Microsoft has had a difficult time this console generation from a first-party perspective. They’ve had some solid hits for sure, but Sony has had a series of first-party games that have dominated sales charts and public opinion. Today, Microsoft showed off a wealth of games from its longstanding and newly acquired studios. What follows is a look at not just the showcase, but the official preshow that kicked off the whole event.
Dragon Quest XI: S, which has been available for PC, PS4, and Switch for some time now, will see a release this December for Xbox. The game will also be available through Game Pass, allowing everyone to download it and give it a shot without the full-price investment. The game seems to feature all the new updates that were present in the Switch release, including the 2D option and the all-new soundtrack.
ExoMecha, which is a free-to-play first-person shooter, was announced today for release in late 2021. Taking place on the planet Omega, you’ll take part in large scale battles with a series of mechs that have each unique abilities. There will be a variety of different game modes from large scale team battles, a battle royal mode, and objective-based competitive battles. A few vehicles were shown off as well, indicating possible vehicle combat added to the mix.
Echo Generation was then shown off and while not much is known about the game, it comes from Canadian developer, Cococumber. It is a turn-based RPG style game featuring giant voxel-based monsters. Check out the trailer below.
Hello Neighbor 2 was also shown off with the following trailer, with a release in 2021, for Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC.
A new ID@Xbox trailer was shown off as well, showing off a ton of new indie gems that will see first-to-console releases on Xbox, all of which are optimized for Xbox Series X. When I can find a trailer for the ID@Xbox reveal, I’ll post it here.
SquareEnix then revealed a new studio called the Balan Company and their first game, Balan Wonderworld. Featuring a ton of characters and variety, this action-adventure platformer looks pretty interesting. Check out the trailer below, and the game will release Spring 2021.
Now with the preshow over, let’s talk about the packed hour of Xbox Game Studio announcements and the wealth of console exclusives that were announced to not just hit Xbox One, Series X, or Windows PC, but that every title shown off today would also hit Game Pass as well, further solidifying it as the best deal in gaming.
Microsoft kicked off the show with a little under 10 minutes of Halo Infinite, and it was speculated that the series would harken back to the original and that seems to be the case. We see Chief, on his own, in a wide-open environment, on a new Halo ring using a series of weapons both old and new as he cuts down threat after threat and the demo ends with him being confronted, via hologram, by the leader of the banished, an enemy from Halo Wars 2. The game looks absolutely incredible, but it would have been nice to see the visual and gameplay differences between the Xbox One X and Series X versions. They talked about how the Series X allows for a wealth of new features, but does this mean that the Xbox One version of the game is different or altered in some way? Hard to say for now, but the demo was nonetheless impressive and looks like a solid return to form for the series. Multiplayer will be shown off next month, apparently, so this focus today was solely on the campaign.
After the Halo reveal we were shown off a cinematic trailer for State of Decay 3, which I hope is more feature complete and less buggy than the previous game. Turn 10 then showed off an in-engine trailer for the new Forza Motorsport, which is my least favorite Forza. That said, this is easily the most impressive looking racer that runs at 60 fps in 4K. Everwild was once again shown off in trailer form, still making us wonder what the actual gameplay will look like. It seems to be for fantasy what Sea of Thieves is for the pirate ocean exploration.
Dontnod showed off another trailer for their latest episodic series in Tell me Why, which will see its first chapter release August 27th. Moon Studios then talked about the Series X version of Ori and the Will of the Wisps, detailing the 120fps mode with far better audio than before. Private Division then showed off the new expansion to The Outer Worlds in Peril of Gorgon, which will launch Sept 9th as one of two planned expansions.
Obsidian wasn’t done there as while they showed off more of their survival game Grounded, they possibly stole the show with an early sneak peek at The Avowed, a first-person possibly Skyrim flavored RPG world. This has been the game that Obsidian has reportedly wanted to make for years and Microsoft has seen fit to grant them this wish, with the game being built from the ground up for Series X. Obsidian was a massive purchase for Microsoft and having a Skyrim level exclusive to the brand is huge, with the title still a ways off for Series X and Windows PC.
Developer Interior Night then showed off their new game As Dusk Falls, which has that real picture turned cartoon look, telling a narrative story as an interactive drama. Ninja Theory talked about the success of Senua’s Sacrifice, as the game sold a total of 3.5 million copies. A new vid-doc series will hit their official Youtube channel that will detail more behind the scenes to Senua’s Saga, the followup that is currently being developed on Unreal Engine 5 for the Series X and Windows PC. Double Fine also showed off some new gameplay for Psychonauts 2, featuring a musical performance from Jack Black, who is no stranger to Double Fine. Bungie also announced that a 4K 60fps version of Destiny 2 will release later this year for Series X, and that Destiny 2 will hit Game Pass as well.
After these announcements, the remainder of the show detailed a series of console launch exclusives from various partners working alongside Microsoft. Again, everything announced will also hit Game Pass. Game World dropped a trailer for Stalker 2, which will hit Series X and Windows PC in 2021. Fatshark revealed the next Warhammer game in Darktide, which will also see a release next year. Tetris Effect Connected will hit the console in late 2020, as will the narrative campaign for Crossfire X, a story mode for the multiplayer shooter that is being worked on by Remedy. What’s important to note is that while the online mode will be on Game Pass, the story campaign will not.
Explore the crazy and visually gorgeous alien worlds of The Gunk, as it looks to release on Xbox One, Series X, and Windows PC possibly sometime next year. Bloober Team then showed off another look at The Medium, which looks to have 2 different worlds rendered at the same time. The showed off some split-screen footage of both worlds, but it’s unclear if this is how you explore both worlds or if you just flip between them. The game certainly looks more ambitious than what they’ve done before. SEGA then announced Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis, which is a fun title name coming from SEGA. While it wasn’t shown off or given an announcement for its console release, Gears Tactics was shown in a single frame during a game montage as well.
Lastly, Microsoft closed off the show with an in-engine look at the new Fable. While it was merely a fairy flying around a fantasy world, many were concerned at first if the title would include the same charm and humor. This has been put to rest as the trailer ended with the fairy opting in to smell a nearby flower, only to be swallowed by a frog. It’s still early on in the development cycle of the title, but it was nice to see the game being officially announced.
Apart from that first look at Infinite, there is still going to be that lack of that big AAA looking narrative game that has the visuals to stand up against what Sony is doing with God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, Ghost of Tsushima, and The Last of Us. Microsoft seems more aimed at creating unique gameplay experiences, and while I am all for that, it still will have public opinion on Sony’s side with these technical visual benchmark games. Avowed looks interesting, but I’ll reserve judgment until gameplay is shown. The Gunk is a title I am very interested in, as it looks visually gorgeous and intriguing. The Medium will be a solid title as well, given what the studio is capable of, and the new Warhammer game has me interested as well. Phantasy Star Onlne 2: New Genesis should be fun, I’m just hoping it avoids the slow burn of most JRPG’s and keeps the action at a brisk clip. I was hoping to see some gameplay of the new Senua game, but still excited to see Ninja Theory back on making the docs to keep us up to speed on the development of the game. While I am hoping that State of Decay 3 is good, it’s one of Microsoft’s exclusives that I am very hesitant about given how bad the second game was.
Overall it was a decent showing, but it’s unfortunate that the distinction of Xbox One vs Series X hasn’t really be shown off. I’m hoping that in the coming months that we see a hardware reveal, detailing the visual differences, the price of the console, and especially the release date. Still, this event was highlighted by us seeing the first look at Halo Infinite gameplay and it certainly did not disappoint there. The game looks like solid Halo fun and I can’t wait to see what else the game and publisher have in store.