Here's how to watch the Xbox Developer_Direct today and what to expect

Microsoft's first games showcase of 2026 is kicking off today with extended looks at three games, including Fable and Forza Horizon 6 from Playground Games.

Microsoft is kicking off its first games showcase of 2026 later today with the latest edition of Xbox Developer_Direct. The event is giving the spotlight to three upcoming games, with two of them coming from the first-party Xbox developer Playground Games. This type of event focuses on the teams working on the games, with both gameplay deep dives and developer insights being expected.

The Xbox Developer_Direct 2026 showcase kicks off at 10 am Pacific / 1 pm Eastern / 6 pm UK later today, January 22. It will be live-streamed across all Xbox social channels, with Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, and even Steam being involved. Streams with languages other than English, as well as audio descriptions and American Sign Language, will be available on YouTube and Twitch, too.

As for what's confirmed to appear at the event, Playground Games will be showing off two of its upcoming games of 2026.

Forza Horizon 6 will be taking players to Japan for another open-world racing experience. While release date information was probably supposed to land at the event, leaks have appeared that put the launch into May 2026.

Meanwhile, this will be the first time Fable will be receiving extended gameplay and a firm release date. This reboot of the classic Lionhead Studios fantasy RPG is slated to bring back the humor and themes of the original games while offering vastly modernized gameplay.

The final announced game that's slated to appear in this Developer_Direct is Beast of Reincarnation. This is the next action RPG from the Pokémon series developer Game Freak, with today's event giving a fresh look at the protagonist Emma and her plant manipulation powers.

There is a good chance that Microsoft will have a mystery reveal alongside the confirmed trio at the event, too. As for the identity of the mystery game, many suspect this to be an entry by another first-party Xbox developer, though no concrete reports have surfaced yet. As always, take rumors and leaks with a grain of salt until Microsoft announces something official.