Xbox Series X|S two years later — is it worth it?

Two years after its release and the Xbox Series X|S is basically the perfect Xbox Game Pass partner

[Flawlessmic]

Nope outside of forza 5 nd halo it's been a dust collector.

I have started pentiment though which I thought would be like disco Elysium but there's no RPG systems I can see or any interesting moments where you can make a choice and see a consequence yet.

It's more like a picture book at the moment, only about 2 hrs in though so will give it more time.

Definitely a niche game though, very much won't be most peoples cup of tea.

[darthv72]

I'll say the same thing I said in the PS5 piece. I find the improvements the hardware makes to existing titles is impressive. Taking what were 30fps games last gen and making them 60 or even 120. That is a game changer.

Gamepass has made it easy to dive into other games I may not have considered. Pentiment looks intriguing so I downloaded it last night. I will give it a play later today.

[SullysCigar]

I get your point, but you don't need a series XS for gamepass, so you're left with a performance bump for last gen games as the sole benefit. That's pretty bad at this stage in the game.

[darthv72]

@sully, maybe not but you do need one if you want to play the full gambit of titles on gamepass natively. Many titles [that require series level of hardware] also have cloud versions for those who are still on the VCR. They can play that way. It works... but it's obviously not the same. I'd rather play flight sim on the series x than the VCR.

I guess i could go back to the PC side of things as the PC gamepass has even more stuff not on console... but I prefer consoles. Steamdeck got me back in the pool with a toe and so far its fine for me with how often i use it. I havent built a gaming PC in 10 years... Im good with that.

[Lifexline]

For me it has been worth it all these games I haven’t played yet and game pass is amazing that’s where the value for me is. So many games and want to try but getting the time to try is difficult. I don’t know how people seem to have so much time to game. They are hungry for so many games.

Most of the time I choose to play overwatch 2, halo, or call of duty multiplayer. People need to realize the majority of console owners will play multiplayer games and get stuck on that for months maybe even a year. Not everyone has all the time in the world to try all the games that’s why multiplayer is so popular it’s quick and easy.

[Golfcoachh]

There is no doubt that the lack of exclusive next gen content is a bummer. I like how it has made some of last gen games look and perform well. I also love gamepass as I have played a lot of indy and niche games I may not have played. It is hard to argue with the Sony fanboys though as the drought of AAA exclusive content has put a damper on the machine for me.

[Immagaiden]

Game Pass should be a complimentary reason to get the console, not the main and only reason

[InUrFoxHole]

You don't need a console for gamepass.

[BehindTheRows]

Thus, you’ve answered the article’s main question.

[InUrFoxHole]

@Behind
Have a series X and it's well worth it

[Immagaiden]

This article is about why you’d get this console

[MadLad]

They're also highly capable systems that play all third party games - the games the vast majority play the majority of the time.

And they do have a bunch of games currently in development.

[Hofstaderman]

By that reasoning PS5 also has those third party games plus AAA exclusives.

[ChasterMies]

You don’t appreciate the opportunity to pay $120 to $180 per year?

[The3faces]

I sold my Xbox one X and managed to get a Series X on launch day eagerly anticipating next gen games that wouldn't have been possible on the one x and I'm still waiting lol. All i can say is Starfield and Redfall had better be worth the wait.

[Godmars290]

"Starfield and Redfall had better be worth the wait."

Ha-ha...

[Lightning77]

You think those games are gonna be bad or something

[Kurt Russell]

I use my series x all the time and play most things on gamespass.

That being said, the answer is still no. The only real blockbuster I have enjoyed on it was ResEvil:Village. Everything else has been AA gamespass titles (although enjoyable don't get me wrong).

I have found myself on PS5 most evenings the last few months, playing through the bigger titles.

[Father__Merrin]

Your lucky to have both

[repsahj]

Yeah, and find the time to play both. I cant do that anymore. T_T

[Lightning77]

Right it depends on who you talk to. For us it's hard to recommend if you want AAA new IP games. You want old exclusives then sure knock yourself out I guess.

And no I don't want to say wait till 2023! It's not a joke at this point it's a broken record. I'll believe it when I see it.

[Kurt Russell]

On launch I would say my Series X got the most attention due to gamespass. This past year has been PS5. Fortunately, I am in the position to flex between them.

[Father__Merrin]

Couldn't locate a ps5 so bought a series S on launch for COD etc sold it 2 months later and bought series X so that's my daily driver along with PC

I've rocketed from 17k GS to 230k GS since I jumped back on xbox but I've stopped the GS boosting and just go back to enjoying games it's deffo a good console and worth buying

[CBaoth]

Vehemently disagree. MS is yet to release any compelling 1st party software. Series G(imped) ensures Series X will never see games specifically built to utilize its power. Wouldn't shock me to see BOTH companies release Pro models when its time for the current SKUs to shine*. Without said 1st party software, GamePass is nothing more than a "shine the spotlight on indies" service. More day1 3rd party duds than hits. So no, 2 years into the service, it actually is the only console to be sold without any games worth buying and not just some sort of pony internet rallying cry

The only way I would currently recommend a Series X is if the customer is new to the MS ecosystem and haven't played any of MS' output from last gen. You'd get your money's worth while waiting for the library to mature. Next summer would be the time to invest in an X and a GP sub. The last 3 years of this gen should be much closer to MS' vision. Right now it's a paperweight with IndiePass.

* if Pro models are announced then BOTH base consoles will have been a waste of time, the S is already a given. I have a capable PC so playing old games at 60FPS is a laughable excuse to justify their expense

[MadLad]

You understand downscaling, yes?

The idea that you have to build around the weaker hardware is nonsense.

The series S isn't all that weak. I'm able to play the same games on my 3080 that I can on my 680 even today; though that is finally starting to not keep up.

Blaming the series S because it's a lower powered budget system that still punches above its weight is laughable being that, in turn, PC gamers should be fairly ridiculing console gamers for holding back tech evolution since the start of 3D gaming just because anything over $500 is too much, yet they want to feel they have high end tech.

[CBaoth]

sorry Mad, I did not buy either CONSOLE to have scalable software used as an excuse to downgrade the experience. I already told you that's what my PC is for - optimum high end experience for multplats.

"The idea you have to build around weaker hardware is nonsense"

You can't be this dense. If they didn't then we'd have a lot of more Cyberpunk2077's on PS4s & Xbones. That's what happens you scale down, not up; the project ends up being overly ambitious and a clusterfuck in performance.

[MadLad]

People who use words like "dense" usually just mean, "you don't agree with me so I'll insinuate you're stupid."

Games are almost always built with high end assets, and then downscaled for whatever platform they maybe be working with.
It's why there were many higher end ports on the Xbox and GameCube vs the PS2.

Games like Crysis, Metro 2033, and even Half-Life 2 and Doom 3, back in the day, were built for high end PCs. Some even made to be future proof and you couldn't even run them on ultra with even the best hardware had, yet they got them working on their respective console console counterparts.

So yes. As long as you have a solid engine that scales well, you absolutely don't need to design for the lowest common denominator. The only devs, even, to say otherwise seem to be the ones who can't optimize for any of the hardware they're using, funnily enough.

If Series S is somehow holding the generation back, then people shouldn't even consider buying anything showing up also on the PS4 and Xbox One.

[IRetrouk]

Mad that is not how devs build a game, they build to the lowest base model and then add from there, its well documented, how many links to devs stating it would you like?

[Terry_B]

Not a single reason for me to own one. Am super fine with the PC ..and hopefully sooner or later a PS5 since I sold the PS4.

[anast]

I would say not. It's like an overpowered Roku box.

[Espangerish]

As Xbox puts all its games on PC I have no compelling reason to buy the hardware at all as PC is my platform of choice. If I did have only an Xbox I'd be delighted with Game pass, very disappointed with the lack of exclusives and tempted to get a PS5.

[LOGICWINS]

The Series X is worth it to me, primarily because I'm getting all my games for free via MS Rewards. As long as MS Rewards is a thing, Xbox will always be my console of choice for 3rd party games.

I wouldn't recommend it if you want 1st party games that take full advantage of the power of the console. For that, get a PS5. I'll be getting the Slim version when it comes out.

[gamer9]

If you like Bethesda games and shooters absolutely.

If you're going to play more than 1 game per year on game pass, yes. Will be playing approx. 5 games in 2023 that i would buy at launch. That's ($70 * 5) - $60 = $290 US in savings.

Go on, disagree with money savings.

[Youngindy21]

It's absolutely worth it. Then again I don't rely solely on first party games to entertain me. I don't understand why some gamers need a constant slew of new games. My backlog is pretty big.

[BrainSyphoned]

S absolutely not.
My youngest son variety games on the X with GamePass daily so I consider my package deal on that worth it. I'm too busy hogging the PS5 to touch the X much.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

Do you need to play Game Pass in 4k?

