E3 2021 – Xbox/Bethesda Livestream Recap
With the absence of Sony at this year’s E3 event, the Xbox/Bethesda livestream was one of the most anticipated segments of the expo. This was also partly because this livestream is the first time that Xbox and Bethesda have appeared on a public stage together since Microsoft acquired Bethesda’s parent company Zenimax Media towards the end of last year.
The event provided fans with a slew of updates, announcements and trailers for lots of different titles. All of these can be viewed below in our roundup of all of the most significant reveals from the Xbox/Bethesda livestream at E3 2021.
Starfield
The first proper trailer for Starfield was dropped during the Xbox/Bethesda livestream and gave us our first look at the heavily anticipated new IP since it was first announced three years ago at Bethesda’s conference at E3 2018.
It was also confirmed that Starfield will indeed be an Xbox exclusive and is set to come to the Xbox Series X and PC this November on 11/11/22. This release date mirrors Skyrim’s release date from 10 years ago of 11/11/11. Starfield will also be made available on Xbox Game Pass.
STALKER 2: Heart of Chernobyl
A trailer was then shown for STALKER 2: Heart of Chernobyl, which is the latest entry in the cult-favourite survival shooter series. The new trailer showed four minutes of gameplay and gave a release date for the game of April 22nd, 2022. This game is also coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one.
Back 4 Blood
We then got a trailer for Back 4 Blood, the hotly anticipated co-op zombie shooter that will also serve as a spiritual-successor to the iconic Left 4 Dead series. Again, this title is coming to Xbox Game Pass upon its release.
Contraband
Avalanche were the next devs to appear at the Xbox/Bethesda livestream and announced their newest title that they have been working on will be called Contraband. There weren’t many details revealed by the Just Cause team, however the trailer describes the new IP as a co-op, open-world game that will be set in a fictional version of the 1970s.
Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Life
It was then announced that Sea of Thieves is to receive a new update titled; A Pirate’s Life. This free update is due to drop on the 22nd of June for the popular pirate game. The new add-on to the swashbuckling sandbox will bring with it some brand new characters including Captain Jack Sparrow and Davy Jones from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
Battlefield 2042
EA and DICE first revealed Battlefield 2042 last week with a cinematic, trailer last Wednesday but on Sunday the 14th of June at the Xbox/Bethesda livestream, Battlefield fans got an eagerly awaited first look at some gameplay from the futuristic military shooter.
The new trailer showed multiple new mechanics for the upcoming game, including futuristic weapons of war and real-time destructive weather elements such as tornadoes and sandstorms. We also saw some huge maps that will be able to support up to 128 players at the same time.
Twelve Minutes
Twelve Minutes is a new adventure game coming from publisher Annapurna Interactive. The gameplay will be formed around 12-minute loops and the title is set to be released fairly soon on the 19th of August this year.
Psychonauts 2
Psychonauts 2 is becoming akin to Duke Nukem Forever at this point in its development cycle in terms of how many different iterations of the game have been planned since its initial announcement back in 2015. Double Fine showed a brand new trailer for the long-in-development adventure game and announced that the sequel will released on the 25th of August this year for Windows PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X. Like all of the other titles so far, the Psychonaughts sequel will also be available on Xbox Game Pass.
Fallout 76 Expansions
Two new trailers were dropped for Fallout 76. The first being a trailer for trailer for Steel Reign , which can be viewed above. It reveals that the free story update will conclude the Brotherhood of Steel plot thread from the base game.
Another trailer for a second free update was shown that will also take players out of Appalachia. The Pitt will take gamers to Pittsburgh where they can experience a series of repeatable story missions.
Hades
Supergiant Games then made an appearance to announce that they are bringing their action-roguelike, Game Of The Year 2020 Hades to consoles, including the Xbox One and the Xbox Series X on the 13th of August 2021. As expected, the game will also be available on Xbox Game Pass.
