Xbox Developer Direct 2024: All Of The Biggest Announcements

The 2024 Xbox Developer Direct is upon us, and Microsoft has promised a look at multiple projects from across the first-party Xbox portfolio. Indiana Jones from MachineGames, Avowed from Obsidian, and more will be featured, as developers from around the world give fans a new look at these highly anticipated titles. There may even be some Xbox Game Pass news sprinkled in throughout the event, along with potential confirmation of rumors saying some Xbox franchises might be on their way to other consoles.

Obsidian's next fantasy-action-RPG adventure kicked off the event, with gameplay director Gabriel Paramo highlighting the game's combat system. The game will allow players to switch between melee weaponry and spellcasting or sharpshooting on the fly. The combat will also offer a blocking and parrying system for more strategic approaches to fighting.

The segment then moved to one of the game's side quests in the area called Skatterskarp. The player character speaks with a wounded soldier surrounded by the bodies of his fallen friends, who sets the hero on their quest. The quest highlights the game's voice acting and dialogue systems, as well as an example of the choices players will make during the game.

The segment ended with confirmation of a Fall 2024 launch window for Avowed, and more news was promised "in the coming months."

Hellblade 2: Senua's Saga was next on the agenda, and we saw a new and improved Senua who has made peace with her past and no longer argues with the voices she hears. The game will be set in 10th-century Iceland, and Ninja Theory promises to make the game as authentic to history as possible.

The segment highlighted Hellblade 2's improved combat system, which was designed to make the player feel like they barely survived every battle she faces. The game will feature new companions who will aid Senua in her journey, and it will shift focus from just the voices in her mind to include the people around her.

The audio design of the game also featured during the segment, which includes a new spatial audio technology that creates binaural sounds and music. The team also highlighted a partnership with Scandinavian folk band Heilung, who performed a song from the game at The Game Awards last month.

The segment ended with the confirmation of a May 21 launch date.

The presentation broke from the scheduled announcement for a surprise segment with Square Enix, which presented a new look at the upcoming RPG Visions Of Mana--the first Mana title to ever release on an Xbox console.

The game is the first title in the Mana franchise in 15 years, and it will feature multiple returning monsters and creatures from the franchise's past. It will also introduce new companions, like a massive canine-like creature called a Pikul which the player can use to travel across the game's world.

The segment then focused on the game's soundtrack, which will feature over 100 tracks across the adventure. A special focus was played on the music's dynamic nature, as it can shift between normal and battle music instantly. Finally, the first look at Vision Of Mana's combat was shown, and it will mix ground and aerial combat in real-time battles.

Visions Of Mana is slated for a Summer 2024 release.

The next game featured was Ara: History Untold, which is Oxide Games's take on the grand strategy genre. The game will take real-world history and culture into account, and it will focus on those different perspectives throughout a match. Each turn in Ara: History Untold will be played in real-time, which means that players won't have to wait for other players to complete their actions in order to continue their own progress.

The game features the Living World, an alternate version of Earth which is affected by the decisions of the player in real-time. As players expand their empires, the world will either thrive or wither depending on how progress is made. Part of that world includes dangerous wildlife, with cougars among the deadliest players can encounter.

Ara: History Untold is scheduled to launch in Fall 2024.

The final segment of the Developer Direct was the first-ever gameplay trailer for Indiana Jones And The Great Circle, the new Indy adventure from Wolfenstein developer MachineGames. This includes a first look at Indiana Jones himself, who has been designed to look like Harrison Ford, the actor who has portrayed the character in every Indiana Jones film. The game is set between Raiders Of The Lost Ark and The Last Crusade, and it will see Dr. Jones travel to The Vatican, the Pyramids of Egypt, and more.

The trailer starts with the agile archaeologist in a precarious position, as he is buried up to his neck in sand surrounded by enemy Nazis. We then see first-person shooting, puzzle-solving, and exploration, though the game does pull back into third-person views for cutscenes and environmental traversal. The game will offer multiple optional puzzles in each environment, and it will reward players who attempt to discover their secrets.

The presentation also introduces Gina, an investigative reporter who will join Indy on this new adventure, as well as a new villain in Emmerich Voss. We also saw Dr. Jones fighting enemies with machine guns, torches, and the iconic whip as he battles enemies throughout the segment.

Indiana Jones And The Great Circle will launch later this year.