Xbox is expected to make an appearance at this year’s The Game Awards.
As reported by Tech4Gamers, Jez Corden shared this statement when asked about it on his Xbox Two podcast:
“Yes, I pretty much know that Xbox is there.”
Jez also clarified that plans are always subject to change, so this should not be taken as confirmation that there will definitely be huge announcements from Microsoft at the awards. But it’s clearly a clear divergence from what Xbox fans expected, given the discourse over the past two weeks.
Since The Game Awards revealed their 2023 nominees, fans expressed their displeasure at the omissions and snubs for not even winning awards, but just getting nominated. Xbox fans were particularly unhappy that Starfield and Hi-Fi Rush did not receive such nominations.
Keeping that in mind, it is interesting to consider what Jez and his co-host Rand Al Thor 19 had to say about the show before this rumor dropped. As Jez puts it, he is done with the idea of The Game Awards as a “bastion of truth within the gaming industry. I suppose it was always ridiculous to think of it like that.”
Jez went on to say that he used to not care that much about the awards show, but after having to learn about it for work, he came to the conclusion that the group of games media selected to make nominations is not a “great pool of representation of opinions out there.”
Jez’s co-host Rand Al Thor 19 went even further, stating that “At the end of the day, it’s a marketing event.” As he put it, even the awards show itself has demonstrably given some awards off screen, because even they don’t value the actual awards being given.
What The Game Awards is for, for the game companies and the gamers alike, is to see the world premiers of the latest game trailers, for the big games coming up next year. It’s also certainly a celebration of the industry, but we can’t pretend that this isn’t what the show is about.
If we were honest, this was how some all-time classics like The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim and Red Dead Redemption were revealed to the world. The Game Awards’ role as a marketing tool for the big companies like Microsoft and Sony are very clearly well entrenched in the industry, and the game community of fans as well.
Maybe Phil and Sarah would have been happier if Microsoft would have gotten nominations for their games. But they may have the confidence of bringing up Xbox games they expect will get nominations and even awards in the future. Projects like South of Midnight and Clockwork Revolution certainly have the potential. Microsoft may get what they want from this awards show after all.
