After a four year absence, Nintendo will be returning to Gamescom 2023 to showcase what’s next for the Japanese gaming giant. In an announcement directly from Gamescom on Twitter they write, “We are excited to announce that Nintendo will be exhibiting at #gamescom2023! Many more exhibitors will follow in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!” Nintendo last presented at Gamescom 2019 where they showed off titles like Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age, Luigi’s Mansion 3, Link’s Awakening, Pokemon Sword and Shield, and more. It’s unclear what Nintendo has in store as this year is already shaping up to be Nintendo’s most successful with the upcoming release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. 

We are excited to announce that Nintendo will be exhibiting at #gamescom2023! Many more exhibitors will follow in the coming weeks. Stay tuned! pic.twitter.com/ludCq12pwe

— gamescom (@gamescom) April 26, 2023

The announcement of Nintendo’s involvement at Gamescom comes after E3 announced earlier this month that it was canceling their 2023 event stating that they, “simply did not garner the sustained interest necessary to execute it in a way that would showcase the size, strength, and impact of our industry.” Back in February Nintendo confirmed they would skip E3 2023, alongside many other major gaming giants such as Sony and Microsoft, an even larger blow to E3’s presence in the entertainment landscape. 

With E3 out of the picture, Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest which is scheduled to start June 8th, has replaced the longstanding summer tradition of game announcements that E3 once helmed. While Nintendo has yet to confirm whether or not they’ll be a part of Summer Game Fest, there’s now at least the confirmation they’ll be presenting from Gamescom in-person. With the pandemic, many gaming giants like Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, found presenting their own announcements online like Nintendo Direct and Sony State of Play were easier to organize, cost-effective and, garnered further interest than in-person events. Gamescom first returned to their in-person event last year for Gamescom 2022, which Nintendo did not attend. 

Gamescom will be taking place in person and online in Cologne, Germany August 23rd— August 27th. Tickets for Gamescom 2023 went on sale yesterday, April 25th.