{"id":2157726,"date":"2026-09-22T17:25:08","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T14:25:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2157726"},"modified":"2026-09-22T17:25:08","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T14:25:08","slug":"sea-of-thieves-fans-fear-for-rares-future-as-studio-gets-put-under-activision-following-xbox-reset","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2157726","title":{"rendered":"Sea of Thieves Fans Fear for Rare&#8217;s Future as Studio Gets Put Under Activision Following Xbox Reset"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-cy=\"article-content\" class=\"jsx-3246540067 article-content page-0\">\n<section data-cy=\"article-subtitle\" class=\"article jsx-3932497636 article-section jsx-2044616299 news\" data-autopogo=\"true\">\n<section class=\"article-page\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/games\/sea-of-thieves\">Sea of Thieves<\/a> fans are concerned for Rare&#8217;s future, as the studio has been consolidated under Activision as part of Xbox&#8217;s latest reset.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Earlier today, Microsoft announced drastic changes for Xbox&#8217;s first-party studios, including layoffs and consolidation. Activision is taking over a lot of different responsibilities at Xbox going forward, <a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/confirmed-microsoft-hands-halo-to-call-of-duty-developer-activision-as-part-of-huge-xbox-studios-shakeup\">including leading the charge on the next Halo game<\/a>. Sea of Thieves developer Rare has also been put under Activision&#8217;s umbrella, leading many to wonder what the future of that team will look like. In the past, Activision has swallowed up beloved teams like Neversoft and put them on Call of Duty to make maps and support the development of the FPS franchise.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">&#8220;Well, if the years of watching how Activision does things is any indication, then we can expect one thing in the future: Rare as a CoD support team in the CoD mines like every other studio Activision touches,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Seaofthieves\/comments\/1wnb3so\/comment\/pbdh4cq\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">said a fan<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">The 100 Best Xbox Games of All Time<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"What is an Xbox? Microsoft has spent 25 years trying to answer the question, but for fans, the answer is easy: \u201cXbox\u201d evokes one-eared headsets wired into the memory card slots of massive controllers with breakaway cords. A dashboard with gleaming skeuomorphic blades and avatars adorned in earned accessories. That sound that plays when a hard-earned Achievement finally pops. \u201cXbox\u201d means heavy-duty hardware. Tactile sensations. Friends connecting for the first time. And that\u2019s before we even get to the games.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\n\nIt may be that the very idea of an Xbox game is coming to an end. Microsoft has undeniably shifted its tactics, with a new focus on multi-platform releases, handheld Xboxes that are actually miniature Windows computers, and the potential that future Xbox consoles may simply be gaming PCs. So now seems as good a time as any to look back at the entire history of Microsoft\u2019s console journey and rank the best Xbox games, with help from our friends at Outside Xbox, the multimillion-subscriber channel that serves up weekly videos about video games and video game-adjacent things&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\n\nWhen we say \u201cthe best Xbox games,\u201d we mean the ones that most evoke that weighty sense of \u201cXboxness.\u201d Some are first-party, most are exclusives, and all of them are indelibly tied to the legacy of and fondness for a platform that\u2019s left a massive mark on gaming. These are the 100 Best Xbox Games of All Time. We&apos;ll be updating this list daily with 25 games at 7am PST\/10am ET\/3pm GMT from Tuesday, 20th January to Friday, 23rd January, until number one is revealed.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--primary jsx-3027214138 jsx-4266531355 row-pagination-button next contained centered round large\" data-cy=\"paginate next\" title=\"Open Slideshow\"><span class=\"ign-icon right-chevron jsx-2750866048 jsx-2919720488\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"right-chevron\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/RightChevron.272be43c.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-list\" class=\"scrollbar jsx-2072772685 jsx-4243969252 images-list\"><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;100. 1 vs. 100&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nA large-scale, online multiplayer game show, played in real-time by actual players who could win actual prizes? It was a bold idea, and Microsoft&apos;s 1 vs. 100 actually did it. Adapted from the TV show of the same name, players were randomly dropped into one of three pools whenever the show went live: the Crowd, the Mob, and the One, with the One competing against the Mob in trivia rounds where reaction times were just as important an ingredient to victory as the correct answer to the question being asked. Prizes ranged from 80 Microsoft Points ($1) to a free Xbox Live Arcade game, to 10,000 Microsoft Points ($125). 1 vs. 100 was a true social and technical experiment in the world of gaming, and here&apos;s the thing: it worked! Sadly, it was canceled after two &quot;seasons&quot; and can&apos;t be played now, but it lives on in the memory as one of the best and most innovative Xbox games ever made.