Xbox Games, Gifts and Goodies
Let’s be honest. It’s been a tough year for Xbox fans. Game Pass subscription increases, bad PR, studio drama, and few platform exclusives have cast a cloud. But the holidays are a time for turning frowns upside down. For the Xbox owner in your life — or maybe yourself — here are a few guaranteed ways to show some love and appreciation this season. Enjoy COGconnected’s Xbox Holiday Gift Guide 2025!
The Games
Ninja Gaiden 4
It’s back, baby! One of the classic action game franchises returns with a game many are calling the best title in the series. The story and characters are ok, but the action is fast, furious, and thanks to new difficulty options, as challenging as you want it to be.
Elden Ring Nightreign
Any year with a new FromSoftware game is a good year by definition. If you have an Elden Ring fan in your life, consider Elden Ring: Nightreign. It’s a four-player co-op roguelike remix of Elden Ring’s environments and enemies, with all new rage-inducing bosses. Though it’s playable solo, Nightreign is at its best with gamers who play with friends.
The Outer Worlds 2
Hot off the press is The Outer Worlds 2, Obsidian’s follow-up to their classic action RPG. The sequel is an altogether better game, with a more complex story and characters, bigger environments, and more mature humor. Awesome for fans of great roleplaying, open world games.
The First Berserker: Khazan
There have been too many Soulslikes to count released this year but only a few great ones. The First Berserker: Khazan has a unique anime/comic art style and incredible combat. New difficulty options make it more accessible for casual fans of the genre.
Monster Hunter Wilds
Monster Hunter has legions of fans. Maybe you know one. If so, consider gifting them Monster Hunter: Wilds, which sits at 90 on Metacritic and is one of the best and most innovative games in the franchise.
Battlefield 6
While Battlefield 6’s single player campaign received mixed reviews, overall this new installment is a rousing success and is a must-play for fans of large-scale, near future multiplayer action.
Call of Duty Black Ops 7
There’s a lot of positive buzz around Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, which releases on November 14. The 8th game in the Black Ops franchise, you can expect all the usual game modes and goodies, and early impressions point to one of the best Zombies iterations so far.
The Alters
It’s rare that a game has a genuinely new hook. The Alters is about managing a crew of your clones, trying to survive on a distant planet until help arrives. The hook? Each new clone has special abilities that you need, but also lots of emotional and psychological baggage from points on your timeline. Takes survival and crafting in a whole new direction.
DOOM: The Dark Ages
A prequel to the 2016 DOOM reboot, DOOM: The Dark Ages is less about combat in the medieval period, and more about slicing and dicing monsters with medieval fantasy weapons. Glorious gory fun, complete with dragon mounts to use in aerial combat.
Mafia: The Old Country
Mafia: The Old Country is a narrative-heavy action adventure set in early 1900s Sicily. Heavy on story, characters and atmosphere, it has satisfying combat and a beautiful musical score and visuals. Definitely a different experience for fans of the franchise.
Honorable Mention:
Hollow Knight: Silksong
There has been no game released this year arriving with such high hopes. Hollow Knight is one of the all time best Metroidvania/2D Soulslikes and Silksong has been on the horizon for years. It delivers, too. One caveat: Silksong is incredibly difficult at times.
Games ain’t nothin’ without the gear to go with them…read on.