South of Midnight was an impressive reveal from We Happy Few developer Compulsion Games, the second drop of the entire showcase and one which easily arrested attention. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is everything I want from the next Flight Sim, with missions like remote cargo drops and search and rescues to complement its naturally zen gameplay. However, Microsoft didn't stop there and also gave us the reveal of three new games from Xbox Games Studios developers. Those updates, along with an October 10 release date for Forza Motorsport, showed that Microsoft is listening and understands that updates for these titles were long overdue. They're three top Xbox exclusives that have been in the works for so many years but without any sense of public-facing progress, and that's been a big criticism of Microsoft of late.
First-party pizazzīut, British idioms aside, just that trio of updates alone was such an agenda-setter for the show. Suddenly, Microsoft's collection of Xbox Games Studios has an incredibly enviable slate. We got a fresh look at Xbox exclusives we've not heard much about for years, alongside new games from studios that have been silent since their acquisition by Microsoft. The first half – aka the Xbox Games Showcase itself – was full of non-stop surprises. The publisher promised a double-bill of updates and reveals for upcoming Xbox Series X games and Game Pass wonders, coupled with a gloriously in-depth look at Starfield ahead of its September release. But, with two solid hours of back-to-back announcements (and a major info drop for Starfield), Xbox did everything right. Coming off the back of a disappointing Redfall launch and a long run of silence around first-part releases out of Xbox Game Studios, fans and critics alike were stacking up the odds against Microsoft Gaming being able to deliver a showcase that would satisfy. The Xbox Games Showcase 2023 had everything riding on it.
0 kommentar(er)