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"rounded jsx-412047461 overlay progressive-image jsx-2338608387 expand\" data-cy=\"slideshow-image-overlay\">\n<div data-cy=\"element-caption\" class=\"caption jsx-1762799490\">View 101 Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;99. Conker: Live and Reloaded&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nWhen Microsoft acquired Nintendo&apos;s second-party darling Rare for $375 million, the possibilities were endless. One of the first games Xbox got from the British studio was Conker: Live and Reloaded, a remake of N64&apos;s Conker&apos;s Bad Fur Day that added online multiplayer. And while that competitive play was quite fun, thanks in part to the juxtaposition of over-the-top violence and adorable characters on screen, it was the technological level-up from the N64 original that was truly stunning. The action-platformer was now &quot;fur-shaded,&quot; giving the manes of Conker and his buddies a unique &quot;next-gen&quot; new look. Ironically, Live and Reloaded was actually more heavily censored than Bad Fur Day, but both campaign and multiplayer were nevertheless a great way to introduce Rare to its new Xbox player base.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;98. Top Spin&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nBelieve it or not, there was a time when EA didn&apos;t support Xbox Live. And so Microsoft started building its own sports games that would take advantage of its online service, and of those titles, Top Spin was by far the best. It was a tennis sim featuring a career mode full of real-life pros, but what made Top Spin memorable \u2013 in addition to its core gameplay being so pitch-perfect, of course \u2013 was its online play. You&apos;d create your character, build them up, and take them online, pitting yourself against other players in ranked matches that, if you won, would move you further up the global rankings. It all worked perfectly (and even tied in XSN, if you remember that little experiment), and made Top Spin the best tennis game the Xbox has ever been served up.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;97. Binary Domain&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nThe Xbox 360 was a treasure chest full of those \u201c7 out of 10s\u201d that you just couldn\u2019t put down; those rough-around-the-edges cult classics that kept us more than entertained for a weekend before we moved on to the next. Binary Domain is a perfect example \u2013 a third-person shooter from Yakuza developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, this sci-fi story didn\u2019t play too differently from established cover shooters such as Gears of War, but came with its own unique quirks. Direct control of your squadmates was chief among these, with the ability to command them in six different languages via a headset or the Kinect sensor, a fun little gimmick that took advantage of the Xbox\u2019s ultimately doomed experiment with its camera peripheral. Binary Domain may have never fully reached the heights of its lofty ambitions, but it still finds a place in our hearts.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;96. Steel Battalion&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nThe original Xbox was a maximalist, brutalist brick of post-Y2K design and Steel Battalion is the purest expression of its commitment to inconvenience. The Capcom-developed mech game is arguably nothing special by itself, but the humongous HOTAS horror with which it came bundled has earned it Xbox immortality. Weighing in at a whopping 17 pounds, boasting three panels, three foot pedals, and industrial-grade divorced dad energy, Steel Battalion is the video game equivalent of \u201crolling coal:\u201d an excessive, magnificent, indulgent peripheral that cost $200 in 2002 money. Xbox is a burly, hefty console that demands a burly, hefty experience, and Steel Battalion more than fits the bill.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Some players are hopeful that Rare may have the chance to do something that it is more suited for, such as developing a new Crash Bandicoot game or Banjo-Kazooie, given the studio&#8217;s history of making platformers. Nothing has been explicitly outlined for Rare&#8217;s future, though, which has given fans some pause. <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Activision has been heavily criticized for over-monetizing its games, <a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/activision-responds-to-complaints-of-ai-generated-assets-in-call-of-duty-black-ops-7\">using generative AI<\/a>, and oversaturating franchises like Call of Duty to the point that fans began to lose interest, leading some to worry that the same may happen for Sea of Thieves, too.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">&#8220;Can&#8217;t see this being a good thing, if the way Activision has handled COD is anything to go by,&#8221; said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Seaofthieves\/comments\/1wnb3so\/comment\/pbdfvkq\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">another fan on Reddit<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"jsx-2896921488 video jsx-2008855984 aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9\">\n<div class=\"badge jsx-1349606671 jsx-3647116352\"><span class=\"ign-icon icon-play jsx-2750866048 jsx-1044454891\" role=\"img\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-cy=\"icon-play\" aria-label=\"Play\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Play.59e5540b.