Microsoft recently dropped the starting price of the Xbox One to $399 and made the Kinect optional to demonstrate that it's focused on gamers. And this year's E3 unveiling continued that theme.
The company showed off 22 new title at its press conference in Los Angeles. Overall, Microsoft displayed a decent range of games, mixing standard fare like "Halo" and "Call of Duty" in with games like the music creator "Fantasia: Music Evolved" and a new small-studio platformer called "Ori and the Blind Forest. BioWare delivered on more "Dragon Age: Inquisition" details, and "Tomb Raider" got a sequel, while announcements like the "Phantom Dust" remake surprised viewers.
Here's a quick roundup of what Microsoft has in the pipeline for the Xbox One.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
"Call of Duty" kicked off Microsoft's E3 press conference with a glossy new trailer for "Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare," the next in the military first-person shooter series, which is set to release on Xbox One, 360, Playstation 4, 3, and Windows PC on November 4, 2014. The E3 trailer showed the game's campaign story mode, featuring a futuristic-looking Korean city under attack, giant legged tanks, a swarm of airborne drones, and just a hint of bromance.
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Forza Horizon 2
This driving game will go on sale Sept. 30 for Xbox One and Xbox 360. The "Drivatar" feature of last year's "Forza Motorsport 5" makes a return, and for the first time in the "Forza" franchise, "Forza Horizon 2" will feature dynamic weather changes as players drive through a virtual southern Europe.
Evolve
This new four-versus-one co-op game pits four "hunters" against one superpowered "monster." The new "Evolve" trailer at E3 showed off more of what that gameplay will look like. "Evolve" is set to release on October 21, 2014, for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.
Assassin's Creed: Unity
The next game in the "Assassin's Creed" series will put players in the role of an assassin during the French Revolution in 18th century France, a country bitterly divided between rich and poor. "Assassin's Creed: Unity" will also feature four-player co-op. The game will be available for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Windows PC on October 28.
Dragon Age: Inquisition
The highly-anticipated third game in the "Dragon Age" fantasy role-playing series will have "premiere content" coming first to Xbox One, Microsoft said at the press event today. Developer Bioware also showed off a trailer featuring four new characters and a fight against an enormous dragon in a vivid, colorful world. As previously announced, the game is set for an October 7, 2014 release.
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Sunset Overdrive
This previously announced action game will come to Xbox One on October 28 of this year. Featuring colorful, zany action and a snarky sense of humor, "Sunset Overdrive" has a single-player campaign in which an energy drink called OverCharge Delirium XT turns people into mindless mutants, and an eight-player multiplayer mode.
Fantasia: Music Evolved
Designed as a sequel to the 1940 animated Disney film "Fantasia," this music-based video game lets players control and remix music using their bodies (via the Xbox Kinect motion-capture sensor). Developer Harmonix says "Fantasia: Music Evolved" will feature modern music and emphasize player creativity over competition and scoring. The game is due out October 21 for Xbox One and Xbox 360.
Dance Central Spotlight
Another Kinect-based game, "Dance Central Spotlight" is the latest in Microsoft's "Dance Central" series. It will be a digital download only (no discs). To keep things fresh, songs will be added weekly via updates.
Fable Legends
The newest "Fable" game will let four players go adventuring together as a group of snarky heroes -- or you can play as the villain attempting to thwart their every move by springing traps and releasing monsters in their path. The game's multiplayer beta will open this holiday season.
Project Spark
In "Project Spark," players make their own games, then play them and share them with friends. This title was announced last year at E3 2013, but this year Microsoft announced that the game will include assets from the classic Nintendo 64 game "Conker's Bad Fur Day," including Conker the squirrel himself.
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Ori and the Blind Forest
This just-announced Xbox One title is clearly channeling the distinctive art style of Hayao Miyazaki. "Ori and the Blind Forest" is a two-dimensional platformer featuring a number of fantasy creatures, and will come to Xbox One at an undisclosed date.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection
This newly announced game will bundle Halo 1 through 4 into one title, and include an Anniversary edition for "Halo 2." Players can switch between remastered and original graphics, and play "the original Halo 2 multiplayer exactly as it shipped 10 years ago." The game will also come with the upcoming digital TV series "Halo: Nightfall," whose story will lead into that of "Halo 5."
Halo 5: Guardians
Not much was said about the next installment in the "Halo" series, except to confirm that the mysterious Spartan seen in a teaser image last month is looking for Master Chief for some reason. Developer 343 Industries did say that "Halo 5" multiplayer beta will open this December 2014, though the game is scheduled for a fall 2015 release.
Inside
The next game from the makers of the spooky 2011 indie game "Limbo" have announced their next title: "Inside." From the trailer, it looks like "Inside" will be a platformer starring a young boy in an unfriendly world, similar to "Limbo." However, this time instead of just black, white and gray, the game is colored in subdued sepia tones.
Rise of the Tomb Raider
The sequel to the 2012 "Tomb Raider" reboot appears to center around a Lara Croft who is struggling with the trauma of her experiences in the previous game. "Rise of the Tomb Raider" is scheduled for a holiday 2015 release.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
This long-awaited fantasy action game will finally arrive on February 24, 2015 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Developer CD Projekt Red showed off a new trailer at Microsoft's Xbox press conference today, featuring main character Geralt fighting a griffin and saving a lady.
Killer Instinct Season 2
Last year "Killer Instinct" was a much-hyped Xbox One exclusive fighting game with a unique and accessible pay model, developed by Double Heix. This year, "Killer Instinct Season 2" is being developed by Iron Galaxy Games, the studio behind the popular fighting game "Divekick."
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Phantom Dust
In a surprising move, Microsoft has announced it is remaking the 2005 Xbox game "Phantom Dust" as an Xbox One exclusive. The original game was a mix of card-based strategy and live-action combat. No release date was specified.
Tom Clancy's The Division
Microsoft also showed off what looked like live co-op gameplay from the upcoming third-person shooter "Tom Clancy's The Division." The game puts players in a connected world with other players, and will come out in 2015 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Windows PC.
Scalebound
Another just-announced Xbox One exclusive, "Scalebound" looks like an over-the-top Japanese-style action game, complete with amusingly apathetic heroes wielding oversized swords. But there's a twist: as the character in the E3 trailer fought enormous dragons, he became covered in magic scale-like armor (or armor-like scales) himself.
Crackdown 3
The next in the colorful sci-fi third-person shooter series "Crackdown" will be an Xbox One exclusive, and is scheduled for a 2015 release.
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