Xbox should establish January as one of the months that it hosts big reveals for its upcoming games. While Nintendo and Sony have been hailed for their big reveal events, Xbox has frequently dropped the ball, oftentimes hosting dry, overly-long presentations that arguably offer more substance in terms of gameplay deep dives, but fail to generate much excitement or attention. There have been times when Xbox has hosted proper, exciting reveal events, but it has not established traditions and patterns in the same way its competition has done.
Xbox typically has a big event at E3, but otherwise fans don't really have any idea of when to expect more news from the company. Xbox sometimes has a presence at The Game Awards, but other times it's absent from the award show. Xbox sometimes makes appearance at other industry events, but other times it skips them. With Nintendo and Sony keeping fans engaged throughout the year with Nintendo Direct and State of Play events, it's time for Xbox to come up with its own version to keep its fans updated.
Now, Xbox doesn't necessarily need to host these events at the same rate that Sony and Nintendo do, but it could still develop a nice rhythm with them so fans generally know when to expect the big reveals to take place. E3 already has June locked down for Xbox, and with six months between January and June, it seems like the most logical month for Xbox to host such events would be at the new year. This way, Xbox could lay out its plans for the first six months of each year, giving gamers a good idea of what to expect for the company's Xbox Series X and S consoles and first-party studios.
January is a Historic Month for Xbox
Not only would January be the perfect time for Xbox to lay out its plans for each year, but the month also makes sense because of the historical significance behind it. As some may recall, the original Xbox console was first revealed to the world in January 2001 at that year's Consumer Electronics Show. Unveiled by The Rock and Bill Gates, the original Xbox saw Microsoft throw its hat in the console gaming ring and changed the industry forever.
Since Xbox got its start in January, it would make sense for the company to continue using the month as a way to make announcements to its fans. While CES still exists and could give Microsoft a platform to make these reveals, it would make more sense for Xbox to host an event independent of CES as the announcements would be more focused on gaming software than they would hardware.
No Competition in January
Another reason Xbox may want to start using January as one of its big reveal months is due to a general lack of competition. While there are some big games releasing in January 2023, most of the time, January is fairly bare when it comes to new game releases, or at least a lot slower than other times of the year. This means that a hypothetical Xbox event could get a lot more attention, especially from those who are hungry for new gaming experiences.
Beyond that, Nintendo and Sony have typically left January alone when it comes to hosting their Nintendo Direct and State of Play events. While Nintendo has occasionally hosted a Nintendo Direct in January, the Big N usually picks February to host its first big Nintendo Direct event every year. Sony has never bothered hosting a State of Play in January at all, so Xbox could potentially have the month to itself in terms of game reveal events.
An Xbox Games Showcase is Rumored for This Month
Nothing official has been announced at the time of this writing, but rumor has it that Xbox is hosting a games showcase this month. If accurate, the event could start this potential new January tradition. According to the rumors, the Xbox games showcase will take place at the end of January and focus on a variety of games scheduled to launch in the first half of the year, like the latest Forza Motorsport game from Turn 10 Studios and co-op vampire shooter Redfall, which is in development at Arkane Studios.
If this supposed event does take place, it will be interesting to see just how seriously Xbox treats it. It's possible the event will be smaller in scale and more like the developer interview events Xbox has hosted in the past, but it's also possible such a presentation will take its cues from Nintendo's Nintendo Direct events and PlayStation's State of Plays. Reputable insiders have said that the Xbox showcase is indeed happening this month, so hopefully Xbox shares more concrete details soon and fans can get a better idea of what to expect from the company moving forward.
Whether this event will be the start of many more in the future remains to be seen, but it could be a great way to start a new January tradition for the Xbox brand.