Skip to main content

Xbox’s first big showcase of 2024 set Series X up for success

Key art for Xbox's January 2024 Developer_Direct.
Microsoft

Xbox has long struggled with consistency and maintaining a steady stream of exclusives. Some years would be chock-full of exciting new games, while others were barren wastelands outside of a couple of smaller releases. After a turnaround in 2023, Xbox’s 2024 first-party game lineup is looking to be its most compelling in years. That’s thanks to a successful Developer_Direct showcase that set Xbox on the right track this week.

It doesn’t feel like this year is relying too heavily on one studio or genre, and getting in-depth looks at what will likely be Xbox’s four big PC and console exclusive games of 2024 set my expectations in a clear manner. Coming off January 2024’s Developer_Direct, Xbox is poised for a good year … if it can deliver in terms of quality with all these games.

Developer_Direct 2024

Direct hit

The latest Developer_Direct highlighted four first-party-developed or -published games: Avowed, Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga, Ara: History Untold, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Of those four, I’m personally most excited for Avowed. Obsidian Entertainment has a great track record with RPGs like Pillars of Eternity and The Outer Worlds. Considering we’re probably not getting The Elder Scrolls VI for several more years, I can’t wait to hop into a new fantasy RPG by one of the genre’s best developers.

Meanwhile, Senua’s Sacrifice: Hellblade II looks like the kind of third-person action game that Sony excels at, but Microsoft has struggled to match. Its spatial audio innovations seem like they could have further implications for future Microsoft games too. I’m also impressed with the Civilization talent behind the 4x strategy game Ara: History Untold. Its presence was a clear indication that Microsoft isn’t leaving behind the hardcore PC gaming crowd, while the malleability of its prestige system and lack of wait times between player turns might even be able to draw in newcomers.

The biggest game of the show was Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. While fans seem to be divided over it being a first-person puzzler, it’s exactly what I expected from an Indiana Jones game made by the studio behind recent Wolfensetin games like The New Colossus. It could be Xbox’s answer not just to Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, but to Xbox’s general lack of big-budget, franchise heavy hitters. I hope it really plays up those elements while also adding an immersive sim-type flair to combat and stealth.

Indiana jones buried in the sand.
Bethesda

Those are four diverse games that were all captivating in their own right. Microsoft was also confident enough to show gameplay and give 2024 release windows — some more specific than others — for all four games, which is a relief as a lot of its showcases this generation have consisted of cinematic trailers for far-out exclusives. While the year is just beginning, Microsoft now has an even clearer first-party slate for the whole year than Nintendo, which seems to be banking on a potential hardware release in the back half of the year, and Sony, which is relying on third-party exclusives like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Rise of the Ronin.

It may not even be all the games Microsoft releases this year, according to a comment on an Xbox Wire post recapping January 18’s Developer_Direct. While I don’t want to speculate on any other title, we at least know a new Call of Duty is on the way in the fall. In the future, Microsoft would be smart to keep the Developer_Direct series going at the start of the year so it can continue to kick off each year with this type of momentum. Xbox head Phil Spencer seems to like the format, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it does stick around.

Of course, Xbox isn’t completely out of the woods yet. Public consensus on Starfield is starting to turn sour, and some people are voicing concern about more Xbox games potentially coming to competitor platforms. Xbox needs to maintain the consistency it finally found in 2023. Regardless of where you stand on those issues, or even what you think of games like Avowed and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, it’s hard to deny that this is the best a year has looked for Xbox from the outset in a long time.

Avowed key art revealed during the January 18 2024 Developer_Direct
Obsidian Entertainment

Now that Microsoft finally seems to have solved its game quantity problem, Xbox’s main focus should be on quality. That’s yet another area where the likes of PlayStation and Nintendo have been much more consistent than Xbox’s first-party offerings in the past, and one where Xbox obviously needs to improve in the future. This year really has the potential to be Microsoft’s year in the gaming space, and this Developer_Direct shows it has the tools to accomplish that.

From here, it’s all about execution.

Editors' Recommendations

Tomas Franzese
Tomas Franzese is a Staff Writer at Digital Trends, where he reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
Hades 2 shows the Steam Deck’s biggest advantage over the Nintendo Switch
A Steam Deck sits next to a Switch OLED.

It's always an exciting week when the sequel to one of the greatest games of all time surprise releases on a Monday. That's what happened on May 6 when Hades 2 surprise launched into early access. Players are already diving into the surprisingly robust roguelike, testing their might in its new biomes. I've been enjoying it myself from the comfort of my couch -- and not on my Nintendo Switch, where I played the first Hades. Instead, I'm curled up with my Steam Deck.

The PC-only launch means that Hades 2 is a Steam Deck "exclusive" for the time being (or at least exclusive to portable PCs like it and the Asus ROG Ally). It'll likely come to Nintendo's system -- or its predecessor -- once it hits 1.0, but developer Supergiant doesn't expect its game to leave early access until at least the end of 2024. Until then, you'll need a device like the Steam Deck to play it on the go. That's a reminder that Valve has beaten the Switch at its own game, and Nintendo will have to get creative again with its next system to regain its throne.
Early access on the go
Based on my time with it so far, Hades 2 is a phenomenal match for the Steam Deck. It's already Verified for the platform, and for good reason. It looks fantastic (especially on an OLED screen) and runs smoothly. I've already taken it on the go and found that it's not a huge drain on the Steam Deck's battery. At this point, I don't imagine I'll need to play it any other way.

Read more
Before you play Homeworld 3, try this VR game as a primer
Two fleets fight in Homeworld: Vast Reaches.

Homeworld 3 launches next week, but there's a game Homeworld fans who own a Meta Quest 2 or 3 should check out right now. Homeworld: Vast Reaches, which came to Meta's VR headsets on May 2, is a prequel set between the events of the first two Homeworld games. This VR game offers up the core Homeworld experience in a novel niche of the video game medium.

It's not as deep or complex as Homeworld 3 looks, but it doesn't need to be. Vast Reaches immerses players in the franchise's universe once again and reacquaints them with the basics of its real-time strategy combat ahead of a highly anticipated new entry on PC. As such, checking out Vast Reaches should make this last week of waiting for Homeworld 3 a little less painful.
Homeworld, but in VR
Homeworld: Vast Reaches was developed by FarBridge, who has previously worked on VR games like Walkabout Mini Golf, Dragon Fight VR, and Jar Wars. Made with Gearbox Entertainment's support and blessing, it boils Homeworld down to its core elements and rebuilds it in VR. Players control a new Fleet Command connected to Karan S'jet's Mothership, which is the conceit behind how players view battles.

Read more
Nintendo confirms that Switch 2 and a June Direct are coming
A Nintendo Switch Red and Blue system.

Nintendo has finally confirmed two important things that people were speculating about. First off, we learned that another Nintendo Direct showcase will be taking place this June. More importantly, Nintendo finally confirmed that it is working on a Nintendo Switch successor and said we'd learn more about it within this fiscal year.

This all came from a statement by President Shuntaro Furukawa on Nintendo's corporate X (formerly Twitter) account. "We will make an announcement about the successor to Nintendo Switch within this fiscal year. It will have been over nine years since we announced the existence of Nintendo Switch back in March 2015," the post confirms. "We will be holding a Nintendo Direct this June regarding the Nintendo Switch software lineup for the latter half of 2024, but please be aware that there will be no mention of the Nintendo Switch successor during that presentation."

Read more