Tag: Microsoft - Page 22
News Xbox's New 'Deep Pink' Official Wireless Controller Is Now Available
Update: It's back again on the Xbox Store!
Update (Tue 31st Jan, 2023): Remember this? The official Deep Pink Xbox Wireless Controller is back in stock on the Microsoft Store as of today, and it's also now available in the UK! You can check it out at the links below. As you can see, the price is £54.99 and $64.99 USD. <products id="22264">...
News Xbox Series X And Xbox Series S Consoles Are Going Up In Price In Japan
Starting next month
Well, here it is. A few months after Xbox boss Phil Spencer warned us all of potential price increases across the Xbox division, the company's current-gen consoles are officially going up in price in Japan. Revealed by Japanese outlet Famitsu, both Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S console prices are increasing by 5,000 yen in the...
News Three Games Are Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (January 31)
Closing out January
February 2023 for Xbox Game Pass is already looking like it could be a stacked month, bringing a few biggies to the library in the form of Atomic Heart, Hot Wheels Unleashed and more. However, January ain't over just yet, and the first month of the year is going out with a bang in regards to Xbox Game Pass.
News Halo TV Boss Kiki Wolfkill Has Reportedly Left 343 Industries
It seems she's jumped over to the main Xbox team
It's been a rough patch for the Halo team since Microsoft announced mass layoffs across multiple divisions including Xbox. Following the news of Joe Staten's exit at 343 Industries, it seems there's also been a significant departure from Halo's TV series. As spotted in various reports, Halo...
News First Reviews For Age Of Empires 2: Definitive Edition Impressed By Xbox Conversion
"The basic gameplay is just as good on Xbox as it ever has been"
Age Of Empires 2: Definitive Edition heads to console this week; also included in Xbox Game Pass on day one of its console launch. While we haven't had chance to play this title ahead of release (our impressions are coming soon), a few early reviews have hit the web and they're seeming...
Video Xbox Series S Ray Tracing Capabilities Tested By Digital Foundry
How does the system hold up?
The folks over at Digital Foundry have once again taken a look at Xbox Series S, this time to see how our little digital-only box tackles ray tracing. This element of 'next-gen' has proved a bit of a stumbling block at times for Microsoft's budget-friendly console, which is perhaps expected given its incredible value...
Feature Hi-Fi RUSH Has Us Mega Excited For More Xbox Shadow Drops In Future
Seriously, what else have they got up their sleeves?!
Xbox's first ever Developer Direct is in the bag, and we've come away very happy about how the whole event went down. Xbox brought a couple of release dates to the party, along with some
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (January 26-29)
Three titles available this weekend!
Xbox Free Play Days is back for the weekend, folks! Microsoft has opened up three titles for free this week, including a fantastic racing game in the form of Assetto Corsa Competizione! Here's the full lineup: Assetto Corsa Competizione Lawn Mowing Simulator
News Microsoft Confirms Another Xbox Showcase Will Take Place 'This Summer' In LA
Following the upcoming 'Starfield Direct'
Wow, what a busy day for Team Xbox! After wrapping up its first ever Developer Direct event earlier today, the team is already looking ahead at what's next. We know that a Starfield specific show is coming soon, and now we've been teased with some summer 2023 plans as well. In short, as expected, Xbox will...
News New Report Suggests Restructure At Halo Dev 343 Industries Is 'Ongoing'
The team says it will continue to work on the franchise
As a result of Microsoft's recent round of layoffs, Halo developer 343 Industries has been hit with a number of job losses in what sounds like a fairly major restructuring of the company moving forward. The team has since put out a statement to
News Xbox Marketing Director Calls Gears Of War Leak 'Fake News'
The leaked logos related to Gears 6 and a Gears Collection
Recently, we reported on some Gears of War rumours that had been floating around on the web; mainly an apparent 'Gears of War Collection' in the works at Microsoft. Since then, a picture of two logos has been doing the rounds from a leak relating to both 'Gears 6' and this supposed...
News Xbox Live Goes Down Temporarily As Microsoft Suffers Major Server Outages
Teams, Outlook and Office 365 also affected
If you've been running into issues accessing Xbox Live or any Microsoft services for that matter over the past few hours, it's probably because Microsoft has been running into some major worldwide server outages. According to Downdetector, there was a big spike at around 8am UK time where Xbox Live,...
Guide 'Xbox Developer Direct' Event Date, Start Time & Where To Watch
Today's the day!
It's almost time for Xbox's first ever 'Developer Direct' livestream! Yep, Microsoft is about to deliver deep dives into some of Xbox and Bethesda's biggest upcoming titles, in a brand-new event format for 2023. Here's everything you need to know about the Xbox Developer Direct January 2023 event. What Can We Expect From Xbox...
