If you had better things to do around 20h00 last night, worry not. Stuff has already done the dirty work of diving headfirst into the Xbox Developer Direct, a roughly 50-minute compendium of the games and reveals coming to Xbox, PlayStation, and PC this year. We got a detailed look at what’s under wraps from studios like Playground Games, Game Freak, and Double Fine — right on schedule for Xbox’s big 25th anniversary.
A Fable worthy of Aesop
“Albion’s first hero in a generation” is a frank but literal reminder of just how long it’s been since we journeyed into the world of fantasy realm with Fable 3, which debuted more than a decade ago. Playground Games’ long-awaited Fable reboot is finally more than just a wishful proof-of-concept, offering a deep dive into the goings-on in the world of Albion and the hero’s story that can literally shape the realm’s history.
Players step into the shoes of a customisable MC (main character) in the vein of Cyberpunk 2077’s ‘V’, able to truly travel wherever they’d like, moulding their morality as they go, with a revamped reputation system at play. Most impressive of this massive open world are the 1,000+ handcrafted NPCs that live in it — commenting on the player’s wealth (or lack thereof), choices, and future actions. “Our game will never judge you, but the people of Albion will… loudly.”
We also caught a glimpse of combat gameplay, which pales in comparison to the news that every building is enterable in Fable, just as every home’s possession is up for grabs if you’re going that route. There’s plenty more to see in the ten-minute-plus developer diary (above), but the real “bombshell” here was that the game was headed for PlayStation 5, in addition to Xbox Series X/S and PC in autumn. Yeah, who could’ve seen that coming?
Xbox, meet John Forza
Weeaboos, unite! Forza is officially headed for Japan (pssst — this is the bit when you pretend to be surprised). Forza Horizon 6 spans all the bits you’d like to see — from the quieter, Sakura-packed spots to the hustle and bustle of Tokyo’s intersections, all wrapped up in some of the cleanest graphics we’ve ever seen.
What else would you expect from the likes of Playground Games? What about a fully-playable Tokyo City that’s five times larger than any other Forza game could deliver? Well, good, because that’s what you’re getting. That’s on top of the 550-plus cars, which can be shown off in the player’s house when friends come around to visit.
FH6 builds on customisation with ‘The Estate’, a massive mountain valley area that players can design and tailor to their heart’s content — with friends, too, if they’d like. Forza Horizon 6 is slated to launch on 19 May 2026 for the Xbox Series X/S and PC, though PS5 owners will have to wait until their turn later in 2026.
Beast of Reincarnation proves Game Freak isn’t all about Pokémon
From the makers of Pokémon comes Beast of Reincarnation, a “one-person, one-dog action RPG” that follows Emma and Koo as they traverse a haunting, apocalyptic Japan in the throes of fending off “blight”. Emma, whose memories and emotions have been quashed by her Blight affliction, embarks to capture “malefacts” like Koo.
Beast of Reincarnation blends a seamless, fast-paced combat system (Emma) with slower combat techniques that feel pulled straight out of a turn-based RPG (Koo) — like slowing down time. The developer reckons the system adds a certain tactical flair, and from what we can see, we’d have to agree.
For once, Game Freak’s latest creation won’t be reserved for Nintendo fanboys. Beast of Reincarnation is coming to the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC in winter 2026.
Double Fine is Kiln it
This cutesy but brütal “pottery party brawler” from legendary developer Double Fine wipes clean the slop from the multiplayer party genre and replaces it with something wholly fresh. You’ll need a couple of friends at your side to get the most out of Kilni, which has you each building pots, only to send them out into an active warzone.
Kiln demands some Sam Wheat levels of skill in the pottery-building phase, for the size and shape of your finished creations directly affect their play styles and movement speeds. It’s a 4v4 team-based arena battler that’ll benefit from some team coordination as players attempt to smash the other team’s pots. Violently, if possible.
Kiln launches this autumn on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, though players can smoke some pots in the upcoming beta by signing up over here.
