Although it is not the biggest event of the year for the company, the Xbox Developer’s Direct 2024 is an important date for the company. They establish a roadmap, give developers a chance to speak, and show the inner workings of what they are working on and what will be released in the near future. That’s why we bring you a summary of everything we saw during this conference. Because there was a lot to unpack, well condensed, and with a lot of interest.
Bethesda took up a good part of the show. On one hand, Obsidian Entertainment showed more of Avowed, which showed us the depth and dynamism of both its combat and moral choices. Something that reminded us of a combination of Arx Fatalis and Fallout New Vegas, which will be available in autumn on PC and Xbox Series S and X. Towards the end of the conference, Machine Games came out to show us Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. For many, the highlight of the conference, we break it down in depth in its own article, but we are left with two key aspects: Harrison Ford puts the face of Indiana Jones and it is a first-person game where it is important to stop and think before acting. A very Indy approach that will arrive in 2024.
Another one of the games that were shown was the new title from Oxide Games, Ara: History Untold. A 4X strategy game, in the style of Civilization, created by veterans from Firaxis Games who have worked on games like Civilization V. This is their second game after the space-themed RTS Ashes of the Singularity, and the uniqueness of this Ara is that, although it takes the foundations of Civilization, there are no turns here: the players’ actions all happen at the same time. And predicting the movements of our rivals will be crucial to achieve victory, that is, in autumn.
In this conference, fortunately, there was also room for surprises. This was the appearance of Visions of Mana, which will not only be released in the summer of 2024, but will also be the first time that a title from the franchise is released on an Xbox console. Showing movement within the open world, the new mount, and the dynamic music system, the game was a nod to JRPG fans who are unlikely to be dissatisfied with the result.
Another highlight for many was the appearance of Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2. Not only did they give us a lot more information about the game, such as it being a digital-only release and its price being €49.99, but they also have a new combat system and have reinforced the most memorable aspects of the first game. And it already has a release date: May 21st. Which gives us a good reason to have faith in Xbox’s 2024.