News Xbox Surpasses 120M Monthly Active Users, As Game Pass Reaches 'New Highs'
Despite Microsoft's decline in gaming revenue
It's a new year and as part of this, Microsoft has shared its latest earnings results for the quarter ended December 31st, 2022 (FY23 Q2). Overall, gaming revenue for the company saw a decline of 13% year-over-year. Xbox's "content and services" revenue also saw a decline of 12% and Xbox hardware...
Reaction Xbox Needs A New, Reliable Competitor For PS5's 'DualSense Edge'
Giving us the edge
A lot of Xbox fans will be seeing Sony's brand-new, high-end controller doing the rounds in gaming circles at the minute, with PlayStation finally getting into 'Xbox Elite' territory with the 'DualSense Edge'. The Japanese company's new PS5 pad is an impressive-looking bit of kit, building on what Xbox first introduced with the...
Deals All 30+ Backwards Compatible Games Added To This Week's Xbox Sales (January 24-31)
Original Xbox and Xbox 360 classics
Xbox has delivered yet another themed sale promo this week in the form of the 'THQ Nordic & Handy Games Sale', which is currently live alongside Deals with Gold, the Spotlight Sale and last week's ongoing 'Lunar New Year Sale.' Included in all of these sales promotions are a selection of backwards compatible...
News Microsoft Orders Sony To Attend Activision Blizzard Court Hearing This Summer
For the FTC trial
Things are getting real now! As part of Xbox's ongoing tussle over the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has issued a subpoena to Sony - summoning the PlayStation owner to attend an FTC court hearing this summer. According to a new filing in the overall case, Microsoft issued the legal order on January 17th, expecting...
News January's 'Forza Monthly' Livestream Will Be All About The New Forza Motorsport
Coming right after Xbox Developer Direct!
It looks like we're getting even more Forza Motorsport news this week, folks! Turn 10 Studios, the team behind the Forza Motorsport series, has announced that January's 'Forza Monthly' livestream will focus on the upcoming entry in the series. Forza Monthly livestreams, as the name suggests, are...
News Microsoft Asks To Pause Gamers' Lawsuit Over ActiBlizz Acquisition, Judge Says 'No'
A group of 10 gamers want to sue the company
Back in December, it was revealed that a group of 10 "gamers" were filing a private consumer antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft's attempt to acquire Activision Blizzard, and Microsoft has recently been trying to pause that suit. The reason? Microsoft's lawyers have suggested that the company's (and...
News Xbox Exec Wants Fans To Keep Developer Direct Expectations In Check
"Our goal has been to be as transparent as possible"
It's officially Developer_Direct week here in Xbox land, and we have to admit we're pretty excited to see some fresh deep dives on Xbox's 2023 games lineup. However, ahead of the livestream later this week, Xbox's Aaron Greenberg is urging fans to not get too carried away. The exec recently took...
News Redfall 'Deluxe Upgrade' Leak Gives Us First Evidence Of Xbox Price Increases
The game will still launch on Xbox Game Pass though
Redfall is one of Xbox's major AAA releases for the first half of 2023, and while the game will of course launch day one on Xbox Game Pass, a new European leak has given us our first glimpse at Xbox's confirmed price hikes. According to well-known leaker
Soapbox January's Developer Direct Could Be The Start Of Something Big For Xbox
Comms on lock
Since Xbox basically ghosted The Game Awards in late 2022, I've talked at length about the form of future Xbox events; asking the question of whether Xbox should go down the 'Nintendo Direct' route for upcoming showcases. Well, that future is almost upon us, as the
News Phil Spencer Responds To Xbox Layoffs, Calls It A 'Difficult Moment In Time' For Microsoft
"This is a challenging moment in our business..."
This week has been dominated by the news that 10,000 people are being laid off from Microsoft's workforce, and Xbox boss Phil Spencer has responded to the news in an internal email that was shared by Kotaku earlier today. In the email, Spencer acknowledged it had been a "difficult week" for...
News Halo's Joe Staten Provides Update Following 343 & Microsoft Layoffs
"I’m 100% focused on helping people who lost their jobs"
It's been a bit of a wild week for Microsoft so far, with the company announcing it would be cutting 10,000 jobs. This has also surprisingly hit the Xbox division within the tech giant - including Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries. Apart from layoffs, it was announced that Halo...
Talking Point Should Microsoft & 343 Carry On With Halo Infinite?
What's next?
Yesterday, Microsoft confirmed its plans for roughly 10,000 layoffs throughout the company, with Halo developer 343 Industries reportedly "hit hard" by the job losses. While the company restructure hasn't been fully detailed by Microsoft, and some of what's coming out regarding 343i are just reports right now, the whole situation does...
