It's Nov. 10, and Microsoft’s next-generation consoles, the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X, have finally arrived. Regardless of which version you pick up, Microsoft is making the transition to this new console generation as easy as possible by offering backwards compatibility with previous-generation Xbox titles and optimization upgrades via its Smart Delivery service. If you’re an Xbox One gamer, rest assured that the jump to the Series S/X will be a smooth one.
Of course, a console is only as good as its games, and Microsoft has you covered there, too. We’ve selected 10 titles you'll want to snatch up alongside your shiny, new Xbox console. This list includes brand new games, as well as updated editions of recently released titles that enjoy a performance boon on the Series S and X.Game hard, and enjoy the start of the next console generation.
Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (for Xbox Series S/X)
Ubisoft's historical-fiction series returns, taking us back to the Viking invasion of the British Isles. In this newest AssCreed title, Eivor—a raider—is pulled into the ancient conflict between the Templar Order and the Brotherhood of Assassins. Story missions take you across an open-world environment, where you must fight, sneak, and assassinate targets, but there are also numerous side missions to undertake filled with fresh gear and weapons.
Bright Memory (for Xbox Series S/X)
Bright Memory is a wild action-shooter game that combines tight shooting with Devil May Cry-style melee action and impressive acrobatic mobility. In Bright Memory, supernatural happenings in the world's skies spur a research organization to investigate the phenomenon. As a result, nutty supernatural battles ensue, featuring lots of shooting-and-slashing combat.
Borderlands 3 (for Xbox One)
The quintessential looter-shooter makes the transition to next-generation hardware with some very nice bonuses, including all the previously released DLC, local split-screen multiplayer action, and new skill trees for the four protagonists. If you want to gun down aliens and collect randomized loot with your buddies for hours at a time, Borderlands 3 has everything you want.
Devil May Cry 5 (for Xbox One)
Devil May Cry 5 is back! The wild, demon-slaying title makes the leap to next-gen hardware with this Special Edition. In Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition, you play as Dante, Nero, V, and newly added Vergil. If you like action games, you cannot go wrong with Devil May Cry 5, and Special Edition gives you even more content to chew through to test your combo-chaining skills.
The Falconeer (for Xbox Series S/X)
This aerial combat game blends high-flying action with high-fantasy storytelling. In Falconeer, you develop and pilot a massive Warbird to take down airships and war machines in a gorgeous and utterly unique open-world game. Great Ursee, the game's world, is packed with sights to see and unique alien life to fly alongside, giving you plenty to enjoy alongside the action.
Forza Horizon 4 (for Xbox One)
This gorgeous and immersive racing game combines astounding, photorealistic graphics and impressive vehicles to create an environment that is as beautiful as it is chill. Drive around Great Britain's atmospheric roads in a single-player campaign boasting more than 700 licensed cars, or race other players if you’re looking for more of a challenge. Either way, Forza Horizon 4 receives an upgrade through Microsoft’s Smart Delivery system that cranks the resolution to 4K and bumps the frame rate to a silky 60 frames per second.
Gears 5 (for Xbox One)
What’s not to love about blasting and sawing through mutant aliens in tense, third-person-shooting action? Gears 5 delivers all the series' trademark hectic action and zany weapons, plus an expanded story that directly follows the events of Gears of War 4. Gears 5 receives next-gen launch enhancements that include higher-resolution textures, new visual effects, and 60 frames-per-second baseline performance.
Gears Tactics (for Xbox One)
This excellent, turn-based tactics game blends the Gears of War games' iconic weaponry and alien monstrosities with tight strategy mechanics. Gears Tactics isn't a RNG-heavy game, making the action a bit more predictable than its brutally unforgiving inspiration. Still, it's no less thoughtful and challenging. Gears Tactics benefits from a nice graphical boost on the new Xbox units, so give it a spin if you’re hungry for strategy.
Watch Dogs: Legion (for Xbox Series S/X)
In this pseudo-futuristic, open-world action game, we see London on the brink of social collapse. Technology has advanced too far, and automation has destroyed the livelihood of thousands of Brits, resulting in swelling unemployment, crime, and terrorism. You play as a member of a rogue hacker resistance who is framed for the terroristic attacks across the city, and must use your technological prowess (plus a vast network of recruits) to clear your name and avoid the ever-paranoid surveillance state.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon (for Xbox Series S/X)
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a perfect entry point for people unfamiliar with the series, as it features a new protagonist and story. Ichiban Kasuga has been released from prison after an 18-year sentence, and ventures across Japan's streets to become a hero. Like a Dragon drops the series' familiar beat 'em up action in favor of turn-based, RPG combat.