The Federal Minister of Economy took a lot of time this time. Robert Habeck has arrived in Cologne for two days for the world’s largest computer and video games expo: the official opening on Wednesday evening and a tour on Thursday morning.

It was briefly canceled last year due to the energy crisis, and after two years of Corona, there were already rumors in some in the industry that Gamescom was nearing its end. He also said goodbye to the fair because some big players such as Sony Interactive said goodbye to the fair after taking part in the fair for many years.

But despite bad news that the federal government will likely cut government funding from €70m to under 50m next year, Gamescom is back with more attendees and more space.

The German Gaming Industry Association has repeatedly criticized this and has demanded 125 million, but is delighted by the “biggest Gamescom of all time” according to Gamescom General Manager Felix Falk.

Falk says he’s happy to have done everything right over the past few years: “We haven’t cancelled, we’ve just had two digital Gamescoms, thereby greatly expanding our worldwide reach in the digital space,” Falk told ZDF in an interview.

Nintendo, for example, is returning after a four-year hiatus and taking up most of Hall 9 in Cologne. The two Super Mario figures, with their distinctive mustaches and blue dungarees, were so popular as selfie partners on day one that they were sometimes taken to the backstage area for a brief rest.

This year Nintendo is introducing new games for the Switch game console, like Sonic Superstars and the adventures of the yellow Pokémon Pikachu, but it also wants to attract younger audiences to the booth with the participation of influencers.

EVA (ESports Virtual Arena), a Belgian company that operates more than 20 arenas in France, occupies a similar area to Nintendo. Here you can try the shooter games live with the help of VR glasses and toy guns.

Respondents reported that this looks odd to outsiders and is not for your own living room, but the view you see through glasses quickly makes you forget that you are in a virtual world. Related tournaments with cash prizes are now held in France.

In general, cooperative play is becoming more and more important, whether as a team in the virtual battlefield or online networked so-called multiplayer games.

Anton Hesse can only confirm this. He is happy to finally return to the trade fair after the Corona holiday: “Here you meet friends from all over the world, with whom you normally only communicate via the Internet.” The game is a “strong social factor” for him: “It closes, it closes.”

Jenny Schmidt wants to try new games at Gamescom. She mostly plays League Of Legends and Counterstrike at home with her boyfriend. It’s about being together and having fun: “And if the game isn’t that good, you can yell at each other and then love each other again.”

IT student Amy Harting says: “There are no limits here. You can always immerse yourself in new worlds. It’s for relaxation and an escape from reality.”

Economy Minister Robert Habeck tried it out during his tour on day 2. However, virtual shooting games within the team and against others are not for him.

He chose to look at a construction simulator and then try the DIVE+ environmental simulator at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences. There, at least that’s what the makers promise: “It can experience up close the possible scenarios of climate change”. Then the minister came to himself again and was clearly amused despite the serious matter.