This morning Xbox & Bethesda got the honour of being the first to hold a games showcase in 2023. The ‘Developer_Direct’ focused on four games, with one surprise. Those being: Minecraft Legends, Forza Motorsport, The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom, Redfall and the surprise of Hi-Fi Rush.
Instead of a flurry of trailers or interviews, this was a well-produced showcase with a distinct direction for each developer to focus on for their particular game. If Xbox did more of these, I would not be angry.
Here is all the news and trailers from the Developer_Direct, presented by Xbox & Bethesda.
Minecraft Legends
The teams at Mojang started the show by talking about their collaboration with Black Bird Interactive on the PVP in Minecraft Legends. The maps in the PVP will still be procedurally generated, and there are multiple roles required for teams to win, meaning there is a way for everyone to play Minecraft Legends their favourite way. Be that heading out to gather resources or being the lead architect building your base’s defences up.
Minecraft Legends is releasing on April 18, 2023, for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC with cross-play. It is also going to be available to play via Xbox Game Pass.
Forza Motorsport
Over at Turn_10, the team showed off the visual and audio details that are going to make Forza Motorsport looks, sounds and feel better than any game in the franchise before. With 500 games, new technology builds up dirt, chipping and more details. There is also a fully dynamic time of day for the first time in the franchise, and it looks beautiful with 4K/60fps and on-track ray tracing.
Forza Motorsport is still listed as “coming soon,” but will release on Xbox Series X|S and PC.
Hi-Fi Rush
The developers of Evil Dead, Tango Gameworks, revealed their new IP, Hi-Fi Rush. It is a rhythm-action game and nothing like anything the team has done. You attack enemies in time with the music, and they attack you to the beat, and the world moves to the beat, but the game looks like it will be easy to play and fun to master. You’re not punished for not being able to hit on the right time, as the game attacks on the beat, but there are special attacks that’ll be
Hi-Fi Rush is, and I kid you not, out tonight on Xbox Series X|S and PC. The game is also going to be available on Xbox Game Pass.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom
The next Elder Scrolls Online Chapter Update, Necrom, was detailed by ZeniMax Online Studios. This expansion will have you returning to Morrowind and introducing the new playable Arcanist class.
The team also announced a limited free trial for ESO Plus, which gives you access to all previous chapters and 20 DLCS.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom is releasing June 2023 on Xbox consoles, PlayStation consoles and PC.
Redfall
Over with the team at Arkane Studios, brand new gameplay for Redfall showcased the creepy, horror-inspired gameplay and enemies that can appear out of walls to attack. They then switched gears from the action-heavy story mission to a side mission where the player attempts to save some humans about to be offered to some cultists. Similar to past games from Arkane, there is a level of choice for players in how they want to take on the mission, either head-on or with a layer of stealth. Arkane also showed off some co-op gameplay with a focus on working together and using each of the characters’ abilities to complement one another.
Red Fall releases on May 2nd for Xbox Series X|S and PC. It will also be available to play on Xbox Game Pass.
Xbox & Bethesda, ahead of the event, announced that Starfield would be getting its own showcase, and yet I still saw all of you crying for it in the Youtube comment section.
What did you think of the Developer_ Direct? Let me know in the comment section below.
