Microsoft has told Xbox fans not to expect a CGI-fest when it comes to first-party games at its upcoming showcase.

Xbox marketing chief Aaron Greenberg said in a tweet (below): “None of our first party games in the show are full CG trailers. Everything is either in-game footage, in-engine footage, or in-game footage with some cinematics. Each of our trailers will be labelled so it is hopefully clear for our fans.”

Fans have criticized both Microsoft and Sony for showcase events that had little gameplay, such as the May PlayStation Showcase that mostly featured CG across its many reveal trailers.


None of our first party games in the show are full CG trailers. Everything is either in-game footage, in-engine footage, or in-game footage with some cinematics. Each of our trailers will be labeled so it is hopefully clear for our fans.
— Aaron Greenberg 🙅🏼*♂️💚U (@aarongreenberg) June 4, 2023


The Xbox Games Showcase and Starfield Direct will run for around two hours, Greenberg revealed, and feature video games only. “Can confirm there will be no movie or TV show trailers in our games show,” he added.

Greenberg also said Microsoft will not commit to a 12-month release deadline for games shown during its showcase. This is in contrast to the approach it took with last year’s event, in which Microsoft said all games shown would be playable within 12 months. That promise was broken, with Hollow Knight: Silksong perhaps the most high-profile casualty.

Xbox Games Showcase will be livestreamed on June 11 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm UK (so 3am AEST on June 12) and a Starfield Direct follows immediately after.

What should fans expect? With pressure on Microsoft to deliver following a string of high-profile failures, the likes of Obsidian’s Avowed and Ninja Theory’s Hellblade 2 will hopefully get their time to shine, while Playground's Fable has already been teased.