At the start of 2023, there was a lot of talk about Xbox. It had some big releases planned - Redfall, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Hellblade, Forza - but the main conversation starter was 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Starfield. It didn't matter how good any of these other games did, in comparison. Starfield was the first big Xbox exclusive to be on the level of 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:God of War or 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Last of Us, and was supposed to put down a marker for Xbox in its new era of acquired exclusivity. In the end, nothing went to pl🌃an, and n🦩ow all eyes are on Hellblade.
Redfall was never going to be a system seller, but with the Arkane name, it could have underlined that Xbox was the place to be for the hardcore gamers, even as Sony brought in the casual masses. The 168澳洲꧑幸运5开奖网:less said about what actually happened🌱 the better. Hellblade was delayed, hence its position as 2024 green team mascot, and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:still lacks a concrete release date. Forza was fine but didn't set the world alight like Horizon 5, and in the end the biggest winner for Xbox was 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Hi-Fi Rush, which shadow dropped in late January.
Then we come to Starfield. Oh, Starfield. 'It's fine' was the general consensus, and a lukewarm reception followed by a single nomination at 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Game Awards is not the bar Bethesda has set for itself. This was supposed to be Xbox's big arrival into the new generation, so much so that the chatter in the run-up was the head to head with 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Spider-Man 2 as 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Sony's A-lister of the year. Instead, Starfield found itself up against 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Baldur's Gate 3, an accidental console exclusive for Sony after Xbox couldn't get the game to work, and was the proverbial coughing baby to Larian's hydrogen bomb.
That single category Starfield was up for at The Game Awards was won by Baldur's Gate on its way to six wins total, including Game of the Year.
And yet, despite all that, people will tell you Xbox had a good year. They're not being delusional, either. Spider-Man 2 was Sony's sole triple-A behemoth, and while I love it personally, it has not landed with the cultural punch of The Last of Us Part 2, God of War Ragnarok, or even 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Ghost of Tsushima. Meanwhile, Hi-Fi Rush makes up the ground Redfall lost, fans are showing patience for Hellblade, and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Starfield has cultivat🔯ed an army of defe🏅nders. With an impressive showcase led by Fable, while Sony has taken heat for both 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the PS VR2 and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the Portal, and is going into 2024 with 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth the only game of note on its calendar, with the likes ജof Rise of the Ronin ꧅leading the supporting cast.
Squinting a little through rose-tinted glasses at this fact, you could make the case that Xbox did okay in 2023 - especially when you add in that the Activision꧒-Blizzard deal closed this 🔯year too. But just as it was all on Starfield to carry 2023, Hellblade has the responsibility of carrying 🦩2024. It🐽 cannot count on another Hi-Fi Rush to bail it out.
Xbox seems to have some goodwill in the tank, buoyed by Game Pass and the promise of big games on the horizon. But it has fumbled throughout 2023, and no matter what it is doing behind the scenes, it needs some games. PlayStation has gotten off to a slow start this gen, but it can still point to some early hits, and most console players experienced Baldur's Gate 3 with the blue team too. Nintendo is heavily rumoured to be coming out swinging with the Switch 2 next year too. Xbox needs to start doing its talking on the pitch. It has to hope Hellblade can do that talking loudly.
TheGamer Staff's Most Anticipated Xbox Series X|S Games Of 2024
These Xbox Series X|ꦏS games releasing in 2024 are definitely powering our dreams.