It has been somewhat of a disappointing year for Xbox fans. Nintendo has managed to pull themselves up from the hole that was the Wii U, and reinvigorate nostalgia for their brand with Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Arms and the soon to be released Mario + Rabbids and Super Mario Odysessy. PlayStation after a few admittedly quiet years, has pummelled us with exclusive after exclusive this year. Persona 5, Nier: Automata, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy and Hellblade. And on top of that, every single one of these games has reviewed extraordinarily well.
Xbox, on the other hand, has released Halo Wars 2… That’s pretty much it. And I’m disappointed to say, it was pretty mediocre. Sure Tacoma just released and Cup Head is on the way, but these are third party indie deals. Not first party AAA hits. It seemed, despite its lukewarm re-reveal at E3, that Crackdown 3 would be Microsoft’s heavy hitter this fall, releasing alongside Forza Motorsport 7. However, Crackdown 3 has been delayed into early 2018. Microsoft Studios Publishing general manager Shannon Loftis, had this to say.
“We want to make sure to deliver the right game, with the right quality, and at the right time,” Loftis told Polygon. “Crackdown 3 is a hugely ambitious game and we want to ensure we deliver the right experiences all the way through every part of the game, whether that’s campaign, co-op multiplayer or our competitive multiplayer mode, Wrecking Zone. Getting the balance right between the three modes is important, and we are going to take the extra development time to ensure that. Gamers can expect Crackdown 3 in Spring of 2018.”
It’s troubling when we look at Xbox’s exclusive line up. This fall is bare, and Crackdown 3, State of Decay 2 and Sea of Thieves are all we have to look forward to on the horizon. Each of which has been met with divisive opinions. Check out my thoughts on how Microsoft can turn things around when it comes to their exclusives line up, and for everything else on Crackdown 3, stay tuned to Thenerdstash.
