Despite Bethesda saying it was confident Starfield would meet its release date, plans changed. There was apparently some concern about the game behind the scenes that prompted Bethesda to make the tough call to delay Starfield to 2023. However, Starfield wasn’t the only game that Bethesda delayed from 2022 to 2023. Redfall, a new IP from Arkane Studios, was also delayed to next year after originally planned for a summer 2022 launch.
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Redfall and Starfield being delayed to 2023 leaves 2022 with a big gap to fill. At this time, it’s unclear how Microsoft will fill that gap, if it has any plan at all. It’s possible that Microsoft has some surprise 2022 releases up its sleeve that it will announce at the upcoming Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase on June 12, but it’s perhaps just as likely that Xbox Game Pass subscribers will just have to make do with less content than expected this year.
Undoubtedly, losing Redfall and Starfield to 2023 is a bummer for Xbox Game Pass subscribers this year, but 2022’s loss is 2023’s gain. Redfall and Starfield being pushed to 2023 should go a long way in ensuring that next year is one of the biggest for the Xbox Game Pass subscription service to date because not only will those two games release for Game Pass next year, but so will the other games planned for next year, barring any delays.
As it stands, Microsoft’s plans for Xbox Game Pass in 2023 are not all that clear at this time, beyond Redfall and Starfield. However, the company has a number of projects in development that could all feasibly release next year, assuming they’re not secretly planned for 2022 releases instead. One of the most significant of these is Avowed from Obsidian Entertainment, which appears to be inspired by Bethesda’s own Elder Scrolls franchise. There’s also the new Forza Motorsport to look forward to, the Fable reboot, and rumblings of a Gears of War collection that fans should keep an eye out for in the months ahead.
So while Xbox Game Pass in 2022 looks to be lacking, the new Xbox Game Pass games for 2023 should be stacked, if all goes to plan.
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