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January may be almost over, but Microsoft is making some noise to start 2025 with the Xbox Developer Direct and the surprise announcement of… Ninja Gaiden 4 And a preview of what’s coming Death: The Dark Ages.
The Xbox Developer Direct event on Thursday featured extended gameplay footage and developer insights for a quartet of Xbox Studio games: Doom: The Dark Ages, South of Midnight, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and Ninja Gaiden 4.
Microsoft needed to generate some excitement for its games with Sony continuing to outpace them in console and software sales, plus Nintendo had already made their big news of the year with the official announcement of Switch 2. It seems to have worked, as the hype around the new Doom and Ninja Gaiden games was off the charts after the event.
How can I watch Xbox Developer Direct?
You can watch a replay of it via the YouTube stream posted above and on Xbox channel on twitchthe Xbox ASL channel on Twitchthe Bethesda YouTube channelthe Bethesda Twitch channel and Xbox Facebook page.
What games were featured on Xbox Developer Direct?
The first big reveal was the intriguing mystery game, Ninja Gaiden 4. Team Ninja teamed up with Bayonetta and Nier: Automata developer Platinum Games to revive the dormant franchise. The new game stars a new ninja hero, Yakumo, and the developers said it will feature the intense difficulty that the series is known for, yet new players will still find it easy to use. Along with the news of the next game in the franchise being released later this year, Team Ninja has also released a remaster of 2008’s Ninja Gaiden 2 Black for Xbox Game Pass.
South of Midnight from Compulsion Games is a stylish action-adventure game set in a fictional town in the American South. Players control Hazel, who uses her weaving powers to remove the spiritual corruption that turns normal creatures into hideous monsters. South of Midnight is scheduled to be released on April 8.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a stylish RPG from Sandfall Interactive. Although gameplay is turn-based, characters are still active in battle with the ability to dodge, perform combos, and dodge. Expedition 33 will be released on April 24.
Finishing off the show was Doom: Dark Ages. The new game in the popular series serves as a prequel to the 2016 Doom reboot, shifting the gameplay from quick jumps and dashes to slower brawling with new mechanics. The Doom Slayer will face hordes of demons, but will have access to new tools, including a shield saw, new melee weapons, a cybernetic dragon, and a giant mech, to name a few.
All games featured in Xbox Developer Direct will be available on Xbox Game Pass upon release.
Watch this: Everything we expect in gaming in 2025
