Gaming Influence: Thoughts - Xbox Games Showcase 2025 | The Outer Worlds 2 & Grounded 2 Direct

Hello everyone,

Welcome to Gaming Influence, a reboot of the same name I created in WrestleCorp. However, I will not only be giving my thoughts on certain video games and video game series but also on video game movies, video game anime, video game digital presentations, etc.

For this edition of Gaming Influence, I'll share my thoughts on the Xbox Games Showcase, The Outer Worlds 2 & Grounded 2 Direct on June 8, 2025.

Before I start, not every game shown in this presentation will be discussed, as I will mainly talk about games that I care about and are interested in. If the games you care about and are interested in don't show up here, don't take it personally, have nothing against the games, but they're just not for me, or it's just that I don't have much to say about them except cool. However, if you're happy with the games that you care about and are interested in, I have nothing to say about it, good for you, and I'm happy for you.
Anyway, let's get started!

This Xbox Games Showcase, The Outer Worlds 2 & Grounded 2 Direct will cover games coming to Xbox, Xbox Game Pass, and PC in the future, so let's get to it!

The Outer Worlds 2 is an action role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Xbox Game Studios. It will be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 on October 29, 2025.

This game was showcased numerous times in past presentations, but it finally has a release date, and it continues to look great. The gameplay looks to be a lot of fun, and the story seems quite intriguing too. Will talk about more of this game once we get to The Outer Worlds 2 Direct, but looking forward to the full release of the game once it's released in four months.

High on Life 2 is a comedic first-person shooter developed and published by Squanch Games, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 this winter.

Oh wow, I didn't expect a new High on Life game, but this is great to see. I did enjoy the first one due to its comedy, despite not being a first-person shooter guy. Very cool that High on Life is getting a sequel, as this looks to continue from the first game as well and expand upon it. We'll see how this game turns out once it's released this winter.

Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is an action-adventure game developed by Asobo Studio and published by Focus Entertainment. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Oh wow, I didn't expect another game in the A Plague Tale series, but here we are. This game looks to be a prequel to A Plague Tale: Requiem, as we're looking into the origin story of Sophia, which should be quite interesting. Very curious to see more of this game in the future once it's released next year.

The Blood of Dawnwalker is a dark fantasy action role-playing game developed by Rebel Wolves and published by Bandai Namco. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Oh wow, didn't expect a game like this to be published by Bandai Namco, but it's looking great. It definitely has that dark fantasy to it, especially the atmosphere, and the combat looks to be quite fun in terms of the action aspects. Curious to see more of this game, and we'll see how it'll turn out once it's released next year.

Super Meat Boy 3D is a platformer developed by Sluggerfly and Team Meat and published by Headup. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in early 2026.

Wow, didn't expect a new Super Meat Boy game, here we are! Plus, it's in 3D too, which is a huge surprise, and it looks great. As expected, the courses and challenges in this game are going to be a pain, but I expect that when it comes to Super Meat Boy. Either way, looking forward to this game and hope to see more of it once it's released early next year.

Ninja Gaiden 4 is an action-adventure game developed by Team Ninja and PlatinumGames and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 on October 21, 2025.

We've seen this game back at the Xbox Developer Direct earlier this year in January, but now, we have a release date for the game, and it's coming sooner than expected. I'm still surprised to see that we got ourselves a new Ninja Gaiden game after so long, but I'm here for it as it continues to look awesome in terms of graphics and gameplay. Looking forward to playing this game myself once it's released in four months.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: The Order of Giants is DLC for the action-adventure game developed by MachineGames and published by Bethesda, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle. The DLC is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 on September 4, 2025.

Dang, didn't expect DLC this soon for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, but here we are, and it looks great. This game was a great surprise last year, and I'm very curious to see how this story DLC will play out in the game. I guess we'll find out soon enough when the DLC of the game releases in three months.

Beast of Reincarnation is an expansive one-person, one-dog action role-playing game developed by Game Freak and published by Fictions. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Holy crap! Game Freak is making an action RPG that looks realistic and different from their usual games?! What?! This game actually looks insane. Yes, Game Freak does develop games outside of Pokémon, but I have never seen them develop a game on this scale before, which caught me off guard. The story seems interesting too, with a sick-looking combat. Hope to see more of this game in the future once it's released next year.

