Tag: Microsoft - Page 20
News Microsoft Reportedly Invited To 'Showcase Its Products' At UK's 10 Downing St Next Week
At the same time the CMA delivers its verdict on ActiBlizz
Microsoft's protracted showdown with the UK Competition and Markets Authority is about to end after months of back and forth over Xbox getting its ActiBlizz deal closed. The CMA's investigation will be all wrapped up by next Wednesday, April 26, and it seems like Microsoft might be booking...
Talking Point Would You Like To See More 'Spin-Offs' From Xbox Game Studios?
Halo Wars 3 when?!
So, Minecraft Legends is officially here, and while these days the franchise has a very specific audience, we're glad that Xbox continues to make good on its acquisition of Mojang/Minecraft. We got Minecraft Dungeons back in 2020 and now Legends this year, so Xbox is seemingly still interested in building out the IP. However,...
News Xbox Co-Creator Thinks Microsoft 'Really Should' Have Made An Xbox Portable
"There should have been an Xbox portable"
We've seen various different versions of portable Xbox games in recent years, as the way of play becomes even more popular in the wake of Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch. A lot of these revolve around Xbox Cloud Gaming — like the Logitech G Cloud system pictured above — but what about a dedicated system...
News Halo's Longtime Franchise Director Has Left Microsoft
It follows Joseph Staten's departure earlier this month
Halo lead Joseph Staten only recently announced he would be leaving Microsoft, and now it seems another Halo veteran has moved on. According to Axios' Stephen Totilo, Microsoft has confirmed the departure of Halo franchise director Frank O'Connor. He contributed to Master Chief's journey for...
News Ex-Halo Lead Announces New Project After Leaving Team Xbox
Moving onto pastures new
Earlier this month, Halo veteran and long-time Xbox developer Joseph Staten revealed that he was leaving Microsoft, and he's not taken long to announce where he's heading. In a new social media post today, the Halo Infinite project lead has revealed his new destination. Staten is heading over to Netflix to direct something...
Guide Minecraft Legends Release Date, Release Times & Download Size On Xbox Game Pass
Get ready for launch!
Xbox's latest Minecraft spin-off is almost here, as Mojang and Blackbird Interactive bring Minecraft Legends to Xbox Game Pass this Tuesday. Ahead of the big launch, here's everything you need to know about getting the game installed and ready to go for release. <related ids="147975"> Minecraft Legends Release Date...
News Xbox's Activision Blizzard Deal Adds South Africa To 'Approved' List
And we've got a big deadline coming up
Update: Activision Blizzard has reached out to Pure Xbox with the following statement: “The South African Competition Commission recommended approval of our merger with Microsoft based on a thorough review of the facts about competition in the gaming industry. We appreciate this additional affirmation from...
Random Xbox Teams Up With Pringles To Create 'Suspicious Stew' Flavour
Sounds... tasty?
Minecraft Legends is about to launch on Xbox Game Pass, and that seems to have inspired the Pringles folks to develop a brand new flavour for its popular salty snack range. Yep, 'Suspicious Stew' flavoured Pringles are now a thing - plucked straight from the Minecraft universe (we cannot confirm nor deny whether Pringles are cannon...
News Microsoft Is Starting To Advertise Its ActiBlizz Acquisition On Billboards In London
Call of tubey
Early last month, Microsoft increased its efforts to convince the UK that its Activision Blizzard deal would be a good one for gaming, when full-page ads started cropping up in newspapers. Well, those same ads (or very similar ones) have now been converted into digital billboards as the Xbox owner continues to push for positivity...
News Discord Improvements Now Live On Xbox, Starting With Insiders
Currently available to Alpha ring Insiders
Xbox's latest Insider update has been detailed by Microsoft, and it adds a neat feature to the Discord chat integration. Starting today for Alpha Insiders, Xbox gamertags will be more visible across the board when using Discord. This is because Xbox is now showing linked accounts within the Discord section...
News Ubisoft Says 'Great Content' Will Allow Its Subscription Service To Compete With Xbox Game Pass
"That's the point of differentiation that we bring."
Well, it finally happened! After months and months of leaks and speculation, Ubisoft Plus is now live on Xbox as the company brings its subscription service to console for the very first time. We've got a couple of handy breakdo
News Microsoft Seemingly Prototyping New Windows Mode For Handheld Gaming
Internal tests are a go
The success of Valve's Steam Deck device is starting to spawn a whole new market for handheld gaming PCs, and Microsoft is seemingly taking notice. A leaked Microsoft 'Hackathon' video (showcasing an internal project where employees pitch and test ideas) has revealed that 'Windows Handheld Mode' is one such project in the...
Talking Point Will We See New Xbox Hardware By The End Of 2024?
Series X|S sales are down in the UK
Sales figures for the UK gaming industry in Q1 2023 are now out in the wild, and they make for some interesting reading across the board. Hogwarts Legacy is of course absolutely killing it when it comes to sales, while the PS5 is also selling very well now that Sony is stocking it properly in most markets...
News Microsoft Reveals Frustration With Group Of 'Gamers' Trying To Sue Over Xbox Deal
"Unsupported and implausible claims"
Remember that group of ten "gamers" who tried to sue Microsoft over the Activision Blizzard takeover? The case was dismissed in court back in March, but the story isn't over, as the Plaintiffs have filed an amended complaint. As reported by Reuters, the new complaint is 73 pages long and (again) goes into detail...
News Xbox Fans Spot Another 'Project Keystone' Appearance Thanks To Phil Spencer's Shelf
He's at it again
Yesterday, Xbox boss Phil Spencer made another on-camera appearance as he welcomed more of the world to the delights of PC Game Pass. While that was the sole focus of the short clip, fans have once again been scouring the man's shelves to see if they feature any more hidden Xbox secrets. To our eye we couldn't see much new, but...
News Xbox Design Lab Adds Even More Customisation Options For The Elite 2 Controller
An expanding palette
Shortly after announcing a PC Game Pass expansion, Microsoft has revealed that it's expanding another part of its gaming suite. Recently, the Elite Series 2 controller was finally added to Xbox Design Lab, and it's now available with even more customisation options! Xbox is adding "a new range of colours" to the Elite 2...
News PC Game Pass Is Now Available In A Whopping 40 New Countries Worldwide
Phil Spencer welcomes all
Following a seemingly successful preview program that kicked off in February, Microsoft's PC Game Pass program is now seeing a massive expansion. The service is now fully available in 40 new countries worldwide, as announced by head of Xbox Phil Spencer. Access to PC Game Pass in the following nations is rolling out today,...
Rumour Xbox Games Showcase 2023 Runtime Revealed By Microsoft Leaker
Starfield Direct included!
We have a rumour doing the rounds this morning about Xbox's big summer showcase for 2023! According to a regular Microsoft Store leaker who goes by the name of WalkingCat on Twitter, the Xbox Games Showcase this year is set to last roughly two hours in total. The leak also reveals a potential start and end time for the...
News Xbox Signs Yet Another 10-Year ActiBlizz Deal, This Time With UK Mobile Network
Kevin Bacon approves
As approval processes continue for Xbox's huge Activision Blizzard acquisition, Microsoft has signed another 10-year agreement in relation to its cloud gaming endeavours. This time, the Xbox owner has entered into a deal with UK internet and mobile phone provider EE. As expected, the agreement is focused on bringing Activision...
Feature Why We're Excited For 'Ghostwire: Tokyo' To Hit Xbox Game Pass This Week
From the team behind Xbox exclusive Hi-Fi RUSH
This one feels like it's been 'on the way' to Xbox forever, doesn't it? Ever since we saw the Xbox Series X|S logo plastered on Bethesda's beautiful Ghostwire: Tokyo office artwork we've been eagerly anticipating the game's arrival on Xbox Game Pass. Well, more than a year after Ghostwire: Tokyo's PS5...
News Halo Veteran Joseph Staten Has Announced He Is Leaving Microsoft
"I'll have more info to share soon"
We've got some breaking news coming out of Microsoft about Joseph Staten. After recently exiting Halo Infinite and moving back to Xbox Game Studios Publishing, the Halo veteran has now announced he'll be leaving the tech giant. Microsoft didn't reveal where exactly Joe is off to but thanked him for his...
News Activision Won't Allow Sony's 'Disappointing Behaviour' To Impact Long Term Relations
Bobby Kotick says they're doing it for the players
The ongoing battle between Microsoft and Sony has been a long and difficult process with Activision Blizzard essentially caught in the crossfire. It's notably stalled Activision's own plans, and has evidently taken its toll on some of the company's key figures (with Sony refusing to sign the Call...
News Microsoft Welcomes Investigation Into Sony's 'Anti-Competitive Tactics' In Japan
The Xbox maker says it "deserves discussion"
Last week, you may remember that a story was doing the rounds about a U.S. senator claiming Sony has a "monopoly of 98% of the high-end game market" in Japan, and that story has evolved substantially over the past few hours. Axios is reporting that 11 members of Congress are concerned Sony is unfairly...
News Bethesda's New DOOM Title Tops Mobile Gaming Charts On Release
Little doom guy
Did you know that a new DOOM game launched this week? While it's not quite the next mainline entry from id Software, 'Mighty DOOM' is out now on mobile devices, and it seems to be performing rather well in its launch week. In fact, Mighty DOOM is now top of the free-to-play charts on both iOS and Android at the time of writing. Of...
