Maybe the PS5 release will help refresh some of the panels (who pick the noms) memories as well

Man I am really struggling with this decision at the end of zone 3

Oh bollocks, I accidentally stumbled upon a side-quest decision that now has me sad, Lmao. It wasn't part of the quest but just something you completely stumble upon without prompt after finishing the quest and now I'm sad, I didn't think it would result in that and I have saved over from before that quest, Lol.

Going to pause for today only to mull over my decision I made in the main quest. 😂

Avowed has surpassed 100,000 players on TA

They have to be a little careful, because I don't wanna go from a jam packed year of bangers to a sparse 2026 where they're like "Hey come on guys! Look at all the great games we released last year!"

The whole point is supposed to be a steady cadence, and I gotta say, going from the MS standard of basically no games until the end of year for ages, to suddenly HERE'S ALL THE THINGS this year, has me a little worried they're shooting their whole load this year, and then it's back to dry lands. Maybe that worry is a bit unfounded, cus they do have so many studios now working on so many games, and certainly the incubation period if we wanna call it that has been long enough, but as an Xbox fan you always gotta live with a little bit of rational fear for what's around the corner lol

I don't think we have to worry about 2026, maybe 2027 but we have no idea what is unannounced or rather, not leaked yet, Lol.

From 2025 I think the guaranteed releases are: Avowed, South of Midnight, Doom (Obv), Oblivion Remaster, Tony Hawk Remaster and Call of Duty, with more likely than not releases being Ninja Gaiden IV and The Outer Worlds 2. Fable I would put as 50/50 and could easily slip into 2026. I doubt they release two Gears in the same year so maybe Remaster this year and E-Day next year.

For 2026 I think all of these have a strong chance of being 2026 releases: State of Decay 3, Everwild, Contraband, Perfect Dark, Clockwork Revolution, Forza Horizon 6, Project Shaolin, Call of Duty. Then I don't have a clue for 2027 but that's kind of refreshing that all the years ago announcements are finally out of the way and almost everything in the future will be a complete unknown.

It is doing well in Xbox charts too and holding well on Steam. They already said they're happy with sales so the PlayStation release will only give it another boost (like Indiana Jones), I really hope we get an Avowed 2 based on what I've played (I've hit the 4th area now) as I want them to build and expand on this foundation, they've hooked me into the lore/world of Eora as well but I don't want to play Pillars because I don't like the gameplay of those games, Lol.

Missed this Q/A from November from Mat.

2) The availability of Fortnite, Minecraft, Roblox, GTA, COD, etc is far more important to a platform today than exclusive content. Sure, exclusive content still has its value, but nowhere near the level it used to. And for 3rd parties, there's just no reason to make a single platform exclusive unless that platform holder is going to provide the investment and support necessary to dramatically lessen the risk of overall development. Making games available on several platforms, and even device types (Mobile, PC, etc) helps provide more bites at the apple, and less dependance on one audience or manufacturer. The bets are so big now and carry such tremendous risk (so often now one release is make-or-break for a studio) that there's really no option to place the entire bet in one place. Again, not unless some platform holder pays a lot of money for it.

Industry Q&A | Mat Piscatella | Install Base

"The biggest competitor to any new video game is Fortnite. I will die on that hill, no matter what it is, because you have to fight Fortnite before you fight anything else to get your game seen and purchased, and that's the biggest challenge happening right now," Piscatella explains, noting that in the current market, getting an hour of playtime for your game means taking it from something else.

Fortnite Is The Biggest Competitor To Any New Video Game, Says Analyst | Windows Central

KCD 2 has 12k players there. KCD 2 is a flop confirmed! 

I often wonder if I should give Monster Hunter another shot, I played one of them on PS Vita and hated it, I think I thought it was a boring grind fest, Lol. But then I must have been in my early teens so my tastes have probably changed a lot since then, along with the IP itself. It seems like something that I might enjoy but that initial impression put me off for life. Like when I had mushrooms one day in my teens and threw up mushrooms later in the day and for years after avoided them, but now I don't mind them. 😂