Clockwork Revolution is an action role-playing game developed by InXile Entertainment and published by Xbox Game Studios. It will be released on Xbox Series X and PC in the future.

It's been two years since we last saw anything of this game, but great to see the progress it has made since then, as it continues to look great. They made the story more interesting, and the gameplay mechanics of it, including time, will make this game a fun experience overall. Very curious to see more of this game, and we'll see how it turns out once the game is done with development.

Grounded 2 is a survival action-adventure game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and Eidos-Montréal and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X and PC on July 29, 2025.

Wait, what, we're getting another Grounded game?! That's insane! Didn't see this coming at all, especially when Outer Worlds 2 is coming out in four months and this game is coming out sooner. Wild! This game looks to expand upon the first game, and I'm very curious to see how this game will turn out. We won't have to wait long as it'll be released next month.

Aphelion is a narrative-driven sci-fi adventure game developed and published by DON'T NOD, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Okay, this is a game that I didn't expect here, but it looks quite interesting for sure. Love the environment that the player is in, and the adventure seems to be quite fun as well. The narrative of this game is quite intriguing. Hope to see more of this game in the future once it's released next year.

There Are No Ghosts at the Grand is a supernatural mystery game developed and published by Friday Sundae, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X and PC in 2026.

This is another game that caught me off by surprise as I didn't expect anything like it, but it caught my interest for sure. This looks to be a mystery game, solving what happened to the protagonist's father on what he was trying to do before the protagonist took action. I'm curious to see how this game will turn out and hope to see more once it's released next year.

Age of Mythology: Retold - Heavenly Spear is DLC for the strategy game developed by World's Edge and published by Xbox Game Studios, Age of Mythology: Retold. The DLC is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in Fall 2025.

It looks like this game is getting DLC, and it's looking pretty good. This new campaign they added which takes place in Japan with magic, is so cool. I'm very curious to see how this DLC will turn out and hope to see more of it once it's released this fall.

MUDANG: Two Hearts is a narrative-driven, third-person action-adventure game developed and published by EVR Studio, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Another game that took me off by surprise, as this is a game developed by a South Korean game studio, which is quite cool. The story seems very interesting, and the combat looks to be fun as well. Hope to see more of this game in the future once it's released next year.

Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf is a cinematic puzzle adventure game developed by Wishfully and published by Thunderful Publishing. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, Xbox One, PS5, PS5, and Switch in 2026.

Wait what?! We're getting another Planet of Lana game?! Awesome! Really enjoyed the first game, as you may think it might be a cozy game, but it can get dark and really intense as well. It looks like the sequel of this game is going to continue that, and I'm super hyped about it. Looking forward to seeing how this game will turn out once it's released next year.

Solo Leveling: ARISE OVERDRIVE is an action role-playing game developed and published by Netmarble, where the game is set to be released on PC this fall and Xbox Series X in 2026.

Okay, cool to see another Solo Leveling game as this looks quite fun. Really love the manhwa, and I'm happy that more people can experience and see the greatness of the series, whether by the manhwa or anime. Very curious to see how this game will turn out and hope to see more once it's released this fall on PC and Xbox next year.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 is a collection of skateboarding games developed by Iron Galaxy and published by Activision. The collection is set to be released on Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, Switch 2, and Switch on July 11, 2025.

We've known about this game for a while, but great to see it again, as always, with some new content that we never even saw before either. Adding Michelangelo from Teenage Mutant Turtles and Doom Slayer from DOOM is awesome. The game also has a demo too which is nice. Looking forward to replaying the collection again once it's released next month.

At Fate's End is an action-adventure game developed and published by Thunder Lotus, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Oh wow, didn't expect the developers of Spiritfarer to make another game, but from the looks of it, I love it. It has that art style that Spiritfarer which I like, and the combat looks to be a lot of fun as well. A lot of choices to be made within the story, too, which I'm quite curious about how that will turn out. Hope to see more of this game in the future once it's released next year.

Gears of War: Reloaded is a third-person shooter developed by The Coalition and Sumo Digital and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 on August 26, 2025.

Wow, they're remastering Gears of War again for a new generation of players, and that's awesome. What's even crazier is that this game is coming to PlayStation as well, which is huge as it's a big Xbox IP. Times have changed since then, but glad to see more players getting to experience the first Gears of War, and I'm curious about how this remaster does once it's released in two months.

Persona 4 Revival is a role-playing game developed and published by Atlus, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in the future.

