The Future of Halo Is Unreal – Unlocked 663

What to do during a quiet holiday week with no news? How about we argue amongst ourselves? Haha well sort of: we decided to rank the four Xbox console day-one launch lineups we've had so far, and let's just say we definitely did not all agree on how these rankings should go. Enjoy and happy holidays! This weeks show is hosted by Ryan McCaffrey, Miranda Sanchez, Michael Higham, and is produced by Nick Maillet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We didn't get any reveals from Xbox at this year's Game Awards, but there's some very good news: we're going to see a lot more from them very soon. We talk all about what Xbox's 2026 Developer Direct might look like, and then discuss our favorite Game Awards reveals. This weeks show is hosted by Ryan McCaffrey, Miranda Sanchez, Michael Higham, and is produced by Nick Maillet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our Xbox crew kicks off by going over IGN's nominees for Best Xbox Game of 2025 before giving our individual picks, and then we get to the big topic this week: new comments by Xbox's VP of Next-Gen that seem to suggest we're getting SOMETHING next year. Whether that's just an announcement or an actual console as well remains to be seen, but we discuss it. Plus: the KOTOR remake isn't dead, the Assassin's Creed: Black Flag remake is very much alive, and more! 00:00:00 - Intro & Xbox's GOTY 00:08:03 - Xbox's 2026 00:31:23 - KOTOR Remake 00:46:46 - Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Remake 00:53:51 - Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's Xbox show, we've got good news on the long-dormant Splinter Cell Remake project that has us optimistic that a new Sam Fisher adventure might actually see the light of day. Plus: GTA 6 suffers a small but very weird leak, IO Interactive has a full plate that includes Hitman 4, CD Projekt Red has set a very ambitious schedule for its upcoming The Witcher trilogy, and more! 00:00:00 - Intro 00:13:30 - Splinter Cell Remake Update 00:29:50 - New GTA 6 Leaks 00:37:17 - Hitman 4 Update 00:53:05 - Witcher 4 01:03:43 - December GamePass Lineup 01:10:24 - Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, the longtime public face of Xbox at Microsoft, joins us for a special Xbox 360 episode as the most successful Xbox console ever celebrates its 20th anniversary. Larry shares a ton of great stories and even shows off a bunch of rare souvenirs from that era. You're not going to want to miss this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Winners from Xbox’s Partner Showcase (Fall 2025) – Unlocked 716We recorded this week's episode live immediately following Xbox's Fall 2025 Partner Preview showcase, where we got updated looks at known quantities like Reanimal, Tides of Annihilation, and 007: First Light. But we also got a number of reveals from intriguing new games like Erosion, Echo Generation 2, Vampire Crawlers, and more. Enjoy our reactions! 00:03:17 - Vampire Crawlers: The Turbo Wildcard 00:06:28 - Tides of Annihilation 00:09:37 - Erosion 00:14:02 - Echo Generation 2 00:18:55 - Armatus 00:24:23 - The Mound: Omen of Chthulu 00:27:01 - Dave the Diver - Official Xbox Launch 00:28:54 - Crowsworn 00:31:49 - 007 First Light & Roadside Research 00:40:37 - Total Chaos 00:44:24 - Reanimal, Cloverpit, Raji: Kaliyuga, & Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a jam-packed episode of our Xbox show, we discuss Grand Theft Auto 6's delay and how it hits Xbox harder than any other publisher. Plus: Valve's new Steam Machine will seemingly be competing directly with Xbox's next-gen console/PC hybrid efforts, Halo Infinite's support is in fact finite, why we think Mass Effect 5 is BioWare's last chance as a studio, our confidence level in The Elder Scrolls 6 despite it being many years away, and more! This weeks show is Ryan McCaffrey, Michael Higham, Miranda Sanchez, and is produced by Nick Maillet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our special guest this week is Obsidian's Brandon Adler, the Game Director on The Outer Worlds 2. He tells us about how the team's new RPG has been received so far, what kind of stuff hit the cutting room floor, what got prototyped but never made it into the game, how other games influence them, getting advice from the RPG legends in the building, and more! This weeks show is Ryan McCaffrey, Michael Higham, and is produced by Nick Maillet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Old-school Xbox fans will get a little extra enjoyment out of this week's episode, which welcomes Ryan's old Official Xbox Magazine podcasting partner Dan Amrich, now a developer at Digital Eclipse, for a KOXM Radio reunion to discuss his team's comprehensive new release, Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection. Dan goes into great detail about how much meticulous care and effort went into the Legacy Kollection in order to make it into a "playable museum exhibit." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We remember original Xbox Ninja Gaiden director Tomonobu Itagaki upon the unfortunate news of his passing before discussing the first new mainline Ninja Gaiden game in 13 years, NInja Gaiden 4. Plus: Ryan went on a field trip to Halo Studios and brought back hands-on impressions of Halo: Campaign Evolved, the just-announced remake of Halo: Combat Evolved done in Unreal Engine 5. Finally, Xbox President Sarah Bond gives us a cryptic but concerning update on Xbox's next-gen console plans, Miranda tells you why you need to play Ball x Pit on Xbox Game Pass, and more! 00:00:00 - Intro & Ball X Pit 00:10:18 - Ninja Gaiden 4 Review Discussion 00:42:11- Halo Coming to PS5 01:22:27 - Future of Xbox Consoles & Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices