Xbox May Have Lost the Console War, But It’s Just Getting Started In 2025

It’s been a tough few years for the Xbox brand. The early going of its console lacked the big haymaker titles to make its platform shine as bright as its competitors. Despite being an excellent, and cheap, entry point for the current generation, the Xbox Series S has been blamed by gamers and developers for holding back the technical advancement of games. And the slow unraveling of what it means to be an Xbox owner, diluted by Microsoft’s pivot to a subscription-based business mode and multiplatform releases, has burned some extremely online parts of the fanbase.

Amid the declining sales and its seemingly aimless search for an identity among the big three console makers, Xbox brought the heat. And if you can separate the unpopular decisions of its top brass from what it's actually like to be part of the Xbox ecosystem, it's clear that the company is finally hitting its stride. And there was no clearer evidence of that than this week’s Xbox Developer Direct.

The 45-minute presentation was the third time Xbox has started the new year with an in-depth look at what’s ahead. It’s a smart way to build hype for Game Pass subscribers and to show updates of established franchises like Doom. But this year’s spotlight on two original titles, in particular, made Xbox’s 2025 lineup feel unmissable.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is the stunning debut game from Montpellier-based studio Sandfall Interactive. It’s a JRPG-inspired fantasy epic with a deep, meaty combat system, gripping lore, and compelling characters. It’s reminiscent of cult classics like Lost Odyssey, a remnant of a time when Microsoft was truly invested in ensuring the genre would flourish on its platform. Every part of Expedition 33 suggests it’s a smash hit waiting to impress.

South Of Midnight, is a unique single-player platformer centering on characters, experiences, and mythologies we don’t often see in games. As excellent as titles like Ragnarok and Assassin’s Creed are, it’s hard to get excited about Norse and Greek legends when it’s been packaged and presented to the masses over and over again through slightly different lenses.

A game seeped in presenting the American Deep South and its many urban legends in a new light is truly unlike anything else coming out this year. Considering Compulsion Games’ pedigree (We Happy Few and Contrast) creating tone and atmosphere, South Of Midnight could be one of 2025’s most remarkable games.

These two standout original projects come at a particularly great time for Xbox. PlayStation seemingly has little else going on in 2025 following a few years of critically acclaimed blockbusters in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Ragnarok, and Astro Bot. Insomniac’s Wolverine has a solid chance of releasing later this year. But beyond that, most of its big swings, like Naughty Dog’s Intergalactic: The Heritc Prophet, aren’t due for another year.

There is a multiplatform elephant in the room. There’s a strong chance that every game shown this week will come to PlayStation 5 and Switch 2 eventually (Expedition 33 and Doom: The Dark Ages are already set to launch on PS5). But when the barrier to entry is a $20 subscription that you can cancel at any time, subverting the fear of missing out just might be worthwhile the cheaper price of admission if it means playing the year's most novel releases at launch on whatever non-Sony or Nintendo device you choose.

The most intriguing part of Xbox’s stellar showing is that it only represents some of what’s in store for the year. Obsidian’s Xbox and PC RPG Avowed is less than a month away. The rumored Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion remake has a solid chance of hitting store shelves this year. The prequel Gears: E-Day appeals to lapsed Xbox owners. Fable, Perfect Dark, and State Of Decay 3 could also hit Game Pass this year as well.

While it's easy to understand why most players decided that a Switch or a PlayStation 5 is the wiser purchase, Xbox is finally hitting its stride at the back half of the generation. It would have been nicer if the company had spread its lineup a little more evenly over the last few years (there are probably solid reasons for that behind the scenes). But there’s no denying that the months and years ahead are filled with games people will want to play whether they own an Xbox or not.

Who knows how much success Microsoft will find in its unorthodox shift toward becoming a multiplatform publisher. But from a player standpoint, they’ve made a solid case for buying in by creating one of the most intriguing video game lineups for the year ahead.