The Game Awards Wasn’t Quite the Home Run Xbox Game Pass Needed It To Be

The 2023 Game Awards will probably go down as one of the more controversial ceremonies in the event’s 10-year history. Right now, there’s quite a bit of discourse online about the structure of this year’s Game Awards, in particular its heavy emphasis on trailers, ads, and guest appearances, as opposed to the actual developers the night is supposed to be about. But the 2023 Game Awards wasn’t all controversy, and the slew of announcements and reveals were pretty exciting. Though, unfortunately, Xbox Game Pass didn’t come out of the gate swinging.

A few days before The Game Awards, Xbox began pinning adverts for the upcoming event to the Xbox dashboard and store page. While this was likely just a bit of cross-industry promotion, many Xbox fans took this as a sign that something big was going to be announced for Xbox during the event, and by proxy, Xbox Game Pass. The Game Awards is all wrapped up, and while Xbox definitely had a presence, it didn’t really knock it out of the park as much as some fans were expecting.

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Xbox Game Pass Didn’t Have Much of a Showing at The Game Awards 2023

Xbox has always had a pretty solid showing at The Game Awards, and this year was no different. Along with being a part of all the cross-platform announcements made during the 2023 Game Awards, Xbox also had a handful of its own games to reveal, though Xbox Game Pass definitely got the short end of the stick. The only new Xbox game that was officially confirmed for Xbox Game Pass was Harmonium: The Musical. One of the more unique reveals of The Game Awards, Harmonium sees players control a deaf character as they make a wondrous journey through a fantastical land of musical creativity.

Xbox had a handful of other exciting announcements at this year’s Game Awards, but none of these have been confirmed for Xbox Game Pass yet. The strangest of these is Marvel’s Blade. One of the most surprising and promising reveals of the entire ceremony, Arkane Lyon is developing a Marvel’s Blade game, though its current platform plans have been kept a strange mystery. Coming from a Bethesda studio, fans presumed that Blade would be an Xbox exclusive, and therefore likely an Xbox Game Pass day-one game, though Xbox and Bethesda haven’t made an official statement yet.

Hideo Kojima’s experimental new game OD is in a similar boat to Marvel’s Blade. Taking to the stage alongside director Jordan Peele, Hideo Kojima announced a new horror project currently named OD, which is seemingly set to blend some live-action and gameplay to create a wholly unique horror experience. While OD has been confirmed as an Xbox title, it hasn’t been confirmed for Xbox Game Pass just yet.

The Game Awards Could Have Been The Perfect Set-Up For Xbox Game Pass’ 2024 Line-Up

2023 has been a pretty incredible year for Xbox Game Pass, maybe even its best one ever. Though it’s had some slower months, Xbox Game Pass has managed to maintain a pretty strong momentum throughout 2023, and if that carried through to January, then 2024 could be something really special for the service. The Game Awards was the perfect opportunity to tee that up, show fans exactly what they can expect from Xbox Game Pass in January 2024, and tease the rest of the year, reminding them why they need to keep subscribing.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the highest tier of Microsoft’s flagship game subscription service that offers over 100 game titles that you can play with a single purchase, making it one of the most outstanding value propositions of the Xbox ecosystem to date.