CoD

Xbox had a really good showing on Sunday, its showcase at the tail end of a Summer Game Fest period that has at times felt rather glib managing to make people feel happy about video games again – at least for a little bit. It was full of the kind of quirky and interesting-looking games that in years past would have been reserved for PlayStation’s E3 showcase, with only a smattering of what you might call Big games with a capital B. That was until the end.

Phil Spencer, CEO Microsoft Gaming, appeared on the pre-recorded showcase to wrap things up, tantalisingly teasing 2026 releases for Gears of War E-Day, a new Forza (presumably Horizon), and the next Halo. These big games were absent (as were many others – Fable 4 and Perfect Dark, most notably), and Phil I think wanted to acknowledge that. As with showcases of this nature, especially during key moments of the year, there’s always that hope for a “one more thing” mic drop. And it came… and went.

Maybe it’s just me, but this final reveal (as much as the whole thing is marketing as much as it is an event) needs to be something unexpected. Perhaps a sequel to a franchise that’s been dormant for years, maybe a brand-new game series from a big developer, maybe a big blowout on a game fans have been desperate to see more on. What it shouldn’t be, ever, is the game announcement equivalent of announcing the sun will rise and then fall, that another day is coming tomorrow, or that the tide will be in and then out. Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 didn’t need to be at the Xbox Showcase and the Xbox Showcase didn’t need Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.

The Xbox showcase. Phil Spencer comes on at 1 hour 5 minutes to wrap up the show and tease one more thing.Watch on YouTube

Imagine for a moment that EA held its own big showcase event this year, as it used to do back in the days when E3 was really pumping out the events. The publisher has dropped reveals for a new Madden, Battlefield, and Need for Speed, then we’re given the “one more thing” mic drop… and it’s a new FIFA (EA FC). At first, though, you don’t realise it’s EA FC, the snazzy and really pretty cool trailer making you comb through your mind to figure out what this neat looking teaser is revealing. Then, just as the lead character morphs into a football and is kicked by Harry Kane, EA FC 27 flashes onto the screen. You’d feel duped, and somewhat confused.

I understand that Call of Duty is a game series so huge a large portion of people are going to want to see a trailer for the next entry, and that from a business perspective it might seem ludicrous to not give it top billing, but it honestly sucked all the air out of the room. I’m not naive enough to expect something equivalent to an Elder Scrolls 6 reveal at the end of every show, but that moment matters. It’s an important beat that can last long in the memory. It was a moment wasted for Xbox.

If we go back just a couple of days to PlayStation’s pre-SGF State of Play (a lower stakes event, but still a presentation of new games), it ended with Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls. Not a game I’m personally excited about because I can’t get into fighting games, but it was a big surprise reveal, a big license with Marvel, and it went pretty deep into the whole thing. PlayStation is seemingly courting the fighting game fan, and for that audience this was a big moment and a big win. It was everything the BLOPS 7 reveal wasn’t.

Had an alien been given the basic rundown of the video game world here on Earth, I have no doubt they’d read this article and shake their head in disbelief and confusion. What can I say, sometimes vibes matter more than numbers. The best option isn’t always the biggest.

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