But the biggest attraction is probably what follows immediately after – the Gears of War: E-Day Direct, which promises new gameplay and “insights” into the prequel. Hopefully, this is closer to the deep dives for The Outer Worlds 2 and Starfield rather than, say, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

It could also mean a release date for E-Day, which is confirmed for 2026. While Microsoft has yet to announce a launch window, it’s allegedly arriving in the second half of the year. The goal is reportedly to avoid Grand Theft Auto 6, but with Halo: Campaign Evolved seemingly launching before September, and Fable confirmed for this Fall, it’s becoming pretty crowded for Xbox fans.

Of course, this year’s Showcase will also see the return of the Xbox FanFest. Since it’s taking place on Xbox’s 25th anniversary, you can expect a look back at the brand’s history and a “forward view of what’s next.”

In the meantime, Xbox Game Studios has two releases in the coming months: Double Fine’s Kiln on April 23rd and Playground Games’ Forza Horizon 6 on May 19th. Check out three cars confirmed for the latter, including the 2022 Honda e, here.

Thanks to Aaron Greenberg, VP for Games Marketing at Microsoft, we now know that the show will last for two hours, similar to last year. There are plenty of rumors about which games could appear, but while responding to a Twitter user excited about the show, Greenberg said, “Looking forward to the show, just don’t overhype it too much. We sort of burned the house down last year!”

This doesn’t necessarily mean that it won’t be a worthwhile showcase, especially with titles like Persona 4 Remake, Everwild, State of Decay 3, and more rumored to appear. And, of course, there’s the ever-present hope of a Hollow Knight: Silksong announcement.

The Xbox Games Showcase and The Outer Worlds 2 Direct go live at 10 AM PDT. Obsidian’s sci-fi RPG is rumored to receive a release date during the Direct alongside new gameplay so stay tuned for details.

Studio director and head of product Philip Holt told Xbox Wire, “The first thing that I hope people pick up [from the trailer] is that there are four player characters we’re highlighting – three of them start in different places in the world – so we’re implying this idea of a shared world experience, not just a ride-along, and that the boundaries in which you can go off independently are going to be much, much greater than they were in State of Decay 2.”

Interestingly, it’s collaborated with Obsidian Entertainment for the shared world. It makes sense since the latter’s survival sandbox title, Grounded, uses the same shared save tech developed by Undead Labs. Holt also noted that despite the trailer being in-engine, all assets are in-game and rendered from the same. There’s also the promise of players encountering such events when playing co-op.

“We wanted to give you a representative feel of what the game would be like but also tell a story.”

State of Decay 3 doesn’t have a release date, but it’s coming to Xbox Series X/S and PC. It also launches on day one for Game Pass. Stay tuned for more details in the meantime.

It also seems that the studio is rebranding, with a new logo featuring a skeleton key set against an hourglass. In the press kit, studio head Phillip Holt said they wanted to give “the creatives we work with a collective identity that transcends zombies.” Chief of staff Vicki Ebberts added, “It felt right – and also the right time – that our brand reflected how much we’ve grown and changed.”

The Xbox Games Showcase starts today at 10 AM PT and reportedly runs for two hours, with 30 games appearing. Rumored titles include Gears 6, DOOM: The Dark Ages and Perfect Dark, while a first-party title is allegedly being announced and shadow-dropped during the showcase. Immediately after, a Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Direct will air, diving deep into the next title of the franchise.

From June 10th till the end of the week, the Official Xbox Podcast will also feature special episodes that go more in-depth with the announced titles. Stay tuned for updates in the meantime.

A new State of Decay 3 trailer will appear at Xbox Game Showcase 2024 tomorrow.

The “Press Kit” link on the Undead Labs website leads to a ZIP with the press release confirming it: https://t.co/xHygAWNTuc (scroll down to find the link)

Studio is also rebranding with new logo. pic.twitter.com/clQWgtsJtv

— Gematsu (@gematsu) June 8, 2024

Regardless of what you’re looking forward to, the showcase is reportedly quite lengthy. Giant Bomb’s Jeff Grubb revealed that he heard it’s “two hours long.”

Aside from the frequently rumored Gears 6, it’s unknown what other unannounced titles could appear. Rumors indicate that one of the first-party titles appearing at the showcase will also launch on the same day, but it’s unknown if this is a previously revealed game.

