Over the past month or so, the best deal in gaming has gradually deteriorated. There’s no disputing that the last few weeks have been frustrating for not just Game Pass users but Xbox fans in general, even though the program still offers over 100 high-quality games and even more if players are also enrolled in EA Play.
The removal of the $1 Xbox Game Pass trial was disappointing, but it was nothing compared to Game Pass’ most recent misfire, Redfall. Redfall is an Arkane Austin-developed one- to four-player co-op vampire shooter.
It has been promoted for two years as one of Xbox’s most significant 2023 products and the first exclusive to kick out the year in style. However, Redfall has not been well received. Thus, all eyes are on Bethesda’s highly anticipated Starfield as the savior for Xbox Game Pass in 2023.
In 2023, Starfield Could Make or Break Xbox Game Pass
In general, this has been a good year for Xbox Game Pass. Several Persona titles were added to Game Pass in January, followed by Mount and Blade 2 in February, Valheim in March, and Ghostwire: Tokyo in April.
While Xbox Game Pass is getting some much-needed help from its third-party partners, its initial offers haven’t been stellar. Although the year started with GoldenEye 007, the release of the long-awaited first-person shooter Atomic Heart in February caused much controversy.
The major release for March, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, too, encountered this problem and was met with lukewarm reviews. Even in April, with the debut of the action-strategy spinoff Minecraft Legends, which was met with mixed reviews, the trend remained.
Redfall is the final straw for Xbox Game Pass, whose first-party and day-one offers have failed miserably this year. Xbox has staked a lot on Redfall as its next big first-party exclusive, and the company has promised fans for the past two years that this game will be one for the ages.
Redfall will be remembered, unfortunately, for all the wrong reasons. Redfall has the makings of Xbox Game Pass’ first big flop, what with controversy about framerates, a laundry list of technical faults on launch day, and uninspired first-person shooter gameplay buried beneath it all.
Subscribers to Game Pass are prepared to put up with a lot for the low monthly price, but Redfall may be the game that puts an end to Xbox Game Pass’ mediocre 2023 so far, making it incredibly difficult Xbox to claw its way back out.
However, Starfield is the one game that has the potential to achieve this. Bethesda’s latest massive project is Starfield, a science fiction role-playing game that has been in development since 2015.
Bethesda needs Starfield to succeed after the ambivalent reception to Fallout 4 and the failure of the launch and subsequent support for Fallout 76.
Starfield is Bethesda’s last chance to regain the trust of gamers after a decade during which the company went from being seen as infallible to having a reputation for releasing games with numerous bugs.
- Starfield New Update Hints At Release Date Unveiling
- Starfield Showcase Will Reportedly Be Announced Next Week
- September 6 Marks The Launch Of Starfield
Moreover, Starfield is under additional duress because it must also rescue Xbox Game Pass. Redfall was supposed to be Xbox Game Pass’ first big exclusive of 2023, but it bombed, and now it’s all down to Starfield.
If it’s anything less than Game of the Year material, Xbox Game Pass could be in real trouble after Halo Infinite bombed, Grounded was forgotten, and Pentiment was too niche to attract a large audience.
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