June is traditionally a big time for the gaming industry in terms of new game reveals and announcements. Almost every year since 1995, June has played host toE3, a massive event where the giants in the industry come together to show off what they have planned for the future.
Recent years have thrown a wrench in the plans, however. E3 2020 was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, andE3 2021 was a digital-only event. Now E3 2022 has been canceled as well, and it’s unclear what the future holds for the big gaming showcase.
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E3 is expected to make a comeback in 2023, but that remains to be seen. But even with no E3 this year, gaming fans still have a lot to look forward to in June. In fact, June 2022 is shaping up to be an absolutely massive month for the gaming industry based on what’s been announced so far.
Big Gaming Events for June 2022
E3 2022 is canceled, but that doesn’t mean big gaming events aren’t going to happen in June. On the contrary, June 2022 is still going to be a time of huge game reveals and announcements, and so fans have plenty to look forward to next month.
The first big event announced for June 2022 is Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest, which kicks off with a special presentation on June 9 at 11am PT.This year’s Summer Game Fest will be in select IMAX theaters, and it should feature plenty of big announcements. Last year’s show ended with the gameplay reveal forElden Ring, so hype is high for this year’s Summer Game Fest event and what it has to offer. Things are being kept secret for now, so those interested will have to tune in to find out what happens.
A few days later on June 12 at 10am PT, gamers can tune in to the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase. The Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase will be Xbox’s E3-equivalent presentation this year, where it makes big game announcements and provides deep dives for some of its upcoming projects. Bethesda will have its games on display as well, and it’s expected that the show will revolve around open world sci-fi RPGStarfield. Even thoughStarfieldwas recently delayed to 2023, Xbox gamers should still be able to expect it to have a major presence at the event.
Then on June 16, fans of Blizzard’s hero-shooterOverwatchwill be treated to news aboutOverwatch 2. The event is confirmed to discuss thenextOverwatch 2PvP beta, but it’s unclear what else it may have in store. Blizzard has not announced a start time for theOverwatch 2event just yet, so fans will have to stay tuned for more information on that front.
And finally, it’s been confirmed that some kind ofannouncement related toFinal Fantasy 7’s 25th anniversarywill be coming next month. Fans have their fingers crossed that the announcement will be related toFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2, but they may want to keep their expectations in check. Whatever’s in store,Final Fantasyfans should keep an eye out for an announcement at some point next month.
Rumored Gaming Events for June 2022
Besides the big gaming events that have been confirmed, there are also events that are rumored to be taking place in June 2022 but have not been officially announced at the time of this writing. It’s rumored thatSony may host a State of Play presentation in June, and it’s also rumored that Nintendo may host an E3-equivalent Nintendo Direct presentation at some point next month as well. Other big game companies are also expected to throw their hats in the ring, though it’s unclear if they will host their own presentations or piggyback off things like the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase and Summer Game Fest.
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It’s also been heavily rumored thatActivision will be unveilingCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2in June, with leaker Tom Henderson pointing to a June 8 reveal date for the 2022 FPS. The latest leaks and rumors surrounding theCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2reveal suggest that the initial reveal will focus primarily on the campaign, with a proper multiplayer unveiling happening later this summer. The reveal itself has not even been announced yet, though, soCall of Dutyfans should keep that in mind.
New Video Game Releases for June 2022
Gaming news events are exciting because they give fans a peak at future games they will be able to play, but it’s safe to say most are interested in games that they will be able to play in the near future. June 2022 is traditionally not a very busy month for new game releases, and that holds true this year, but there are still some notable titles that fans may want to check out.
Kicking off June 2022’s new game releases isDiablo Immortal, a mobile/PC spin-off of Blizzard’s popular hack-and-slashDiablofranchise. Initial reactions toDiablo Immortalwere largely negative because of its mobile focus, but after some testing periods, it seems that fans are starting to turn around on the game. If nothing else,Diablo Immortalshould give fans something to do while they wait forDiablo 4, and it will be interesting to see if the final product manages to exceed expectations.
On June 10, there are two major game releases for fans to look forward to, asMario Strikers: Battle Leagueis releasing for the Nintendo Switch andThe Quarryis releasing for multiple platforms. The two games are very different in nature, withMario Strikers: Battle Leaguebeing a family-friendly Mario sports title andThe Quarrybeing a narrative-driven horror gamefrom the creators ofUntil Dawn, but they both should still provide a quality gaming experience.
Then on June 21, gamers can look forward tobattle royale gameFall Guysgoing free-to-playand releasing for more platforms. Until now,Fall Guyshas been exclusive to PC and PlayStation, but it’s finally making its way to Xbox and Nintendo consoles. This should breathe new life intoFall Guys, and it could very well be the start of an exciting brand-new era for the game.
On June 23,Sonic Originsis releasing across multiple platforms, giving gamers access to some of Sonic’s most popular older games, while June 24 sees the release of theCapcom Fighting CollectionandFire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, a musou-style spin-off of theFire Emblemseries and a companion to the critically-acclaimed Switch exclusiveFire Emblem: Three Houses. And finally, June 30 will see the release of the long-awaitedMonster Hunter RiseexpansionSunbreak.LEGO Brawls, a game previously exclusive to Apple Arcade, is also expected to jump ship to more platforms next month, but its release date has yet to be announced.
Please keep in mind that this is not a comprehensive list of the new games releasing in June 2022, but rather a highlight of some of the higher profile releases.
PS Plus Essential, Extra, and Premium Launch
So far, Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass subscription service has gone mostly unanswered by PlayStation, but that will change soon. PlayStation is making massive changes to its PlayStation Plus subscription service by introducing three new tiers: PS Plus Essential, PS Plus Extra, andPS Plus Premium. PS Plus Essential is basically PS Plus as it exists today, while the Extra tier throws some high profile PS4 and PS5 games into the mix, not to mention many of the games currently available to play through PlayStation Now. PS Plus Premium, meanwhile, includes everything in the Essential and Extra tiers on top of hundreds of retro games.
ThePS Plus Essential, Extra, and Premium launch datesare staggered by region. Those in Asian markets can check out the new tiers as early as May 23, while gamers in Japan have to wait for June 1. Those in the Americas will have access to the new PS Plus tiers on June 13, while those in Europe will get them on June 22.
The jury is still out on whether thenew PS Plus tiersare enough to properly compete with Xbox Game Pass, but we’ll find out sooner rather than later.
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