The PC Gaming Show at E3 2021 is the latest livestream in what’s quickly become a tradition. Tom’s Guide covered the very first PC Gaming Show back in 2015, and while the show has grown considerably since then, it still puts the focus on a variety of inventive PC games — some mainstream, some quite niche.
This year, we saw more than 40 games, and to cover each one in depth would require a whole gaming show of its own. However, we can comment on some of the PC Gaming Show’s highlights, including new story information about Dying Light 2, the release of Orcs Must Die 3 on platforms outside of Google Stadia and a few words about Steam Next Fest from Valve’s head honcho, Gabe Newell.
- E3 2021 schedule: How to watch Ubisoft, Microsoft, Nintendo and more
- E3 2021 biggest announcements: Latest news, trailers, gameplay and more
- Plus: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade is great on PS5 — transferring save data is not
Dying Light 2
Dying Light became a cult hit when it launched in 2015, combining a “zombie-infested city” narrative with inventive parkour gameplay, a meaningful day-night cycle and an ambitious story. Dying Light 2 is set to come out on December 7, 2021, and we know a few things about how the game will kick off. The game stars a man named Aiden, who lost his sister, Mia, in a fire during their childhoods. Finding out what happened to Mia is one part of the story — helping his community of survivors thrive in a harsh world is another, as his choices will affect how his township develops.
Orcs Must Die 3
Orcs Must Die 3 was a timed exclusive on Google Stadia. That was good news for Stadia fans, who wanted a game to call their own, but not as great for fans of the first two games who already had powerful PCs. Now, Orcs Must Die 3 — an action/strategy game where you set up complex labyrinths of traps to take on hordes of rampaging orcs — is set for release on Steam, PlayStation and Xbox on July 23. There’s a new story campaign to tackle, as well big outdoor maps, which are a first for the series.
Gabe Newell and Steam Next Fest
Gabe Newell is the president and co-founder of Valve: the company behind Steam and popular franchises like Half-Life and Portal. Before you ask: No, Newell didn’t announce Half-Life 3. But he did announce Steam Next Fest, which will take place between June 16 and June 22 on Steam. The pitch is very simple: By logging into Steam on those dates, you can play hundreds of game demos for free and see what’s coming next from some very promising indie developers.
E3 2021 PC Gaming Show: More game announcements
Since we can’t list every single game that showed up at the PC Gaming Show, we did want to take a moment to highlight a handful of other potentially interesting titles. If you’ve got a gaming PC, keep an eye on these — and even if you don’t, many of them will be out on consoles, too.
- Dodgeball Academia is a dodgeball RPG with a cartoonish art style and a sense of humor
- Humankind is a strategic simulation game from Sega, where you build up a human civilization from scratch
- Vampire the Masquerade: Swan Song appears to be a third-person adventure game set in the intriguing World of Darkness
- Lemnis Gate is a hybrid multiplayer shooter/real-time strategy game, where players fight each other asynchronously in 25-second bursts
- WarTales is a strategy/RPG where a band of medieval mercenaries goes from town to town, taking on quests and getting into scraps
- Hello Neighbor 2 looks delightful, weird and a little scary — like the first game
- Songs of Conquest mixes fantasy city-building with turn-based hex combat
There are still a few more days left in E3 2021, so stay tuned to Tom’s Guide for all the latest news.
