Xbox's first ever Developer Direct is in the bag, and we've come away very happy about how the whole event went down. Xbox brought a couple of release dates to the party, along with some lovely in-depth looks at big first-party titles. However, it's Hi-Fi Rush and Xbox's surprising shadow drop that has us even more excited for the future.
Most of what was shown at the event we already knew about, with Xbox being very clear to temper expectations in the run up to the showcase. Forza Motorsport, Redfall, Minecraft Legends and The Elder Scrolls Online were all known quantities, and Xbox did a good job at showcasing them here.
Despite how big these games are, and how excited folks were to see most of them in action, Hi-Fi Rush has stolen the show. It's the talk of the town right now, and that's great for Xbox and its reputation regarding game releases. Yes, they can deliver great games - deliver them at a moment's notice no less!
It's also helping that the buzz around Hi-Fi Rush isn't just about how Xbox revealed and released the title, it's also about how bloody good the game is. We'll have our own initial impressions up real soon (update: these are now live!), but it's clear that the community has taken well to Tango Gameworks' latest effort. Xbox fans are really digging Hi-Fi Rush and how unique it is amongst the stable of Xbox first-party titles.
If we look ahead, Hi-Fi Rush bodes really, really well for the future. We've already seen smaller Xbox exclusives like Pentiment find an audience, and now Hi-Fi Rush comes out of nowhere and shatters our showcase expectations. Xbox has picked up a lot of first-party studios in recent years, and if even a few of them can deliver moments like this, we have a fantastic few years ahead of us.
We might not have to wait too long to find out about more of these types of games either. Sure, the next Xbox show is all about Bethesda's Starfield (which will of course be huge), but Xbox has already revealed that it'll be ready and raring for E3 week as well. Could we see another Hi-Fi Rush-esque shadow drop this summer? We'll find out soon enough.
Have you played Hi-Fi Rush yet? Excited to see more Xbox shadow drops? Let us know!
Comments 28
I absolutely love this game, the way it was shown, and the way it has been released.
Hifi Rush is an instant classic.
Amazing that they almost got this out the door with no leaks.
Looking forward to giving it a go, it looks great.
I wouldn't expect a shadow drop at any of the other shows this year. Xbox is clearly holding release dates as long as possible now but still not a good idea to think shadow drops will become normal.
Going to try this after work, already downloaded.
Resubscribed to Game Pass now - my stack had run out and I was waiting for improved communication which yesterday definitely delivered.
My only fear now is there's almost going to be an expectation of surprises or shadow drops in future shows - they've maybe built a rod for their own backs but hopefully they're aware, manage expectations and have stuff to drop sometimes!
It's a good problem to have anyway
@EliJapan
Good to know. I was hoping it would run well on cloud because I don’t have a series console yet and really wanted to try it. I might still give it a go but will keep expectations in check.
@themightyant i saw leaks of this game last year qith the exact name... But i guess everyone thought its still a project in early stage... Then boom it releases today
Shadow drops are my favourite thing about these Direct style shows.
@Gamingforlife Oh I missed that. First I saw was Tuesday morning just a day before the event. Then it's launched. Impressive regardless.
@EliJapan is it Unplayable on cloud?
It's pretty good, better than I expected and quite unique. Dunno how much more I'll play but glad people are excited about it!
@EliJapan ah okay thanks
I wouldn't be surprised if the next game from Compulsion Games shadow drops, been too long with no info out of them.
@EliJapan Input lag is not something exclusive to cloud gaming. It's why most rhythm games test your input lag before letting you do anything in the game proper.
The combo tutorials also act as a stealth lag check, and the timing window, especially on Easy, is much kinder than Necrodancer.
Hi-Fi Rush is a real feather in the cap for Xbox. And it REALLY makes me curious what other AA type passion projects are in the works by other developers.
Double Fine especially.
@Deemo37 it’s on PC GP. The min req is a 1050. Could you ru it there ?
@mousieone unfortunately I don’t have any sort of gaming ready pc just a mac desktop.
People are excited about a rhythm game...
Stuff like this is exciting and something i want more off and yeah the fact it feels unique among Xbox 1st party stuff is lovely.
With more and more people choosing to access their games 'digitally' - whether that's Purchasing from a digital retailer or accessing through a Subscription service, they can release games as and when they want, including shadow dropping games like Hi-Fi Rush.
The only 'Xbox' customers that buy Xbox games on a Physical disc are those 'Series X' customers who prefer to buy Physical and/or not subbed to Game Pass. PC and Series S gamers tend to buy digitally only - especially as Series S has no disc drive anyway. The time it takes from going 'gold', manufacturing and distributing discs around the world to have sufficient stock to meet 'pre-orders', to meet launch day sales etc is not necessary for Digital games, not necessarily 'bothered' by Pre-orders and/or 'day 1 sales' figures - both likely impacted by those who will play on Game Pass and/or buy digitally anyway.
They could do the same with Starfield too - just as the show ends, Todd Howard announces its 'available now' on PC/Xbox and Cloud. I know some maybe upset they couldn't pre-order a Physical copy (those XSX owners that ONLY buy Physical and/or don't have Game Pass - so either have to buy digitally, Subscribe or wait/miss out) but they don't need 'months' for building up 'pre-orders', months to build up 'hype' to increase initial sales, which can 'flop' soon after if the game isn't great anyway, as those figures would be 'impacted' by those who will play via Game Pass.
Therefore, they could certainly shadow drop any game. Even offer to release a 'Physical' edition later down the line (as some indies get) with the patched/fixed code preserved on disc, instead of the early 'Gold' code that had to be sent weeks before the game launches, older code than those that buy digitally day 1 as that's already updated.
Digital allows for much more immediate access and as the vast majority access 'digitally', they don't need to wait 'weeks/months', waste time/money on marketing to 'boost' sales/pre-orders and can 'boost' Subscription numbers too - not 'ready/prepared' to pay £70+ to play 'today' (let alone if you were also planning to buy a Console too) as the game you were looking forward to playing is shadow dropped, pay a 'small' fee for Game Pass and play on what you have today and consider 'buying' next week/month etc...
I really liked it being a shadow drop. Sometimes Xbox shows games so far out and all we hear from different sources is how this game is delayed and that game is delayed. As a society, people love the negative and make up delays for games that don’t have release dates. With a shadow drop, there weren’t those negative rumors. Not every game needs to be a shadow drop, but I wouldn’t mind some of the other ones being closer to completion after being announced.
Maybe they should just do that for every game. No hype, no previews, no "teaser trailers" years before any actual work has been started. Just give a day to a week of notice and release it. Think of al the digital column inches spent talking about "Starfield" when we've seen nothing except a few meaningless pictures?
Now that physical releases are a collectable novelty almost you don't need to press and ship discs months in advance.
I honestly would not expect shadow drops to become a norm.
@Tharsman same but this is what MS needed to do yo send a message.
@PhileasFragg Part of me is hoping with all the talk on twitter about starfield being next half of 23 , is that they do a showcase about march and shadow drop the game at the end of the show ....I know it's a leap but I can hope
Hope we get a physical version in the next months
@Somebody My takeaway is that while no one should expect frequent shadow drops, it is good to reaffirm suspicions that games are cooking in the shadows. That provides a reassuring feeling. MS has many studios now, most with projects in the works (I imagine). We focus on Starfield and a handful of others, which provides a smokescreen for other projects.
@theduckofdeath I'm impressed it didn't leak more than it did. That will always be a big risk about shadow drops. That video probably took a few months to put together.
@Martsmall I'm not sure about that. It'll be a game where they'll want physical discs on store shelves day one, and you can't really do that secretly.
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