Dragon Age: Dreadwolf could also appear, though Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier indicated it may have a new name. Of course, Microsoft is also likely to showcase  Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Avowed, Starfield: Shattered Space, South of Midnight, Clockwork Revolution and more. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will receive a dedicated Direct afterwards.

The Xbox Games Showcase airs on June 9th at 10 AM PT, with more updates from June 10th till the end of the week on the Official Xbox Podcast. Stay tuned for updates in the meantime.

A new Xbox Wire post confirmed that the Official Xbox Podcast will receive “special episodes” providing updates and “deeper dives” into games from the showcase. These will be available from June 10th throughout the week and will receive dedicated articles. Fans can expect more details after the primary showcase.

The Xbox Games Showcase will stream in 4K/60 FPS on the official Xbox, Bethesda and Activision channels and includes subtitle support for dozens of languages, from Arabic (MSA), Hungarian, Indonesian, Japanese, Latvian and Portuguese to Tamil, Thai, Zulu, German and Chinese (Traditional and Hong Kong).

Titles like Perfect Dark, DOOM: The Dark Ages and Gears 6 are rumored to appear alongside this year’s confirmed releases like Avowed, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and Starfield: Shattered Space. Stay tuned for live coverage when the event airs.

Undead Labs’ State of Decay 3 is reportedly another such title, having first been announced in 2020. Jez Corden of Windows Central implies that it will be at the showcase, and according to “trusted sources,” it looks “far more impressive” than State of Decay 2 (with visual presentation receiving “more attention”). It’s also reportedly leaning “more heavily into narrative elements to immerse you in the game’s world.”

Perhaps one of the more promising features is working “individual community members’ backstories more viscerally into gameplay, to make their trials more impactful and immersive.” With how much State of Decay 2 was initially viewed as a marginal improvement over its predecessor, the sequel should set itself apart.

State of Decay 3 doesn’t have a release date but will launch for Xbox Series X/S and PC. Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty was “cautiously confident” last year that there would be gameplay deep dives for it and Perfect Dark by late 2024. Stay tuned for more updates and, hopefully, a full reveal at the showcase.

Notable leaker billbil-kun, who accurately leaked announcements for F1 23 and Mortal Kombat 1, posted on Dealabs about a Starfield Limited Edition Controller and a Limited Edition Headset. The former will retail for €74.99/$79.99 while the latter reportedly costs €124.99/$124.99.

An image of the controller features text corresponding to different functions, with Left Bumper being “Scan” and Right Bumper being “Mode.” There’s also Flight Control, Throttle (corresponding to the Left Analog Stick) and Power Distribution (mapped to Left on the D-Pad). Overall, it looks pretty clean and sleek.

The accessories are reportedly being revealed on June 11th at the Xbox Games Showcase, so stay tuned for more details. Starfield will launch on September 6th for Xbox Series X/S and PC.

Also worth noting is that the Xbox Games Showcase Extended will return. It airs on June 13th at 10 AM PT and features interviews based on news from the main showcase. There will also be “game updates” from the studio’s partners.

As the studio’s first new IP in 25 years, Starfield is a space-faring FPS/RPG with over 1000 planets and 100 systems to explore. It will release on September 6th for Xbox Series X/S and PC and on day one for Game Pass.

Director Todd Howard said that the team is “playing the game all the time” and “poured ourselves” into it. He also promised “many of the hallmarks that you’d expect from us” while delivering a very “unique experience.” Stay tuned for more updates and details en route to June 11th.

2020 has been a strange and, for many, a very tough year. A large part of that has been because of the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, but also due to political strife sweeping various nations. But one good thing that will cap this year off, hopefully, is the next generation consoles that will launch for the holidays. Sony brought some big guns last month for their show, and in a few days, it’s Microsoft’s turn to do the same with a Xbox Games Showcase. And now, the countdown is on.

The official YouTube link for the show went live today, which you can see below. As of writing this, it is counting down with 38 hours to go. To go along with that is a new render of Master Chief, of the Halo franchise. He’s looking pretty sharp.

We know that Halo Infinite will be at the show with an emphasis on the game’s single player campaign. As it stands, last we heard the game was also planned to be a launch title for the Xbox Series X, though it will also be for Xbox One and PC. We’ll, of course, keep you updated for what announcements will come from the show.