Influencers and experts from the esports racing community share their hopes for gamescom 2020.
Photo credit: Koelnmesse / gamescom / Maxi Uellendahl
Get in there, esports racers! We are up for a week full of announcements, trailer reveals and lots of gaming at gamescom 2020. Not only OverTake is excited, but also the community is highly anticipating the event running from August 27-30. We spoke to several prominent names from the esports racing community to find out about their hopes and expectations.
We asked them which racing and non-racing announcements they are hoping to see at the digital fair. Additionally, we wanted to know whether they are more excited about PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X and why.
With which of these answers do you agree?
René Buttler
Host & Commentator and Business Manager for rFactor 2
In general, I am happy to see that the racing genre, no matter hardcore-sim or casual title, gets so much attention and we, the fans, get so many new games. Of course, it’s tempting to see more of Gran Turismo. Ultimately, it’s one of the games that marks the starting point for many sim racers. But there is another title I am really excited for: the return of Test Drive Unlimited. The trailer already showed that you’re once again able to turn the windows up and down, so this can only be good! 😉
Also, I devour all news about Cyberpunk 2077. It’s number one on the list of games I want to know more about. Another title I’d like to see is Star Citizen or Squadron 42, for I am an old Wing Commander fanboy. But I don’t know if we are going to see something about this at gamescom. Let’s see!
The release of a new console generation is always a big moment, especially with sim racing heading over to consoles more and more. Therefore, I am really excited how the new generation is able to perform and whether complex physics-engines from sim racing are able to run on the consoles. But besides pure performance, I hope for “lifestyle” features because we know consoles are more and more becoming home entertainment systems for movies, internet and other stuff. I just hope there are new things to discover!
Jaroslav “Jardier” Honzik
Content Creator and Streamer
I would love to see any information about the GTR 3 game project which basically disappeared from the online world. And then, for sure, I would love to see more previews of Gran Turismo 7.
Probably as every gaming fan I’m looking forward to Cyberpunk 2077. I hope that they won’t postpone the game anymore.
Well, I would like to see more PlayStation 5 previews and also a release date. I am looking forward to a new console future!
Luke “Actrollvision” Crane
Commentator and Streamer
I would like to see some more official series on Raceroom, as well as new WTCR cars and the DTM trophy.
Apart from racing, I am really looking forward to the next Call of Duty game.
As for console, I just want them to run sim racing titles as smoothly and to the same level as on PC to help push the Actrollvision Community Racing community on all three platforms.
Indiana “Froskurinn” Black
Commentator and Nitro Nights Host
I guess I don’t care so much for any new titles but more so for what new consoles and tech bring. In all my conversations with racers and analysts, I’ve come to the conclusion that the future of racing is not in a new game, but in new technology – be that specs of next gen consoles, feedback devices, or VR – to unlock sim racing to the next level.
I’ve always been a fan of single player experiences, so I would like to see new intellectual property announced rather than more sequels. I think our capabilities for storytelling have only gotten better and I want new stories. In terms of visiting established worlds – the new Fable and an eventual Elder Scrolls announcement would be my jam. The Star Wars esport is also interesting for a good game with friends.
I’ve always been a Sony person due to my love of JRPG and Final Fantasy – so despite the fact that those titles are now cross-platform usually, I’m still loyal to the PlayStation.
James Baldwin
Esports Racer and World’s Fastest Gamer
Seeing the launch of the V10 R-League has been very exciting. It means Assetto Corsa, in my opinion a very underused and underrated sim, will have a top tier series taking place on it. It is my preferred platform, and I will be keeping an eye on the series just to see how it develops.
The game I am enjoying playing the most at the moment that isn’t a racing game has got to be Call of Duty: Warzone, not that I’m any good at it! But yeah, a big fan of FPS games, they could do with bringing out a new Warzone map, Verdansk is old news now. Time to upgrade!
To be honest, all the specs I would want to know about have already been released. Both consoles look very similar, big upgrades compared with the previous generation. I have always been an Xbox guy, no real reason behind this. But if I could eventually get my hands on both to compare, that would be awesome. Sim racing on console will be taken to a new level when these come out, it will bring those console players closer to a PC experience when racing virtually.
Tom Deacon
Nitro Nights & F1 Esports Host
Secretly, I’m hoping that there’s a crazy announcement that Wipeout, made by Psygnosis, is released in a brand-new format… hopefully for the PlayStation 5. However, there isn’t much chance of that. It was my first racing game and I loved it. Of course, I’m most excited to see how Gran Turismo 7 turns out. Tipped to be a blend of past, present and future, I am most excited to see how it will look and feel.
I also like the idea of any surprises I wasn’t expecting, the unknown if you will. That is what I am most pumped for. However I am a big First-Person-Shooter fan so I hope there will be details for Battlefield. Plus, after just playing The Last Of Us 2, I kind of want there to be a third instalment. But maybe that would not be possible with the makers at Naughty Dog.
I started out with a PlayStation growing up, then Halo came out and I had to buy an Xbox. Now I’m just a solid PlayStation 4 guy. I guess I am most excited about the PlayStation 5 coming out. There are already some great titles announced like Battlefield 6 and a free update for us Assassin’s Creed Valhalla fans. I guess I am most interested in the controllers. Can they withstand a rage throw from me after I get served on Madden?
What are your hopes for gamescom 2020? Tweet them to us @overtake_gg!