News Xbox Takes Major Step Towards Activision Blizzard Approval In UK
No more concerns about Call of Duty and PlayStation
Xbox's acquisition of Activision Blizzard looks to almost be complete in the UK, as the Competition and Markets Authority has today narrowed its "scope of concerns" relating to the deal, specifically in regards to the "lessening of competition". Basically, the CMA no longer thinks that the deal...
News US Senator Takes Jab At Sony's '98% Monopoly' Of High-End Games In Japan
Xbox has a small footprint in the region
Xbox's ongoing pursuit of Activision Blizzard has been the centre of attention in the gaming sphere for months now, as Microsoft continues to try and secure approval for its huge deal. This has meant we've spent plenty of time following court proceedings as of late, and recent comments from a US senator mean...
News Four More EA Titles Will Close Their Online Servers On Xbox In 2023
Following DICE's recent announcement
Yesterday, EA DICE revealed that three Battlefield games would be going permanently offline in the coming months, as the team is "shifting focus towards current and future" titles. Following this announcement, we took another look at EA's 'Online Services Shutdown' support page and spotted four more games that...
News Redfall Dubbed 'Serious GOTY Contender' As Hands-On Previews Go Live
"Redfall has already done enough to convince me..."
Today's the day for Bethesda's Redfall, as the first selection of hands-on previews have just gone live! Various outlets have been getting to play the game recently, and the first impressions seem to be largely positive, albeit with plenty of question marks still surrounding various aspects of how...
News Microsoft Is Making Major Improvements To 'Subscription Management' On Xbox
More control from your console
Microsoft's latest Xbox Insider update notes have dropped information on a welcome change coming to subscription management on Xbox. Currently available to Alpha Ring Xbox Insiders, users can now fully access and change their subscriptions directly from Xbox consoles. Once the feature moves to the full Xbox dashboard,...
News Sony Has 'Sufficient' Time To Develop Call Of Duty Alternatives, Says Microsoft
When taking a 10-year deal into account
The UK CMA has published another new document related to the ongoing Activision Blizzard saga this week, this time focusing on Microsoft's responses to the CMA's questions at a recent remedies hearing. You can take a look at the
Deals All 40+ Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (March 21-28)
Plenty of Xbox classics!
Xbox's latest set of digital deals is now live, with more than 500 games currently discounted across various different promotions including a Critically Acclaimed Sale and the usual Deals with Gold / Spotlight offers. This week, we have a fair bit of crossover from the last sales period, with lots of discounts continuing...
News Three EA Games Are Being Fully Delisted On Xbox This April
Update: Mirror's Edge is staying put!
Update: We've got some good news! For those who were disappointed about Mirror's Edge getting delisted on Xbox, EA has since corrected the original post and confirmed that the game will be staying put. Phew! "An earlier version of this announcement included Mirror's Edge. That was an error. We currently have...
News Group Of 'Gamers' Who Tried To Sue Microsoft Faced With Dismissal In Court
"Microsoft's motion to dismiss is GRANTED"
You may recall that back in late 2022, a group of 10 "video gamers" decided to file a federal antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft's attempt to acquire Activision Blizzard, suggesting that the takeover could prove harmful to the industry. However, in a California court this week, a judge sided with...
News Xbox's Phil Spencer Discusses 'Building Towards' New Storefront That'll Rival Apple & Google
"I think it’s a huge opportunity"
Xbox has made it clear that mobile and cloud gaming is an area the brand needs to properly expand into, with Microsoft hoping that the ongoing ActiBlizz deal can help in that field. Another way that the team feels it can push into mobile is by opening up a new storefront on that platform, something that Xbox boss...
News Microsoft Offers ActiBlizz Remedies To EU, Deadline Pushed Back Yet Again
A decision will now be made by late May
These Activision Blizzard news drops are becoming daily again at the moment, with the latest news revolving around Microsoft's attempts to encourage the European Commission to accept the takeover. According to Reuters and Yahoo Finance, Microsoft has now offered remedies to the EU regulator in an attempt to...
Deals Get Up To 85% Off In Xbox & Bethesda Spring Sales On Steam (March 16-23)
Plenty of titles discounted
If you're anything like us and have caved at Valve's current Steam Deck offer (or you game regularly on PC), you might be looking for some new Steam titles to bulk out your PC library. Well, you're in luck! Both Xbox and Bethesda are running major Steam sales right now, with some deep discounts available across a bunch of...
News Microsoft's Desire For Valheim On Console Led To Xbox Series X And S Versions
"They reached out and were interested in seeing this"
Valheim has just made its long awaited console debut, roughly two years after the Viking survival sim made waves on PC in 2021. The console port seems pretty solid too, at least in its opening hours, with both Xbox versions containing smooth performance modes. As it turns out, Xbox was seemingly...
