One Xbox Developer Direct 2025 Mystery Game Rumor Offers Big Possibilities

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Beginning from the year 2023, Xbox has been annually hosting a video game livestream event called Developer Direct in January. Unlike its competitors such as PlayStation State of Play and Nintendo Direct which present numerous trailers, the Developer Direct concentrates on a select few upcoming games, providing each with a detailed exploration. The forthcoming Developer Direct, scheduled for January 23, will adhere to this pattern. This event promises an in-depth preview of games like “Doom: The Dark Ages”, “South of Midnight”, and “Clair Obscur: Expedition 33”, along with another unannounced game.

In an Xbox blog post, Microsoft announced that the 2025 Developer Direct event would lead viewers to an unanticipated location where they’d get a sneak peek at a fresh game from another studio. The company didn’t disclose many details about the secret project, but trusted source Jez Corden hinted in his latest article that it could be a new installment of a well-known Japanese franchise with deep roots. It’s challenging to pinpoint the specific title based solely on this vague description, however, there are several notable games that fit the bill.

What is the Rumored Japanese Game at the Xbox Developer Direct?

Ninja Gaiden 4

It’s possible that one contender for the fourth game unveiled during Xbox Developer Direct could be “Ninja Gaiden 4”. However, this might seem far-fetched to those unfamiliar with the situation. You see, it’s been over a decade since a primary “Ninja Gaiden” game has been released. While the series hasn’t been officially declared extinct (a 2D spinoff titled “Ninja Gaiden Ragebound” was recently announced at The Game Awards), there’s no concrete evidence suggesting that a fourth installment in the main series is underway. The development team, Koei Tecmo-owned Team Ninja, has been engrossed with other tasks as of late and appears to lack the time to work on a new “Ninja Gaiden” game.

Although Team Ninja isn’t developing Ninja Gaiden 4, it doesn’t automatically rule out the possibility that another Koei Tecmo subsidiary could be working on it. In fact, Koei Tecmo recently launched a new AAA studio to boost its game production rate. While we don’t know exactly what this studio is developing, a developer at the company hinted in an interview with 4Gamer.net that the project should come out by 2025. Given that Developer Directs usually unveil games set for release within the next year, it seems plausible that Koei Tecmo’s new project will be announced at this event, but it might not necessarily be Ninja Gaiden 4.

Persona 6

Instead of implying that the upcoming mystery game from Developer Direct might be a Koei Tecmo title, it could very well turn out to be the long-awaited _Persona 6_. Given Atlus’ history of collaborating with Microsoft to premiere significant releases on various platforms, it wouldn’t be unexpected if they decided to discuss their next big project at Developer Direct. Even though _Persona 6_ might not debut there, we can anticipate that Atlus will have to share some news about it since their current release calendar is looking rather sparse.

Final Fantasy 9 Remake

As a passionate gamer, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the long-whispered remake of “Final Fantasy 9” might finally make its debut at Xbox’s upcoming event. It’s tough to predict how near or far this potential game is from hitting the shelves, but if it does surface, it would certainly send a strong message about Square Enix’s renewed dedication to the Xbox gaming universe, a platform they’ve previously overlooked. And who knows? With all the buzz surrounding it, we might just hear about “FF16” and “FF7 Remake” making their way onto Xbox platforms as well, if the remake of “FF9” does indeed appear at the Developer Direct.

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2025-01-15 15:07