Microsoft’s Xbox has been around since 2001, and over that time the gaming brand has given us huge hits like Halo, Gears of War, Forza, and more. Today, the Xbox brand covers consoles like the Xbox One, PC gaming, and has even expanded to other platforms. You can play Minecraft on everything from a computer to an iPhone to a Nintendo Switch. Along the way, Microsoft has pioneered modern services like Xbox Live and Game Pass, introducing new ways to play games. And with Project Scarlett on the horizon, the Xbox looks to have a bright future.
Microsoft is adding Activision’s Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy to Xbox Game Pass on console, cloud, and PC on August 8th. Mafia: Definitive Edition is also being added to the service on August 13th. Crash Bandicoot is the latest Activision game to arrive on Game Pass, after Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III and Diablo IV.
The Verge’s Tom Warren reported yesterday that a delay was imminent, and now it’s official: the Obsidian’s next RPG will miss 2024 and launch on February 18th, 2025, according to the Xbox X account.
We’re still waiting on official 2024 dates for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Starfield’s Shattered Space expansion, and Towerborne. Perhaps Microsoft will announce those during Gamescom later this month.
Xbox president Sarah Bond revealed earlier this year that a new Xbox mobile store would be launching in July. Xbox fan Klobrille discovered an Xbox mobile store webpage recently, which suggests Xbox Insiders will get access first. “Testing has begun for our browser-based mobile store,” says Kari Perez, head of Xbox communications in a statement to The Verge. “Our work is progressing well and we will have more to share in the future.”
Update: Article updated with comment from Microsoft.
I’m hearing that Obsidian is about to announce an Avowed delay. The team had been targeting a November release, but with Xbox exclusive S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 delayed to November, things are getting stacked for Xbox games in the all-important holiday season. More on the Avowed delay and Xbox employees being back under one roof in this week’s issue of Notepad.
The company claims its triple laser PX3-PRO is the world’s first UST projector to be “Designed for Xbox.” What that means isn’t entirely clear given the Xbox can’t take advantage of the projector’s 240Hz maximum refresh rate.
More useful may be the $3,499.99 PX3-PRO’s ability to automatically optimize its settings for gaming when it detects a console powering up.
Starting today, you’ll no longer be able to purchase games, DLC, and other items from the Xbox 360 Store or the Xbox 360 Marketplace — both of which launched almost 19 years ago.
The shutdown doesn’t affect online multiplayer on the Xbox 360, and you’ll still be able to purchase backward-compatible games and DLC from newer Xbox consoles.
The FTC called Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass price hike “exactly the sort of consumer harm” it had predicted ahead of the company’s Activision-Blizzard buy.
Microsoft’s response (PDF) claims that with included multiplayer and the upcoming day-and-date release of Call of Duty, the offering isn’t degraded at all.
It’s a “global outage,” according to an Nvidia status message. “We are working on a fix to bring back the service as soon as possible.”
Nvidia’s other GeForce Now services appear to be operational, so perhaps this issue is tied to everything else going on.
Just in time for Deadpool and Wolverine, Xbox is giving away a new controller that puts the “ass” in assassin...and I hate it.
Now, I don’t mind gimmicky controllers. Those furry Sonic controllers didn’t bother me because they were still regular controllers, sweaty hands notwithstanding. But this monstrosity doesn’t even look ergonomically functional. All that ass and no way to properly grip it.
Microsoft has added a new “Xbox 360 Blades” Dynamic Background for Xbox Series S / X owners. It’s a blast of nostalgia, just as Microsoft prepares to close the Xbox 360 digital store on July 29th. A bunch of games are discounted ahead of the store closure, and there are even Xbox 360 t-shirts, hoodies, and other gear available for a limited time.
Pre-orders are available for the Hyperkin DuchesS, which re-imagines Microsoft’s Xbox Controller S (the one that replaced the console’s original “The Duke” gamepad) for Xbox One and Series X / S consoles, and PC.
Based on the game’s first trailer, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed developer AHeartfulofGames seems to have nailed the Mutant Mayhem visual style.
Disappointingly, Mutants Unleashed only supports two players. It’s out for PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PCs on October 18th.
The demon hunting, speedrunning visual novel launches on Xbox today, after previously hitting Switch, Steam, and PlayStation (it’ll also be available to Game Pass subscribers). I promise that it is just as weird as that description makes it seem — but in a very good way.
