12) Rocket League
Most Popular Xbox Games
Psyonix’s Rocket League puts players in control of rocket-powered battle-cars as they fight it out in a number of sports-like modes. The game is so popular it currently sits at the number 12 spot of Xbox’s most played games, according to the Microsoft Store, which updates its list every few days. The traditional Rocket League mode is soccer, which can be played with up to four players on each team. Passing the ball off the rounded corner of an arena to give a teammate a perfect shot to score creates a feeling of teamwork Rocket League relies on its players wanting to come back for. Alongside teamwork, the competitive nature of matches keeps players coming back to try and improve themselves.
All the free DLC added to the game since its release also keeps it fresh, including new sports modes like hockey and basketball, and another mode that gives players limited-use superpowers. The game’s competitive nature, reliance on teamwork and communication, and the free DLC seems to be a successful formula to keeping players around.
11) Madden NFL 18
Most Popular Xbox Games
The Super Bowl was months ago but gamers are keeping the 2017-18 season alive and well on Xbox, with Madden NFL 18 remaining one of the most played games on the console. Only one out of the 32 NFL teams won it all this year, so the rest of football’s fans will have to fight toward their own championship in Franchise mode. Another popular addition to the latest Madden game is Longshot, a story mode putting players in control of a college athlete trying to make it to the NFL.
However, some people are unhappy with the amount of microtransactions in the Ultimate Team mode, which lets players create their dream team. With the ability to purchase packs of random players with in-game and real-world money, some players have bought their way to the best rosters in the game. Clearly the microtransactions aren’t turning the audience off too much judging by how popular it still is on Xbox.
10) ARK: Survival Evolved
Most Popular Xbox Games
This action-adventure survival game from Studio Wildcard officially released last August, but it’s been playable through the Xbox Game Preview program since December 2015. ARK: Survival Evolved leaves players stranded with nothing on an island, forcing them to hunt, craft, and build their own shelter to survive. The island has plenty for players to work with, which is good considering the large number of predatory animals on the island, including dinosaurs. The good news is ARK lets players tame many of the animals, allowing them to be commanded.
Flying a Pterodactyl is fun, but be on the lookout for other players if you’re in multiplayer as they may try to kill you, and they might have much better equipment than you and your dinosaur pal. The crafting and building elements of the game are highly fleshed out with hundreds of items to craft from soap to a rocket launcher and many creative options for building the fortress of your dreams.
9) Overwatch
Most Popular Xbox Games
Blizzard’s first-person hero shooter remains popular as always on the Xbox One. Overwatch’s compelling, “Just one more match” inducing gameplay clearly keeps players coming back for more. With so many playable heroes to master there are always ways to improve, but there’s also always fun to be had with the game and the friends you play with.
An update recently brought a new Escort map to the game, Rialto, set in Venice and complete with gondolas on the canals. Free maps, characters, and events aren’t a rare occurrence for Overwatch, and that commitment to the longevity of the game seems to be paying off for Blizzard as players refuse to put it down.
8) Roblox
Most Popular Xbox Games
This free-to-play multiplayer creation platform lets players create, play, and share their own games. The game originally released for PC in 2006, but has evolved quite a bit and gained a lot of popularity on the Xbox One. Using Roblox Corporation’s proprietary game engine, Roblox Studio, players use an object oriented programming system to change their game world’s environment.
Players can sell their creations to other players for use in the Lego-like environment of the game, with Roblox taking a cut of the money for themselves. A few years ago Microsoft shut down their own game creation platform, Project Spark, which initially released in 2014. Based on it being one of the most played games on Xbox it doesn’t appear Roblox players have to worry about it shutting down anytime soon.
7) Destiny 2
Most Popular Xbox Games
Bungie’s first-person shooter is still going strong, coming in seventh on the Xbox’s list of most played games. The recent Warmind expansion releasing may have brought more players back to the game, but with the underwhelming reception the DLC has gotten, there’s no telling if the players will stick around. Especially on Xbox, where both the DLC’s Strike missions are rehashed from campaign levels, with PlayStation 4 players getting the only truly original Strike in Warmind.
