Most Anticipated” titles from each participating publisher and developer. According to a press release, this show will come with its own slate of reveals, and will serve as a cap to E3 as a whole this year. A little slice of The Game Awards six months early sounds like a fun treat, and a fitting reward for those keeping up with the packed schedule.
Warhammer Skulls Showcase
One of the first gaming events of the month comes from the Warhammer 40k franchise. Advertised as a "festival of video games," the Warhammer Skulls Showcase is set to have world premieres, first looks, and celebrations on June 3 at 10am PT. Those with an interest in the Warhammer 40k brand won't want to miss this.
INDIE Live Expo 2021
For those looking for Asian indie titles, the third INDIE Live Expo should be an event to watch out for. Streaming at 2am PT on June 5, this event will focus on showing off a number of indie games. There's no guaranteeing exactly what titles will show up, but judging by the sponsor and media partner lists, there will definitely be a bias towards Japanese games.
Guerrilla Collective 2
- Day 1 - June 5 at 8am PT
- Day 2 - June 12 at 8am PT
Following up on a series of streams from last year's game event-filled summer, The Mix is returning with a two-part event that is expected to feature new announcements, trailers, gameplay, and more from over 80 games. Indie aficionados will definitely want to pin these on their schedule.
Summer Game Fest 2021
After filling in for E3 last year, Game Awards host Geoff Keighley's Summer Game Fest is returning once more to facilitate a ton of game industry news being shared with fans. This time, the event is intended to take place over one month instead of several, though viewers can expect just as much chaos once E3 hits. Indeed, the Summer Game Fest itself will host a special keynote presentation on June 10 at 11am PT that will serve as a prologue to E3 proper. The event is expected to be two hours long and cover twelve mystery games, so it's not to be missed.
It bears mentioning that one of the companies confirmed to be involved with the Summer Game Fest and not E3 is Sony, so either a State of Play or strong PS5 presence at the keynote should be expected. Also, technically every event listed here is either affiliated with or acknowledged by Summer Game Fest, including E3. This won't alter proceedings, but it does mean that the official Fest website is a good hub to keep track of newly announced gaming events.
Netflix Geeked Week
Netflix has announced that it is holding a "Geeked Week" filled with announcements from June 7 to 11. This is mostly for its various upcoming shows, but Geoff Keighley will be making a special appearance on June 11 at 9am PT to talk about upcoming shows and movies specifically related to games. The Witcher and Cuphead are expected to make an appearance.
Koch Primetime
Koch Media will be hosting the Koch Primetime event for Summer Game Fest on June 11 at 12pm PT. According to the Game Fest website, something special is planned at this show.
IGN Expo
IGN will be hosting its Expo event on June 11 at 1pm PT. New reveals are anticipated, even on this show.
Wholesome Direct
The Wholesome Direct is another low-key event, being a non-combat indie-focused event held by Wholesome Games. Those looking for some comfy new titles will definitely want to tune in on June 12 at 10am PT.
Devolver Digital
Devolver Digital has received a lot of attention for its epic saga of humorous showcases over the past few years, and now that it has concluded, fans are wondering what's next for the big-name indie publisher. There's no clues hinting at what this year's will entail, but whatever it is, it's happening on June 12.
Steam Next Fest
The Steam Game Festival is returning around E3 time once again this year, but it has had a dramatic revamp. Now called the Steam Next Fest, this Valve-hosted event is set to run from June 16 to June 22. Starting at 10am PT, hundreds of game demos will become accessible to the public. The notion here is that after the primary E3 proceedings have finished, many games with PC skews will get demos that fans can try out as if they were attending a physical E3. It's quite the idea, and serves as one more gaming event to look forward to this June.