2023 Xbox Predictions

New year's predictions and E3 predictions are easily my favorite times of the year! Something about the "New Year, New Me" mindset makes everyone think companies are going to turn their entire production around and come up with some of the most outlandish stuff. And you know what? I'm here for it! Just the thought of it and seeing others get excited for dead IPs to return or your favorite studio taking a hand at a series you think fits them gets me all aboard the hype train. Let's take a look at some of my Xbox-specific predictions for the coming year, shall we? Some aren't as flashy and are pretty safe bets for the year based on previous rumors and insiders, but I'll take some easy points where I can!

1. Game Pass price increase
starting off with price hikes, yippee! No, seriously, it's about time. I don't see anything major, but at least a $5 increase across the board for Gamepass for consoles, Gamepass for PC, and Gamepass Ultimate, making them $15, $15, and $20, respectively. Let's be honest, we've been paying current prices with just a small dash of Xbox First Party sprinkled in. If they can truly hit multiple quality titles a year themselves, it only makes sense to increase it. Even without the Activision Blizzard deal, Xbox currently has 23 studios under its umbrella. If they can get on track, that's enough to have 1 first-party game a quarter every year, allowing for 3-year development cycles, if not more, with some studios having multiple teams and projects. If they can truly get that system down, a slight price hike in their GamePass plan is worth it.

2. Xbox's 2023 release lineup
I really feel like after the empty year we went through in 2022, Xbox wants to get some of the goodwill they've lost back. On top of the already known Starfield, Redfall, Forza Motorsport, and Minecraft Legends, I'm going to throw my chips in and say we're also getting Hellblade 2, a substantial Ground expansion, and either Compulsion Games' next unannounced project or hear me out: Avowed. Hellblade 2 is the game I've been betting on for the past 2 years as a release. I understand they're working with Unreal 5, which is new, but they were showing off assets the night the Series console itself was revealed. This fall is as good a time as any to bring Senua back to consoles, and it's a surefire hit to end the year on when game of the year debates are held. I haven't trekked through the backyard of Grounded yet, but with their successful launch out of beta last year, a big expansion for the live-service survival title is a must. Fans appear pleased with the pace of updates, but something major akin to "A Pirate's Life," which Sea of Thieves received, would be an excellent way to commemorate the game's first anniversary. Somewhere along the lines last year, I don't know if it started with "insiders" or when enough people got on board with the idea of Avowed being ready to go already. Last year seemed like a stretch to me, but if that many people saw it as a viable thing, then I could almost see it releasing at the end of this year. Start the year with a big sci-fi epic RPG in Starfield and end it with the fantasy-driven Avowed, giving things like Gears and other established IPs much-needed time.


3. Xbox announces the comeback of a dead IP
This one is up in the air, but it's something I'd like to see. In the past, Playstation has done an excellent job of bringing in titles such as Medievil and Fantavision, as well as assisting with the marketing of Crash Bandicoot 4 and Shenmue 3.In a time where I feel Xbox wants to win back some goodwill by starting up their "around E3 showcase" with a banjo rift with the reveal of a Banjo-Kazooie remaster or the long-awaited Banjo-Threeie. A black screen and a short pause of silence are lit up by the iconic three green lights, followed by Michael Ironside introducing you to Sam Fisher's next outing. Even stuff like a live service like Viva Pinata or smaller titles like Blinx and Fusion Frenzy could thrive when put into Gamepass.

Photo Credit: gameindustry.biz

4. World of Warcraft is announced for consoles.
This is my personal wishful thinking, but God, I wish this would happen. I've been on WoW since launch, and it's filled my life with some of my most happy memories and friends. Give me that experience in the comfort of my own couch, with a controller in hand, and you'll have me hooked for life. There is already enough done with and without mods to play with a gamepad compared to mouse and keyboard, that its really just getting the game physically moved over. In no world do I see end game raids and and rated PvP being viable with a controller but with how relax and simplified the main day to day login activities, and leveling experience are nowadays I could see those parts transitioning to a new platform easily. If we wanted to get extra spicy once the Activision Blizzard merger goes through they drop the monthly subscription in place of Gamepass. Xbox is stepping back from trying to have the most consoles sold and want to control the digital space. what better way to do that than by adding millions of WoW players in a day. the subscription model is long a thing of the past and most MMO’s nowadays go for free to play with a digital store for cosmetics and bonuses, WoW is pushing the monthly sub AND the online store. Take out one of those factors and people are more likely to spend on the other.

5. Microsoft returns for a big in-person E3 presentation.
Companies have had to figure out how to do a remote showcase in recent years, all in styles similar to Nintendo Directs.
While they have all done an excellent job at transitioning to these different showcases, something still feels like it's missing. The large crowds and audience reactions to announcements and reveals truly made these presentations sing and feel like something bigger. I'm not saying Xbox has to rent out the whole Galen Center again, but even doing a show at the smaller Microsoft Theater would be a pleasant surprise again. Having an event for fans to attend and be a part of could really help bring fans back into the goodwill of Xbox that I believe has been lost in recent years.

6. Radio Silence on future titles
We're ending on a sad note, sadly, but for the position Microsoft is in, I feel it's for the best. My last prediction is that we don't hear a single thing this year about Fable, Perfect Dark, or the MachineGames Indiana Jones project. Xbox has learned not to announce things too early, especially after last year's E3 showcase, where everything revealed would be available this year. It's cool to try and push back and show you have games coming, but when all we get is a title and nothing to show for it for another 3–5 years, is it really worth it? The next time I want to hear about any of these titles, it better be accompanied by their release within the next 12 months. Being able to keep up that constant showcase of games every year that are guaranteed to launch before the next event achieves the same. goal of having titles up your sleeve without predating yourself and having issues like Scalebound or Fable Legends happen again in the future.

That does it for our list today. Xbox this year more than ever truly have the cards completely stacked in their favor to really have a banger year that they’ve been missing for the past decade. Coming off pandemic development and the largest acquisition on the sidelines, Phil Spencer and the team are ready to start gaining ground within the console space. This is something we can come back and look at the end of the year to see how we've done! What do you think Microsoft has in store, or what do you think of our list? Let us know what your predictions are for this year down below!