(21 Aug 2019) LEAD IN: Hundreds of thousands of fans are crowding Cologne for the city's annual Gamescom trade show.
For many it's a priceless opportunity to sample the latest video games before their release, while others enjoy meeting like-minded gamers.
STORY-LINE:
Game on in Cologne. More than 350,000 fans are crowding into the city's expo centre for annual games fest, Gamescom.
The event is hosting around 1,100 exhibitors including industry giants, Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation and Nintendo.
Microsoft Xbox is touting several titles, including the soon-to-be-launched "Gears 5", set for release this September.
Many other titles are headed for the US giant's popular $10-a-month Game Pass subscription service, which currently has a library of more than 100 games.
"I hope I can see Iron Man VR on the PlayStation store, I hope I can also test Ford Fordzilla and the 4D driving experience, it's really nice to look at this," says visitor Patrick Kockerbauer.
For others, it's about meeting fellow gaming fans.
"You meet, I guess, everyday other people," says visitor Jonathan Batzner.
"And you cannot imagine how many people are friendly."
Nintendo is giving gamers a taste of "Spyro Reignited Trilogy" on its Switch console. It's the latest installment in the popular dragon-themed series, which started in 1998.
"I'm looking forward to playing Spyro, I had the version for PlayStation One when I was younger. So, I'm really excited to see how the new Reignited version is," says visitor Amela Kadric.
"Everybody can play the games, they're not like really difficult. That's why I think we all love it, you just kind of get into the characters, yeah."
Not far away, at Sony PlayStation's booth, gamers are getting hands-on with an array of new games. Some attracting attention aren't even available to play - just a short cinema-style presentation.
That includes the eagerly awaited "Death Stranding" by famed video game creator Hideo Kojima. It's due out this November, but gamers can't try it just yet.
"You can see so much material you would have to wait for so long to play it, you see more, to get information you would have to wait a long time to get anywhere else, so it's crazy here. It's crazy!" says visitor Julia-Jones.
"If you try it here you can decide if you buy it or not for Christmas or something," says visitor Raphael Kourtesis.
"Because if you just see the trailers, it's really different."
According to Game, the German Games Industry Association, Germany's games market continued to grow throughout the first half of 2019, compared to the first six months of 2018.
Revenues from games and games hardware rose by eleven percent from 2.5 to 2.8 billion euros in Germany.
The growth was mainly driven by fees for online services, where revenues grew by 52 percent to 228 million euros.
Gamescom, Europe's biggest video games event, runs till 24 August.
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