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With no E3 this year, it was left to Xbox & Bethesda to show off their upcoming games. Even better news, all of these games are coming to a console near you in the next year. No being enticed by a game that won’t be out for seventeen years.
I’ve taken the bold decision to list every single game in this here article. There are some incredible games on this list and something for everyone: from AAA blockbusters to sweet indie games and new content for existing titles.
If you weren’t able to catch the showcase, missed it due to work or some such commitment, and you don’t feel like watching the whole thing. Great news, I did that for you!
Scroll and peruse the latest announcements for a game you like the look of, or a game you were expecting. Or, maybe you want to read the whole thing. I promise to keep you entertained. That said, it’s sort of like a shopping list, so it might not be that fun… I’ll leave it with you.
This games showcase was also a party popper for Game Pass. The majority of these games will be playable on Game Pass on day one, and many are console launch exclusives. If that’s not enough to convert to the heavenly realm of Game Pass, I don’t know what is.
Spoiler alert: Starfield is located at the end of this list.
Redfall – 2023
An Arkane Austin game that situates the player in an open-world co-op FPS. I immediately thought of first-person Bloodborne caricature but there’s a little more to it than that. The gunplay seems satisfying and the vampiric enemies are quite creepy. Actually, the entire setting of Redfall, Massachusetts is a little scary.
Arkane games all have a similar vibe and Redfall is no different.
Hollow Knight Silksong
I’m not sure we needed another Hollow Knight but here it is anyway. It’s what you’d expect, with a little more intensity than the original: new moves, more diverse boss encounters and an unfriendly amount of spinning blades.
High on Life – October 2022
From the creator of Rick and Morty and Solar Opposites comes High on Life. A game with weird guns, weird places and weird things happening. It’s an FPS that contains many peculiar weapons with which to kill varying colours of aliens. I saw a knife with an alien face in the blade.
Riot Games – Winter
Coming to Game Pass at the end of the year is a catalogue of games from popular developer Riot Games. The package includes world favourite League of Legends; League of Legends: Wild Rift; Legends of Runeterra; Teamfight Tactics; and Valorant.
A Plague Tale: Requiem – 2022
This is a game I’ve been looking forward to. Though similar in style and execution to the original, Requiem takes Hugo and Amicia to unfamiliar locales: There appeared to be a desert region in some of the footage shown. The plagued rats are present and will, I’m sure, continue to provide an original gameplay experience. The graphics have been fine-tuned and expertly depict the barbarity and superstition of the medieval world.
Forza Motorsport – Spring 2023
There’s no number this time; it’s just Forza Motorsport. A new beginning. Improved graphics that utilise ray tracing in all its glory, new cars and new tracks. The world will change depending on the time of day: flowers grow, night turns to day and cars reflect each other in their paintwork. Details detail details.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 40th Anniversary – November 2023
For the 40th Anniversary of Microsoft’s longest-running franchise, new planes will be introduced to pay homage to the history of flight. From the Wright brothers’ ‘Flyer’ to what appeared to be a Pelican from Halo.
Overwatch 2 – October 4th
New characters, new locations and maps including famous cities from around the world, and more game modes. Older characters will be improved with new skills and there’s the promise of more to come. For diehard Overwatch fans, this is encouraging. Blizzard have also added a fresh 5v5 multiplayer experience. And… it will be free-to-play.
ARA History Untold
ARA is a turn-based strategy game that gives the player the opportunity to manage civilisations with alternate histories. The snippet was narrated by Avasarala from The Expanse and it captured the pleasing tones of Civilization.
Elder Scrolls Online: High Isle – Next week
A new expansion to the increasingly popular MMO. High Isle will take players to never-before-seen locations, on a new journey to a land ruled by chivalrous Bretons.
Fallout 76 – September 2022
The Pitt from Fallout 3 returns in this upcoming Fallout 76 update. In this update, players will help save The Pitt from the raider inhabitants and the ghoulish critters that lurk below.
Forza Horizon 5 – July 19th
It’s the first wacky expansion for Forza Horizon 5 and if the cinematics are anything to go by, I’m sure it will deliver. The Hot Wheels expansion brings wild tracks that span the entire map, up and down mountains, across rivers, and through jungles and along the plains of Mexico. This is fondly remembered as one of the best expansions; previously seen in Horizon 3.
Ark 2 – 2023
My focus was solely on what appeared to be the actor Vin Diesel, riding a tamed dinosaur. The brief video didn’t reveal much of the gameplay, only that it was coming next year.
Scorn – 2nd October
I was surprised to see Scorn because I thought it had already been released. Older trailers were released years ago, and so I obviously presumed it must have been finished by now. The world is intriguing and brings back memories of Prometheus. The art direction is seriously eerie and draws inspiration from H. R. Giger’s work.
Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn – Early 2023
Another Dark Souls imitator focussing heavily on the combat experience. The game looked a little bland and the combat wasn’t particularly special; mixing the intentional combat found in Dark Souls with the looser combat found in the most recent Assassin’s Creed games. Developed by A44, Flintlock does seem to improve on the floaty combat of Ashen. The setting is similar to New World and Greedfall; expect some conquistador helmets.
Minecraft Legends – 2023
A new Minecraft experience and one I’m looking forward to having watched the reveal. Although I don’t play Minecraft, I have been enjoying Minecraft Dungeons with friends since its release. This is an action strategy version with a lusciously square world. You will take control of a commander on the battlefield, rallying different mobs to face-off against the invading armies of pig men.
Lightyear Frontier – Spring 2023
Lightyear Frontier is an open-world farming game where you can craft, build and manage resources. The game has a cosmic country theme and can be played with up to four players in online co-op.
