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How to Watch Summer Game Fest

E3 may be on break, but Summer Game Fest promises to deliver hot gaming news starting June 9. Here’s how to stream it.

 & Jordan Minor Principal Writer, Software

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For more than 25 years, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) served as the biggest event in gaming. During one magical week per year, video game publishers made their biggest announcements before allowing journalists, and eventually fans, to play the newest games. Unfortunately, E3 has declined in recent years, through a combination of poor decisions and global catastrophes beyond anyone’s control. In 2022, E3 is taking a break, and we’re honestly not sure if it will ever return to its classic form.

There’s no E3 this year, but that doesn’t mean a lack of exciting gaming news to watch this summer. Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest returns this month to fill E3's void. Here’s how to stream the fun.


When to Watch Summer Game Fest

Summer Games Fest itself is a live show that kicks off on Thursday, June 9 at 2 p.m. EST. That’s where you’ll see all the bombshell announcements and gameplay reveals. The Summer Game Fest website also features a useful schedule of the biggest, upcoming gaming live streams. Top items include geeky showcases from Netflix and Tribeca Games Spotlight on June 10 and the Xbox/Bethesda on June 12. Nintendo hasn’t yet announced a summer Direct presentation, but we wouldn’t be shocked to soon see one show up here, too. Another Sony event also seems possible.


How to Watch Summer Game Fest

Summer Game Fest is a Geoff Keighley joint, so it's available on the same channels that carry The Game Awards: Twitch and YouTube. It's a huge streaming event, so expect top broadcasters, including IGN, to co-stream the feed and add their own commentary. Additionally, you can watch the show on Facebook and even in IMAX theaters at participating locations.  


What to Expect From Summer Game Fest

If we knew exactly what was going to be announced during Summer Game Fest, that would ruin the surprise. That said, if you want to get hyped, take a look at the highlighted companies and make some educated guesses about potential announcements. These companies collectively represent the vast majority of the games industry, from huge publishers to small teams, so your imagination can really run wild. 

Summer Game Fest’s partners include 2K, Activision, Atlas, Bandai Namco, Bloober Team, Capcom, Coffee Stain, Deep Silver, Digital Extremes, DotEmu, EA, Epic Games, Focus Entertainment, Frost Giant, Humble Games, Level Infinite, Mediatonic, MiHoYo, Netflix, Raw Fury, Samsung, Sega, Skybound Games, Studio MDHR, Sony, Square Enix, Steam, Tribeca, Warner Bros., and Xbox. 

So, what will we see? The new God of War? Starfield? Skate 4? Tune in to Summer Game Fest on June 9 to find out. 

For more on gaming, check out our picks for the best PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox games. For in-depth video game talk, visit PCMag's Pop-Off YouTube channel.

About Our Expert

Jordan Minor

Jordan Minor

Principal Writer, Software

My PCMag career began in 2013 as an intern. Now, I'm a senior writer, using the skills I acquired at Northwestern University to write about dating apps, meal kits, programming software, website builders, video streaming services, and video games. I was previously a senior editor at Geek.com and have written for The A.V. Club, Kotaku, and Paste Magazine. I'm the author of the gaming history book Video Game of the Year: A Year-by-Year Guide to the Best, Boldest, and Most Bizarre Games from Every Year Since 1977, and the reason everything you know about Street Sharks is a lie.

The Technology I Use

I use the newest Android and iOS smartphones for testing, but I currently use an iPhone 14 as my personal phone. I just hate that we gave up headphone jacks.

I've always favored gaming laptops over desktops. On that note, I have a 16-inch HP Envy with an Intel Core i9-13900H CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU. No matter what machine I’m working on, an alarming amount of my personal and professional life revolves around cloud-synced Google Drive files.

For food subscriptions, my household sticks with CookUnity and HelloFresh for meals. Video streaming is a bit more complicated. While there are too many services to list, we're subscribed to most of the major ones. These days, I find myself drawn to HBO Max's movies and shows, as well as Peacock's reality trash.

I've been a lifelong Nintendo fan, and I sincerely believe the Nintendo Switch will go down as one of the best gaming consoles of all time. It has an unbelievable library of new and old games from Nintendo and third-party companies. The handheld/console hybrid approach makes playing games so much more flexible, a legacy that continues with the Nintendo Switch 2 and Valve’s Steam Deck.

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