Microsoft announces Gamescom 2025 plans

Microsoft has announced its plans for Gamescom 2025, which will run from August 20 to 24 at Koelenmesse in Cologne, Germany, including first-party and third-party titles playable at its booth, and live stream events.

Get the details below.

Xbox Booth

This year the Xbox booth will feature over 20 games from our first party studios and our amazing third-party partners—spread across more than 120 gaming stations—alongside photo opportunities and experiences.

Attendees will be able to go hands-on with some of our upcoming game releases and hardware, as well as experience updates to some of our most beloved franchises, including:

• Hardware
  • ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X – Our two new handhelds crafted in collaboration with ASUS that combine the power of Xbox with the freedom you expect from Windows. Players can go hands-on with games including Hollow Knight: Silksong, Roblox, Sea of Thieves, and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4, with additional hands-on experiences with more games available at the ASUS ROG booth.
• Software
  • Age of Empires / Age of Mythology: Retold – World’s Edge is heading back to Cologne for Gamescom 2025, bringing with it the legendary worlds of Age of Empires and Age of Mythology: Retold. With a significant presence on the show floor, the studio will be showcasing the depth and diversity of the Age franchise, offering fans a fresh look at beloved titles and teasing a few surprises along the way. Whether you’re a seasoned strategist or a newcomer to the battlefield, there’s something epic in store for everyone.
  • Grounded 2 – Attendees can check out hands-on demos of the shrunken cooperative survival adventure from Obsidian Entertainment and Eidos Montreal.
  • Indiana Jones and the Great Circle – MachineGames, in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games, is bringing Indiana Jones and the Great Circle to Gamescom in celebration of the upcoming story downloadable content, “The Order of Giants.” Attendees can play the base game on the showfloor, snap a themed photo, and step into the boots of Indy himself and attempt to find and piece together a mummified cat puzzle–a daily competition where the fastest participant wins a prize worthy of the adventurer. All activities and activations will be available at the Xbox booth starting Wednesday, August 20 through Sunday, August 24.
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 – The flight simulator introduces an exciting city update, a brand-new aircraft that many fans will recognize for use in the sim, and exciting and unique challenges for players to test their piloting skills.
  • NINJA GAIDEN 4 – Gamescom attendees at the Xbox booth can get the first public hands-on with NINJA GAIDEN 4, a cutting-edge adventure where legacy meets innovation in a high-octane blend of style and no-holds-barred combat
  • The Outer Worlds 2 – We will also host an exclusive theater presentation of The Outer Worlds 2, the sequel to the award-winning first-person science-fiction RPG from Obsidian Entertainment. Step into Protectorate territory for an exclusive look inside the Tomb of the Matriarch—an opulent facility where history, loyalty, and propaganda intertwine. In this guided theater experience, witness how The Outer Worlds 2 explores a society that trades freedom for security, and reveres its founders with unsettling devotion.

From our third-party partners around the world, the Xbox booth will feature playable demos for:

• Aniimo (Kingsglory / Pawprint Studio)
• Borderlands 4 (2K / Gearbox Software)
• Cronos: The New Dawn (Bloober Team)
• EA Sports FC 26 (Electronic Arts)
• Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade (Square Enix)
• Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix)
• Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)
• Invincible VS (Skybound Games / Quarter Up)
• Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater (Konami / Virtuos)
• Mistfall Hunter (Bellring Games)
• Onimusha: Way of the Sword (Capcom)
• PowerWash Simulator 2 (FuturLab)
• Super Meat Boy 3D (Headup Games / Sluggerfly)
• There Are No Ghosts at the Grand (Friday Sundae)

And we’ll have a couple more surprises at the show from our partners too.

You’ll be able to find us in Hall 7 of the Koelnmesse, North entrance. See below for the consumer show opening times:

• Thursday, August 21 – 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. CEST
• Friday, August 22 – 10 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. CEST
• Saturday, August 23 – 9 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. CEST
• Sunday, August 24 – 9 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. CEST

World of Warcraft

Gamescom 2025 will also see a celebration of the World of Warcraft community, unveiling the game’s next expansion, “Midnight,” with a dedicated booth in Hall 8. For the first time, players will be able to get their hands on the all-new Housing system. One of World of Warcraft‘s most anticipated features ever, Housing will allow players to build, decorate and customize their own homes in Azeroth.