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">&#8220;This doesn\u2019t bode well. I\u2019m a lifelong Call of Duty fan, and Activision is probably one of, if not the worst, companies in gaming. Everything they touch withers and dies. Mass layoffs, AI, crazy microtransactions, and all sorts of bullshittery will be commencing in the near future based on their track record,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Seaofthieves\/comments\/1wnb3so\/comment\/pbdrtml\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">stated another concerned player.<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">It will likely take a few years before we can truly measure what kind of impact these changes have. Rare has been in a weird spot for a number of years, so some fans are at least thankful that the studio wasn&#8217;t outright shuttered or sold off like other Xbox-owned studios. After thriving in the &#8217;90s and 2000s, Rare was put on Kinect duty by Microsoft in the early 2010s, leading some to believe that this was a misuse of the studio&#8217;s time and talents.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Eventually, they developed the highly-popular Sea of Thieves, but outside of that, Rare hasn&#8217;t produced much of substance. It spent a decade working on another game known as Everwild, <a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/rares-everwild-reportedly-canceled-as-microsoft-layoffs-sweep-across-xbox\">which was canceled last year<\/a>. The project struggled to make progress, and as a result, the public didn&#8217;t see or hear about much of it. It may play a role in whether Rare is given the opportunity to develop its own games going forward or if the team becomes a support studio for Call of Duty and Halo.<\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"accent-divider\" class=\"jsx-3449795453 divider jsx-2786329600\"><\/div>\n<section class=\"author-sign-off\" data-cy=\"author-sign-off\"><span class=\"stack jsx-59817748 jsx-1927875859\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"rounded jsx-444076027 jsx-4218469134 profile-thumb jsx-2141281959 aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-1-1\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cade Onder Avatar\" class=\"progressive-image profile-thumb-img jsx-249361588 jsx-2338608387 expand\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets-prd.ignimgs.com\/avatars\/69efa48a05b5ac001d9134e5\/Cade_PFP-1777388827678.jpg?crop=1%3A1&amp;width=56&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=80\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"stack jsx-2509706801 jsx-3630940851\"><span class=\"stack jsx-2959124702 jsx-702910195 author-sign-off-header\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/person\/cadeonder\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"interface jsx-1132626198 jsx-2809511915 bold underlined\">Cade Onder<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"caption\" class=\"caption jsx-1762799490 muted\">Freelance Writer<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"stack jsx-2509706801 jsx-1220387432\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"author-sign-off-socials\" class=\"jsx-2877214176 author-sign-off-socials\"><button type=\"button\" aria-haspopup=\"listbox\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-label=\"View social links\" class=\"jsx-2877214176 socials-trigger\"><span title=\"X\" class=\"jsx-2877214176 social-icon-avatar\"><span class=\"ign-icon jsx-2877214176 jsx-2750866048 jsx-2788214270\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"jsx-2877214176\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Twitter.d0b97af5.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<div role=\"listbox\" class=\"scrollbar jsx-2772765485 jsx-4243969252 jsx-3705869475 dropdown-menu jsx-3625955085\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.twitter.com\/@Cade_Onder\" id=\"author-sign-off-social-twitterHandle\" class=\"menu-item jsx-3565735818 jsx-3927327418\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"caption\" class=\"caption jsx-1762799490 menu-item-text\" data-text=\"X\">X<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"ign-icon icon-twitter jsx-2750866048 jsx-3701596282\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"icon-twitter\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Twitter.d0b97af5.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"interface jsx-1132626198 sign-off-text\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><em>Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN&#8217;s news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/span><\/section>\n<\/section>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"jsx-2511205168 preferred-source\"><strong class=\"jsx-2511205168\">Get IGN&#8217;s Biggest Stories FIRST. Set Us as Your Source.<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.ign.com\" class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--secondary jsx-3027214138 icon-button contained centered large\" title=\"Add Source\" aria-label=\"Add Source\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"ign-icon icon-google jsx-2750866048 jsx-3701596282\" role=\"img\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-cy=\"icon-google\" alt=\"Google\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Google.9e99a9d7.svg?cors=0\"><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 large\">Add Source<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"stack jsx-1475529924\"><\/span><\/div>\n<section class=\"article-page\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/games\/sea-of-thieves\">Sea of Thieves<\/a> fans are concerned for Rare&#8217;s future, as the studio has been consolidated under Activision as part of Xbox&#8217;s latest reset.