Xbox gave a historic franchise a future on Thursday. At its 25th anniversary FanFest in Seattle, the company announced Wolfenstein 3, a new mainline entry from MachineGames — the first in the series since 2017.
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma revealed the title and a photo of a script page, saying she is “looking forward to sharing more.” MachineGames confirmed the game is “in production” and posted a photo from a motion-capture session. The studio said actors Brian Bloom and Debra Wilson will return as William “BJ” Blazkowicz and Grace Walker, as reported by The Verge.
The series last shipped a mainline game in 2017 with Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. A co-op spinoff, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, followed in 2019. The games follow Blazkowicz in an alternate 1960s in which Nazi Germany won the Second World War.
What it means for you: the announcement ends a nine-year wait for a mainline Wolfenstein sequel and shows Xbox is still funding single-player, story-driven shooters. It also anchors a 25th-anniversary celebration that puts 25 original Xbox games on PC and adds a free Halo update this winter.
Everything announced at the 25th anniversary
The Seattle event closed an eight-city FanFest tour in the city where the first Xbox launched in 2001. Alongside Wolfenstein 3, Xbox outlined a batch of anniversary announcements.
Xbox Playback lets players look back at their own history with the platform, from a first game and total time played to the most-played title and the longest streak. Halo: Campaign Evolved adds the co-op survival mode Firefight as part of a free winter update. Players of several big releases can claim anniversary items, including a livery for Forza Horizon 6, armor for Halo, a weapon skin set for Gears of War: E-Day, a green character item for Minecraft, liveries for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, and a blueprint for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4.
New Fable gameplay debuted at the event, and DOOM: The Dark Ages gets a Slaughter Mode on November 16 for players who own the Revelations DLC or the premium editions. Xbox backward compatibility on PC now includes 25 original Xbox games, with Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind joining the lineup; achievements were added to select original titles. The retro push mirrors Nintendo’s own back catalog strategy on its subscription service.
Bethesda also confirmed the next Elder Scrolls game is called The Elder Scrolls VI: Sentinel. Xbox said id Software’s next project is now in development, and Candy Crush Saga joined the celebration with a Game On season.
The script page is the tell. Xbox teased the project with a piece of paper rather than a trailer, a reveal style the company has used before. But the motion-capture photo from MachineGames points to real production work rather than an early concept.
The reveal caps a busy stretch in gaming, from the November 19 launch of Grand Theft Auto 6 to the rollout of World of Warcraft: Forever.
When does Wolfenstein 3 come out? Xbox has not announced a release date. The company said only that the game is in production at MachineGames and that it plans to share more later. The Official Xbox Podcast is expected to break down the anniversary announcements next.
Wolfenstein 3 is the first mainline entry in the series in nine years. MachineGames has not said when it will release, or which platforms it will target. Fans can expect more news as the studio moves further into production.
