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The biggest PC gaming showcase of E3 2019 delivered a headline-grabbing reveal that split its own fanbase.
The PC Gaming Show returned for its fifth straight year at E3, broadcasting live from the Mayan Theatre in Los Angeles on June 10, 2019. Presented by PC Gamer and backed by primary sponsor Epic Games Store, the two-hour broadcast ran through more than 30 titles, mixing scrappy indie debuts with tentpole announcements from major publishers. Co-hosts Sean “Day[9]” Plott and Frankie Ward kept the pace brisk, but one late-show reveal about Shenmue III overshadowed almost everything else that aired.
- Torn Banner Studios and Tripwire Interactive announced Chivalry 2, while Rebellion Developments revealed Evil Genius 2: World Domination.
- Paradox Interactive showed new gameplay and cinematic footage for Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2, alongside a developer update on Borderlands 3.
- Yu Suzuki’s Shenmue III got a new gameplay trailer that also confirmed its PC version would launch as a timed exclusive on the Epic Games Store — a decision that immediately drew backlash from original Kickstarter backers expecting a Steam release.
Day[9] and Frankie Ward Set the Pace
With Plott’s rapid-fire esports delivery and Ward’s interview chops, the two hosts moved the show through dozens of segments without letting any one publisher dominate the runtime. Plott has built his career as one of the sport’s more recognizable broadcast personalities through years of competitive esports coverage, and that background showed in how he handled the transitions between indie trailers and big-budget cinematics without the broadcast ever feeling like a straight ad reel.
Epic Games Store’s presence as title sponsor was impossible to miss throughout the night, a fitting backdrop given what was coming later in the show.
Chivalry 2 and Evil Genius 2 Headline the Reveals
Torn Banner Studios and Tripwire Interactive used the show to formally announce Chivalry 2, giving fans of the melee-combat original their first look at a sequel years in the making. Rebellion Developments followed with Evil Genius 2: World Domination, bringing back the lair-building strategy series for a new audience on PC.
Paradox Interactive’s segment leaned on atmosphere, running fresh gameplay and cinematic footage from Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2, a game with a cult following dating back to the 2004 original. Gearbox also stopped by with a developer update on Borderlands 3, keeping the show’s mix of indie discovery and blockbuster follow-through balanced through the middle stretch.
Indie Trailers Filled Out the Middle of the Show
Beyond the marquee names, the broadcast gave real runway to smaller studios. Unexplored 2: The Wayfarer’s Legacy and Mosaic both got trailer debuts, and Chucklefish used its slot to introduce Starmancer, a space-station simulation game that leaned into the same colony-management hooks that made the studio’s earlier catalog stick with PC players.
Shenmue III’s Epic Games Store Bombshell
The night’s biggest talking point arrived with Shenmue III. Alongside a new gameplay trailer, the show confirmed the PC edition would launch as a timed exclusive on the Epic Games Store — news that landed hard with the project’s original Kickstarter backers, many of whom had pledged money years earlier with a Steam release in mind.
Shenmue III’s PC release will be a timed exclusive to the Epic Games Store — not the Steam launch its Kickstarter backers were promised.
The reaction was immediate and loud across backer communities, turning what should have been a straightforward trailer drop into the dominant storyline coming out of the entire Shenmue III broadcast slot, and arguably out of the whole PC Gaming Show.
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