New Helix Exclusives Announced at Xbox FanFest: Wolfenstein 3 and id’s Next Game

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Project Helix didn’t walk out on stage at Xbox FanFest, but its games did. On Thursday, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma confirmed two brand new games from two of the best shooter studios in the world: Wolfenstein 3, officially in production at MachineGames, and a new project from id Software, the studio behind DOOM. Neither one has a trailer, a release window or a platform list. And that’s exactly why we’re calling it now.

Here’s OnPoint’s position, plainly: these are next-gen Xbox games. Everything about their timing points to the Project Helix era. Microsoft hasn’t said the word “exclusive,” and it hasn’t said “Helix” either. But at OnPoint, a brand new Xbox first-party game announced under Asha Sharma is an Xbox exclusive until somebody proves otherwise. Fable is the exception that proves the rule, and we’ll get to it. For everything else from the night, see every announcement from FanFest.

Two new games, both years out

Start with what Xbox actually said. “Wolfenstein 3 is officially in production at @MachineGames,” Sharma posted. “Looking forward to sharing more.” MachineGames followed with a script page and a motion capture photo, and MachineGames confirmed Brian Bloom and Debra Wilson are back as BJ Blazkowicz and Grace Walker, Xbox Wire and Bethesda reported. Pure Xbox noted that performance capture on the next Wolfenstein was rumored to be starting at the beginning of 2026. A mocap shoot is real progress, but it’s the middle of a big action game, not the end of one. Our full breakdown of the announcement is here.

id Software was even more direct about the wait. “We’re incredibly excited about our next project, a new game from our teams in Texas and Frankfurt, with game direction once again by Hugo Martin,” the studio wrote. “It’ll be some time before we’re ready to share more.” When the studio itself says “some time,” it isn’t talking about next spring. More on that in our DOOM and id story.

Those are the brand new games Xbox announced at FanFest. Everything else was an update, a mode, a remaster or a game we already knew about.

What we know about Helix

Project Helix is Xbox’s next-generation console, and the official record is short but clear. Sharma announced the codename in March and said it “will lead in performance and play your Xbox and PC games.” At GDC on March 11, Xbox’s Jason Ronald wrote on Xbox Wire that the team is “deep in development,” that Helix is “powered by a custom AMD SoC,” that it delivers “an order of magnitude leap in ray tracing performance,” and that “we plan to ship alpha versions of the hardware to developers beginning in 2027.” In August, Sharma told the BBC that Xbox has been “hard at work on a great next generation and a great family of devices for Helix.” And on Thursday morning, her 25th anniversary memo put it in writing: “We’ve built four generations of XBOX consoles, with a fifth on the way.”

The launch date is where the reports split. In February, AMD CEO Lisa Su told investors the custom chip was “progressing well to support a launch in 2027,” per Tom’s Hardware. In October, Fortune reported that Microsoft is targeting holiday 2028 for the console, with an internal price projection of $1,200 to $1,800 unless Microsoft subsidizes it. We covered that report here. Neither date is official.

Why these are Helix games

Now line the two timelines up. Dev kits don’t reach studios until 2027. Helix launches in late 2027 at the earliest and holiday 2028 if Fortune is right. Wolfenstein 3 is in the motion capture phase, and id is telling us it’ll be “some time” before we even see its game. Big AAA shooters from these teams take years. Wolfenstein II came out in 2017. DOOM: The Dark Ages came out in 2025, five years after DOOM Eternal.

Put that together and the math is simple. Wolfenstein 3 and id’s next game are going to land in the Helix generation, and the studios building them will be building on Helix dev kits for most of the ride. These aren’t current-gen games getting a next-gen patch later. They are the first wave of next-gen Xbox first party, announced on the night Xbox celebrated 25 years and promised a fifth console. That’s why we’re calling them Helix games.

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Wolfenstein 3 and id's next game: Helix exclusives?

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Wolfenstein 3 and id's next game: Helix exclusives?

Yes, keep them on Xbox and PCExclusive at launch, PS5 laterThey'll be everywhere day oneJust show me Helix already

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Why we’re treating them as exclusives

Microsoft didn’t say “exclusive” on Thursday, so let’s be clear about what this is. It’s our position, not Microsoft’s announcement. And here’s what it rests on.

Sharma has been steering Xbox back toward exclusives since she took over. Asked by the BBC in August how Xbox decides what stays exclusive, she said: “Every platform needs some form of exclusive experiences and content,” and named Gears as one of them, per Kotaku. Xbox has told players to “expect signature exclusives from us every year,” Kotaku reported, and Gears of War: E-Day shipped this fall as a console exclusive on Xbox. Fans are already reading it the same way. Even a Pure Xbox reader worried about sales described Wolfenstein 3 as “most likely being exclusive.”

A new console needs reasons to buy it on day one. A new Wolfenstein and a new id shooter are about as strong as reasons get, and Xbox owns both studios. Holding them for Xbox console and PC is the most Sharma-era move on the board.

Now the counterargument, because PlayStation fans are going to bring it. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle went to PS5. DOOM: The Dark Ages launched on PS5 day one. And Fable, which also showed new gameplay at FanFest, is confirmed for PS5 when it launches February 23, 2027. All true. But every one of those games was planned under the old multiplatform strategy, and Fable ships this generation on hardware that’s already in people’s homes. Wolfenstein 3 and id’s next game were announced under Sharma’s leadership, for a generation that hasn’t started yet. Until Xbox puts a PlayStation logo on either one, we’re not going to assume it will. That’s what “exclusive until proven otherwise” means.

What comes next

There’s a chance we don’t have to wait long for more. The real 25th anniversary is Sunday, November 15, and Helix still hasn’t had its moment. Xbox said in March that it would “share more later this year,” and that window is closing fast. We went through every reason Sharma might have held Helix back from FanFest, and why Sunday could still bring the reveal, in Why didn’t Asha announce Helix at FanFest?

Either way, the first Helix games are on the board. A new Wolfenstein with BJ and Grace. A new id game with Hugo Martin back in the director’s chair. If that’s what next-gen Xbox looks like, sign us up.

Sources

• Xbox Wire (Nov 12, 2026): Everything Announced Today
• Bethesda.net (Nov 13, 2026): Bethesda Celebrates Xbox 25 with id Software & MachineGames News
• Asha Sharma on X: Wolfenstein 3, id Software
• MachineGames on X: Wolfenstein 3 is in production
• id Software on X: next project
• Xbox Wire (Nov 12, 2026): 25 Years of XBOX
• Xbox Wire, Jason Ronald (Mar 11, 2026): From GDC: Building the Next Generation of Xbox
• The Verge (Mar 2026): Microsoft teases its next Xbox, says Project Helix will play PC games too
• Tom’s Hardware (Feb 2026): AMD CEO says semi-custom SoC ready to support launch in 2027
• Fortune (Oct 20, 2026): The non-gamer CEO racing to save Microsoft’s Xbox
• The Verge (Oct 20, 2026): Microsoft reportedly plans Xbox handheld in 2027, next-gen console in 2028
• Kotaku (Aug 29, 2026): Xbox Calls Next-Gen Project Helix A ‘Family Of Devices’
• Kotaku (Oct 22, 2026): The case for exclusivity when Gears of War: E-Day cost over $500 million to make
• Pure Xbox (Nov 12, 2026) and reader comments: Xbox CEO Announces Major New Bethesda Games In The Works, Including Wolfenstein 3
• RPG Site: Fable launches February 23, 2027 on Xbox, PS5 and PC