Xbox Has Bad News for Fans Tuning in to Its Developer Direct

Xbox has confirmed that it has no plans to shadow drop any of the games set to be shown off at its upcoming Developer Direct. Having recently confirmed its second Developer Direct for January 18, Xbox is prepared to showcase new trailers and info for several of its most anticipated titles, like Oxide Games' Ara: History Untold, Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed, Ninja Theory's Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, and even MachineGames' Indiana Jones.

After several years of trying different formats, Xbox finally nailed it a year ago when it debuted its first ever Developer Direct. The purpose of the Direct was to inform Xbox fans of some of the major first-party titles that were ready to launch throughout 2023, giving some of the developers behind the games the spotlight as they share the info. Xbox games like Forza Motorsport, Redfall, and Minecraft Legends all received deeper looks and new info regarding their release dates, but the shadow drop of Tango Gameworks' never before seen Hi-Fi Rushis what made Xbox's first Developer Direct a smash hit. The game's colorful art style, rhythm-based action combat, and enticing musical world helped Hi-Fi Rush become a critical darling and the first of 2023's many Game of the Year-caliber experiences.

This year, with Xbox's second Developer Direct right around the corner, fans expecting a similar shadow drop splash a la Hi-Fi Rushmay be disappointed. Xbox confirmed that all four of the games set to be shown during the event will launch later, essentially indicating that there are no plans for a first-party shadow release this year. With that said, there's still a chance that a new unknown Xbox game could be revealed for the first time at the Direct, though fans would do well to keep their expectations in check.

While this confirmation from Xbox may be disappointing for many fans who enjoyed Hi-Fi Rush's surprise release a year ago, this year's Direct is still likely to be a great show with deeper looks and, hopefully, release dates for some