It's always exciting times when an Xbox event is coming up, isn't it? The big summer showcases are always good fun but I particularly liked Developer Direct last year. The more in-depth looks at those 2023 titles made Dev Direct a fantastic new format, and that surprise launch of Hi-Fi RUSH was just amazing. What a game to kick off 2023 and what a shadow drop by Xbox!
As we now start to turn our attention to the upcoming Developer Direct — arriving next week — I can't help but start wishing for another surprise of a similar nature. The current four-game lineup sounds brilliant with Ara: History Untold, Avowed, Hellblade 2 and Indiana Jones confirmed for the livestream, but we'd all love another surprise, wouldn't we?
Don't get me wrong - I'm not expecting a surprise. It's always good to keep expectations in-check for these sorts of events and I'll be doing so here. Still, some speculation about what could appear can't hurt.
What about this very heavily-rumoured Gears Collection, then? As a massive Gears fan I've tried my best not to buy into any sort of false hype on this, but I can't lie - it'd be an amazing surprise for Developer Direct! An announcement and release of this 'Gears Trilogy' plus a Gears 6 tease? That'd be one hell of a fifth development team to add to the roster.
Of course, what's probably more likely is one of Xbox's teams rocking up with a smaller surprise. Tango Gameworks has worked on plenty of big AAA projects, but Hi-Fi RUSH was definitely something more bite-sized from the Japanese team. How about something similar from one of Xbox's other studios? We have so many devs under the Xbox banner these days that pretty much any team could feasibly show up with a smaller surprise.
That's not including Activision Blizzard of course. Microsoft has confirmed that nothing from the freshly-acquired company will be present at Developer Direct - so we can definitely write them off the list. Hopefully they're fully integrated in the coming months and are ready for Xbox's inevitable Summer Showcase around June time.
One last pie-in-the-sky thought I'll put out there is something from id Software. It's been almost four years since DOOM Eternal released and we've not heard a peep on what the FPS experts are up to now. After the couple of recent Quake re-releases there's been some speculation that some sort of full-blown Quake reboot could be in the works. Hey, if it has a multiplayer focus it could easily shadow-drop in a similar way to The Finals! Never say never.
I'm very content with how Developer Direct '24 is shaping up right now, but Xbox, feel free to bring us another big surprise like last year. I'd absolutely love another shadow drop and I dare say most of the Xbox community would agree!
What do you want to see from Dev Direct 2024? Any potential 'fifth game' surprises? Discuss down in the comments below.
Comments 17
Not much would make me insta-buy these days, miserable old git that I am, but I would be thrilled if they launched a gears 1-3 remaster collection. So many great memories of Gears 360 horde sessions
Don't get your hopes up. I doubt they do a real surprise reveal and launch as a shadow drop ever again unless the game is even smaller than Hi Fi Rush (Pentiment sized project).
But I do think there is a small chance that something like Towerbourne, Ara, or a 3rd party gamepass addition are shadow dropped at the event. Doing this for an already announced game gives the best of both worlds. They get to market the game a little and give the excitement that the surprise release has.
Gears of Peace.
Surprise!
Absolutely it would be great for another shadow-dropped game. As an alternative, they can/should shadow-drop a bunch of ABK titles during the show. They have a LOT of old titles they can drop presumably soon.
Would love it too, but after reading the circumstances of why Hi-Fi was shadow dropped I don't think it'll happen.
Perhaps news on ActiBlizz games coming to Game Pass. Or a bundle with WoW and Game Pass 🤔
Not gun a happen but imagine spyro 4 shadow drop 😍
Hmm, well after all the non-verbal hints Phil has given, wouldn't surprise me at all if a remaster of Hexen drops. That'd be cool.
Also imagine the explosion of excitement if Phil was telling a few porkies and a whole bunch of Acti-Blizz titles drop on GP. That would definitely secure xbox as THE place to be in 2024. Here's hoping.
I’m always amazed how it’s possible to announce and shadow drop a game with all those leaks we get. Nobody spilling the beans nowadays is rather exceptional. Fingers crossed!
Shadow drop a Banjo-Kazooie game and I would be really happy. Along the tradition of the original 2 banjo kazooie games.
Aren’t id more likely to wait for QuakeCon? Not that I would be against a surprise from them, but seems like that’s be the venue for an announcement! I’d love to know about Everwild, but seems like it’s in development purgatory sadly.
I’d love another surprise at the Developers Direct this year but I’m not banking on it. Could have been a one time thing. If it’s there, great! If not, I’m not disappointed because I’m not expecting it to be there every year.
I'm not sure that a shadow drop will be happening. I understand that it would be cool and all that but I don't think They can do one every January, and after only doing it once it's already an expectation so if they do it again it's going to be unnecessary hell if they don't do it next year
@fbnaulin
gears pop 2!!!!
I'm not sure what I'd want from a potential surprise announcement or shadow drop during the Developer Direct. Hi-Fi Rush was so out of left field and unexpected - we had literally never heard of it up until that point! - that trying to think of something along those lines has me stumped. I suppose if I were to get my hopes up, it'd be for a look at what id Software has been up to since Doom Eternal or, f**k it, announce and shadow drop a Banjo-Kazooie remake. That's a sure-fire way to induce disappointment in myself when it doesn't happen.
@Dimey oooh I didn't think of that. Although, I assume it'd be Gears 2 and 3, since 1 already got a remaster on Xbox One.
@fbnaulin Marcus Fenix trying to switch his energy supplier, on hold on the phone for an hour and a half already, while at home alone with the kids and trying to work from home.
There did appear to be a nice gap in the original developer direct picture which could accommodate a fifth title (like they did last time) so it's not unfeasible that there would be a surprise as well...
State Of Decay 3 ?
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