Xbox First Party Line-up Is Finally Looking Exciting Again

Microsoft has been making big moves behind the scenes with Xbox Series X, and the first party line-up is starting to look quite exciting.

[timotim]

A lot of good energy right now at Xbox with 15 studios under their umbrella and a console that "eats monsters for breakfast" on the horizon. With all the hiring going on at these studios...Rare getting back to doing new IPs, Playgrounds second team working on non racers, The Initiative working on AAAA games, what 343 has shown thus far of Halo Infinite is looking phenomenal...and other studios having something to prove. I'm very excited for the next several years.

Then theirs the fact that Team Xbox has the hardware confirmed that will allow these studios to do their best work. 12TFs of RDNA 2 power is going to be epic.

[lifeisgamesok]

They need a lot more games with mature themes and realistic art styles IMO

I'd be much more interested in stuff like Everwild if they had some hardcore games to go with it

[timotim]

I agree with that. A better mix of art styles and design would help. I love both stylized and realistic visuals and Xbox has always been about both since the original Xbox...they have to get back to that.

I look at what they are showing now and see titles like Ori 2, Microsoft Flight Sim 2020, Battletoads, Halo Infinite, Gears Tactics, Minecraft Dungeons, Hellblade 2 etc and see a healthy mix of art styles and genres...hopefully that carries into next year and beyond.

[Obscure_Observer]

@lifeisgamesok

"They need a lot more games with mature themes and realistic art styles IMO"

Like Hellblade II, Project Mara, Halo Infinite and Flight Simulator?

[umair_s51]

They still need a killer app... something can go head to head with God of war... something new perhaps

[Ulf]

Um, that's what the article is telling you is on the horizon, bro.

[Automatic79]

@Lifeisgamesok

Halo Infinite
Crossfire X
Hell Blade 2 Senua's Saga
Project Mara
Forza Motorsport 8
Gears Tactics

Say hi

[343_Guilty_Spark]

Get a PlayStation if you want that. Xbox needs to be unique.

[Obscure_Observer]

@timotim

"12TFs of RDNA 2 power is going to be epic."

Indeed. Guys at DF were Speechless by the power of the Series X. Not even PC has RDNA 2 yet.

Phil Spencer just created a new segment in console gaming. High End consoles!

Flight Simulator
Everwild
Halo Infinite
AoE IV
Hellblade II
Project Mara

Not to mention the new games that will be announced at E3.

HYPE!

Day One! :)

[anonymousfan]

"Day One" sounds good but I'm personally somewhat worryingly waiting to see what kind of money that "High End Console" will cost.

[CaptainHenry916]

"Day One" sounds good but I'm personally somewhat worryingly waiting to see what kind of money that "High End Console" will cost."

Not to mention it won't have any first party exclusives for 2 years

[Dragonscale]

HYPE? That list is meh lol.

[RazzerRedux]

"Not even PC has RDNA 2 yet."

lol.....nothing has RDNA 2 yet. You think PC is going to have to wait until after Series X to get new AMD GPUs? Guess again. AMD makes a heck of a lot more money on PC than they ever will on console.

[FlyingFoxy]

PC will be getting Zen 3 with a 15+% IPC boost this summer before the consoles even launch, the Zen 2 chips are already over 1Ghz faster on desktop than the consoles will get as well.

Plus the Nv 3000 series will be here by summer as well, which are more powerful flop for flop over AMD. Look at the 5700XT vs 2070 Super, the 5700XT has higher flops but the 2070 Super is usually ahead of it.

[rdgneoz3]

Day one? No need to really upgrade till exclusives start coming out (after 2 years). Multi-gen games tend to be limited by the older systems. You'll be able to boost the graphics and frame rate, but you can't expand the world or ai beyond what the older systems can handle.

[Father__Merrin]

All of these games are on pc.

[King_Noctis]

Isn’t that great? More choices for gamers and more money to MS’s pocket.

[timotim]

Yes they are...as Microsoft intended them to be...what that has to do with the context of the conversation, i have no idea. The topic is about Team Xbox's first party line up...playing them on console or PC or even on your phone through xCloud, it will still be their own line up. I personally will be playing a mixture of all those platforms. However, please keep in mind that SX will most likely cook the vast majority of most gamers PC upon release while also costing a lot less...for console gamers, they will be blown away by what the box can do.

