It doesn't happen often enough to call it regular, but every once in a while, Microsoft's Xbox division surprises us with an in-depth Developer Direct stream where they show off their most prospective future projects. Enter the Xbox Developer Direct of January 2024: an all-new showcase with Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and Avowed slapped front-and-centre.
Indeed, we got a good long look at both of these long-anticipated titles as well as a wealth of other games. Some of them were quite unexpected, in fact, with none other than Square Enix popping up out of nowhere in the middle of the show.
So, down below, you'll find a comprehensive overview of everything shown off as part of January 2024 Dev Direct, trailers and all. If you ended up missing the full stream yesterday, you'll find no better opportunity to catch up on everything important!
Sadly, the latest Xbox Developer Direct did not have a surprise game release to prop it up. Whereas last time we got the phenomenal Hi-Fi Rush from Tango Gameworks, this time the whole Direct fell upon impressive showcases and unexpected pop-ins from third-party studios. The full list of major showcases is very impressive indeed, then, as we got to see Avowed, Hellblade 2, Visions of Mana, Ara: History Untold, and - of course - the long-anticipated Indiana Jones game from Bethesda and MachineGames, the makers of the new Wolfenstein titles.
It's a very exciting (and compact) showcase overall, then. Still, if you're just in for it for the trailers, we've got everything you need to see featured below. Have fun!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ni50utYFq14
Penned by the studio behind Fallout: New Vegas, and Outer Worlds, and set in the universe of Pillars of Eternity, Avowed is the first-person fantasy role-playing game that everyone's been mulling about over the past couple of years. Up until now, we had but the faintest inklings of what moment-to-moment gameplay might look like. Thankfully, the new showcase told us everything we needed to know, flaunting physics-based combat, varied spell effects, and fairly impressive quest design all in one go. See for yourself!
Another long-anticipated showcase, there had been murmurs of a Bethesda Indiana Jones game for quite a long while, and we finally got to see it in action yesterday. In fact, not only did we see it in action, but we got a very in-depth explanation of how MachineGames is bringing Indy to the interactive screens, rather than just silver ones. And look, MachineGames is known mainly for two things: phenomenal gunplay and surprisingly emotional narratives. Just look at the recent Wolfenstein titles to see how they handle a high-intensity FPS and you'll see what we mean. With Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, however, MachineGames flexes its almost immersive sim-tier muscles, featuring engaging puzzles, whip melee, and loads of other things that Indy needed in earnest.
Hellblade 2 is a hotly anticipated game not because it'll necessarily deliver innovative gameplay, unlike the two games featured above, but because the original was renowned for its handling of mental health issues and psychosis, in particular. In the sequel, the troubled Pict protagonist gets to go through even more dire circumstances after mounting an assault on Iceland, where the Vikings who raided her village before the events of the first game came from.
Another Civilization competitor, Ara: History Untold offers a uniquely fascinating take on the civ-building 4X niche. Due to release sometime this year, Ara is far more in-depth and granular than we expected it to be. The game emulates real-world biomes and remixes them naturally and sensibly, as well as allowing players to rule precisely how they wish to rule. It's still a tad early to say whether Ara can deliver on all of its promises but, so far, things are definitely looking up.
Finally, there's the Square Enix pop-in nobody saw coming: Visions of Mana. A brand-spanking-new entry in a tenured franchise, Visions of Mana is a real-time action RPG the likes of which we don't often see nowadays. What's particularly notable here, though, is that the game was presented here first: an Xbox-bound JRPG in the making? Sign us right up!
Of course, all the games featured as part of the latest Xbox Developer Direct will be available day and day via the Xbox Game Pass, to boot. You can grab phenomenal deals for the Game Pass via 2Game, too, allowing you to quickly and easily prepare the stage for gaming sessions like you've never had before.
And in the time interim, while we wait for the featured games to come out, there's a wealth of amazing games to play via the Game Pass as well. From Starfield to High on Life, it's a safe bet you'll find something delightful to keep yourself busy until Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is out, so we recommend jumping in as soon as you can. Have fun!
It doesn’t happen often enough to call it regular, but every once in a while, Microsoft’s Xbox division surprises us with an in-depth Developer Direct stream where they show off their most prospective future projects. Enter the Xbox Developer Direct of January 2024: an all-new showcase with Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and Avowed slapped front-and-centre. […]
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