Amid a number of leaks and rumors, we had an honest concept of what was going to be at this 12 months’s Xbox Games Showcase with seemingly a lot to get enthusiastic about. But when the Showcase lastly aired, Microsoft did the near-impossible for any firm in a fickle social media-fueled age: they exceeded expectations and drew virtually common acclaim. Eighty-four % of the ten,000+ voters in my X poll graded it an ‘A’ on the tutorial scale. Ninety-five % gave it an ‘A’ or ‘B’.
A house run like this could be welcome at any time, nevertheless it’s an particularly fortuitous one now for each Xbox followers and, little doubt, Xbox workers alike. Confidence had been shaken in latest months, with devoted followers rankled by Microsoft’s determination to convey some beforehand unique video games to different platforms. Worse, Microsoft joined the tragically lengthy record of gaming and tech corporations to lay off hundreds of workers early within the 12 months and, extra lately, shut down 4 improvement studios it acquired as a part of a $7.5 billion deal simply 4 years in the past. Two of these have been family names in core-gaming circles: Arkane Austin, who, their latest Redfall misfire apart, had an extremely spectacular monitor document; and the one that basically caught locally’s craw, Tango Gameworks. They weren’t solely Xbox’s lone Japanese developer, however they’d had an unquestionably good run, highlighted by their most up-to-date and arguably greatest recreation, Hi-Fi Rush.
While Xbox’s greatest showcase ever can’t erase the human impression on the laid-off builders nor reignite the inventive embers which were snuffed out on the shut-down studios, it’s one of the best ways for followers who stay invested within the Xbox ecosystem to maneuver ahead with confidence and pleasure for the way forward for the platform. And my goodness did that top-to-bottom good showcase give me confidence and pleasure for Xbox.
Call of Duty debuted on Xbox’s stage for the primary time because the Xbox 360 period, with Black Ops 6 already wanting prefer it could possibly be one of many largest and greatest releases for the collection in a half-decade – since Infinity Ward’s glorious Modern Warfare reboot in 2019. Head of Xbox Phil Spencer might barely include his pleasure on stage in saying Doom: The Dark Ages, a daring, extra melee combat-intensive prequel in id Software’s brilliantly revived and traditionally iconic first-person shooter franchise.
And talking of prequels, Xbox President Sarah Bond launched the “yet another factor” recreation for this Showcase: the long-anticipated new entry within the Gears collection, which itself was not a shock. What shocked everybody, although – which the trailer slowly made extra obvious – was that we wouldn’t be choosing up Kait’s story in Gears 6, however as an alternative we’ll be going again to Emergence Day and the formation of Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago’s Delta Squad in a Gears of War prequel – full with a most-welcome (by me, at the least) restoration of the “of War” a part of the title.
But the 2024 Xbox Games Showcase didn’t simply begin massive with Black Ops 6 and Doom: The Dark Ages and finish massive with Gears of War: E-Day – it stored cooking for nearly all the runtime. A brand new gameplay trailer for Fable floored me, as not solely was I not anticipating to see any extra of it after getting our first tiny glimpse at gameplay eventually 12 months’s Showcase, however we obtained to see fairly a little bit of Playground’s beautiful new rendition of Albion. The cherry on high was Microsoft committing to a 2025 launch window, which implies we will already pencil in Doom: The Dark Ages and Fable for subsequent 12 months – my intestine says the previous will drop within the Spring, and the latter within the Fall.
Oh, however South of Midnight belongs on that 2025 record too! We obtained a correct gameplay trailer for Compulsion’s first recreation since becoming a member of the Xbox household after it was introduced with a cinematic piece final 12 months, and the artwork model is extremely stunning and wholly distinctive.
Meanwhile, it didn’t get a launch 12 months hooked up to it (which means, assume 2026 for now), however the recreation that stole the unbelievable present for me was Perfect Dark. The long-gestating reboot of the beloved Nintendo 64 traditional (and decently appreciated Xbox 360 launch title) has reportedly endured a troubled development, however the co-developers at The Initiative and Crystal Dynamics blew me away by displaying off a gameplay-packed trailer that confirmed off devices, first-person capturing, and parkour, leaving me optimistic that we’d have a slick mixture of Mirror’s Edge, Deus Ex, and the unique Perfect Dark on our arms.
Even the inevitable mid-show lull that each showcase like this goes via yielded compelling reveals: the ‘90s-set journey Mixtape feels prefer it was made for me particularly, Metal Gear Solid: Delta seems to be each a stunning and extremely devoted remake of the traditional Metal Gear Solid 3, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle solely “disenchanted” me with an in any other case A+ story trailer as a result of we didn’t get a extra particular launch date than “2024.” But it does reaffirm that inside six months I’ll be taking part in the subsequent effort from MachineGames, a studio that has by no means missed.
In reality, Xbox’s 2024 Games Showcase was so spectacular and full of large first-party video games that I didn’t even discover that two of their largest pillars have been lacking: Halo and Forza. Granted, I wasn’t anticipating something from Halo, as we’re nonetheless solely 2.5 years previous Halo Infinite’s launch. But Forza? Surely a brand new Forza Horizon – arguably Xbox’s most persistently good franchise – is within the works! If you’re Microsoft, you understand you’ve had a heck of a showcase when Halo and Forza can keep dwelling and no person appears to thoughts.
I suppose there was one rumored factor that ended up not being included: an Xbox handheld. Fortunately, I obtained an opportunity to ask Phil Spencer about that instantly afterwards, and I’d say he got here as shut as he might to confirming its existence with out formally saying it.
If this stellar showcase reaffirmed something for each Microsoft and Xbox followers alike, it’s {that a} highly effective console is nice, and Xbox Game Pass affords a pleasant worth possibility, however a constant weight-reduction plan of top-shelf video games is what issues greater than the rest. More of this please, Microsoft.
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s government editor of previews and host of each IGN’s weekly Xbox present, Podcast Unlocked, in addition to our month-to-month(-ish) interview present, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey man, so it is “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.
