Our top spot for generation number eight and one of the most important games in the Xbox One’s quest to deliver generational game-changers goes to Geralt’s swan song, The Witcher 3.
After the middling success of The Witcher 2 on home consoles, the team at CD Projekt Red went back to the drawing board for the trilogy finale. By changing to an open world, the Witcher 3 literally opened itself up to a world of possibilities and success.
As an open world western RPG, the easiest comparison to make is with Skyrim. But the games really are night and day different, not least in the way that Geralt performs. He mainly wields two swords: a steel sword for humans and a silver sword for monsters and creatures. Any healing potions take time to drink, and spells need to be prepared in advance.
Geralt is a Witcher – a monster hunter for hire. In the Wild Hunt he is spurred into action after the reappearance of Ciri, his lover Yennefer’s adopted daughter who disappeared to escape the Wild Hunt, who are a supernatural group of warriors.
But after that, what happens next is entirely down to you; The Witcher 3 features 36 different endings depending on character outcomes, though with an average playtime of around 100 hours, we doubt many people have gotten all 36, as good as this game is.
Then there are the expansions: Heart of Stone and Blood and Wine, widely regarded as some of the best pieces of DLC. There is a reason that The Witcher 3 is receiving next-gen updates next year for the Xbox Series X|S, such is the simply exceptional game that it is.
All that and I didn’t even mention Gwent!
And that is our list of some of the generational game-changers to be found on the Xbox One. These are just our personal top 10; in our league ranking the likes of DOOM 2016 just missed out, and Nier: Automata was closer still. We also considered the likes of Rise of the Tomb Raider, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and Killer Instinct which weren’t too far behind either.
Agree with us? Disagree with us? Let us know your top games in the comments and stay tuned for our coverage of the next-generation of games coming very soon!