Here are the games we know are coming to the next-gen consoles this year so far.
How important are the launch games for a new console? The answer varies a lot.
Some consoles launch with generation-defining games, like the original Xbox with Halo: Combat Evolved, or the N64 with Mario 64. But during the last generation, the 2013 launches wasn’t terribly significant for software. The Xbox One highlights included a dependable Forza game, the pretty-good Dead Rising 3 and the underwhelming Ryse: Son of Rome. The PS4 launched with the forgotten Killzone: Shadow Fall, the heavily-memed Knack and the excellent shooter Resogun.
Our memory of late 2013 is everyone playing Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag or Call of Duty on their new consoles, or even persisting with the then-recent GTA 5 on their PS3s or Xbox 360s. The PlayStation 4’s exclusive highlights didn’t come until much later, although it’s fair to say Destiny was one of the console’s first major moments. That arrived 10 months into the console’s lifespan in September 2014.
So, with that in mind, how important is this console generation’s launch window?
Honestly, in our opinion it’s more important to Microsoft than it is to Sony. The PS5 is releasing off the back of enormous goodwill for the PS4, and unless it costs too much, it’s likely to sell out over the holiday season regardless of which games are available at launch. The Xbox Series X is well-positioned to capitalize on Microsoft’s efforts to improve its gaming offering over the past few years, but it’s coming off a generation that Microsoft has entirely spent in second place. The onus is on them to make a big splash.
Launching with a Halo game is a statement of intent from Microsoft that it wants to hit the ground running with software, this time.
We know a lot more about what Sony is doing at launch than Microsoft right now, with only Halo Infinite confirmed from Xbox’s in-house studios. We expect more games to be announced during Xbox’s first-party-focused July presentation, though, which will almost certainly include a new entry in the Forza Motorsport series.