[MadLad]

I'm mainly a PC gamer, and I still think Xbox is offering a lot with all that they're doing.
They've been fairly light on the 1st party content, but I don't feel the other of the big three have been insane on 1st party content since the release of the new consoles either.

My series S is my traveling buddy for work, and I'm getting a lot of value out of it.

Looking forward to what should be coming out late this year and through next year.

[P_Bomb]

It’s paid off for me. I’m able to catch up on all the XB1 IP I missed and try out new titles I might’ve missed. No regrets.

[Petebloodyonion]

I could copy and paste this for my PS5 and change just a few sentences.

Is the Xbox Serie X worth it after 2 years?
Yes and no
It fails for the moment at giving us a constant feeling of next-generation gaming, sure you can find some flash of what's to come like the Matrix demo, Flight simulator, etc. but the majority of the experience is based on the PS4/Xbox1.
Where's unreal engine5? The famous raytracing or all the superfast loading of SSD drive?

But I can't deny how it improves all current experiences. Playing Forza5 at 120 FPS is an incredibly smooth experience basically giving you the same sense of aye as buying a new computer and playing your old games (for way cheaper).

I could point out how great the Quick resume and smart delivery features are and how convenient they are.

[Elda]

I'm going to give MS/XB one more year,if there aren't any interesting XB first-party AAA exclusives released within the next 12 months I'm getting rid of my XBSX. GP alone isn't enough for me to hold on to the XBSX just to play current Indie titles I want to play first-party AAA XB-Series exclusives to see what the XBSX can really do.

[gamer9]

In the next 12 months: Starfield, Redfall, High on Life, Wo Long, Forza, Diablo IV, Minecraft Legends, Atomic Heart, Ark 2, and more unannounced games.

For $60 /yr. https://www.youtube.com/wat...

Anyone who disagrees either doesn't like a range of games, doesn't know what they're missing, are paying full price for game pass when they shouldn't be, or is a fanboy of a different platform. That's why all the disagrees never give a reply.

Gamepass at the discounted price above is the biggest steal in gaming, perhaps ever. I can't name another time in 20+ years of gaming on various platforms when you could get 5-10 games a year for 60 bucks. Except maybe when pirating games on PC was quite popular.

And the $60/yr includes xbox live gold too.

[Elda]

GP may be great for you but for me at the time being it's a lackluster service. Anything current on the service are mostly Indie games & most of them to me are not interesting with the exception of 1 or 2 titles. Everything else that lands on the service is usually old multiplats that I have played already including GP having its usual staple of old/classic XB titles. Also there hasn't been any new AAA first party exclusives for a year now dropping on GP or releasing in general. The only titles that you mentioned that I'm interested to play is Diablo 4, Wo Long & Atomic Heart which are multiplats though Atomic Heart will be on GP. Redfall looks ok but Starfield & Forza doesn't interest me. Again...I'll give it a year to see if MS/XB will finally start dropping some big budget exclusives that'll capture my interest to hold on to the XBSX.

[gamer9]

@Kratos, what does multiplat have to do with saving money on launch day releases? If Playstation charged you 60 bucks in 2023 to get 3 launch day exclusives and 3 launch day multiplats, you'd be super happy right?

[EvertonFC]

NO, nxt

[masterfox]

oh hell no!

[zarbor]

As a hardcoregamer who has been console gaming for many years, the PS5 and XBOX Series X has been a major, major, major, disappointment. There are gamers who are satisfied with the games we have gotten so far for these consoles, so good for them. When I put my hard working dollars on a new next-gen console, I expect to have games I can't play on my last gen console. That's not the case here at all, since I still have my last gen consoles and there are little differences in the games. I would tell anyone right now wanting to get any of these new consoles, wait it out. Folks blame it on the pandemic or whatever but you can rest assured technology does not stop. I fully expect the PS5 Pro and Serie X Pro will be coming shortly. Wait for that, since us early adopters got hosed waiting for next-gen games that never came. Look no further than the new God of War Ragnarok. Do yourself a favor and save 10 bucks and buy that game for the PS4. There is very minimal difference and it plays exactly the same. You ain't missing anything. There is no game right now that is on the PS5 that couldn't be done on the PS4 with minimal differences. That may change in the future but for the last few years next-gen has been a complete dud!

[kingnick]

I bought the Series X as a complimentary gaming platform to PC to maximise Game Pass as there are games on Game Pass that are not available on PC or Xbox.

I haven't used it a huge amount but I've used it enough especially with some console only friends to justify the $890AUD I've spent on it and Game Pass to date.