[itsmebryan]

And? What does that have to do with anything? So you are saying if I get the new FS on my Xbox sx and I decided I rather play it on my PC and use my flight sticks instead of a controller on the sx and not pay twice is a bad thing? Also you know PS games are coming to PC, right?

[CoinOrc]

@bryan
“What does that have to do with anything?”
It means I don’t have to get an Xbox sx.

“You do know PS games are also going to the PC?”
The only PS game going to the PC (and other consoles for that matter) is MLB The Show and that is due to the licensing agreement between Sony and MLB. If Sony ever starts doing what MS is doing, then I won’t have to get a PS5 either.

[King_Noctis]

“ The only PS game going to the PC (and other consoles for that matter) is MLB The Show and that is due to the licensing agreement between Sony and MLB.”

Forgetting Death Stranding now aren’t we?

[RazzerRedux]

My PC is ready and eager. I'm excited that the year we finally see some fruit from the acquisitions. It has been a long wait (far too long) for Microsoft to get their act together in making games, but thankfully, that time has passed. I've said many times I'm as excited to see what is coming from Playground Games and The Initiative than just about anything out there. Hopefully we see all that and a ton more at E3.

[TheColbertinator]

Rooting for a strong release in Age of Empires IV. To this day one of my favorite strategy games.

[Father__Merrin]

There good but I'm never a fan of random attacks by the AI I used to play AOE2 hd. But that aspect out me off wish there was just a build mode instead

[Xavi4K]

Same here and whats grwat about this is you are not stuck to one platform...for all xbox games I will use game pass on pc for the rest steam

[MadLad]

I'm just excited to see what they do with Outer Worlds license. The first game is great, but lacks in areas with the smaller being evident.

Obsidian with a MS budget has me excited.

[TheHateTheyGive]

They had to dummy down outer worlds so they could port it to switch without it looking totally different and scaled back.

[MadLad]

That's highly not accurate lol

[King_Noctis]

If you don’t like the Switch version, then maybe don’t play on it? Or is only the Switch version available on the market?

[PhoenixUp]

Looking forward to Psychonauts 2

[TheHateTheyGive]

I want to see these games in action, halo's old tired, forza horizon is gonna look out this world because playground games is elite tier, i want to see what other game they working on, But all we have to go by now is a pre rendered hellblade and a very current gen looking halo on series X they showed at e3.

[Az1ner]

Troll award right here.

[BrainSyphoned]

Seems accurate. I bought every Forza last gen on PC and literally nothing else from MS. Halo does look tired. Hellblade video was nothing more than a video. Flight Sim and Forza day one, everything else you are choking on koolaid.

Edit: I did buy Halo Wars on Steam. But ya /yawn

[sprinterboy]

What 1st party line up?
Halo launch and that horrible looking, bleeding edge (not gonna be successful) then a 2 year wait for the new studios to make games for series X exclusives with games finally not being held back by last gen consoles?
Btw I watched a 1hr gameplay playthrough of bleeding edge and it plays horrible.

[SPEAKxTHExTRUTH]

How do you determine a game plays horrible by watching it? That’s just a dumb thing to say. And for the record I PLAYED it during the beta and it plays great.

[Atom666]

Trolls being trolls.

[sprinterboy]

I watched a full stream and many matches played all using different characters in 3v3 or was it 4v4 can't remember. If that's not enough time to cauge a game I don't know what is pmsl.
Edit: btw or predator looks shite too.

[RosweeSon]

😂😂😂
29315;🤣🤣㊃ 5;🤪

[Stanjara]

In 3 years

[i3eyond the Circle]

Indeed...exciting times ahead. There’s going to be a large push of new IPs in the pipeline by default. Even if half did AAA that puts them at a higher first party release rate over their competitors if they stick to a 2 year cycle. Until they drop and we see how they rate I will reserve judgment but if they can push quality along with their staggering quantity over their competitors first party... it will make Xbox a different kind of beast.

And on the 3rd party side of things if what I’ve been reading and the puzzle pieces line together this whole RDNA 2 business on the Xbox side of things is way more significant then we know. Once Sony release their specs an entire slew of RDNA 1.5 vs RDNA 2 and what this means articles will drop enough to make you nauseated... this next Xbox will have overhead that you can’t ignore.

[Bandit50]

I can't wait 🙂

[mkis007]

I want a couple of huge single player games without a shred of multiplayer and at least a wide-linear design, if not open world. Mature rating is a must. Something you can't live service; a pure gift to people like me. Do that and you'll have my axe.

