Xbox Developer Direct kicks off 2025 with Doom: The Dark Ages, South of Midnight, Clair Obscur, and a "surprise" fourth game
Microsoft has now dated its next Xbox Developer Direct showcase for January 23, where developers themselves will get on camera to give us the rundown on medieval prequel Doom: The Dark Ages, third-person action-platformer South of Midnight, turn-based RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and a "surprise" brand new game that's currently under wraps - all launching into Game Pass.
Per the Xbox Wire announcement, the show will be available to stream on YouTube and Twitch on January 23 at 10am PT, 1pm ET, and 6pm for those in the UK. Following the show's usual format, we'll be map-hopping between the different studios to get more gameplay clips, trailers, and dev vlogs. People from the Canada-based We Happy Few makers Compulsion Games, the Texas-based id Software wizards, and the French-located Sandfall Interactive will all be on-camera.
That aside, Microsoft is remaining tight-lipped on exactly what will be revealed, but since all of these games are still coming "this year," you can expect at least a couple of release dates to show up.
Then there's that mysterious fourth game. In 2023's Direct, the publisher shadow-dropped the incredible rhythm slasher Hi-Fi Rush on the very same day. And in 2024, Square Enix made a surprise appearance to show more from Visions of Mana. So, 2025's surprise could very well come from a team in or outside of Microsoft's now-too-huge roster of studios.
Many are speculating the Oblivion remaster that was leaked in the FTC's lawsuit might show up, especially off the back of fresh reports, but between Avowed, The Outer Worlds 2, and Fable, one has to wonder how many big-name RPGs Microsoft can fit within a single calendar year. We only have so much time on our hands here, y'know?
Microsoft Gaming's head of studios, Matt Booty, also previously said the company didn't want to get in GTA 6's way with its 2025 slate, which might explain why the open-world Fable reboot isn't getting a blowout right now, despite also having a 2025 window attached to
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