Microsoft announced that "The Culling" is coming to the #XBoxOne Game Preview program on Friday, June 2. The Battle Royale genre has taken off on the PC, but indie developer Xaviant's streamer-friendly spin will beat others like "Player Unknown's Battlegrounds" to consoles.

"The Culling" drops 16 players into a manic game show of survival with matches lasting approximately 20 minutes. Players will scavenge for weapons, ammo, traps, and protective gear to be the last man or woman standing. There is no respawn system in Battle Royale-type games and a ring of deadly smoke will slowly close in to draw players together to facilitate confrontation.

Players can use different tactics -- from sneakiness to running and gunning -- to take out the opposition. The ring of smoke will close in until there is only one left standing that can be declared the winner.

There are multiple game modes offered in "The Culling," including a solo mode and the ability to team up with one other player for Duos. The title features weapons from clubs and bows and arrows all the way up to rifles, but is focused primarily on melee combat featuring knives, axes, spears, and the like. Ammo for ranged weapons is meant to be difficult to come by.

"The Culling" also features unlockable customization items to dress characters up. There are also player perks to enhance certain attributes along with in-match personal airdrops to increase the odds more in your favor.

Those that jump in can expect multiple maps along with non-multiplayer modes like training matches and survival modes to make getting started easier.

How 'The Culling' rates

How "The Culling" performs on the Xbox One will definitely be something to keep an eye on.

"The Culling" was originally released to Steam's Early Access in March 2016 and started out strong on both the sales and reviews fronts. However, the recent review scores have dipped into "Mostly Negative" following gameplay balance changes to combat and perks. The negative reaction to these changes has seen the number of daily players drop from nearly 13,000 last year to under 100 today, per SteamDB stats.

Upcoming console battle royale titles

While "The Culling" will be the first Battle Royale title to land on consoles, it will not be the last. Developer Bluehole, Inc recently confirmed that "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds" is being developed for the Xbox One as well. It will likely hit the Xbox One Game Preview program as well before the end of 2017.

The 100-person matches in "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds" have made it one of the most played games on Steam, as it earned more than $34 million in April, according to a SuperData Research report.
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