News Xbox's Phil Spencer Wants To 'Inspire Joy' Amid 'Culture Of Criticism And Cancellation'
"We’re all part of creating this echo effect of joy"
Yesterday, we brought news that Xbox boss Phil Spencer had formally accepted his New York Game Award; a prize that recognises industry figures who "have exhibited a significant, sustained body of work that shows exceptional artistic achievement and innovation." We believe Phil's award is well...
Talking Point Who Would You Cast As 'Delta Squad' In The Upcoming Gears Of War Movie?
Let's hear your suggestions!
Our new Video Producer Craig has been over on the Pure Xbox YouTube channel laying out some of his top casting suggestions for the upcoming Gears of War movie, which is being produced by Netflix. You can check out his picks in the video above, which include a perhaps surprising choice for Marcus Fenix; a character many...
News Microsoft Confirms Plans For 10,000 Layoffs Across The Company
"These decisions are difficult, but necessary"
Update: It appears as though Halo studio 343 Industries has been "hit hard" by the Microsoft layoffs. <related ids="143761"> Original story: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has confirmed today that the company plans to reduce its workforce by 10,000 jobs through the end of FY23 Q3, which he says...
News 'The Last Of Us' Ads Have Started Appearing On Xbox This Week
Hey, it's free real estate
HBO's 'The Last of Us' TV show is proving incredibly popular right now, as PlayStation brings its exclusive post-apocalyptic game series to the TV network. While we can't play the games themselves on Xbox, we can of course watch the show there, and Microsoft & HBO seem to be taking advantage of that fact. Adverts for...
News Xbox Boss Phil Spencer 'Honored' To Receive New York Game Award
"It was an honor to attend"
Xbox's Phil Spencer just celebrated his 55th birthday last week, and the New York Game Awards show has delivered quite the birthday present for the Xbox boss. Phil attended last night's award show and walked home with the "Andrew Yoon Legend Award" - a prize that the boss is clearly proud of!
News 'Xbox Play Anywhere' Will Benefit Age Of Empires 2 Owners Later This Month
Get the console version for free!
Age of Empires 2 is making its long awaited console debut later this month, and as it's a Microsoft published title, it'll be a part of Xbox Game Pass on day one. However, if you own the PC version already, you won't even need Game Pass to play the console version at no extra cost! Yep, we often forget about Xbox's...
Deals All 40+ Backwards Compatible Games In Xbox's 'Lunar New Year' Sale
Huge discounts on a selection of classics!
Microsoft has put a huge new digital sale live on the Xbox Store to celebrate the Lunar New Year, with more than 400 games on offer right now. As part of the promotion, there's a hefty selection of backwards compatible games from the original Xbox and Xbox 360 eras that have been discounted at up to 75%...
News Konami Is Open To More 'Silent Hill' Pitches After Announcing PS5-Exclusive Remake
Could we see these on Xbox?
After years and years of waiting, Konami finally brought Silent Hill back into the conversation with the recent announcement of multiple series projects, including a PlayStation-exclusive remake. However, Konami is also presenting the opportunity for even more Silent Hill projects to get going. In a new interview with
Report EU Commission Preparing 'Statement Of Objections' Over Xbox Activision Blizzard Deal
We should hear more soon
A number of authorities around the world are currently investigating Xbox's Activision Blizzard acquisition, to ensure a fair and open market in the gaming industry is retained post-deal. One of those authorities is the European Commission, which is reportedly preparing a statement on the matter. According to Reuters, the...
Rumour A Potential 'Scalebound' Revival Is Being Spoken Of, Again
Will it ever happen?
Scalebound just won't go away, will it? The now-cancelled Xbox exclusive from PlatinumGames captured the imagination of the Xbox community when it was first revealed, and once again, its revival is being spoken about among Xbox journalists, insiders and fans. Let's all take this particular rumour with a truckload of salt...
News Head Of Xbox Phil Spencer Celebrates His 55th Birthday Today
Happy birthday, Mr. Spencer!
It's fair to say we're pretty big fans of Xbox boss Phil Spencer here at Pure Xbox, especially the way he and his team have transformed the brand ever since he took over the Head of Xbox role back in 2014. Today, January 12th, marks Phil's 55th birthday, so we thought we'd just take a minute to say Happy Birthday to the...
News Xbox Exec Confirms Overall Length Of January's 'Developer_Direct'
"Our goal has been to be as transparent as possible"
When the Xbox showcase rumours began showing up late last year, we heard suggestions that the January event would be a smaller scale affair than a typical Xbox live show. Well, Xbox exec Aaron Greenberg has confirmed the overall runtime following yesterday's official Developer_Direct announcement,...