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Earlier today, Microsoft announced drastic changes for Xbox&#8217;s first-party studios, including layoffs and consolidation. Activision is taking over a lot of different responsibilities at Xbox going forward, <a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/confirmed-microsoft-hands-halo-to-call-of-duty-developer-activision-as-part-of-huge-xbox-studios-shakeup\">including leading the charge on the next Halo game<\/a>. Sea of Thieves developer Rare has also been put under Activision&#8217;s umbrella, leading many to wonder what the future of that team will look like. In the past, Activision has swallowed up beloved teams like Neversoft and put them on Call of Duty to make maps and support the development of the FPS franchise.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">&#8220;Well, if the years of watching how Activision does things is any indication, then we can expect one thing in the future: Rare as a CoD support team in the CoD mines like every other studio Activision touches,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Seaofthieves\/comments\/1wnb3so\/comment\/pbdh4cq\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">said a fan<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span data-cy=\"slideshow-view-trigger\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-preview\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 slideshow-preview\">\n<h3 class=\"title5 jsx-62124236 jsx-1085005187\" data-cy=\"slideshow-preview-title\">The 100 Best Xbox Games of All Time<\/h3>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-container\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 images-container\"><button type=\"button\" data-cy=\"hero-image\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 hero-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"What is an Xbox? Microsoft has spent 25 years trying to answer the question, but for fans, the answer is easy: \u201cXbox\u201d evokes one-eared headsets wired into the memory card slots of massive controllers with breakaway cords. A dashboard with gleaming skeuomorphic blades and avatars adorned in earned accessories. That sound that plays when a hard-earned Achievement finally pops. \u201cXbox\u201d means heavy-duty hardware. Tactile sensations. Friends connecting for the first time. And that\u2019s before we even get to the games.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\n\nIt may be that the very idea of an Xbox game is coming to an end. Microsoft has undeniably shifted its tactics, with a new focus on multi-platform releases, handheld Xboxes that are actually miniature Windows computers, and the potential that future Xbox consoles may simply be gaming PCs. So now seems as good a time as any to look back at the entire history of Microsoft\u2019s console journey and rank the best Xbox games, with help from our friends at Outside Xbox, the multimillion-subscriber channel that serves up weekly videos about video games and video game-adjacent things&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\n\nWhen we say \u201cthe best Xbox games,\u201d we mean the ones that most evoke that weighty sense of \u201cXboxness.\u201d Some are first-party, most are exclusives, and all of them are indelibly tied to the legacy of and fondness for a platform that\u2019s left a massive mark on gaming. These are the 100 Best Xbox Games of All Time. We&apos;ll be updating this list daily with 25 games at 7am PST\/10am ET\/3pm GMT from Tuesday, 20th January to Friday, 23rd January, until number one is revealed.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><span class=\"button-text jsx-729543028 button button--primary jsx-3027214138 jsx-4266531355 row-pagination-button next contained centered round large\" data-cy=\"paginate next\" title=\"Open Slideshow\"><span class=\"ign-icon right-chevron jsx-2750866048 jsx-2919720488\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"right-chevron\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/RightChevron.272be43c.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"slideshow-images-list\" class=\"scrollbar jsx-2072772685 jsx-4243969252 images-list\"><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;100. 1 vs. 100&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nA large-scale, online multiplayer game show, played in real-time by actual players who could win actual prizes? It was a bold idea, and Microsoft&apos;s 1 vs. 100 actually did it. Adapted from the TV show of the same name, players were randomly dropped into one of three pools whenever the show went live: the Crowd, the Mob, and the One, with the One competing against the Mob in trivia rounds where reaction times were just as important an ingredient to victory as the correct answer to the question being asked. Prizes ranged from 80 Microsoft Points ($1) to a free Xbox Live Arcade game, to 10,000 Microsoft Points ($125). 1 vs. 100 was a true social and technical experiment in the world of gaming, and here&apos;s the thing: it worked! Sadly, it was canceled after two &quot;seasons&quot; and can&apos;t be played now, but it lives on in the memory as one of the best and most innovative Xbox games ever made.