News For Some Reason, Six Games Are Currently Free To Claim With Xbox Live Gold
Including the new GWG title 'Lamentum'
It's the middle of the month, which means Xbox Games With Gold changes with the introduction of March 2023's latest addition to the lineup. That'll be Lamentum, which is available to claim from now through April 15th. However, on checking out this month's newest GWG offering, we spotted that five other titles...
News Xbox Teams Up With 'Ubitus' For Latest 10-Year ActiBlizz Partnership
"Our commitment is to give more players, more choice."
Following yesterday's agreement with Boosteroid to bring Xbox and Activision Blizzard games to the service in the future, Microsoft has penned another 10-year deal today with cloud gaming provider "Ubitus". Xbox boss Phil Spencer says the deal will allow Ubitus to take advantage of Xbox PC...
News Microsoft Isn't Currently Talking To Sony About The Call Of Duty Deal
Other companies are happy to sign 10-year deals
Microsoft yesterday signed another 10-year deal with cloud platform 'Boosteroid' - similar to the 10-year deals it did with Nintendo and Nvidia for Call of Duty. Sony's offer is apparently still on the table, but it seems it's come to a complete halt. In a small update via a story by The Wall Street...
Reaction Should Xbox Produce A Mid-Gen Upgrade If Sony Launches 'PS5 Pro'?
Striving to compete
A huge gaming rumour doing the rounds today (via Insider Gaming), is that Sony is planning on launching a mid-gen PS5 upgrade, with a "tentative release date" of late 2024. If such a device exists and launches around that time, that would put a Sony 'PS5 Pro' console right in line with when Xbox launched its mid-gen Xbox One X...
News All 50+ Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (March 14-21)
Xbox & Xbox 360 classics
Another week of Xbox deals is upon us, with more than 600 discounts now available across multiple promotions on Xbox Live. You can find some highlights of these in the following article: <related ids="146461"> A good selection of classic backwards compatible games from the original Xbox and Xbox 360 eras are included...
News Microsoft Signs Another 10-Year Deal In Its Bid To Buy Activision Blizzard
"Players deserve more choice than they have now"
In a bid to further enhance Xbox's case for buying Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has confirmed another 10-year agreement has been put into place following similar deals with Nintendo and Nvidia. This time around,
News Xbox Game Pass 2023 Titles Dominate Steam Wishlist Top 10
5/10 are launching day one on Game Pass!
Xbox Game Pass has a big year ahead of it, especially with major Xbox exclusives like Redfall, Starfield and Forza Motorsport finally landing on Microsoft's subscription service in 2023. However, we know about a decent selection of third-party titles launching day one as well, including Stalker 2 a
News Microsoft Confirms That Xbox Won't Have An E3 Booth This Year
The company is going all-digital in 2023
Although we've had recent confirmation that Xbox is hosting its big summer showcase during E3 week in June, we now know that the company will not be taking part in this year's physical convention in LA. As part of a new company statement provided to
Talking Point What Do You Want To See Most From The Xbox Games Showcase 2023?
Summer is coming
With the announcement of a date for Bethesda's upcoming Starfield Direct event, we also got confirmation on when Xbox's big summer conference lands in 2023. Yep, the annual Xbox Games Showcase hits on June 11th this year, and now that it's firmly marked in our calendars, we've begun thinking about what Xbox might show off.
News Microsoft Is Running Full-Page Newspaper Ads About Call Of Duty On Xbox
"More games, for more players on more platforms"
We've seen that UK regulators have been some of the toughest to convince for Microsoft, so the company is going on the offensive to convince the nation that its Activision Blizzard deal will be good for gaming. As spotted by The Verg
News Sony Just Wants To 'Block' Merger, According To Activision Blizzard CCO
This is why "they keep refusing" the Call of Duty deal
Microsoft's battle with Sony has become quite public in recent months, and while a lot of it has come from official documentation, occasionally there have been some comments made on social media. The latest one comes from Activision Blizzard's Chief Communications Officer, Lulu Cheng Meservey,...
Deals All 40+ Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (March 7-14)
We've got a good selection this week!
As part of this week's selection of Xbox promotions, a solid list of backwards compatible games from the original Xbox and Xbox 360 eras are currently discounted on Xbox Live. We've got some big names in here this week, including multiple Fallout titles, a few Assassin's Creed games, and some of Capcom's...
News Microsoft Says Xbox Game Pass Prices Won't Increase If ActiBlizz Deal Goes Through
"Any price increase would be counter-productive"
The UK CMA has posted another document relating to its ongoing Activision Blizzard investigation today, as Microsoft continues in its pursuit to acquire the Call of Duty publisher. This document goes over Xbox's response to making potential 'remedies' to suit all interested parties, and Xbox Game Pass...