[SyntheticForm]

That's certainly a fair ask and I'm not sure why it was disagreed with. I'd like to see this as well. They have the studios and the talent.

[Petebloodyonion]

The keyword is: LOOKING exciting, Unfortunately MS needs a real knockout to change the reviewer's opinions that MS creates only average games Until. they do they will be stuck with the Ubisoft curse of always getting a harsh review for their games.

[Imalwaysright]

Or make good games like Gears, Ori and Forza Horizon and for the most part reviews will reflect that. Make average games like Crackdown or State of Decay and the reviews for the most part will also reflect that.

[Petebloodyonion]

Making a good game does not help the negative perception media will give to the game
Here's Gear 5 Gamepot review:
https://www.gamespot.com/re...
reviewed 7/10
The reviewed could give point for having multiples mode thus creating value, having split-screen mode, coop campaign, graphics, having the game made with ppl with disability in mind, etc. Nope, he removed 30% because of this "The story ultimately feels somewhat truncated and meandering, but the campaign is still fun to play."

Halo compilation scored lower to Uncharted Compilation because there were some matchmaking issues in some of the modes at launch.
Yet halo had more games, reworked graphics, new Cutscene, new multiplayer mode while Uncharted REMOVED completely the online component and add nothing to the game.

Ask yourself HOW come Forza never got a perfect score ? or was never considered for the GOTY award?
Because ...It's a racing game, it's a lesser game not like a GOD of WAR or Zelda even if it's an open-world game with a car instead of a human, the feeling is can't be in the same category.

Quantum got 6 while Control is Masterpiece funny cause the fundamentals are the same
The Irony is that Angry Joe made QB into the top 10 disappointing games yet made Controll in the top 10 games of the year but if you go watch the review he scores the game barely higher stating in the discussion that it's barely better to Quantum Break.

Heck, the only great game made by MS this generation are ORI and Cup Head but hey you know thats indy stuff...

BTW not only MS is targetted by a negative perception from media
Best example would be Days Gone
remember how the game was already heading for a 6-10 reviewed when Media were already complaing at E3 about another Zombie game, do we need another PLaystation open world game? or the white male bland protagonist?
Good news it that ppl still bought that great game.

[chiefJohn117]

State of decay is a great game it was bugging at launch that was it's only problem. If it was AAA it would easily be the best zombie game out. If you disagree tell me another with as much content, replayability and hours invested

[RazzerRedux]

@Petebloodyonion

Gears 5 has a metacritic of 84. That is the same exact metacritic score Control got which you are saying reviewers called a "masterpiece". How in the world does Forza Horizon 3/4 have scores over 90 if this negative "media perception" exists, especially considering "it's a racing game"? Why would you even bother comparing MCC and Uncharted? Those are two entirely different genres with different focus (multiplayer vs single player). Your reasoning here is wildly inconsistent.

[starchild]

What universe do you live in? Plenty of Ubisoft games have scored well with reviewers.

[Petebloodyonion]

You can still get a nice score but get a harsh review per example:
Assassin's Creed Odyssey is considered one of the best game got an 8 from Gamespot
Here's the big conlusion to the review
"When looking at Odyssey in the bigger picture, it can often feel like too much game for its own good. There are numerous moments where the loop of exploring, completing missions, and traveling can slow the pace significantly. This is exacerbated by the expansive map, which can sometimes feel excessively big and a chore to travel through. There are also some notable bugs and hitches that crop up throughout, including those that prevent progress in missions to outright crash the game. Several times throughout my journey, progression was somewhat exhausting, which made some of the more impactful and exciting moments in the story feel like a drag."
but...
Does it feel like it's a game you should buy on day1?

And go see every Ubisoft review and you will always get that feeling that the game is good but not a day 1 purchase due to some naggings that strangely are not present in a Nintendo, Kojima, Naugty dog reviews
(Like come on who need a Story in Zelda BOTW even with a legacy so rich in lore?)

[RazzerRedux]

"Assassin's Creed Odyssey is considered one of the best game got an 8 from Gamespot'

Two problems. 1) It seems you only take into account review scores from Gamespot and yet you are claiming this negative "perception" is media-wide. Expand your field of view and you will see this isn't really an issue at all. 2) How in the world is 8 not a great review score?

