Gamescom is a trade show for video games held every year at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany. It is the world's largest gaming event. In 2018, 370,000 people visited, and 1,037 companies from 56 countries participated. Many video game developers use the event to show new games and related equipment. The "gamescom – Opening Night Live" (ONL) event happens each year the night before the show begins. During ONL, the latest game trailers and announcements are shared, and Geoff Keighley hosts the event.

In addition to areas open to the public, there is a section reserved for professionals, such as publishers, journalists, and developers. Before Gamescom, the Devcom conference takes place at the same location. This event is designed for people working in the game development industry.

History

The Federal Association of Interactive Entertainment Software previously held the Games Convention in Leipzig from 2002 to 2008. This event was once the largest games trade show in the world. However, Leipzig became less suitable for hosting such a large event due to limited transportation options and a lack of enough hotel rooms. In 2008, the BIU and Koelnmesse announced a new event plan, which would begin in Cologne in 2009. The Leipzig Trade Fair disagreed with this move and planned to continue the Games Convention without the BIU. This disagreement led to a five-month conflict between the two groups. Because Leipzig did not allow the Cologne event to use the name "Games Convention," the BIU changed the event's name to "GamesCom." Both events were scheduled for the same weekend and competed to be seen as the leading German trade fair for the games industry. Eventually, after an agreement between Gamescom and GDC, Leipzig announced that the Games Convention would end and be replaced by an online-only event focused on mobile and casual gaming. Gamescom was first held in August 2009 and was very successful. The online version of the Games Convention ended in 2010.

The BIU continued to support and manage the event until 2018, when it merged with the industry group GAME. Its new organization, the German Games Industry Association, took over the same responsibilities. In 2019, Geoff Keighley began hosting Opening Night Live, a streamed event that marks the start of the show. This event has been used to share many game trailers and announcements.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused the end of E3, Gamescom has become the largest event of its kind. Gamescom Latam, first held in Brazil in 2024, is now the largest event in the Americas.

Events

Gamescom 2009 took place from 19–23 August. 245,000 people attended the event.

Wednesday, 18 August:
• Electronic Arts
• Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
• Microsoft Game Studios
• Konami
• Namco Bandai Games

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe introduced the PlayStation 3 Slim, a smaller and lighter version of the console, with a release date of 1 September 2009. Firmware 3.0 for the PlayStation 3 was also announced, adding new features to the PlayStation Network. Sony stated that the European Video Store would launch in November 2009. Sony also announced that the PlayStation Portable would offer smaller games (under 100MB) called "minis" and that comics could be downloaded in December 2009. A promotion for free game downloads was introduced for the PSP Go.

Microsoft Game Studios announced Fable III, with a release date of 2010. Microsoft also said it would release Fable II on the Xbox Live Marketplace in five episodes, with the first episode free to download.

Most press conferences were not live-streamed, but Electronic Arts streamed its conference on EA.com. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe shared its press conference on PlayStation Home shortly after. Sony also made its press conference available for download on the PlayStation Store. Gaming websites provided live-blogging of the conferences.

Gamescom 2010 took place from 18–22 August. 254,000 people attended the event.

The main announcements at Gamescom 2010 came from Insomniac Games. They revealed two new games: Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One, with gameplay shown, and Resistance 3, with a live-action teaser trailer. Both games will be exclusive to the PlayStation 3. All 4 One has a set release date of late 2011, while Resistance 3 did not have a release date.

Gamescom 2011 took place from 17–21 August. 275,000 people attended the event.
• The first Dota 2 International championship was held. The tournament had the largest prize pool of any e-sports event at the time.

Gamescom 2012 took place from 15–19 August. 275,000 people attended the event.

Gamescom 2013 took place from 21–25 August. 340,000 people attended the event.
• The World Championship Series 2013 Season 2 Global Finals, a StarCraft II tournament with a $150,000 prize pool, were held during the event.
• Three League of Legends tournaments were held: International Wildcard Tournament Season 4 Spring Promotion Qualifier and European LCS Playoffs.

Gamescom 2014 took place from 13–17 August. 335,000 people attended the event.
• The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major ESL One Cologne 2014 was held at Gamescom.

Gamescom 2015 took place from 5–9 August. 345,000 people attended the event.

Gamescom 2016 took place from 17–21 August. 345,000 people attended the event.

Gamescom 2017 took place from 22–26 August. 355,000 people attended the event.
• German Chancellor Angela Merkel opened the event, which marked the first time a Gamescom was opened by a sitting Chancellor.
• BMW and Electronic Arts introduced the newest generation BMW M5 to promote the launch of Need for Speed Payback.

Gamescom 2018 took place from 21–25 August. 370,000 people attended the event.
• Nvidia announced the GeForce RTX 20 Series at the Palladium Cologne on 20 August 2018.

Gamescom 2019 took place from 20–24 August. Geoff Keighley announced a dedicated video game announcement show called "Gamescom: Opening Night Live" before the event. Inspired by The Game Awards, the show was streamed on 19 August at 8:00pm (CEST).

Gamescom 2020 was scheduled for 25–29 August in Cologne. However, Germany banned public events in August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers moved parts of the event online, including the Opening Night Live on 27 August and developer interviews from 27–30 August.

Gamescom 2021 took place from 25–27 August 2021. The event included Opening Night Live with Geoff Keighley on 25 August. Gamescom 2021 was a hybrid event with both online and live components.

Gamescom 2022 took place from 24–28 August 2022. The event was both in-person and online. 265,000 people attended the event.

Gamescom 2023 took place from 23–27 August 2023. 320,000 people attended the event. During the opening night, one attendee rushed on stage and interrupted presenter Geoff Keighley, saying, "Bill Clinton wants to play GTA VI." This

Game Developers Conference Europe

From 2009 to 2016, the Game Developers Conference Europe (GDC Europe), a European branch of the Game Developers Conference, was held along with Gamescom at the Cologne Congress Centre East.

Offshoots

In 2021, a new branch of the trade fair called Gamescom Asia was created and held in Singapore. In 2025, Gamescom Asia collaborates with Thailand Game Show and is held in Bangkok. In 2023, Koelnmesse reached an agreement with BIG Festival and Omelete Company to start a new branch named Gamescom Latam, which is held in Brazil.