From two completely different detective games to a genre-blending horror/deck-builder and classic beat ’em up, Canadian developers showed up in big ways
You might not know it, but Gamescom is, by far, the largest video game event in the world.
Impressively, the annual Cologne, Germany-based show brought in 357,000 people from across the globe this year. For context, that’s more than 3.5 times the size of Fan Expo Canada. In total, there were visitors from 128 countries, 35 of which being represented in dedicated pavilions.
I say all of that because it makes it particularly impressive that Canada is able to stand out. Despite our country’s comparatively small population, we’ve always punched well above our weight when it comes to our $5.1 billion gaming industry, and that remained true at Gamescom 2025.
Last week, I got to attend Gamescom and explore the show floor, visiting the consistently busy Canadian pavilion and seeing several Canadian games across the various booth spaces. As is often the case, these Canadian games were some of the most unique and promising. Here are some of the highlights.
This is a game I knew nothing about until I met producer and designer Jeremy Nelson at the Canadian pavilion and made an appointment to check it out the next day. While Nelson stressed that it’s still very much a work-in-progress, I was impressed by the serenity and novel Indigenous representation found within it. As he explains, it’s a more “cozy” survival experience with a lush colour palette inspired by the Great Lakes and the Canadian Shield, a setting that isn’t really seen in games. To add to the authenticity, the game features audio that the sound designer captured directly from Manitoba’s St. Theresa Point Indigenous community.
And beyond that, I just appreciated that you’re not inundated with complicated survival systems and mechanics, allowing you to focus instead on being immersed in the beautiful world. And something Nelson teased about the more “spiritual” side of the evening sections, in which the animals help tell the stories of their corresponding clans, sounds especially intriguing. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on this game.
2020’s Spiritfarer was one of the best indie games in recent memory, so that alone would demand attention for whatever developer Thunder Lotus was working on next. But impressively, At Fate’s End is a different beast entirely. Where Spiritfarer was a cozy adventure/management sim, At Fate’s End is an action-centric game focused around intense duels between the regal player character Shan and their siblings.
In a demo shown during Xbox’s Gamescom stream, creative director Nicolas Guerin showed off a gameplay demo featuring an absolutely stunning tarot-inspired aesthetic, exploration through a lively town and a heated confrontation between Shan and her sister Camilla. Above all else, the action looked remarkably tight and fluid while featuring interstitial choices that impact the trajectory of the fight and the fate of the world itself. Given the emotionally resonant storytelling in Spiritfarer, I can’t wait to see how Thunder Lotus weaves the combat mechanics and poignant narrative beats to deliver another unforgettable experience.
Developer: Styrax Studios Inc. (Halifax, N.S.)
Platforms: PC
Release date: TBA 2026
It was especially cool to see Button Man on such a big world stage as Gamescom since the game is a love letter to none other than Halifax. Yes, local developer Styrax has crafted this colourful comic book-inspired beat ’em up set in prohibition-era Halifax. This should lend a wholly unique style and flavour to the gumshoe narrative, which focuses on a henchman who’s hired to investigate the murder of the local kingpin. A very promising game, indeed.
EA’s annual Canadian-made sports franchise had a big booth at Gamescom in which attendees could play both EA Sports FC 26 itself and a little soccer-themed game with an actual ball. This year’s EA Sports FC features an overhaul of dribbling mechanics, improved AI, enhanced goalkeeper animations and more, on top of 20,000 licensed players, more than 750 clubs and national teams, and 35-plus leagues. Football is life.
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment (Irvine, California) and Eidos Montreal (Montreal, Que.)
Platforms: Xbox Series X/S, PC
Release date: July 29, 2025 (early access)
While Grounded 2 just launched a few weeks ago in early access, Xbox had the game on display at Gamescom for attendees to try out. Developed by original Grounded developer Obsidian in partnership with Canada’s Eidos Montreal (Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy), Grounded 2 features a significantly larger world, new mountable insects and a deeper storyline. It’s unclear when the full release will come, but for now, the early access has a meaty amount of content already.
