Stunning Everwild trailer hints at a long-awaited comeback for Rare

Game developer Rare's upcoming new game, Everwild, was first announced during Microsoft's X019 presentation in November 2019, but we went months without any more information about this new title from Banjo-Kazooie and Sea of Thieves creators — until now.

Thursday's Xbox Games Showcase for Xbox Series X games included another trailer for the game, and we finally have a better idea of what to expect from the stunning new title. While the new cinematic trailer doesn't include any gameplay per se, it does hint at some of the mechanics and narrative we can expect from the title.

The new trailer did not reveal a release date for the game, but we now know that Everwild is being made for Xbox Series X. Everwild stands out as a multiplayer title that has previously been described as "an experience that allows for new ways to play in a natural and magical world." Now we have a firmer grasp on just what that means.

By "new ways to play," it turns out Rare actually meant a multiplayer game about players interacting with an appreciating the beauty of the game's environment. The most striking thing about Everwild remains its visuals, which are colorful but stylized to complement the unique creature designs. The way the game uses magic also appears to be unique. At one point in the trailer, we see four characters use a kind of light-based dancing magic to heal a creature. So it's used to nurture the world rather than for combat.

Plenty of games, like Monster Hunter: World, take a man vs. wild approach to their worlds, but Everwild appears to take a more tranquil and less violent approach. Considering that many of Xbox's games are fast-paced action titles, this is definitely a welcome change of pace that makes for one of the biggest standouts from Xbox's July 23 showcase.

The multiple characters in the reveal trailers also suggest that it features some sort of multiplayer, which makes sense as Sea of Thieves was also a multiplayer game. Everwild was only listed for Xbox Series X and PC by Microsoft, so it is unknown if there will be an Xbox One version of the game.

The Inverse Analysis — If Microsoft wants to break the stereotype of just being a Halo, Gears, and Forza machine, it needs interesting new IP like Everwild. It's also good to see that Rare hasn't been siloed into one franchise like 343 Industries and The Coalition have been with Halo and Gears, respectively.

While Rare fans probably want the studio to return to their classic franchises like Banjo-Kazooie and Conker, Rare head Craig Duncan made it clear in an interview with Game Reactor that Rare "very much focused on new IP" going forward instead of those old franchises. Everwild looks like a unique addition to both Rare and Xbox's catalog going forward though, so I'm excited to see more. Hopefully, we don't have to wait too much longer to have an uncut look at gameplay.

Everwild is in development for PC and Xbox Series X.