When it comes to gaming, creating exciting and memorable experiences is at the core of our mission, as we strive to share the joy and camaraderie of gaming with people everywhere. Nowadays, with more screens than ever substituting as Xbox devices, we’re thrilled to witness these devices brimming with remarkable games crafted by talented developers globally. These creative teams work tirelessly to deliver gaming adventures that captivate and inspire audiences of all backgrounds. As a tribute to these creators and in celebration of the games players cherished this year, we’re thrilled to announce the winners of the 2024 Xbox Excellence Awards.
Every year, Xbox consoles, PCs, and the cloud host the launch of over a thousand games. While choosing winners could just be left to a panel, the Excellence Awards are really about how you’ve interacted with Xbox throughout the year. To determine the list, we honed in on four essential categories that reflect players’ enthusiasm, involvement, and fondness for these games. The categories are as follows:
Store Rating: This includes the highest-rated content rolled out in 2024 with at least 500 ratings.
Player Engagement: This measures games with the highest average hours of play for each user within the first six weeks post-launch.
Daily Active Users: Focused on games, expansions, or significant updates boasting the most single-day active users in 2024. You might see some titles here that weren’t released last year, thanks to major updates.
Units Sold: Highlights the top-selling content on both Xbox and Microsoft stores.
The result is a varied lineup of titles hailing from studios with workforces that range from a handful to thousands, spanning across 15 different countries. Below, arranged alphabetically, you can check out the games under each category.
| Store Rating | Player Engagement | Daily Active Users | Units Sold |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balatro | Dragon Age: The Veilguard | Apex Legends | 7 Days to Die |
| Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden | Dragon’s Dogma 2 | Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 | Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora |
| Botany Manor | EA Sports College Football 25 | Dead Island 2 | Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 |
| Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth | EA Sports FC 25 | Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred | Dragon Age: The Veilguard |
| Little Kitty, Big City | F1 Manager 2024 | EA Sports College Football 25 | EA Sports FC 25 |
| Lollipop Chainsaw RePop | Farming Simulator 25 | EA Sports FC 25 | EA Sports FC 25 |
| Metaphor: ReFantazio | Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail | Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree | Farming Simulator 25 |
| Nobody Wants to Die | House Flipper 2 | Fallout 4 | NBA 2K25 |
| Persona 3 Reload | Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth | Fortnite | Palworld |
| Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1, 2, 3 | Metaphor: ReFantazio | Forza Horizon 5 | Roblox |
| Return to Grace | MLB The Show 24 | Grand Theft Auto Online | S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Heart of Chornobyl |
| Rounds | NBA 2K25 | New World: Aeternum | Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege |
| Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II | NHL 25 | Minecraft | Unicorn Overlord |
| Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance | Path of Exile 2 | MLB The Show 24 | Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 |
| Skull and Bones | Palworld | Star Wars Outlaws | WWE 2K24 |
The developers and publishers of these standout titles will soon receive their well-deserved awards, so stay tuned to see how they choose to celebrate this achievement!
Curious to explore these award-winning games yourself? Dive into the Xbox Store to discover the 2024 Xbox Excellence Awardees and dive into some exceptional gaming adventures.
