Xbox Shuts Down Rumors Of March Showcase & Elden Ring Trailer

[BrownBear22]

Bad news for Xbox players, as Microsoft has shut down rumors of any showcase this March. This sadly means that there will not be a look at the Elden Ring trailer, continuing the news drought surrounding this From Software title. Last week, rumors of a mid-March Bethesda showcase for Xbox were circling online. Following the recent Nintendo Direct, Nintendo’s Pokemon Day announcements, and the PlayStation State of Play digital events, it made sense that Microsoft might follow suit. With so much new content from their major competitors, it makes sense that Microsoft would make a move sooner rather than later. There hasn't been any event showcasing games for the Xbox since the Xbox Series X/S launched in November 2020.

The source of these rumors comes from Games Beat Journalist Jeff Grubb, who announced in a recent episode of the Games Beat Decides podcast that he believed there would be a digital event of some kind. “I don’t know if it will be a full, Direct-style event, but they will make note about it and they will talk about it extensively, explain what it means for everybody and talk about the immediate future of both companies becoming one," said Grubb.

Aaron Greenburg, the Xbox Games Marketing Manager at Microsoft, had to officially announce on Twitter that Microsoft's rumors making any new announcements or Showcase events in March will not be happening. While the tweet doesn't specifically deny that Elden Ring will be featured instead, Greenburg states that while Microsoft does have some work going on in the wings, nothing is coming out soon that would feature game announcements or world premieres.

 

Amain reason why fans were speculating that the Showcase would have been Bethesda-based was the Microsoft-Zenimax acquisition undergoing review this month by the European Union. This review will determine whether or not the deal could go ahead, with the EU being the last hurdle for Microsoft to join the two companies together officially. The idea that Microsoft would be in the clear following this review spurred fans on to believe that Microsoft would celebrate with a Showcase.

March marks a full 21 months since Elden Ring was officially announced at E3 2019. Since then, From Software and publishers’ Bandai Namco have gone dead silent on the game. Since the initial announcement, there has been no news with the Dark Souls developers' fans going into a meltdown every time PlayStation or Microsoft make an announcement online. With no future announcement to slake the thirst of the desperate fans, it remains to be seen if Microsoft and Xbox can appease the fans with any news of an upcoming showcase.