Xbox needed to do one thing, and one thing only, with its Summer Showcase of 2023 — GAMES. Microsoft has lagged so far behind Sony in the exclusive department that Sony has lapped them. With that being said, Xbox had an opportunity with this show. Playstation’s showcase left a little to be desired on the exclusives front, regardless of the excitement of this previous post about it, and Microsoft could have taken advantage and primed themselves for an amazing 2024 and beyond of Xbox.
And they did just that. This year’s Xbox Showcase had a lot of fun stuff to be excited about. One could argue that there were way too few gameplay trailers, and that person would be correct. But still, the showcase had a lot of promising stuff shown. Oh, wait hold on…
Starfield. Starfield. Starfield. STARFIELD! starfield. StArFiEld. STAAAAAAARRRRFIIIIEEEEEELLLLLDDDDD.
Had to get that off my chest. No, Starfield is not on this list because that’s just too easy. Here’s a link if you want to watch the Starfield Direct and geek out. It looks incredible, but that’s just low-hanging fruit. This list is five exciting games (not named Starfield) that looked great from the Xbox Showcase.
Jusant (Fall 2023)
Let’s start with the most intriguing game on this list. Jusant is a sci-fi climbing game from developers Don’t Nod, most famous for their Life is Strange adventure game series. The team at Don’t Nod has gone in a different direction with this game, and it looks promising.
The trailer itself does enough to peak one’s interest, but the demo on Steam truly raised the excitement level. It’s a climbing game through and through. Think about Breath of the Wild style climbing but as a puzzle game. The player must navigate how to best use the tools at their disposal to scale massive towers. It’s incredibly peaceful and fun, all while carrying an adorable little creature in a backpack.
Jusant will be scaled on day one when it arrives in the Fall on Xbox Game Pass.
Fable (2050, probably)
It’s been a long wait for Fable fans. The legendary series was last seen in 2010 with Fable 3, but it’s been almost twenty years since the original graced the first Xbox. They were some of the best high fantasy Action RPGs of all time, blended with a ton of raunchy British comedy. Fable might be one of the reasons that British comedy is a favorite of mine to this day (Monty Python is a major other reason).
But having Fable back and looking better than ever is incredible for Xbox. This will be a major release when it comes out…on the next iteration of Xbox. The official release date says TBA, but having no gameplay shown whatsoever probably means we’re a few years away, hopefully. What the trailer did, however, is show off some of the great Fable tongue-in-cheek comedy.
We don’t learn much about the story, but we do see what looks like our protagonist conquering a giant (Richard Ayoade) in a funny interaction. Perhaps the world is ruled by these giants and it’s up to our protagonist to overthrow them. Whatever the story is, the game looks fantastic so far.
Persona 3 Reload (Early 2024)
Personas 4 and 5 are some of my favorite games ever, but getting through them takes forever. The folks over at Atlus craft amazing stories that are told through some of the best RPGs in history. Those stories can take 150 hours if you take your time to explore everything and grind levels. Discovering a love for Persona only happened in the last five years with Persona 5, which means going back through the games. I’m working on Persona 4 at the time of writing and Persona 3 was up next on the docket.
Enter Persona 3 Reload, the full remake that brings the Playstation 2 game into the modern era. It has gorgeous visuals and style that are on par with Persona 5. These things are what make Persona 5 one of the best games I’ve ever played. It has the pizazz, along with the fantastic gameplay and story. Persona 4 is also missing that too. Bringing Persona 3, a game that has a great story, into the modern style is a great idea.
Also, Shout out to Metaphor: ReFantazio, as well. Atlus seems to be expanding into the high-fantasy world. A persona game with a fantasy twist sounds great!
Avowed (2024)
Xbox could have, very easily, fallen into the same formula of Gears of War, Halo, and Forza as many years previously. Instead, they acquired studio after studio to create new and exciting IPs like Avowed. Obsidian Entertainment, most notably for Fallout: New Vegas, KOTOR 2, and South Park: Stick of Truth is creating an exciting new project in a fantasy setting. I’m a sucker for high fantasy!
Avowed is an action RPG played from a first-person perspective, with magic and various weaponry. It’s giving off Skyrim gameplay vibes. This trailer didn’t give a terrible amount of information about the game, but the hype is built into the developers. Obsidian are known for their stories and characters, which Avowed is assured to have memorable ones, just like their previous games.
So, this excitement is more for Obsidian, not for Avowed itself. It’ll be exciting to learn more about this game when the release date comes more into focus.
Clockwork Revolution (Coming in Due Time)
“Clockwork Revolution is a time-bending steampunk first-person RPG from the creators of Wasteland and Arcanum. After stumbling across an incredible invention that allows you to travel into the past, you discover the city you call home — the vibrant steam-powered metrolpolis of Avalon — has been carefully crafted through the alteration of historical events. By traveling back to key moments, your interactions and choices will have a butterly effect on the deep, narrative-driven world and characters of Avalon, causing them to change and react in unprecedented ways.”
inxile-entertainment.com/games/clockwork-revolution
Sign. Me. Up.
In stark contrast to the previous game, Clockwork Revolution has piqued my interest on its setting and concept alone. InXile Entertainment’s previous works are unfamiliar to me, but this one has me ready to mark my calendar for the release date.
Steampunk? Check. Time traveling? Check. Bioshock vibes? CHECK CHECK CHECK.
Everything about this game screams that it’s going to be InXile’s breakout game and that’s incredibly exciting for them and the fans who play it on Game Pass. There was gameplay too! That probably means the game is trending toward 2024 versus 2025 and beyond. Next year is going to be a good one for Xbox.
What games were exciting for you from the Xbox showcase? Did you also collapse from excitement whilst watching the Starfield Direct? Let me know on twitter!