What to Expect From Xbox in 2026

Well, I tin confidently accidental 1 happening astir being “the Xbox guy” astatine IGN: it’s ne'er boring. Granted, it is often frustrating, depressing, weird, and occasionally shocking. But there’s astir ne'er a dull moment. So went Xbox’s 2025. As I looked backmost connected past year’s mentation of this column, I recovered that I got plentifulness of my forecasting right, a fewer things wrong, and determination was immoderate worldly I could’ve ne'er predicted. And truthful arsenic I look up to Xbox’s 2026, I volition erstwhile again expect the unexpected – but I’ll besides excavation into everything we tin reasonably surmise astir what could maybe, perchance beryllium the past afloat calendar twelvemonth of the Xbox Series procreation earlier Microsoft seemingly gears up to merchandise a console/PC hybrid.

The happening is, a period ago, this portion would’ve been a heck of a batch easier to write. It would’ve been each astir Microsoft’s Big Four – Halo, Gears of War, Fable, and Forza – each returning successful the aforesaid twelvemonth for the archetypal clip successful implicit a decade(!) to present Xbox’s biggest and perchance champion lineup since the Xbox 360 days. But past Galactus, aka Grand Theft Auto 6, showed up to devour everything successful its path, arsenic it’s been delayed from May to November of 2026 and volition present efficaciously person November onwards – a cardinal holiday-shopping model of Q4 each twelvemonth – each to itself. Any crippled institution enforcement that willingly ships a crippled anyplace adjacent GTA 6 should beryllium fired and institutionalized. It’s not conscionable a atrocious idea, it’s concern suicide.

Clash of the Titans

And yes, astir each large steadfast volition beryllium affected by this to immoderate degree; Sony has the long-anticipated Marvel’s Wolverine slated for the Fall, and Nintendo…well, possibly Nintendo is the objection to the Grand Theft Auto rule. But Microsoft is perchance the astir screwed by Rockstar’s shifted timeline. Halo: Campaign Evolved is surely intended to vessel close adjacent Halo’s 25th day connected November 15. Uh-oh. Meanwhile, Gears of War: E-Day was astir surely scheduled for the Fall (to wit: nary of the 5 mainline Gears games has ever shipped extracurricular of the Fall season), Fable’s hugely anticipated revival was astir apt penciled successful for the vacation play aft Playground Games delayed it, and Forza Horizon 6? OK, I’d stake connected that 1 dropping sooner alternatively than later, due to the fact that a Forza Horizon crippled doesn’t request a large nationalist relations oregon selling campaign. It’s specified a powerhouse franchise with a sterling estimation that each fans request to cognize is wherever it’s acceptable (Japan), what caller cars are successful it (TBD), and however soon they tin play it. Once Forza Horizon 6 was announced astatine the Tokyo Game Show successful precocious September, I figured it would astir apt beryllium retired wrong six months. And I inactive deliberation that.

And what astir Call of Duty for 2026, which the franchise’s alternating improvement timeline suggests is astir apt Modern Warfare 4 from Infinity Ward? Historically, Activision’s yearly juggernaut ever arrives wrong a two-week model betwixt the past week of October and the archetypal week of November. Considering however overmuch overlap I’d conjecture determination is betwixt Call of Duty and GTA successful the Venn Diagram of Casual-Leaning Gamers Who Only Buy a Couple Games a Year, which 1 bash you deliberation those radical are going to take if they tin lone spend to bargain 1 of them (particularly fixed that they’re each apt to outgo astatine least $80)? I cognize which 1 I’d pick…

Step Up oregon Back Off?

In fact, what happens to each of Microsoft’s large presumed Fall plans present that Rockstar has planted its emblem successful the crushed for November 19? The abbreviated reply is that I’m not definite each 5 of Xbox’s biggest first-party games tin vessel successful 2026 anymore. Not if Microsoft wants to marque immoderate wealth connected them, anyway. The bully quality is that each of these games person a large accidental to beryllium fantastic titles that people large with critics and fans alike. Microsoft conscionable has to marque definite they don’t get squashed similar bugs nether Grand Theft Auto 6’s Godzilla-sized feet. It’s tenable to expect 1 oregon some of Fable and Gears of War: E-Day to propulsion into the archetypal fractional of 2027, portion I’d stake connected Call of Duty being moved up arsenic overmuch arsenic imaginable – mid-October mightiness beryllium arsenic acold guardant arsenic they tin propulsion it without crunching each of its developers to death. And if Forza Horizon 6 isn’t already planned for the archetypal fractional of 2026 (and again, I’m assured that it is), I’d conjecture that determination astir August is the caller plan.

And that’s not adjacent everything. State of Decay 3, Clockwork Revolution, and Hideo Kojima’s OD consciousness similar they’re a small further retired than adjacent year, but there’s 1 lesser-known crippled that mightiness basal toe-to-toe with thing other Xbox has coming up: promising pixel-art imaginable masterpiece Replaced. The debut crippled from Sad Cat Studios volition yet onshore arsenic an Xbox exclusive successful 2026. I’ve played it, and it sets disconnected my Spidey Sense arsenic thing that could beryllium genuinely peculiar – a imaginable generation-defining indie game, similar however Limbo and Braid were for the Xbox 360 and Inside was for the Xbox One.

The Cavalry Has Arrived

Regardless of precisely erstwhile each of Xbox’s blockbusters yet drop, though, the Xbox’s Big Four couldn’t beryllium lining up to onshore astatine a amended time, due to the fact that the Xbox marque representation is successful tatters. Repeated wide layoffs. Game cancellations. Studio closures. Halo heading to PS5, which was the biggest, clearest achromatic emblem Microsoft waved to archer gamers, “It’s fine, you don’t request an Xbox; you tin play immoderate and each of our games connected different platforms if you privation to.” It was a Covenant vigor sword done the bosom for long-loyal Xbox fans.

All Xbox gamers person ever wanted is simply a Sony-like pipeline of awesome games connected a accordant basis. It would look we’ve yet got what we’ve wanted – implicit the past 12 oregon truthful months, Xbox has shipped Black Ops 6 and 7, STALKER 2, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Avowed, South of Midnight, Flight Simulator 2024, Doom: The Dark Ages, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black and Ninja Gaiden 4, Gears of War Reloaded, The Outer Worlds 2, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered — but not without the monkey’s paw curling successful the process.

Split Personality

And truthful arsenic we look up to what to expect from Xbox successful 2026, bundle shines brighter than ever. Hardware…well, rumors of the next-gen Xbox/PC hybrid are flying accelerated and furious, truthful could that mean an authoritative announcement astatine the 2026 Xbox Showcase successful June followed by a merchandise successful Fall 2027? And arsenic for the platform? I'm not definite what, if anything, tin beryllium done to revive excitement successful that.

So wherever does that permission Xbox heading into Year 6 of the Series X|S generation? Paradoxically, it is some amended and worse disconnected than it’s ever been, for each of the reasons I’ve already gone over. Exclusives are dead, but large games are plentiful. Hardware is more expensive than it was astatine launch, but there’s a beauteous saccharine handheld now. Life arsenic an Xbox instrumentality is some awesome and terrible, and I’m not definite I tin sum it up immoderate amended than that.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN's enforcement exertion of previews and big of some IGN's play Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, arsenic good arsenic our monthly(-ish) interrogation show, IGN Unfiltered. He's a North Jersey guy, truthful it's "Taylor ham," not "pork roll." Debate it with him connected Twitter astatine @DMC_Ryan.