June 2024 Is Going To Be The Biggest Month Of The Year For Gaming

Summary June will be the biggest month for gaming with major releases from franchises like Elden Ring and events like Summer Game Fest.

E3 has essentially been replaced by the mostly online Summer Game Fest as the main gaming event with showcases from Xbox, Nintendo, and Ubisoft set for June.

Assassin's Creed Red in Japan-based setting will be a main focus of Ubisoft Forward event, with gameplay reveals and more during the week of Summer Games Fest.

June is going to be the biggest month of the year for gaming. With updates from major franchises such as Assassin's Creed, and major companies like Xbox and Nintendo, alongside some long-awaited releases such as Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC.

June has always been a highly anticipated month for the gaming space, being the month in which the E3 event was once held. After the cancelation of the event due to the COVID lockdowns and other factors in recent years, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) finally announced that the expo that once offered a space for developers and publishers to showcase their upcoming games and hardware to members of the industry and the public would not be returning after a nearly 30-year run in December 2023.

Related E3 Is Officially Retired After Almost 30 Years E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo), one of the most well-known and traditional gaming events, has been canceled permanently after nearly 30 years.

Summer Game Fest Is Happening In June

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Summer Game Fest has essentially replaced E3 in terms of being the main gaming event for major studios and companies to show off their upcoming titles, with a live event that kicks it all off followed by a series of further livestreams over the following days. Titles such as the upcoming Batman: Arkham Shadows have already announced an appearance at the event, along with companies such as Xbox and Nintendo, which will be hosting their own showcases.

Following its teaser trailer, Meta confirmed that Batman: Arkham Shadows would have a more in-depth reveal at Summer Game Fest on June 7 at 5pm ET.

The confirmed line-up so far is as follows:

June 7 Summer Game Fest Day of the Devs Access-Ability Showcase

June 8 Wholesome Direct Future Games Show: Summer Showcase

June 9 Xbox Games Showcase and [REDACTED] Direct

June 10 Ubisoft Forward

Date TBA Nintendo June Direct PC Gaming Show

The Xbox showcase will be interesting, considering Microsoft has recently shut down several acquired studios including Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks, even after producing acclaimed hits such as Hi-Fi Rush, The Evil Within, or Prey. This action has built some discord between its players, who are currently questioning Microsoft's decisions and will undoubtedly scrutinize whatever the company shows during this event. There's a good chance that more footage from previously revealed exclusives such as Avowed and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will be shown at this event, and a [REDACTED] Direct will be following it, which many have theorized will be revealing the next Call of Duty title.

Meanwhile, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa confirmed that its Switch successor will not be revealed in its June Direct, but would be shown at some point during this fiscal year, leaving fans wondering what titles would be. It's unlikely that Nintendo would reveal launch games for its upcoming console without unveiling the device itself, but there are still previously announced high-profile titles such as Pokémon Legends: Z-A that have already been announced back in March that players could get a better look at.

The other major showcase that has been announced is the Ubisoft Forward on June 10. Last year, this event gave viewers a better look at Star Wars Outlaws, Massive Entertainment's open-world adventure, after its reveal the day prior at the Xbox showcase. Outlaws will be released in August, so it's possible there will be a final trailer for the title as a reminder of its pre-order and season pass content. Ubisoft Toronto changed its profile picture and banners on social media to Sam Fisher's iconic green tri-lense night-vision goggles around the time of the showcase's announcement as well, suggesting that there may be a first proper look at the Splinter Cell remake that was announced in December 2021.

Related Star Wars Outlaws: Release Date, Preorder Bonuses, Setting, & Characters Ubisoft announced the release date for its upcoming Star Wars Outlaws game with a new trailer that gave a better look at its setting and characters.

Assassin's Creed Red Will Reportedly Be One Of The Main Focuses Of The Ubisoft Forward

Providing A First Proper Look At The Series' Japan-based Entry

As reported by Insider Gaming, one of the main focuses of the Ubisoft Direct will be Assassin's Creed Red. The latest in the long-running franchise is set to be released in fiscal year 2025 - which goes from April 2024 to March 2025 - but little has been shown from it other than its reveal teaser, which confirmed it would be taking the series to Feudal Japan, a highly requested location by fans. With the title close to its release, it's possible that Ubisoft will show a new trailer revealing its story and protagonist - potentially at the Xbox showcase the day before as it did with Star Wars Outlaws - and an extended gameplay reveal.

Insider Gaming's report also states that content creators and media outlets will get some hands-on time with the game during the week of Summer Games Fest, the preview embargo for which will lift on June 12, two days after the Ubisoft Forward.

Not much has been officially revealed about Assassin's Creed Red other than the location, time period, and the fact it will be connected to Ubisoft's new Assassin's Creed Infinity launcher. Previous reports suggest that there will be two protagonists in Assassin's Creed Red, a black samurai named Yasuke - who is reportedly based upon a real historical figure - and a Japanese woman named Naoe on a quest for revenge, suggesting an alternating mechanic like that seen with the Frye twins of Assassin's Creed Syndicate.

Reports have stated that Assassin's Creed Red will be the last of the recent RPG-type Assassin's Creed titles, taking elements from those games but combining them with the larger focus on stealth that was present in earlier entries and the recent Assassin's Creed Valhalla spin-off, Assassin's Creed Mirage. Whereas some of the Assassin's Creed RPG titles focused more on combat over the series' stealthy roots, stealth seems to be playing a major role in Assassin's Creed Red, and could be pulling some mechanics from other Ubisoft titles as players will reportedly be able to manipulate light and create shadows by extinguishing torches, much as they could in the Splinter Cell games, and go prone to reduce visibility as they could in Ghost Recon, so hopefully, players will get to see this in action on June 10.

Related The Real History Of Yasuke, Assassin’s Creed Red’s Rumored New Samurai Protagonist Rumor has it the protagonist of Assassin’s Creed Red will be based on the historical figure of Yasuke, a Black samurai in Oda Nobunaga’s army.

June Will Also See Long-Awaited Game And DLC Releases

Elden Ring's Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC Will Finally Launch June 21

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If all of June's reveals and presentations weren't enough for gamers to look forward to, several long-awaited titles will finally be released in that month. These include the arena shooter Star Wars: Hunters, the remake of Luigi's Mansion 2 for Switch, Destiny 2's The Final Shape expansion, and Elden Ring's Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC, which arrives nearly two years and four months after the game's original launch and takes players on an alternative journey to a new location called the Land of Shadow.

All of the titles being released in June 2024 are as follows:

Title Platform Release Date Destiny 2: The Final Shape PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S June 4 Songs of Silence (early access) PC June 4 Star Wars: Hunters Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android June 4 Life by You (early access) PC June 4 The Smurfs: Village Party PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S June 6 Assassin's Creed Mirage iOS June 6 Monster Hunter Stories PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4 June 14 Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin PS4 June 14 Vampire Therapist PC June 17 Still Wakes the Deep PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S June 18 Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S June 21 Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S June 21 Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble Nintendo Switch June 25 Luigi's Mansion 2 HD Nintendo Switch June 27 Tchia Nintendo Switch June 27 SPYxANYA: Operation Memories PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, June 28

With such an array of different titles on offer, there's bound to be something for all kinds of players to enjoy. Whether it's venturing back into Elden Ring's Lands Between, or tuning into the Summer Game Fest events to see the Assassin's Creed franchise finally exploring a highly demanded location, or witnessing what Xbox and Nintendo have in store for the future, there's plenty to look forward to in June.

Source: Insider Gaming