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"rounded jsx-412047461 overlay progressive-image jsx-2338608387 expand\" data-cy=\"slideshow-image-overlay\">\n<div data-cy=\"element-caption\" class=\"caption jsx-1762799490\">View 101 Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;99. Conker: Live and Reloaded&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nWhen Microsoft acquired Nintendo&apos;s second-party darling Rare for $375 million, the possibilities were endless. One of the first games Xbox got from the British studio was Conker: Live and Reloaded, a remake of N64&apos;s Conker&apos;s Bad Fur Day that added online multiplayer. And while that competitive play was quite fun, thanks in part to the juxtaposition of over-the-top violence and adorable characters on screen, it was the technological level-up from the N64 original that was truly stunning. The action-platformer was now &quot;fur-shaded,&quot; giving the manes of Conker and his buddies a unique &quot;next-gen&quot; new look. Ironically, Live and Reloaded was actually more heavily censored than Bad Fur Day, but both campaign and multiplayer were nevertheless a great way to introduce Rare to its new Xbox player base.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;98. Top Spin&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nBelieve it or not, there was a time when EA didn&apos;t support Xbox Live. And so Microsoft started building its own sports games that would take advantage of its online service, and of those titles, Top Spin was by far the best. It was a tennis sim featuring a career mode full of real-life pros, but what made Top Spin memorable \u2013 in addition to its core gameplay being so pitch-perfect, of course \u2013 was its online play. You&apos;d create your character, build them up, and take them online, pitting yourself against other players in ranked matches that, if you won, would move you further up the global rankings. It all worked perfectly (and even tied in XSN, if you remember that little experiment), and made Top Spin the best tennis game the Xbox has ever been served up.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;97. Binary Domain&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nThe Xbox 360 was a treasure chest full of those \u201c7 out of 10s\u201d that you just couldn\u2019t put down; those rough-around-the-edges cult classics that kept us more than entertained for a weekend before we moved on to the next. Binary Domain is a perfect example \u2013 a third-person shooter from Yakuza developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, this sci-fi story didn\u2019t play too differently from established cover shooters such as Gears of War, but came with its own unique quirks. Direct control of your squadmates was chief among these, with the ability to command them in six different languages via a headset or the Kinect sensor, a fun little gimmick that took advantage of the Xbox\u2019s ultimately doomed experiment with its camera peripheral. Binary Domain may have never fully reached the heights of its lofty ambitions, but it still finds a place in our hearts.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><button data-cy=\"gallery-image\" type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Open Slideshow\" class=\"jsx-1711207865 gallery-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"&lt;b&gt;96. Steel Battalion&lt;\/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;\nThe original Xbox was a maximalist, brutalist brick of post-Y2K design and Steel Battalion is the purest expression of its commitment to inconvenience. The Capcom-developed mech game is arguably nothing special by itself, but the humongous HOTAS horror with which it came bundled has earned it Xbox immortality. Weighing in at a whopping 17 pounds, boasting three panels, three foot pedals, and industrial-grade divorced dad energy, Steel Battalion is the video game equivalent of \u201crolling coal:\u201d an excessive, magnificent, indulgent peripheral that cost $200 in 2002 money. Xbox is a burly, hefty console that demands a burly, hefty experience, and Steel Battalion more than fits the bill.\" class=\"progressive-image jsx-2896921488 image aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9 jsx-2605834259 jsx-2338608387 hover-opacity\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Some players are hopeful that Rare may have the chance to do something that it is more suited for, such as developing a new Crash Bandicoot game or Banjo-Kazooie, given the studio&#8217;s history of making platformers. Nothing has been explicitly outlined for Rare&#8217;s future, though, which has given fans some pause. <\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Activision has been heavily criticized for over-monetizing its games, <a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/activision-responds-to-complaints-of-ai-generated-assets-in-call-of-duty-black-ops-7\">using generative AI<\/a>, and oversaturating franchises like Call of Duty to the point that fans began to lose interest, leading some to worry that the same may happen for Sea of Thieves, too.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">&#8220;Can&#8217;t see this being a good thing, if the way Activision has handled COD is anything to go by,&#8221; said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Seaofthieves\/comments\/1wnb3so\/comment\/pbdfvkq\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">another fan on Reddit<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"jsx-2896921488 video jsx-2008855984 aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-16-9\">\n<div class=\"badge jsx-1349606671 jsx-3647116352\"><span class=\"ign-icon icon-play jsx-2750866048 jsx-1044454891\" role=\"img\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-cy=\"icon-play\" aria-label=\"Play\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Play.59e5540b.