Microsoft came out strong after last Sunday’s Xbox Games Showcase, where it finally provided a juicy outlook at an impressive lineup of first-party games. Given all the investments made to acquire or build studios, that was bound to happen at some point, and it’s perhaps coming a bit later than Microsoft’s original schedule dictated. Then again, the COVID pandemic hit everyone hard and likely delayed most games by at least half a year, if not a full year, depending on the type of project.
While the full lineup of first-party titles actually spans a great breadth of genres, it is especially amazing for roleplaying game fans, leading them to the PC or Xbox ecosystems. In the next four to five years, they’ll be treated by a veritable onslaught of RPGs in various settings developed by some of the most acclaimed studios in the genre, starting with Bethesda’s long-awaited first sci-fi game.
Starfield (September 6th, 2023)
The closest Microsoft RPG to release and the most anticipated by far, Starfield had a dedicated 45-minute-long Direct where Bethesda Game Studios impressed the whole gaming world. The developers successfully produced a showcase that was interesting to watch, had some funny moments sprinkled every once in a while (chiefly the Adoring Fan or the mech-inspired starship taking off), but also expertly dived into each part of the huge game, from the RPG systems that are going back to Bethesda’s roots to starship building, starship combat/smuggling/boarding, crafting, outposts, and much more. As commented by Todd Howard, it is a bit like five or six games in one, and it showed.
The gunplay and combat animations (even in first-person) looked massively improved, thanks to the additional development time afforded by Microsoft. Overall, the Starfield Direct was one of the most amazing gameplay showcases I’ve ever seen, and the engagement levels and reactions from critics and fans alike were exceedingly positive, as noted today by Bethesda. The game’s subreddit exploded with positivity, and more than a few PlayStation gamers have since admitted they’d look into a way to play it, either via PC or cloud, or Xbox console.
Despite being scheduled to launch on Game Pass, Starfield currently has more Steam followers than Elden Ring had at this time with respect to its launch. It’s not too surprising, considering that Skyrim and Fallout 4 are still some of the most played single player games on Valve’s platform.
If Bethesda can stick the landing with the least bugs in one of its games yet, Starfield could be the megahit Microsoft has needed for a long time, launching a Golden Age of RPGs on PC and Xbox.
Avowed (2024)
The second RPG on Microsoft’s first-party schedule is Obsidian’s Avowed, which was confirmed to be targeting a 2024 launch. Admittedly, the gameplay trailer was outshone by the other games featured in the showcase due to inconsistency in lighting (the shot above looked great, but others were a lot less flattering) that I hope will be fixed with Lumen since the game is powered by Unreal Engine 5.
Several fans, myself included, were also a bit disappointed to learn that Obsidian had abandoned its original pitch of a Skyrim-like game set in Pillars of Eternity’s Eora to focus on a more compact game like The Outer Worlds. On the other hand, Obsidian said this allowed them to put more resources into improving the first-person combat, which should be the best yet in any of their RPGs, with Game Director Carrie Patel stating that swinging an axe or a sword or a mace will feel very different. That’s without taking into account the ability to dual wield magic and melee or pistols, providing several playstyles to choose from.
Still, RPG aficionados know all too well that Obsidian’s true strength lies in its writing. If they can improve combat and polish while maintaining their renowned writing, Microsoft could have another great RPG coming its way.
Clockwork Revolution (First Half 2025?)
inXile wasn’t even rumored to be at the Xbox Games Showcase this year, and yet they showed up with their new first-person steampunk RPG, Clockwork Revolution.
It was a pleasant surprise from a studio that used to work on isometric games like Torment: Tides of Numenera and Wasteland. Even though the developers later said the footage was caught from a pre-Alpha build, it already looked very good, and we even got a few snippets of the fast-paced action combat. The trailer did a great job at setting up the villain, Lady Ironwood, who manipulated time to achieve power and wealth to the detriment of the masses.
It will be up to our protagonist (who’s not fixed but will be created by the player) to make things right, though the choices made while traveling to the past may have unforeseen circumstances when coming back to the present. inXile has since promised a branching dialogue system and the ability to affect the people and the city itself. It was also confirmed that the lead developers behind the greatest steampunk RPG (Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura) are leading this project, just like the rumors said.
Clockwork Revolution will come in ‘due time’, said inXile, but 2025 is a decent bet considering the game will have been in development for five years. If the full release can maintain this trailer’s promise, inXile could turn out as one of the best acquisitions made by Microsoft.
Fable (Late 2025?)
Microsoft’s first RPG franchise is coming back thanks to Playground Games, the acclaimed studio behind Forza Horizon. Three years after the announcement trailer, Fable reemerged with a peculiar trailer loosely inspired by the Jack and the Beanstalk fairytale.
The footage was labeled as in-game, though folks initially discounted it as pre-rendered due to its extreme visual quality. However, Playground Games’ Lighting Artist Lukas Kelz took to Twitter to confirm that the footage was indeed running in real time and captured from an Xbox Series X, no less, instead of a $2000 PC.
This bodes well for the game’s release. We still don’t know much about Fable, though the YouTube trailer’s description hinted that the hero’s reputation will precede them and that their choices will change Albion forever, following the spirit of the original RPG (hopefully while delivering better execution). If I had to guess, Fable is still about two and a half years away, but it seems to be in good hands.
The Outer Worlds 2 (2026?)
One of the reasons that pushed Obsidian away from its original goal of creating a Skyrim-like game with Avowed is that a sizable portion of their staff is busy with another triple-A project: The Outer Worlds 2.
The first game in the sci-fi RPG series was actually published by Private Division and it only had a meager budget for a triple-A game. Despite that, it was one of Obsidian’s greatest commercial successes, having just surpassed five million units sold to date. The sequel, announced in June 2021, will be published by Microsoft, presumably allowing a higher budget for development.
We don’t know much about The Outer Worlds 2 other than it’ll feature a new crew in a new solar system. Still, if they can fix the combat and progression/itemization issues outlined in my review of the original, it could establish yet another great RPG franchise for Microsoft. Regarding the release date, 2026 seems a good guess, given that it has been in development for quite some time.
The Elder Scrolls VI (Late 2027?)
Last but not least, the sequel to one of the best-selling games of all time: The Elder Scrolls VI. Announced alongside Starfield in 2018, TES VI has been in pre-production for a long time and will likely only enter full production later this year after Starfield is officially out.
We don’t know any specific detail about the massively anticipated sequel to Skyrim, a mammoth RPG capable of selling over sixty million copies over its extraordinarily lengthy shelf life. However, it is widely believed that the game will take place in Hammerfell, the home of the Redguards.
As for the release date, I reckon there’s a chance it might happen in late 2027 if Bethesda can return to its usual four-year development schedule. The studio had to create entirely new systems for Starfield, while The Elder Scrolls VI will undoubtedly be more familiar ground for them. Either way, even at this junction in time, it’s easy to predict TES VI could be one of the biggest first-party titles in Microsoft’s pocket, swaying droves of PlayStation users to its PC and Xbox ecosystem.
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