With many updates planned to release throughout the year, Bungie has a chance to keep its player base strong on Xbox, but with fans becoming more and more frustrated or disappointed with the former Halo studio, they may be walking on eggshells for a while.
6) Call of Duty: WWII
Most Popular Xbox Games
World War II rages on in the living room of gamers everywhere as Call of Duty: WWII remains one of the most popular games to play on Xbox. Last month the game received a major patch on all platforms, changing every class and division within the game, and the game’s second DLC pack that came alongside that update for PlayStation 4 users just hit Xbox yesterday.
The large update, new maps, and new Nazi Zombies chapter will likely keep the game in many gamers’ disc trays for time to come. With two more DLC packs promised to release later this year, the Call of Duty juggernaut doesn’t look to be slowing down anytime soon.
5) Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
Most Popular Xbox Games
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege has has had an interesting and unusual rise to popularity since its release in December 2015. Its highest weekly player count, at least on Steam, came more than two years after its release. Though its weekly player count on Steam has started to shrink from its peak early last March, enough people on Xbox are still playing it to keep it high up on the list of most played games.
The game’s unforgiving nature and the importance of teamwork make Siege an equally great game to come back to to hone one’s skills or enjoy a night with the pals. The many updates the game has received to keep it fresh over the years has likely helped its success so far after its release.
4) Grand Theft Auto V
Most Popular Xbox Games
Rockstar’s baby is still very populated more than four years after its initial release. The amount of content added to GTA Online has likely had a role in keeping players around so far down the line. From transform races and capture the flag to annual festivities and heists, Rockstar keeps adding more and more to keep the experience fresh for long time players. Clearly it’s working.
Even without the updates, the large open world of GTA V makes for a great setting for players to come back to and the freedom the game allows means finding the best place to jump your car and running from the police never gets old.
3) PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
Most Popular Xbox Games
The game that brought battle royale to extreme popularity is still one of the most played games on Microsoft’s console. Helping the game’s population stay so high may be its current console exclusivity with Xbox, so anyone without a good PC wanting to run the game has just one console as an option. The continuous updates to the game keep it always improving and fresh for players of all skill levels.
There are a number of things that set the battle royale genre apart from other games on the market. One of the keys to the genre’s popularity may be how well it seems to work in a streaming environment. Brendan Greene, PlayerUnknown himself, said the genre lends itself well to streamers, especially the start of matches. “It’s a bit slower, gives streamers a chance to interact with their chat, and then there’s action later,” Greene said in an interview with New York Magazine.
2) NBA 2K18
Most Popular Xbox Games
NBA 2K18 is the second most played game on Xbox at the moment. Perhaps the NBA playoffs, which are going on right now, are inspiring people to jump into the game and create the finals scenario of their dreams. The most recent round of the playoffs proved pretty boring as well, with no series going more than five games, so perhaps basketball fans just wanted to see some better basketball than they’ve been getting on TV.
Either way, the developers of 2K Games should feel proud they’ve created a game so many people keep coming back to. Investors in the company are probably happy as well considering all the microtransactions in the latest version of 2K’s annual franchise.
1) Fortnite Battle Royale
Most Popular Xbox Games
Epic Games’ cartoony shooter Fortnite released in July of last year, but the game’s free battle royale mode opened up Sept. 26 as an early access product. This catapulted the game’s popularity, bringing it near the top of the list of the games with the most ever concurrent players, and it still remains the most played game on Xbox.
Being free-to-play surely helps its numbers, but quickly pivoting to battle royale fairly early into the genre’s current dominance of the video game industry meant Epic released the right product at the right time, and it’s paid off well for them even today. The game’s unique building mechanics and relatively fast-paced matches keep it a favorite for many, and the many updates and teases for future content keeps eyes on Epic’s title going into the future.
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