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">&#8220;This doesn\u2019t bode well. I\u2019m a lifelong Call of Duty fan, and Activision is probably one of, if not the worst, companies in gaming. Everything they touch withers and dies. Mass layoffs, AI, crazy microtransactions, and all sorts of bullshittery will be commencing in the near future based on their track record,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Seaofthieves\/comments\/1wnb3so\/comment\/pbdrtml\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">stated another concerned player.<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">It will likely take a few years before we can truly measure what kind of impact these changes have. Rare has been in a weird spot for a number of years, so some fans are at least thankful that the studio wasn&#8217;t outright shuttered or sold off like other Xbox-owned studios. After thriving in the &#8217;90s and 2000s, Rare was put on Kinect duty by Microsoft in the early 2010s, leading some to believe that this was a misuse of the studio&#8217;s time and talents.<\/p>\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\">Eventually, they developed the highly-popular Sea of Thieves, but outside of that, Rare hasn&#8217;t produced much of substance. It spent a decade working on another game known as Everwild, <a class=\"link jsx-1337145738 jsx-3925284146 underlined\" data-cy=\"styled-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/articles\/rares-everwild-reportedly-canceled-as-microsoft-layoffs-sweep-across-xbox\">which was canceled last year<\/a>. The project struggled to make progress, and as a result, the public didn&#8217;t see or hear about much of it. It may play a role in whether Rare is given the opportunity to develop its own games going forward or if the team becomes a support studio for Call of Duty and Halo.<\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"accent-divider\" class=\"jsx-3449795453 divider jsx-2786329600\"><\/div>\n<section class=\"author-sign-off\" data-cy=\"author-sign-off\"><span class=\"stack jsx-59817748 jsx-1927875859\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"rounded jsx-444076027 jsx-4218469134 profile-thumb jsx-2141281959 aspect-ratio aspect-ratio-1-1\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cade Onder Avatar\" class=\"progressive-image profile-thumb-img jsx-249361588 jsx-2338608387 expand\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets-prd.ignimgs.com\/avatars\/69efa48a05b5ac001d9134e5\/Cade_PFP-1777388827678.jpg?crop=1%3A1&amp;width=56&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp&amp;quality=80\" data-cy=\"progressive-image\"><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"stack jsx-2509706801 jsx-3630940851\"><span class=\"stack jsx-2959124702 jsx-702910195 author-sign-off-header\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ign.com\/person\/cadeonder\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"interface jsx-1132626198 jsx-2809511915 bold underlined\">Cade Onder<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"caption\" class=\"caption jsx-1762799490 muted\">Freelance Writer<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"stack jsx-2509706801 jsx-1220387432\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"author-sign-off-socials\" class=\"jsx-2877214176 author-sign-off-socials\"><button type=\"button\" aria-haspopup=\"listbox\" aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-label=\"View social links\" class=\"jsx-2877214176 socials-trigger\"><span title=\"X\" class=\"jsx-2877214176 social-icon-avatar\"><span class=\"ign-icon jsx-2877214176 jsx-2750866048 jsx-2788214270\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"jsx-2877214176\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Twitter.d0b97af5.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<div role=\"listbox\" class=\"scrollbar jsx-2772765485 jsx-4243969252 jsx-3705869475 dropdown-menu jsx-3625955085\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.twitter.com\/@Cade_Onder\" id=\"author-sign-off-social-twitterHandle\" class=\"menu-item jsx-3565735818 jsx-3927327418\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><\/p>\n<div data-cy=\"caption\" class=\"caption jsx-1762799490 menu-item-text\" data-text=\"X\">X<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"ign-icon icon-twitter jsx-2750866048 jsx-3701596282\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" data-cy=\"icon-twitter\" style=\"mask:url(https:\/\/kraken.ignimgs.com\/_next\/static\/media\/Twitter.d0b97af5.svg?cors=1) no-repeat center center \/ contain;background:currentColor\"><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"interface jsx-1132626198 sign-off-text\">\n<p data-cy=\"paragraph\" class=\"paragraph jsx-2269604527\"><em>Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN&#8217;s news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/span><\/section>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sea of Thieves fans are concerned for Rare&#8217;s future, as the studio has been consolidated under Activision as part of Xbox&#8217;s latest reset. Earlier today, Microsoft announced drastic changes for Xbox&#8217;s first-party studios, including layoffs and consolidation. Activision is taking over a lot of different responsibilities at Xbox going forward, including leading the charge on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,243],"class_list":["post-2157726","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-ign-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2157726"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157726\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2157726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2157726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2157726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}