As reported by IGN, there’s a rumour going around that the Wolfenstein and Dishonored series, as well as Prey, are all coming to Xbox Series X and S. I think this is quite interesting, because Microsoft has just acquired Bethesda, so naturally we should be expecting every Bethesda game to be backwards compatible for these consoles. Full blown new versions though, I’m not sure. Would you even play them there?
Here’s the thing about these three game series, they’re phenomenal. Each one offers something different from the others, meaning that they’re all superb as a collection. You have over the top shooting and Nazi killing in Wolfenstein, magical stealth and assassination in the Dishonored games, and an unrivalled sci-fi experience in Prey. They’re all very different, but each one can be played alongside the others. Yes, they’re extremely playable, but do they have a place in the next-generation of gaming?
The Xbox Series X and S are going to be getting games like Halo Infinite, truly next-gen experiences that players will be able to enjoy like nothing they’ve ever seen before. We’ll also be able to enjoy ever game that’s been released on Xbox One, Xbox 360, and the original Xbox, at least all of the ones that are made to be backwards compatible. To me, this negates the need for next-gen versions of these games. I can just check the Store, or look at Game Pass, and play whatever is on there if I’m feeling nostalgic.
These next-gen versions won’t be cheap either, they’ll probably be $70 like all next-gen games. This is an effort to recoup costs for the extra time and effort it now takes to make games I know, but it’s also a company asking consumers to pay even more for quite old games at this point. I think what makes it worse is the fact that the true next-gen games are still a way off, not launching until 2021.
I think that Microsoft is asking too much of their consumers if they release full priced versions of these games for the Xbox Series X and S. They need to look at the next-gen games they promised us, and get them out as soon as possible.
