The Xbox Games Showcase Extended: Here are the game highlights

With Summer Game Fest 2022 halfway done and loads of reveals to think about (especially in terms of your budget), it might be easy to pass off the Xbox Games Showcase Extended as just an obligatory, fill-in-the-timeslot recap. 

Admittedly, while most of it is a recap of what they showed off alongside Bethesda before (duh.), there's also some extra stuff Xbox threw in here to keep things interesting. These range from standard fare items like developer insights and interviews to world-first announcements and even gameplay premieres, like the one for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Now, this is quite literally a face only a horror fan could love. The gory 1974 classic is an upcoming third-person game lumbering onto Xbox and PC from Gun Interactive and Sumo Nottingham where you either try to prevent victims from escaping as a member of the Slaughter family or attempt to do so yourself as a victim. It's coming day one to the aforementioned platforms via the Xbox Game Pass, just like this next title. 

Indeed, the Valkyries aren't just ferrying warriors to the hallowed halls of Valhalla, because now they've got a side gig ferrying Valheim onto the Game Pass on day one.

Poor Norse humour aside, this game puts you in the shoes of a Norse warrior tasked with defeating Odin's foes in the titular land of Valheim. To do so, you'll need to learn how to survive and conquer this new realm, and you can either go it solo or join up with other like-minded warriors. It's all up to you.

The third highlight is one for the simulator fans. Microsoft Flight Simulator is not only welcoming the fifth Local Legend aircraft, the Beachcraft Model 18, but also the World Update X: United States of America and US Territories add-on. Regarding the former, it is a low-wing, twin-engine utility aircraft produced by the Beach Aircraft Corporation and is of American origin.

As for the latter, the new update brings with it four handcrafted airports, 87 new points of interest, and three landing challenges, discovery flights, and bush trips each. Both of these are already available and will be free for all players to claim.

Last but not least, we've got the ever-adorable Fall Guys, and their roster of colourful costumes is going to get a lot more Spartan-y. In collaboration with 343 Industries, Mediatonic is aiming to bring Master Chief into the Blunderdome for The Spartan Showdown event, which will last from June 30 till July 4. The event will not only bring the iconic sci-fi warrior into the chaotic mix but will also a truckload of other costumes, challenges, and legendary items in as well. 

That just about wraps it up for highlights, but if you've got an hour or two to kill, you can also opt to check out the associated Xbox Wire post or even watch the full stream below. As always, happy gaming!

This article was first published in HardwareZone.