How Game Pass Saved Xbox’s TGS Broadcast

Great expectations

Following a lacklustre State of Play for PlayStation earlier this month (saved only by the excellent-looking Ghost of Yotei), all eyes were on Microsoft to see what they could deliver with a somewhat-unexpected Tokyo Gameshow broadcast.

With Tom Warren advising it was “gonna be worth tuning in” amid rumours of Final Fantasy XVI and VII Remake finally coming to Xbox, hype levels were higher than usual (I even gave a pipedream prediction that Xbox might announce their upcoming handheld).

Greater disappointment

The reality was…you could safely have missed the broadcast and not felt too guilty. When it became clear Microsoft were wheeling out not only Phil Spencer but also Sarah Bond, you’d have been forgiven for thinking we were in for some real bombshells (handheld announcement?). But, it wasn’t to be. Despite some definite highlights, there were few (or no) Xbox/PC exclusive announcements, with PlayStation fans able to gloat that essentially everything (except the incredible looking FragPunk) that was on Xbox was also available on PS5.

Despite this, there were some lovely looking games perfect for TGS shown during the broadcast, with the highlight perhaps being Threads of Time, a 2.5D turn-based RPG heavily evoking Chrono Trigger.

Other highlights included a new trailer for Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater from Konami, updates on Slitterhead and Atelier Yumia (both of which are coming along really nicely), a newly announced and very cute-looking BMX game called Tanuki: Pon’s Summer, and online extraction shooter Synduality, because why not? All these were clearly tailored to the TGS audience, while the general presentation of the broadcast and news beats around Japanese dubs for Starfield and Indiana Jones were a nice touch. However, the sentiment from the broadcast was that while we can never take Japanese games coming to Xbox for granted, these are still all titles that are coming to PlayStation so are perhaps nothing to shout about.

Indeed, the rumoured announcement of Final Fantasy XVI and VII Remake did not come, but we did get a slew of other Square Enix RPGs (nine classics in total). Truthfully, while that’s great, it doesn’t make up for Square’s two prime RPGs of recent years in their most popular series still being absent from Microsoft’s platform.

Game Pass saves the day

Fortunately, the ace up Xbox’s sleeve was, as always, Game Pass. Phil Spencer rocked up wearing a StarCraft t-shirt and promptly announced StarCraft II and StarCraft Remastered are both coming to Game Pass on PC (Ultimate or PC Game Pass) on November 5th. Finally, a shirt Phil wore that came true! People have been waiting for StarCraft news for a while, so this felt like a nice announcement.

On top of that, we got the hilarious and charming All You Need is Help shadow dropped onto Game Pass. This is a four player co-op puzzle-party game that looks great fun (though the four player requirement is something of a turn off). Very much an acquired taste, this kind of thing is absolutely perfect for Game Pass.

Of the “Square 9” that were announced during the broadcast, Trials of Mana and Legend of Mana remasters also dropped into Game Pass today. Square also shadow dropped the Pixel Remasters of Final Fantasy I-VI, but sadly these did not make it into Game Pass – perhaps unsurprisingly given the £65 asking price (currently discounted to £55).

Finally, we also got the delightful We Love Katamari REROLL+ Royal Reverie. At this point, only die-hard Katamari fans will have spent the money to buy this remaster of the 2005 sequel (which also includes some extra bits) – but it being on Game Pass means a whole new audience can experience the wonderful craziness of Katamari.

Six games announced for Game Pass at a traditionally very lightweight show for Xbox is absolutely not to be sniffed at. The StarCraft games will definitely make waves on the service (can World’s Edge make a console version please!), and having two Square Enix titles shadow drop simultaneously (even if they’re not the ones everyone wanted) was excellent. Without these, it would have been a very poor show from Microsoft, but knowing you can close down that YouTube window and head over to your Xbox to explore Qi’Diel in Legend of Mana, roll a Katamari, or spin your friends’ shapes (not a euphemism) in All You Need is Help – not to mention the two StarCraft games to look forward to on PC, is pretty neat.

Slow and steady

Microsoft have been putting in some work to improve their fortunes in Japan and this consistency may start to be slowly paying off. We heard that Xbox had “seen the largest number of Xbox console players in the region to date”, as well as “this year more people are playing with Xbox across all devices in Asia than ever before”. A handheld that has a range of JRPGs playable via Game Pass, particularly some not on Switch, could be a real story for the region.

One final thought: FragPunk looks absolutely brilliant, and the confirmation of a beta for Xbox Insiders starting October 10th is fantastic news. FragPunk is one of the few Xbox/PC exclusives that featured during the broadcast and with its tight-looking shooting, smart weapon and character designs, and of course the game-changing card system, this could really cause some waves when it launches in 2025. You can register for the closed beta (places are limited) via the Xbox Insider Hub app on console.