The booth will also feature a Community Stage with non-stop programming, including developer and creator meet and greets, esports competitions, cosplayers, and “Midnight” developer panels. The celebrations aren’t limited to the World of Warcraft booth, as the entire week kicks off with a world premiere of the expansion’s opening cinematic during Opening Night Live on August 19, immediately followed by a special “Midnight Expansion Reveal” broadcast on the World of Warcraft YouTube and Twitch channels.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 will be revealed live on August 19 during Opening Night Live at Gamescom. Get ready for epic twists, developer intel, and the official start of a bold new chapter in Black Ops history. Then tune into Call of Duty social channels after the show for even more exclusive content.

Xbox Play Anywhere at Gamescom

This year at Gamescom, we’re thrilled to introduce the Xbox Digital Passport Quest—a fun and interactive way to explore each Xbox booth and get a chance to win exciting prizes from Xbox and our top partners including Amazon, Meta, LG, NVIDIA GeForce, and NVIDIA GeForce NOW. As attendees journey through the broader Xbox booth, they will complete activities that showcase the benefits of Xbox Play Anywhere— buy a game once and play across PC, Xbox console, and supported gaming handhelds—and the unbeatable value of Xbox Game Pass – hundreds of high-quality games on Xbox console, PC and cloud. At Gamescom we’re celebrating our commitment to let you play the games you want, with the people you want, anywhere you want.

Gaming for Everyone

We want everyone to be able to visit us in comfort and safety. As such, we are ensuring that all areas of the booth are wheelchair accessible, Xbox Adaptive Controllers will be available upon request, and there will be select demo stations with adjustable-height desks and monitors. Plus, we’ll have “Here to Help” staff to assist players of all abilities navigate our booth and game experiences.

Live from the Showfloor with our Broadcast Teams

For those who can’t make the trip to Cologne this year, we’ll be bringing the show to you with a broadcast live from the heart of the Xbox booth on Wednesday and Thursday. Join Xbox and friends for a deeper dive into some of the highly anticipated games at Gamescom 2025 from our first party studio teams and partners around the world. We’re bringing you first-look gameplay, developer interviews, new trailers, updates, and more. We can’t wait to connect with fans across the globe and show off some of the amazing games coming soon to Xbox.

• Wednesday, August 20
  • Xbox at Gamescom 2025 Broadcast
    • Start: 6:00 a.m. PT / 9:00 a.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. BST / 3:00 p.m. CEST
    • Featuring the ROG Xbox Ally handhelds, Grounded 2, Keeper, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, and more
• Thursday, August 21
  • Xbox at Gamescom 2025 Broadcast
    • Start: 6:00 a.m. PT / 9:00 a.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. BST / 3:00 p.m. CEST
    • Featuring NINJA GAIDEN 4, Overwatch 2, The Outer Worlds 2, and more

Keep an eye on Xbox Social channels for the full content schedule in the days leading up to gamescom.

The live English-language broadcast from Xbox’s Gamescom booth will be available in Traditional Chinese, German, French, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese and Mexican Spanish, along with ASL and English Audio Descriptions. You can catch the Xbox at Gamescom Broadcast on regional Xbox channels on YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, and elsewhere.

Bethesda Softworks Broadcast

Building on a successful tradition, Bethesda Softworks will once again bring Gamescom directly to its global fanbase. The team will deliver three days of live broadcasts from the Xbox show floor in Cologne, beginning on Friday, August 22. Each daily show on Twitch will feature developer interviews, game showcases, community segments, crafting highlights, and live in-real-life tours from the event.

Xbox FanFest

Xbox FanFest is turning 10—and we’re celebrating a decade of unforgettable moments and community at Gamescom 2025 in Cologne! From our first gathering in Los Angeles to this milestone event, FanFest has always been about bringing fans closer to the games, creators, and each other.

Xbox Social and Xbox Wire

Our social media teams will be on the ground bringing you live coverage, updates, news, new videos, and lots of fun stuff too. And make sure to keep an eye on Xbox Wire all week for coverage of the Opening Night Live show, not to mention articles about many of the games on show.