News Xbox Series X|S 2022 Console Sales Grow In Europe, Other Platforms Down On 2021
It's been a good year for Team Xbox
2022 current-gen console sales data is now coming out of Europe as we head into the new year, and the numbers provide some pretty interesting reading. According to GamesIndustry.biz, Xbox Series X|S sales in 2022 were up 4.4% over 2021, making it the only platform to grow last year. It's worth noting that these...
Talking Point What Would You Like To See From Xbox's 'Developer_Direct' Livestream?
Game Pass reveals? Release dates? Let us know!
Well, well, well! Xbox has finally unveiled its much-rumoured upcoming showcase, officially dubbed 'Developer_Direct'. While the initial announcement goes over most of what we'll see at the showcase, we're still intrigued by Xbox's new format, and we're curious whether the team has any surprises in...
News Microsoft Increases Sustainability Efforts By Announcing Xbox As 'First Carbon Aware Console'
Clever little thing
Last year, Microsoft made a number of changes to its energy usage modes on Xbox consoles, as a way to grant users more options and ultimately, try and save on power consumption. Well, those efforts are continuing into the new year, and this next update is a pretty interesting one - Xbox consoles are about to become "carbon...
Talking Point Are Games Announced Too Far In Advance?
Microsoft, CDPR, we're looking at you
Today's 10-year anniversary of the teaser trailer for Cyberpunk 2077 got us thinking about about game announcements and how long we often have to wait between reveals and releases. CD Projekt Red's almost eight-year gap between teaser trailer and launch might be
News Digital Games Are Dominating In The UK At Almost 90% Of Overall Sales
New age tech
We've known for a long time that digital games are growing in popularity, especially as we move into an era where multiple console manufacturers are releasing digital-only systems like the Xbox Series S. In the UK, the overall percentage of digital game sales now sits at 89.5% according to new figures from the entertainment and retail...
Deals All Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (January 10-17)
Original Xbox and Xbox 360 classics
Alongside the huge selection of new Xbox sales this week, we've once again been treated to a variety of discounts for some classic Xbox 360 games (and one original Xbox title), available at up to 85% off. Below, you'll find a list of every single backwards compatible game on sale on the Xbox Store from January...
News Another Title Is Leaving Game Pass Soon, And It's From An Xbox-Owned Studio
Update: Microsoft makes it official
Update (Tue 10th Jan, 2023): As part of today's Xbox Game Pass roundup, Microsoft has indeed confirmed that We Happy Few is leaving the library on January 15th. The team hasn't provided any info on a potential re-release or replacement version of the game, but the announcement post does close out with a message...
News Xbox Is Releasing New Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, Sea Of Thieves Skins Thanks To Oreo
Tasty treats for all
This isn't something we expected to read today but nevertheless, it's real! As part of a new promotion with famous cookie brand Oreo, Xbox is bringing some brand-new skins to some of its biggest first-party titles including Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5 and Sea Of Thieves. The in-game rewards are tied to new Xbox-themed Oreo...
News Halo & Minecraft Co-Developer SkyBox Labs Has Been Acquired By NetEase Games
Another acquisition sweeps through the industry
As Xbox continues to try and push its mammoth Activision Blizzard deal through the door, a number of smaller scale acquisitions are still going on throughout the gaming industry. Today, January 6th, Chinese company NetEase Games has announced its purchase of Canadian development studio SkyBox Labs...
Feature Our Top Deals From The Xbox 'Last Chance' Sale
Some big new releases are heavily discounted
Xbox's ongoing 'Last Chance' promotion is running for the next 10 days or so, and there are some pretty good deals scattered throughout its 300+ game selection. We've already highlighted the steepest discounts available, but some recent releases are sticking out to us as real highlights as well. So, in...
News Microsoft Reveals New Forza Horizon 5 Xbox Series X Bundle
Complete with the game and every add-on
More than a year after the open world racer's official launch, Microsoft has revealed a brand new Forza Horizon 5 bundle featuring an Xbox Series X console, the game, and every single DLC pack planned by Playground Games. The bundle will begin rolling out this week in the US, Canada, and "select" Asian...
Report Microsoft, ActiBlizz & The FTC Yet To Begin 'Substantive' Settlement Talks
The deal could end up in court
Earlier this month, the US Federal Trade Commission formally announced its intentions to try and block the Xbox Activision Blizzard deal, pointing at Microsoft's Bethesda exclusivity plans as a big reason for doing so. Ahead of a potential legal trial both parties could engage in settlement talks to sort this thing out...
Pick One Which Xbox Game Studios Title Are You Most Excited For Right Now?
Looking at the upcoming slate
It's no secret that Xbox's first-party developers have had a quiet year, especially when it comes to the big AAA experiences we all expect from a platform holder like Microsoft. Recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic certainly hasn't helped, with game delays largely contributing to such a barren year on Xbox. However, the...
