Gamescom will kick off on Aug. 19, 2025 with yet another installment of Geoff Keighley extravaganza Opening Night Live. The commercial-based show charges for ad slots, and according to a report from German video game magazine GamesWirtschaft, prices are going up.
Geoff Keighley’s Opening Night Live raises ad prices, charging as much as $480K in 2025
It only makes sense the ad-based spectacle makes bank off ads
Photo: Gamescom
Ian Walker loves exploring niche communities and researching the development of classic video games.
The report says that ad costs at next year’s Opening Night Live will range from €140,000 (around $147,000 USD) for 30 seconds to €335,000 (around $351,000 USD) for two minutes, representing an average increase of 25% from 2024. A new three-minute tier will cost a whopping €465,000 (around $487,000 USD).
Opening Night Live reportedly garnered 40 million views in 2024, doubling those of the previous year. Notable announcements at that show included a short Borderlands 4 tease, a first look at Mafia: The Old Country, and a release date reveal for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.
Keighley’s other annual gigs, The Game Awards and Summer Game Fest, charge slightly higher figures, but that doesn’t make it any easier for smaller studios to fork over the kind of dough necessary to secure a slot at Opening Night Live — all three shows provide free “editorial placements” for major publishers, by the way.
During last year’s Gamescom, indie developers gently protested Opening Night Live’s prices by posting their trailers and gameplay clips to social media instead.
Keighley and Gamescom did not immediately respond to separate requests for comment.
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