With the world’s most powerful console, Xbox One X, and clutching a handful of exclusive franchises that still matter, Microsoft heads into 2018 with head held high. If you’re gaming on Xbox One of any sort, the following games are all worthy of your time and hard-earned expense. These are some tough acts to follow, though the year ahead looks incredible too.
1. Assassin’s Creed Origins
Origins is the epic reboot that Ubisoft’s flagship series has been aching for since Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. There’s so little that’s incremental above the most recent installments, Origins is such a hefty overhaul that so much of what you think you know is either gone or significantly reworked. The sense of wonder in the face of ancient past has returned, last truly experienced in the company of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and the Holy Land; now we behold Queen Cleopatra’s Egypt. Origins’ RPG-like mission structure and progression constantly rewards investment of time. Hero Bayek is magnificent.
2. Dishonored 2
Arkane Studios’ exquisite sequel to the BAFTA Best Game of 2013 surpasses expectations, expanding on the gameplay-choices-with-myriad-consequences concept that inspired the original. Players choose to progress as Emily Kaldwin or Corvo Attano at an early junction, presenting at least four unique play-through variations if you consider high or low chaos, plus a challenging new Flesh and Steel mode that prevents the use of Void powers. That said, you really should not ignore these abilities at first. Emily’s are especially fun to toy around with, such as Domino that instantaneously drops all foes with one linked attack.
3. Destiny 2
Bungie, the studio that made its name on Xbox with Halo, has graced Xbox One X with one of the finer X enhanced games out there. This is a universe that benefits so much from HDR support and locked 4K resolution, giving Microsoft’s platform a certain visual advantage over PlayStation 4. Even in its vanilla capacity Destiny 2 dazzles with the kind of real-time visual effects that Bungie has been awarded for. Similarly, the core shooting action has never been better, although fans continue to argue the what, why and how of equipment upgrades… Awesome nevertheless!
4. Rise of the Tomb Raider
This series has always been about the breath-taking locations and heart-stopping vistas, in which gaming’s foremost female protagonist demonstrates her combative explorer talents. The Square Enix studio Crystal Dynamics finessed a winning formula with its 2013 reboot, and in Rise we are treated to even greater atmosphere owing to extreme weather effects amid immense Siberian locations that beggar belief. The storyline is maturely written and the voice acting makes the drama compelling, albeit taken with the usual pinch of salt. More importantly, payoffs expected from legends of immortality and a mythical lost city are all present.
5. Cuphead
Canadian brothers Chad and Jared Moldenhauer made headlines with this tribute to the golden age of animation, drawing global attention to their heartfelt indie project at StudioMDHR. However, although beautiful to behold and technically marvellous, this doesn’t mean that Cuphead should also be your best friend. This is a run-and-gun, pattern-learning marathon the likes of which we haven’t seen since maybe Capcom’s Ghouls ’n’ Ghosts and Konami’s Contra. The most appropriate word on every level is authenticity, from the Fleischer/Disney art style through the wonderfully jazzy music, and classic 1980s coin-op touchstones. Don’t miss this.
6. Gears of War 4
Among the handful of video game franchises that really knows what it’s about, and has stuck to its monstrous guns from the very beginning – minus one tiny wobble, Judgement, which wasn’t even all that bad. Though no longer forged by Epic Games, the series’ truest believer, long-term producer and self-proclaimed ‘Gears Viking’ Rod Fergusson took the reins at The Coalition. The result is authentic Gears, from the cool quips among the roughneck squad, through ridiculous (incredible) enemy encounters and fun PvP. The X enhanced version has Preferred Rendering, giving the choice between visual fidelity and smoother performance.
7. Forza Motorsport 7
With every iteration, Turn 10 Studios has delivered on its much publicized passion for motorsport with best-in-class console racing. The Forza Motorsport brand is now the benchmark experience, and doesn’t show any signs of slowing. In Forza 7 it’s the new dynamic weather effects that bring more for drivers to contend with, they’re visually arresting, especially the heavy downpours, but mainly interesting owing to changes in handling. We feel how the cars lose traction before tires regaining grip, invited to push simulation aspect to the limits with assists turned on or off. At 60fps it’s wonderful.
8. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
This is by far the biggest news on Xbox One right now, and likely the foreseeable future. Brendan ‘PlayerUnknown’ Greene’s genre-defining battle-royale FPS rocketed in popularity at an impossible rate through 2017, making the Microsoft exclusivity such a smart move. Sadly there’s no cross-play with the millions-strong PC user base, but Xbox One players do get the whole package, launched into the 100-player cat-and-mouse madness by parachute, as a lone wolf or predatory pack. The concept is easy to understand, but survival is difficult. Knowing you can do better next time, that’s the draw.
9. Halo Wars 2
Regardless of where you stand in terms of support for 343 Industries’ interpretation of Halo, Bungie and Microsoft’s universe as it approaches its 20th anniversary remains magnificent. Creative Assembly’s RTS adaptation of the rich lore is wondrous to behold and compelling to play, with production values that we’ve learned to expect from the studio that originated Total War and the 2014 classic Alien Isolation. In Halo Wars 2 we re-join the UNSC Spirit of Fire (good guys’ warship) as it stumbles across a Forerunner (possible bad guys) installation called the Ark, and new threat: The Banished!
10. Halo 5 Guardians
The iconic Master Chief steps aside to let Lieutenant Commander Jameson Locke take centre stage, resulting in a Halo campaign that feels grittier and somehow more believable. Unlike Chief, Jameson is a SPARTAN-IV, he’s powerful but not super-human indestructible. Jameson values his team, whereas Chief famously fights alone (most of the time), and this vulnerability requires that he is resourceful, a concept that the gameplay upholds so well. Campaign maps offer multiple routes through, with many secret areas worth uncovering. The four-player online co-op makes this feel like a true team effort, the best since Reach.