[Petebloodyonion]

1) It seems you only take into account review scores from Gamespot
Gamespot is one of the most known gaming websites, I could have picked a different website like IGN, Edge but you would have been the first of accusing me of choosing the review that favors my point of views so I'm sticking to one source.

2) How in the world is 8 not a great review score?
8 is a great score as 8 on the Gamespot scale indicate Great like you should feel confident about buying this game day 1 right?
So how come the conclusion of review indicates otherwise?
Again here's the closing statement of the review and tell me if you feel like you should buy the game day 1 or wait for the 20$ version

"When looking at Odyssey in the bigger picture, it can often feel like too much game for its own good. There are numerous moments where the loop of exploring, completing missions, and traveling can slow the pace significantly. This is exacerbated by the expansive map, which can sometimes feel excessively big and a chore to travel through. There are also some notable bugs and hitches that crop up throughout, including those that prevent progress in missions to outright crash the game. Several times throughout my journey, progression was somewhat exhausting, which made some of the more impactful and exciting moments in the story feel like a drag.

Despite this, Assassin's Creed Odyssey's ambition is admirable, which is reflected in its rich attention to detail for the era and its approach to handling the multi-faceted narrative with strong protagonists at the lead. While its large-scale campaign--clocking in at over 50 hours--can occasionally be tiresome, and some features don't quite make the impact they should, Odyssey makes great strides in its massive and dynamic world, and it's a joy to venture out and leave your mark on its ever-changing setting."

Quick question did you buy Spider-man day1?
Did you buy this game day1?

Another question How come a Ubisoft game never won the game of the year award when lots of dev like Kojima call them the master of open world games?

[Petebloodyonion]

@Razzer
"How in the world does Forza Horizon 3/4 have scores over 90 if this negative "media perception" "
Then how come the king of the racing game has never won a single Game of the Year award or been nominated
Here IGN and Gamespot game of the years' nominee for 2018
https://www.gamespot.com/ga...
https://www.ign.com/article...

Heck, when was the last time a MS game was just nominated for the category?

"Why would you even bother comparing MCC and Uncharted? Those are two entirely different genres with different focus (multiplayer vs single player). Your reasoning here is wildly inconsistent."
Then you should ask this question to reviewer
Because clearly MCC was crapped due to problems with the multiplayer yet Halo5 was crapped because the single-player story was not great despite the super robust great multiplayer.

[RazzerRedux]

"I could have picked a different website like IGN, Edge but you would have been the first of accusing me of choosing the review that favors my point of views "

lol....I never said that, but you pretty much just admitted it. And yeah, it was obvious from the start that you would shift to whatever favors your view. Metacritic doesn't allow you to do that so you avoid it.

" Halo5 was crapped"

another game with a great metacritic score. 84. Same score as that "masterpiece" Control.

"Then how come the king of the racing game has never won a single Game of the Year award or been nominated"

lol.....because it had superior competition in games like Uncharted 4, Overwatch, Doom, Dark Souls 3 and then God of War, Spider-man, and Red Dead Redemption 2. And yeah, you are right that the fact that it is a racing game doesn't help when it comes to awards. But that isn't because it is a Microsoft racing game, just racing games in general. And you are moving the goal posts. One post you are talking review scores and now it is about GOTY. As you already unwittingly admitted, you are just going to change your criteria to suit what you are trying to say without even acknowledging your inconsistencies so there is no point continue discussing it with you.

Believe what you want.

[monkey602]

Age of Empires and Flight Sim are PC games to me. That's where I'll be playing them but both look great!
Hellblade 2 because the first was awesome.
12 Minutes looks interesting but a short experience.
& nothing has been said about The Last Night for years but I still want that game.
Tunic looked good too but another smaller game.

Microsoft really doesn't have a big line up for me, 3 independent titles that will probably jump platform eventually. I wont be playing AoE on consoles. Flight Sim looks incredibly detailed and well built but I don't see it holding my attention for long. Then Hellblade 2 which I must play!

Lets hope those acquired studios come out guns blazing because while the above games give a console owner something to look forward to, They are not going to sell me a new system

[ThinkThink]

You are MS's ideal customer then. Keep on doing what you're doing. :)

[monkey602]

I'm really not seeing how that's so! Is it sarcasm? Or did you miss my point?

[ThinkThink]

I'll explain.. You mentioned looking forward to age of empires and MS flight simulator, and you have a PC, which means you can play those games without MS having to take a monetary loss on the series x. If you have a PC, Microsoft would rather you play there instead of purchasing a console.

