2020 is officially here and moving fast, and coming this holiday season will be the ninth generation of consoles — the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox: Series X. Since the year has just kicked-off, there are still a ton of games coming out on both the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One. I feel it’s appropriate to remind those who are excited for the next generation pieces of hardware that there are still some awesome games to look forward to in the meantime. Let’s take a look at five games (three exclusives and two third-party) coming to the Xbox One this year.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Release Date: March 11th, 2020
Known for their imaginative and whimsical art style that looks beautiful in motion, Moon Studios next installment Ori and the Will of the Wisps has you going through a number of beautifully drawn environments and backgrounds while fighting through a several threats using different powers in a metroidvania-style adventure. Since the launch of the original, Ori and the Blind Forest, it has garnered a big following and the next extry is looking to add to it. The game launches in early March.
DOOM Eternal
Release Date: March 20th, 2020
Developed by iD Software, DOOM Eternal is the follow-up to the 2016 hit DOOM. The last time we saw the Doom Slayer, he was being sent back to Hell after finding The Crucible, and Samuel Hayden taking it from him before sending him back. It seems time has passed and not only have the demons escaped from Hell to Mars, but they have reached Earth. With a slew of new moves and a grappling hook attachment to your shotgun, it’s time to take back Earth. DOOM Eternal will take full advantage of the Xbox One X when the game also launches this March.
Cyberpunk 2077
Release Date: April 15th, 2020
What has to be one of the most anticipated games of 2020, CD Projekt Red is looking to deliver what could be, in all honesty, the game of the year with Cyberpunk 2077. As the name suggests, Cyberpunk 2077 is set in the distant future where the player plays as V in a first-person perspective. V, is a mercenary whose voice, face, hairstyles, body type and modifications, background, and clothing are customisable. Stat categories — Body, Intelligence, Reflexes, Technical, and Cool — are malleable depending on the character classes that players assume, which are NetRunner (hacking), Techie (machinery), and Solo (combat). With tons of skills to pick from the perk tree as you level up, tons of weapons to use and, of course, Johnny Silverhand, played by Keanu Reeves … you can’t go wrong with this sci-fi RPG!
Minecraft Dungeons
Release Date: April 2020
Mojang Studios is looking to launch this Minecraft spin-off game this April. Minecraft Dungeons takes the cute, blocky aesthetic of the building game and makes a loot-driven dungeon crawler out of it. Like all great, epic quests in dungeon crawlers, this is a story driven by its villain so that’s what this trailer focuses on. An outcast Illager travels the world, rejected by society, until he stumbles upon a square-shaped artifact of great power and then he grows corrupt and mad with power. You will be able to play with friends from the look of things … so if you are a fan of Minecraft but want to try something different, look to pick up Minecraft Dungeons this April.
Session
Release Date: 2020
It has been a very long time since Skate 3 launched on consoles, and with people still clamoring for a Skate 4 and EA not delivering, an independent studio named Crea-ture Studios is going to give those players their skateboarding fix. Session will differ from the Skate franchise in this open-ended video game as they have decided to exclude a scoring system and include a different control scheme. They present the game in the style of a fish-eye lens from a mini DV format camera, as the goal is to make session tapes of you skateboarding around the environment. The game launched on steam last September and is looking to launch this year on Xbox One sometime in 2020.
