On January 18, we’ll see what the folks at Machine Games, Obsidian, Ninja Theory, and Oxide Games have been cooking up for Xbox’s first-party lineup. At 12 pm PT, “fans will get an inside look at a selection of highly anticipated games coming to Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Game Pass.”
Here’s a quick rundown of what we can expect:
Indiana Jones game – The Indiana Jones game comes from the team at MachineGames (the studio known for the recent Wolfenstein games). We’ll get more than ten minutes of “game and developer insights.” Gameplay will be featured.
Avowed – The hotly anticipated fantasy action RPG from Obsidian (Pillars of Eternity, The Outer Worlds, Grounded). Xbox describes what we’ll see as the “first deep dive into the gameplay experience fans can expect.”
Ara: History Untold – A new historical grand strategy game from Oxide Games (founded by former Firaxis employees). Look for new gameplay and a deep dive into key features coming to their game.
Senua’s Saga: Hellbalde 2 – We’ll get another look at the stunning game from Ninja Theory. The game is set for a 2024 release date based on its most recent trailer at The Game Awards. Let’s see if Ninja Theory and Xbox give us a firm release date later this month.
As for Activision Blizzard? In today’s announcement, Xbox goes out of its way to say this month’s event will not include anything from those teams. But they do say news from those teams is coming later this year. Activision Blizzard will likely play a significant role in Xbox’s summer showcase.
The show won’t last longer than an hour because ZeniMax Online Studios will be hosting their own event for what’s coming to The Elder Scrolls Online in 2024 at 1 pm PT.
Last year’s Developer Direct lasted about 45 minutes, so expect a similar runtime on January 18. Last year’s event also gave us a shadow drop of one of 2023’s best games in Hi-Fi Rush. Maybe Xbox will give us another little surprise.