Oh my god, the rumors were true! We're getting a remake of Persona 4! Heck yes! Granted, I wanted Persona 6, but wouldn't mind a remake of Persona 4, so that's awesome. It looks like it'll be a while until it's released, but looking forward to re-experiencing this game again in HD and hope to see more of it in the future.

Invincible VS is a fighting game developed by Quarter Up and published by Skybound Games. The game is set to be released on Xbox Series X, PC, and PS5 in 2026.

Wait, we're getting a fighting game based on Invincible?! What?! Didn't expect that, but it does look like a lot of fun, and I do enjoy the Invincible comics and cartoons, so this is cool. I love how they made this game very violent in terms of blood and gore, which is insane. Very curious to see how this game will turn out and hope to see more once it's released next year.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X this winter.

I had a feeling that this game would come to Xbox, and I'm glad that it is, as this is a game that more players need to experience. For those who love the original Final Fantasy VII, give this game a chance as it's awesome, which doesn't replace the original game at all. I'm very curious to see how this game will do on Xbox, and we'll find out soon once it's released this winter.

Final Fantasy XVI is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix, where the game is available now on Xbox Series X.

Another game that I expect to come to Xbox, and I'm glad that it's here, as it's another game that deserves to be played by other players. Not only that, it's out now too, which is a huge surprise. For those who are interested and love the Final Fantasy series, give this game a try; you won't regret it.

Keeper is an adventure role-playing game developed and published by nextProgram, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X and PC on October 17, 2025.

This is another game that caught my interest, as it seems quite interesting as well. It looks like you play as a tower, and you fight against other enemies to make sure that the tower is still intact. This game has my interest, and I hope to see more of it in the future as it'll be released in four months.

 

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is a first-person shooter developed by Treyarch and Raven Software and published by Activision, where the game is set to be released on Xbox Series X and PC in the future.

Despite not being a huge fan of the series, I can't deny that the trailer was pretty cool, and I didn't expect that type of trailer for a Call of Duty game. In addition, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 just released last year, too, so seeing another game from this series that quickly is insane. However, there's no definite release date for this game yet, so we'll see when this game will release and we'll probably see more of it soon in the future.

With this game coming out in four months, did Xbox do enough to convince hardcore and casual gaming fans to be interested in it? Let's find out and discuss what they've shown.

The presentation started off with an introduction of the studio that developed The Outer Worlds 2, Obsidian Entertainment. They talked about how they were excited about making a sequel to The Outer Worlds, as they look to make it bigger and more expansive than the first game. As always, it's nice to see Xbox showcasing their developers and their thought process of making the games. Really enjoyed that as it's always something great to see.

They then discuss the choice and reactivity of the game. There are a lot of choices in this game. Backgrounds are back with fewer options, but more in-depth, as it gives a history of what your character does in the game and what their specialty is. Traits return with both positive and negative traits, which gives your character personality when speaking to other characters in the game, as well as the environment around you. Perks also made a return, where there are fewer of them compared to the first game, but they're more in-depth, as they can give you special bonuses when done correctly. There are also flaws which has a bonus, but also a setback when using them as well. It's very cool that they have the features of what made the first game special in the first place in this sequel, but more expansive and creative. Really enjoyed that a lot, and we'll see how it changes gameplay from there.

Next, they talked about The Bridge. The Bridge is a quest that starts at the beginning of the game, where it gives players a good demonstration of how they build their character. The main objective of the quest is to get to the other side of the bridge without dying, and the ways that players can do that are massive, depending on what they decide to do. This is a very interesting way to showcase what players can do once they start the game, and gives a great idea of what the rest of the game will be like. Very curious to see what this quest will be like once we start the game.

After that, they discuss factions and companions in the game. There are three different types of factions that players can pick in the game, and each faction has its own philosophy on what they say and their actions, which will affect the story of how the game will go. In addition, there are six companions that players can choose from that can help the player in the game, and depending on how well you treat them can affect how the game ends. It looks like another part of what makes the game special is back with the factions and companions, as the types of options they have look to be quite fun. We'll see how that aspect will turn out throughout the game. 