Gunfire Reborn – October 2022
A four-player co-op with rogue-lite action and funky animals. The art style is reminiscent of Borderlands and the gunplay looks fast and responsive.
The Last Case of Benedict Fox – Spring 2023
A grizzly-looking Metroidvania blatantly inspired by the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Set in 1925 Boston, the titular protagonist explores the fate of a family. This tentacle-infested side-scroller has an intriguing story, a gorgeous artistic design and gameplay that utilises aspects of the protagonist’s possession by a Cthulhu-esque demon.
As Dusk Falls – July 19th
This is a motion-graphics game with an interactive story about the entangled lives of two families. Set in small town Arizona, the game appears to start with a robbery or heist gone wrong. What impact will it have across time? The game is playable solo of with friends.
Naraka: Bladepoint – June 23rd
A battle royale that features martial arts and a rock-paper-scissors combat system. Naraka comes to consoles for the first time, and having sold more than six million copies worldwide, it’s surely worth giving a go.
Pentiment – November 2022
Obsidian Entertainment persist in creating new experiences for their players and I’m sure Pentiment won’t disappoint. Set during the medieval period, Pentiment is a narrative mystery game that has an air of The Procession to Calvary about it, minus the pointing and clicking. Considering the period the game is set in, I can’t wait to get involved with this two-dimensional RPG.
Grounded – September 2022
In more Obsidian news, Grounded is finally released for consoles. The full game will be playable from September, which will see an entire story driven segment reveal the reason for the shrinkage.
Ereban: Shadow Legacy – 2023
A stealth game centred on the mechanic of moving as a shadow, or what looks like a puff of black gas. You will play as Ayana; the last of a dying race in a world inhabited by mechanized life.
Diablo IV – 2023
It looks gory, unnerving and reminiscent of the older Diablo games. There’s an obvious return to the original art direction in the latest instalment, whilst retaining the smoothness of the third. I’m really excited to play this, more so having seen footage of the gameplay. It’s going to be open world, with procedurally generated dungeons and dedicated PvP areas (smart). There are also mega-boss battles in the open world, similar to FATEs in Final Fantasy XIV. It looks like Blizzard are upping their game with Diablo IV and I can’t wait.
Sea of Thieves – July 21st
Coming to a sea near you, soon! In Season 7 of Sea of Thieves, players will finally be able to captain their own ship, customise and retain their ship glamour, and even address the décor of their cabin. Name your ship and earn new rewards by being a captain and drop off your loot at new cash-in points, which will hopefully make looting a little easier – Nostromo, SS Anne, Prydwen, what will you choose? I already know the name of my ship but I’m not revealing it here, you’ll have to find me online.
Ravenlok – 2023
An action-packed coming-of-age adventure game set in a world that initially reminded me of Medieval and then didn’t. The subtle pixel artwork looks superb and the action, fun.
Cocoon – 2023
From the maker of Inside and Limbo comes this art-driven adventure where you solve puzzles to an ancient mystery, using orbs that you carry with you on your back.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty – Early 2023
Initially, I wrote Nioh 3 on the page in front of me as I made notes on the showcase. This new IP is an action RPG created by the producers of both Nioh and Bloodborne; Niohborne. It didn’t show-off any gameplay footage but judging from the clips, I wouldn’t expect a game that’s majorly different from Nioh.
Atlus Extravaganza – October 21st
Why release one game when you can release three! P3P, P4G and P5R are all coming to consoles, beginning with P5R on 21/10/2022.
Kojima Reveal
It looks like Hideo Kojima is working on a new title with Xbox Game Studios. He addressed fans by saying he was happy to be working with Xbox and that his new game is one he’s been wanting to make for a long time. Microsoft’s aggressive buying power has again pulled out another trump card. I’m sure Kojima won’t have any of the issues at Xbox that bound his creativity at Konami.
The Big Reveal
Starfield – 2023
Our friendly neighbourhood morale officer Todd Howard, kindly gave fans the extended first look we’d all been hoping for, eventually. Starfield will be an Xbox Console Exclusive and is one of the most anticipated games in recent years. Since it's announcement, we’ve all been waiting to ‘see’ the world and what we can do as players.
Todd Howard classifies Starfield as an epic RPG where players can be who they want to be and go wherever they want to go. The gameplay is set on a rocky moon called Kreet. The bumpy framerate is as knobbly as the moon’s surface and it’s very much a Bethesda game in a new skin. Obvious, I know.
The character approaches a base that pirates have captured and proceeds to engage in combat, picking them off one by one, showing the fluidity and versatility of combat decisions. The setting then switches to New Atlantis, where we’re introduced to Constellation: An explorer’s society that reveals the game’s ultimate ambition: The exploration of space and the mission to identify strange artefacts and their origins. Apparently, whatever they are, will change humanity forever.
In the second portion of the reveal, Todd goes on to discuss the spaceships featured so heavily in the game. Yes, we will be able to own a ship, fully customise the ship (including crew) and fly the ship to… over one hundred systems containing over one thousand planets… and we can land and explore anywhere!
Has Starfield found the ideal balance between the space experience of Elite: Dangerous and the realism of Star Citizen?
What Else?
Not all the games coming in the next year to Xbox and PC had their own clips. Here’s a simple list of the rest:
Somerville; Valheim; Warhammer 40k Darktide; Atomic Heart; Halo Infinite Multiplayer; Party Animals; Slime Rancher 2; Hello Neighbour 2; The Callisto Protocol; S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2; Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes; Resident Evil 4; Replaced; and Dead Space.
And that’s it from me. Shopping finished. I’m on the way to the car, with a bag full of excitement for the coming year on Xbox, PC and my favourite – which you should all know by now – Game Pass.