One of Toronto’s most multidisciplinary entertainment studios is Lofty Sky, thanks to its work across film (Eternal Spring, which was Canada’s official 2023 Oscars submission for Best International Feature), games (Shuyan Saga, a visual novel that teaches players about kung fu) and apps (Miaomiao, which helps kids learn Mandarin). All of those experiences come together in Hope in the City, a narrative mystery game about a Chinese teenager who must locate her missing kids.
In particular, Lofty Sky CEO Jason Loftus and creative director Judith Cheung at Gamescom tell me that the game draws heavily from their background of making documentaries about China, giving real-world parallels to protagonist Hope’s quest. They also explain that they want this to be a different sort of detective game, with the teenaged Hope’s overall lack of life experience contrasting from the sort of grizzled gumshoe you’d see elsewhere.
All the while, they’re bringing more artistic flair to the experience through stylized polygonal graphics and beautiful hand-drawn Chinese artwork that will visualize Hope piecing together the case in her sketchbook. This will feed into a non-linear story in which you can decide where to investigate, which should add a level of dynamism to the experience.
Overall, I’m very much looking forward to learning more. It’s also worth noting that Lofty Sky has another game on the way before Hope in the City, the sci-fi fantasy RPG Sky of Tides.
Developer: Lucid Rain Studios (Edmonton, Alta.)
Platforms: PC (Steam)
Release date: TBA
Talk about genre-blending. This debut game from Lucid Rain Studios mixes first-person exploration with Divine Comedy- and Lovecraft-inspired horror and roguelite deck-building elements. In order to survive Hell, you’ll have to challenge each of its nine rulers using Tarot Arcana cards. It looks to be a deeply atmospheric and unsettling experience that calls to mind fellow Canadian-made game Inscryption with its creepy card mechanics, but with a fully-realized survival horror framework surrounding it. Hell yeah.
Developer: BancyCo (Toronto, Ont.)
Platforms: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC (Steam)
Release date: Out now
While Neo Harbor Rescue Squad originally released late last year, developer BancyCo had a booth for it at Gamescom 2025. This clever mix of visual novel and paramedic simulator features more than 50 funny minigames inspired by medical stories in Asia. You’ll be ranked based on how well you tackle each emergency. Meanwhile, dialogue choices will advance the story and let you learn more about squadmates.
Developer: Tribute Games (Montreal, Que.)
Platforms: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC
Release date: TBA 2026
While some members of the press got to play this at Gamescom, I actually didn’t even know it was going to be there, sadly, until I had to leave. But of course, how much more Canadian do you get than Scott Pilgrim? It hails from the wonderfully talented folks at TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge developer Montreal’s Tribute Games, some of whom also worked on the original Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game. That beat ’em up pedigree alone speaks for itself, and it helps that Canadian Scott Pilgrim creator Bryan Lee O’Malley has returned to pen this zany new story about Scott and Ramona travelling to a futuristic Toronto.
To coincide with Gamescom, we also got a new trailer confirming two more of the seven total playable characters: Lucas Lee and Roxie Richter. The ability to also play as some of the Evil Exes this time around should make for even more chaotic fun, especially since Tribute Games seems to be making the most out of their unique fighting styles. (Lucas uses his almost Hulk-like brawn and skateboard, while Roxie mixes a katana with boba.) After Netflix’s incredible Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, we can’t wait to see what Tribute and O’Malley have in store for us with EX.
It’s also worth mentioning that Tribute Games has another beat ’em up coming this holiday before Scott Pilgrim EX, Marvel Cosmic Invasion. You can read more on that in our Summer Game Fest preview.
While Warframe is by no means new, it’s still worth mentioning here because its presence at Gamescom highlights the long-running multiplayer game’s insanely large global reach. On top of being able to bring thousands of global fans to London, Ont. every year, local developer Digital Extremes hosts special free “TennoVIP” community events in various cities around the world, including Cologne to coincide with Gamescom and Tokyo next month. At the German TennoVIP, excited fans got to meet the likes of creative director Rebecca Ford and Warframe 1999 actor Ben Starr.
Even as an outsider, it’s no surprise Warframe continues to remain so popular after more than 10 years.
Which of these Canadian games are you excited to play? Are there others you’re looking forward to? Let us know in the comments.