Next, they discuss the art and propaganda of the game. Despite the art being the same as the first game, the atmosphere has changed as it looks to be a warzone full of propaganda. They made the world in this game more immersive as it feels like players are in a warzone when factions are going against each other as they try to build their own buildings and towns where they live. With the world being more expansive, players can collect a ton of items in many different ways. The graphics continue to look great, but the change of atmosphere in this game is definitely from the first, which is a nice change of pace. Very curious about how the world will build as you play through the game.

Finally, they talked about weapons and gunplay. There are a lot of different weapons that players can use as well, and the gunplay has been expanded upon from the first game. There are a lot of returning weapons as well as new ones that players can experience, which include science weapons as they make a return. Players can play how they want in terms of gunplay, which makes the experiences for each player different. Really love the fact that there are so many options to use when it comes to combat, especially involving shrinking opponents and squashing them. Very curious to see how that will turn out, as it should be a fun experience to go through.

With this game coming out next month, did Xbox do enough to convince hardcore and casual gaming fans to be interested in it? Let's find out and discuss what they've shown.

We start off the presentation with the developers of the game as they discuss how they were excited to make a sequel to this game, where they didn't have a chance to do so before with the first game. In addition, they decided to work with Eidos-Montréal for the sequel to expand upon the world. As usual, great to see the developers showing excitement for the game that they develop, and cool to see Obsidian Entertainment working with Eidos-Montréal to expand on the world of Grounded to make it bigger.

Next, developers of Eidos-Montréal talked about how they were excited to work with Obsidian Entertainment to expand the world of Grounded. The developers of Obsidian Entertainment then gave a timeline of when the story takes place in Grounded 2, which takes place two years after the first game, as the protagonists are looking to grow and develop. They mentioned that they added a park to increase the world of Grounded by three. They mentioned that they added new areas within the park for players to explore and discover when playing the game. They really did expand the world of Grounded with the sequel by adding a park, which should be very interesting to see how that will turn out. Great to see that they're continuing the expansion of the Grounded world, which should be fun to play.

After that, they talked about the enemies that were made for the game, where a lot of them returned with visual upgrades, and some enemies had different abilities, along with new enemies. They also expanded the gameplay for Grounded 2 by having three different methods of fighting, including light attacks, heavy attacks, and blocking. Plus, they added a new mechanic that features dashing, where players can dodge attacks from enemies. Mutations and archetypes return in Grounded 2, where they're more expanded upon compared to the first game. Mutations are skills that players can use and increase throughout the game, while archetypes are job classes that players can choose for special abilities. Awesome to see that this game will expand the gameplay aspect, especially adding dashing, which will change a lot in terms of gameplay. I'm very curious to see how that will turn out when playing the game.

Next, they discuss the use of mounts or buggies, which are spiders that players can ride on as well as fight with. These mounts/buggies have their own special abilities that can help the player go through certain obstacles or battle certain enemies. There will be more types of mounts/buggies that players can choose and pick, but it'll start with two in the beginning, with more coming in as DLC in the future. This is an awesome new feature that they added to this game, which should be a lot of fun to ride on these mounts/buggies, as well as using them to help fight alongside you. 

Finally, they thanked the fans for all their support, as they wouldn't have been able to create this game without it. They also mentioned that they have plans for updates and a road map for those updates, so players can expect to know what's coming and what they're looking for, too. Very awesome to see that this game will be supported for a while, with the road map of updates coming to the game. Hope this turns out well for them in the long run.

Overall, this was a great presentation from Xbox. Xbox did a great job in advertising their first-party games to the system, which they also did last year, which was great to see. Plus, the reveal of their new handheld device with the Xbox Ally is awesome, having two different versions, the Xbox Ally and the Xbox Ally X (a more storage-capable handheld Xbox Ally). Though I can't believe they just announced that Hollow Knight: Silksong will launch the same day as Xbox Ally this holiday, as I wished they would give it more of a spotlight, it is what it is. In addition, both The Outer Worlds 2 and Grounded 2 Direct were great as they showcased more of the game as well as gave in-depth details on those games and why we should be excited about them. They sold me on the games there, so they did their job. Even though I do still have my issues with Xbox, I can't deny that this presentation was great, and we'll see what else they have in store for us in the future.

You can catch the whole presentation of the Xbox Games Showcase; The Outer Worlds 2 & Grounded 2 Direct yourself with the link below:

What are your thoughts on this Xbox Games Showcase, The Outer Worlds 2 & Grounded 2 Direct?

What were your highlights, and what games do you really want?

Let me know in the comments below, and thank you for reading.