The Xbox brand is a big-time player in the video gaming industry. It’s a global juggernaut with mega sales and strong growth trends. The Xbox is part of a fantastic series of consoles, each one an improvement on its predecessor. From the Xbox 360 to the Xbox One, the Xbox Series X, and the Xbox Series S, there is plenty of fanfare around this industry leader. Launched by Microsoft in 2001, the gaming division features Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Network, and Xbox Cloud Gaming.
Estimates peg the number of Xbox users at 100M in 2024, while the gaming share of the market (Xbox console) sits at 96.87% in 2023. Regarding software sales, the total figure has surpassed $8.57 billion to date, and it is growing fast. In February 2024, the Xbox 360 was the highest-grossing video game console, with 85.73 million units sold and shipped to customers.
Over the past 20 years, eight games in particular have dominated the gaming scene on Xbox, including the following:
- Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic – released in July 2003 – 2.1 million units sold
- Need for Speed Underground 2 – released in November 2004 – 2.28 million units sold
- GTA3 and GTA Vice City Double Pack – released in October 2003 – 2.49 million units sold
- The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind – released in June 2002 – 2.86 million units sold
- Fable– released in September 2004 – 3 million units sold
- Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell – released in November 2002 – 3.02 million units sold
- Halo: Combat Evolved – released in 2001 – 5 million units sold
- Halo 2– released in November 2004 – 8.00 million units sold
*Source: Statista Statcdn.com
Based on the latest statistics from Microsoft, there are 11,925+ games available for Xbox consoles. That’s a truck load and some change. Now it’s time to focus our attention on the games that never made it to Xbox consoles, but should have!
Social Poker Games by Zynga
Granted, Xbox consoles feature a smorgasbord of poker-themed games, including Poker Club, Four Kings, Prominence Poker, Poker Mega Pack, Poker Hold’em: Jackpot Bundle, and other similar attractions. But they don’t have the ultra-realistic, multi-table tournaments of Zynga Poker. This glittering entertainment ensemble features mega-money prize pools and brand-new MTTs.
It’s a tour de force in gaming excellence. Anyone who has ever watched a Multitable Poker tournament on TV or experienced one in person knows how much excitement these games offer. For a relatively modest buy-in, players can compete for mega-money prizes. It’s all about who racks up the biggest chip stack after multiple rounds of play. And the Marquee MTT is the Trillionaire Maker – the premier event with a #1 prize valued at trillions of poker chips.
Teamfight Tactics
Riot Games Inc. delivers plenty of action-packed titles for players. TFT – Team Fight Tactics is one such attraction with a stellar rating from players. It ranks among the best-performing games, with 4.5/5 from 611,000 reviewers at the Google Play Store. With over ten million downloads to date, this Multiplayer PVP game is a strategy-based attraction. It features drafting, positioning, and fighting all the way to the top. There is an 8-way free-for-battle taking place, and
scores of team combinations are possible. You can implement any strategy you want, but only one strategy will get you to the winner’s podium. This is a mouse-based game, and it’s not ready for Xbox controls just yet.
Escape from Tarkov
This hard-core tactical FPS game features intense survival elements. It gained a huge following on PC, and it certainly has tremendous appeal with Xbox console players. Anyone who enjoys realistic shooter games like Rainbow Six Siege or PUBG will relish the opportunity to get this game in an Xbox-friendly version. Currently, the game is being showcased on PCs, with its beta version. It’s got some pretty challenging control options that may not easily be adapted to Xbox consoles.
Old School Runescape
Old School Runescape is iconic. This MMORPG game features a mega player base, and these gaming fans are loyal to a fault. It’s nostalgic, and it combines intricate game mechanics with pulse-pounding action. It could certainly find a brand-new audience on Xbox if given the chance. Currently, the game is styled for PC and mobile. The game developers have yet to make a decision regarding console-style compatibility.
Project Zomboid
Project Zomboid is an ambitious, action-packed game. It’s about zombie survival. Players can enjoy this world-class attraction alone or in a multiplayer format. As the action unfolds, you can fish, farm, craft, fight, build, or loot at your leisure. There are many in-game resources designed to ramp up the action, including an RPG skill set, an extensive map, and fully customizable sandbox features. Released in 2013, this game has partial Xbox controller support, so it’s going to be tough to port it to video game consoles. This appears to be too resource-intensive, and it’s simply not a priority for the development team at the moment.
And there you have it folks! An action-packed ensemble of entertainment that Xbox players don’t have access to just yet. Cheers for checking out these great games.