[outsider1624]

Looking forward to Age of Empires..will play it on my Laptop. I had a hard time playing the sims 4 on ps4..

[chiefJohn117]

Great times ahead

[GrizToof]

I'm still leaning Sony for next gen but I am not a hater or a fan boy. The reason why I'm considering Sony is because of my huge library of PS4 games that are supposed to be backwards compatible and im a big fan of jrpgs and shoot em ups. I really want to see Sony and Microsoft battle it out this time and compete with each other at a high level. This will only work out in our favor. I want to be upset I bought a PS5 because the new Xbox has so many great games. I see that MS is getting more Japanese titles on their console now and if I feel like a series X is right for me I won't hesitate to change my purchase or buy both if I have to. I want both of these companies to fight tooth nail and claw to appease us, give us the best games and hardware at great prices. I'm ready to see them battle while I wait on the sidelines for the perfect moment to strike. But once every game is a digital loot box filled mess I will no longer take part in that end of the world as we know it scenario. I will retire from current gaming and spend the rest of my days sitting back chipping away at my backlog.

[LordJamar]

Just got yakuza on the game pass and loving it can’t wait for the rest of them ouch my back log

[AK91]

Is it?

[OliveTreeFam]

I’m pretty excited for both the Series X and PS5. I’ll probably wait because I have the XBOX One X and the PS4 Pro but happy to hear about all the news trickling out.

I don’t get why people are so one sided. We should want these companies to innovate. It’ll only increase competition and make everyone better.

[SpineSaw]

A big healthy...... Yawwwwwwwwwwwwn! Wake me when Microsoft has a must have title and by must have I mean system seller not gamepass filler.

[ThinkThink]

Nobody wake him up..

[Az1ner]

The usual hate from the same "gamers". I cannot wait to be there day 1.
Halo Inifinite
Cyberpunk 2077
Hellblade 2
Everwild
Replaying Ori 2
And who knows what else!

[Kaedro]

I know right? I can't wait to play it all on my PC or on my friends base xbox one. Who needs the series X?

[ThinkThink]

That's the beauty of it, you don't! How about I get one instead because I don't have a Windows pc :)

[Kaedro]

Then you better invest that money into a decent PC instead of the series X.

[ThinkThink]

For me, I could never get into PC gaming, no disrespect to you or to anyone that games on Windows. I know a lot of the appeal is the building of the machine yourself and I can see how people can be into that. For me, it's about convenience and ease of entry. I like being able to hit 1 button, and play a game for 10 minutes only to be able to walk by and hit 1 button to turn it off. I don't get to sit down and game for hours like I used to. Plus, I like that consoles are quite a bit cheaper than gaming PC's, but I get it's a trade off. Let's all just game where we feel the most comfortable :)

[medman]

The studio acquisitions Microsoft has made this gen are promising, but we really need to see what more of those studios are working on before we talk looking about "exciting".....Hellb lade has shown zero gameplay, Halo hasn't shown anything stunning to this point, and Everwild stylistically is very good looking, but again, we need gameplay. Then comes the excitement. Hopefully Microsoft will reveal a lot of this progress at E3. Hopefully there is an E3, but even if it gets cancelled, Microsoft will no doubt have a reveal event online to show off the goods.

[Elda]

Meh list... though Ori & Everwild looks interesting.

[waverider]

The need to feed Gamepass will be the biggest problem. When you go full force to services. You need games, after games. You cant take 3 years to make a game...

[Biggambit7]

I would love a new killer instinct and other fighting games from Xbox.

[jznrpg]

Nothing that makes me want to go out and buy a new console

[Acecalibur]

Both consoles will be mine.

[the worst]

LOL FUNNIEST THING I HEARD TODAY LOL

[drasani]

Xbox is not about the x series like most think. They are for project xcloud which is who they are requiring publishers to go too. Plans are for games on a console to be next gen but the Xbox one will become like a google stadia and be a streaming platform that had all of the new games with xcloud. Takes the original system claims of the Xbox one being the last system and it not upgrading. Xcloud on beta is good if you have the internet connection but most of the Us does not have a 9mbit upload. It took me weeks to find a open wifi with it. I may have 100 mbits download in a rural area but upoad is only 5 mbits
They need to work on the data stream. MMOs have it in check. Microsoft does not need a 9mbit up stream. For thier system under an IT stand they may need a .25 mgbit connection as upstream