Surprise game release headlines Xbox presentation

Xbox’s developer presentation was held on Wednesday morning and came with a surprise game release that you can play right now.

Microsoft held an Xbox Developer Direct presentation this morning, and despite promising new information about four games prior to the presentation, a secret fifth game made an appearance.

The game in question was Hi-Fi Rush, a rhythm-based action game with platforming elements. It was developed by Tango Gameworks, a Japanese studio that previously developed games like The Evil Within and Ghostwire: Tokyo.

Hi-Fi Rush is a huge departure from Tango’s previous games, with a gorgeous cartoon art style rather than a realistic one. Players will have to time their attacks to the beat of the music to power up their character, with each attack adding to the soundtrack.

Hi-Fi Rush has players attacking to the beat of the music. Picture: Microsoft

Not only was Hi-Fi Rush announced today, it was also released, with the game now available to purchase on Xbox and PC via Steam or the Microsoft store. It’s also included at no extra cost on Xbox Game Pass, and since Tango is a subsidiary of the Microsoft-owned ZeniMax, it should be available on Game Pass forever.

Microsoft announced its Xbox presentation to show off new games earlier this month, but then accidentally leaked its own presentation details when the German branch of the company said that release dates would be revealed.

Hi-Fi Rush is not the only thing that was announced in the Developer Direct, however, and we’ve included a quick roundup of all of the new information provided for upcoming games below.

Minecraft Legends

Picture: Microsoft

The team at Mojang revealed new co-op and player versus player (PVP) gameplay for Minecraft Legends, a spin-off of Minecraft that takes the form of an action strategy game. In PVP, players will team up to build bases, and then venture out into the world to destroy opponents’ bases, all while protecting their own.

The game world will be procedurally generated in every game, just like Minecraft itself, which means the game will be a little bit different every time you play. A single-player story mode for the game had already been announced for the game.

Minecraft Legends was also given a release date, and is scheduled to launch on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch on April 18.

Forza Motorsport

Picture: Microsoft

Forza Motorsport will seemingly be bigger and better than ever before, with over 500 vehicles available at launch and over 800 upgrades available for players to customise their cars. This, the developer says, will make the game have more options than the previous three Forza Motorsport games combined.

There will also apparently be 20 environments to race in when the game launches, with five of those tracks being entirely new to the series. It will also have a single-player focused career mode for fans who don’t want to compete online.

No release date was given for Forza Motorsport, but Microsoft said it would be launching sometime in 2023.

Elder Scrolls Online

Picture: Microsoft

A brand new expansion for Elder Scrolls Online (ESO), the gigantic online multiplayer version of the Elder Scrolls series which includes Skyrim, was announced during the presentation, called Necrom.

ZeniMax Online, the game’s developers, say that Necrom will add dozens of hours of gameplay to the MMO, with a brand new single-player story set in the far reaches of Morrowind. The Necrom expansion seems to be very much inspired by Lovecraftian horror, with plenty of ghoulish tentacles and Eldritch horrors, and will come with a new class.

Elder Scrolls Online’s Necrom expansion is set to release on PC on June 5, with the console release following shortly after on June 20.

Redfall

Picture: Microsoft

The upcoming first-person vampire shooter Redfall was finally given a deep dive into its gameplay. The game will feature both single-player and cooperative gameplay for up to four players, and is packed with a surprising amount of RPG elements like skill trees and weapon upgrades.

Redfall was also given a release date, and it’s much sooner than many had expected. It will be launching in just a few months on May 2 on Xbox and PC.

Written by Oliver Brandt on behalf of GLHF.