Halo Infinite
As predicted, a new trailer for Halo Infinite was shown during the Xbox/Bethesda livestream showing gameplay from the tentpole sci-fi shooter sequel. The game was first announced at E3 2018 and was delayed last year, however we now know that it will drop during the 2021 holiday season and a recent leak from the Xbox Brazil Twitter account suggests a date of November 9th 2021. However, this could well be an error as Forza Horizon 5 is also slated to release on that date
It was also revealed that the new game will come with a free-to-play multiplayer mode included.
Diablo 2: Resurrected
A trailer for the upcoming Diablo 2 remaster, titled: Diablo 2: Resurrected was then shown. A release date of September 23rd 2021 was also announced for the remaster of the classic game with a multiplayer beta coming this August. It is also set to launch on multiple platforms including Windows PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X.
Slime Rancher 2
Remember the underrated gloopy adventure game Slime Rancher? Well developers Monomi Park appeared during the Xbox livestream to announce its sequel via a trailer that included a release window of 2022.
Shredders
Another new game was then revealed, titled Shredders. A trailer was shown for the new snowboarding title showing some crisp-looking snowy mountain peaks and various tricks that players will be able to pull off themselves when they get their hands on the game. At the time of writing, there isn’t much else known about the new IP as of yet, however according to the trailer above, we can expect the game to drop towards the end of this year in December 2021.
Atomic Heart
Yet another trailer for a new IP was then shown, this time in the form of an upcoming first-person game called Atomic Heart. Whilst the trailer looks interesting, it sadly doesn’t provide much in the way of detailed information on the title. Clearly, it will be set in 1955 and will take place in the Soviet Union. That said, the odd-looking kung-fu robots and ladle-wielding old woman will need a bit more context.
Replaced
At this point it became clear that Xbox are clearly trying to make a point with the amount of trailers shown for new IP. The above one being for a game called Replaced, which is described as “a new sci-fi action platformer with detailed and fluid pixel art graphics.” The trailer also provides a release window of 2022. As you would expect, the game will also be available on Xbox Game Pass upon its launch.
The Outer Worlds 2
A fantastic trailer for The Outer Worlds 2 then proved that Obsidian Entertainment’s next role-playing title is not a sequel to Fallout: New Vegas as previously rumoured. It is instead a sequel to 2019’s criminally underrated The Outer Worlds. While the trailer didn’t actually give us too many details regarding the sequel, it was upfront about that in a very meta way that I enjoyed. We do know that whenever it does eventually release, it will be coming to the Xbox Series X and Windows.
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Last year’s PC hit, Microsoft Flight Simulator will soon be available on the Xbox Series X on the 27th of July. This console version of the ambitious title will also be available on Xbox Game Pass upon its launch.
The Xbox Series X version of the game claims that it will feature “the same level of depth and complexity” as its PC counterpart. During the announcement, it was also revealed that elements from the upcoming movie Top Gun: Maverick have been licensed by Microsoft and will feature in the game.
Forza Horizon 5
The setting for Forza Horizon 5 was revealed to be a highly detailed version of Mexico in the game’s reveal trailer. Developed by Playground Games, the fifth sequel in the tentpole racing series is set for release on Windows PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X on the 9th of November 2021. It was also confirmed that this title will be available on Xbox Game Pass on day one.
Redfall
The final game to be announced during the Xbox/Bethesda livestream was Redfall. This title was also another new IP shown during the stream. It comes from Dishonored developer Arkane and is described as; “an open-world, co-op shooter that will allow players to use various special powers and unique weapons to fight off deadly vampire hordes.”
Redfall is set to launch exclusively for Microsoft platforms sometime next year in summer 2022.
Summary
Overall, I appreciated the haymakers attempted by Microsoft during this stream, I just don’t know that any of them truly landed. Although there were trailers shown for a whopping eight new IP, there was nothing shown that would honestly make me go out and by an Xbox Series X, which is kind of the point of these shows.
Maybe I am just saying that because I have a decent gaming PC that should be able to run all of the games shown, but I don’t see many PlayStation owners watching this livestream and being overly jealous of anything on display.
But I could be entirely wrong, so please let me know how you felt about the Xbox/Bethesda livestream in the comments below. Were you pleased with what was shown or were you somewhat underwhelmed like I was?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments and check out all of our predictions for this year’s E3 conference in the video below.
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