Popular Xbox games — May 1st, 2023

By Luke Albigés,

This week's Xbox Gameplay Chart of popular Xbox games sees Minecraft Legends tumble 14 places to the bottom end of the top 20, while Star Wars Jedi: Survivor doesn't manage to break the top ten...

Despite enjoying one of 2023's best Xbox launches last week, Mojang's strategy spin-off Minecraft Legends hasn't managed to build on that early success — quite the opposite, in fact, with the game taking a 14-place drop in only its second week on our chart to end up in 18th. This week's only new entry has also proved a little underwhelming, with Star Wars Jedi: Survivor unable to crack the top ten and only coming in a little above Legends in 14th, although it did only launch on Friday so it doesn't have the benefit of the full week's worth of player data that every other game on the chart has on its side. Dead Island 2, meanwhile, sees a meaty four-spot rise in its first full week, so it wouldn't be that surprising if Jedi: Survivor managed something similar next week to force its way into the top ten.

Looking at re-entries, again, things are fairly quiet. Pentiment makes a well-deserved comeback thanks to a Game Pass Quests appearance for Obsidian's intricate historical mystery, although its Quests buddy Max: The Curse of Brotherhood fails to hit the chart at all... uncommon for a Quests-fuelled title, but it did only just miss out on a top 40 return by a few places. On the topic of Quests, this week's chart sees a rare demonstration of staying power for featured games, as Grounded only slips a little way down the anthill after last week's Quests appearance thanks to a massive new update. This week's other two returns were Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, as players looked to get caught up in time for the arrival of the sequel, and Warframe, with one of the best free Xbox games still managing to hit the chart almost a decade into its life thanks to a recent update.

One fairly surprising absentee here is The Last Case of Benedict Fox, with the indie Metroidvania title failing to find a place in the top 40 after coming to Game Pass last week, despite having a decent buzz around it. Parting the curtain a little, it didn't miss out by much and was actually only a few spots outside the top 40 — like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, the game's midweek launch means it doesn't have a full week of data working for it here, so it could yet make an appearance, but it seems unlikely to replicate the Game Pass success stories we've seen so far this year in the likes of Wo Long, Atomic Heart, and Hi-Fi Rush.

One new entry and three re-entries means four games have had to tap out of the top 40 to make way this week, and incredibly, you can find all four knocking on the door just outside, in positions 41 through 44. Those games would be Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Ark, Skyrim Special Edition, and Smite, although given how much these titles come and go in the tail end of the chart, it seems unlikely that we've seen the last of any of them. Next week's chart should be interesting, with Arkane's Redfall launching tomorrow and the Xbox One release of the absurdly popular Hogwarts Legacy likely to drive it back up the chart... where will the newcomers end up? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments!

Top 40 Xbox Gameplay Chart (w/e April 30th, 2023)

PositionGamePublisherLast week
1 iconCall of Duty: Modern Warfare IIActivision1
2 iconFortniteEpic Games2
3 iconMinecraftXbox Game Studios3
4 iconGrand Theft Auto VRockstar Games5
5 iconFIFA 23Electronic Arts6
6 iconRocket LeaguePsyonix8
7 iconTom Clancy's Rainbow Six SiegeUbisoft7
8 iconROBLOXRoblox11
9 iconDestiny 2Bungie9
10 iconOverwatch 2Blizzard Entertainment10
11 iconApex LegendsElectronic Arts13
12 iconForza Horizon 5Xbox Game Studios12
13 iconDead Island 2PLAION17
14 iconStar Wars Jedi: SurvivorElectronic Arts-
15 iconNBA 2K232K Sports16
16 iconMLB The Show 23MLB14
17 iconHalo InfiniteXbox Game Studios15
18 iconMinecraft LegendsXbox Game Studios4
19 iconMadden NFL 23Electronic Arts20
20 iconBattlefield 2042Electronic Arts21
21 iconEA SPORTS UFC 4Electronic Arts26
22 iconRed Dead Redemption 2Rockstar Games23
23 iconSea of ThievesXbox Game Studios25
24 iconGroundedXbox Game Studios18
25 iconPentimentXbox Game StudiosRE
26 iconHalo: The Master Chief CollectionXbox Game Studios27
27 iconFIFA 22Electronic Arts28
28 iconHogwarts LegacyWarner Bros. Interactive Entertainment24
29 iconFall GuysEpic Games30
30 iconCall of Duty: Black Ops IIIActivision29
31 iconDead by Daylight505 Games32
32 iconGhostwire: TokyoBethesda Softworks19
33 iconPUBG: BattlegroundsKRAFTON33
34 iconStar Wars Jedi: Fallen OrderElectronic ArtsRE
35 iconWarframeDigital ExtremesRE
36 iconFor HonorUbisoft22
37 iconElden RingBandai Namco Entertainment34
38 iconNHL 23Electronic Arts35
39 iconResident Evil 4Capcom Entertainment31
40 iconStar Wars Battlefront IIElectronic Arts38
Chart compiled using gameplay data from over 2.4 million active Xbox accounts. Chart information is copyright GameInsights. For details on how the chart is calculated, click here.
Luke Albigés
Written by Luke Albigés
Luke runs the TA news team, contributing where he can primarily with reviews and other long-form features — crafts he has honed across two decades of print and online gaming media experience, having worked with the likes of gamesTM, Eurogamer, Play, Retro Gamer, Edge, and many more. He loves all things Monster Hunter, enjoys a good D&D session, and has played way too much Destiny.
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