Xbox knows what fans want — mostly.
The first installment of a monthly Inside Xbox livestream event dubbed “Xbox 20/20” began with the recognition that the new console kinda looks like some futuristic refrigerator.
“Welcome to my kitchen,” joked Aaron Goldberg, the general manager of games marketing, in front of a now-viral image of the console in place of a refrigerator.
From there, the event quickly dove into awe-inspiring gameplay shots of more than a dozen games. Of course, we couldn’t have what we wanted right away, but the livestream eventually delivered the first views of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla.
“Fully expect to live the Viking fantasy in an Assassin Creed’s world,” said Ashraf Ismail, the creative director behind the anticipated video game, toward the end of the event. He explained that the game features Agor, a Viking in search of new land in England after leaving Norway behind. To succeed, the warrior must battle, raid, and create alliances.
The reinvented combat in this game will be brutal and gameplay will push every envelope, according to Ismail. With the promised features in the Xbox Series X, fans can expect a more immersive experience in the beautiful worlds of Norway and England.
Valhalla was also confirmed to be part of Xbox’s new Smart Delivery program, in which fans only need to purchase a game once and it will automatically switch from their Xbox One to their Xbox Series X.
Among the other games confirmed to be part of the Smart Delivery program is Madden 21 — which Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs introduced in the video. The classic game will get an upgrade: Fans can sense outcomes and gameplay becomes more about what you can feel, instead of just what you see.
Also on the list is a new horror game called The Medium, in which players become a medium in Krakow, Poland and solve the mystery presented in her visions. The game combines realistic views of a post-communist regime and the terrifying spirit world that mirrors our own. To make the game even more exciting, the developers enlisted Keiichiro Toyama, the composer best known for his work in The Silent Hill series. Toyama creates heavy, nostalgic music to follow players on the adventure into the unknown.
It looks like it will be another few months until we get any info on Halo: Infinite, but the event ended with a promise that everything exciting will be announced at the 20/20 livestream in July. This makes us not really all that excited for whatever is in store in June, but at least we don’t have too much longer to wait.
Check out the complete list of games that will be optimized for Xbox Series X below.
- Bright Memory Infinite
- Dirt 5
- Scorn
- CHORVS Rise as One (out in 2021)
- Madden 21
- Bloodlines 2: Vampire Masquerade
- Call of The Sea
- The Ascent
- The Medium
- Scarlet Nexxus
- Second Extinction
- Yakuza Like a Dragon
- Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla
