Tag: Microsoft - Page 7
News Microsoft Increasing Xbox Series S Price In Brazil
It's now in the same price bracket as PS5's digital model
The Xbox Series S has proven to be a huge hit for Microsoft this generation, bringing in sales from many consumers who may not have even considered the high-end Series X model. Unfortunately, though, it seems customers located in Brazil will soon have to pay more for this particular unit. As...
"Drop into two painstakingly-recreated Battle Royale maps"
For quite a while now we've known that one of Xbox's biggest goals with its Activision Blizzard acquisition is to grow in the mobile gaming space, and a new Call of Duty blog post shows us a little bit about why that goal is already coming into view. As part of the Call of Duty franchise's...
News Stalker 2 & More Xbox Titles To Feature At Paris Games Week 2023
The event takes place next month
Xbox has detailed some of its plans for Paris Games Week 2023, which takes place early next month. For now, the team has discussed some of the games it will be bringing to the show floor, where fans in Paris can go hands on with the latest Xbox titles - and even sample some unreleased projects. Perhaps the biggest...
News Xbox's October Update Includes Keyboard Mapping For Controllers
And import game captures to Microsoft Clipchamp
Xbox will finally be rolling out its update that allows keyboard buttons to be mapped to Xbox controllers in its October update. This feature was originally announced back in July, but if you did miss it, Xbox owners will now be able to map controller buttons for the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller...
News Activision Blizzard Documents Its 44-Year History With New Infographic Featuring Xbox
"We begin an exciting new chapter"
It's been an exciting period for Microsoft and Xbox with the finalisation of the Activision Blizzard (and King) acquisition. Now, as part of this, Activision Blizzard has released a huge infographic documenting the entire history of both companies, the eventual merger, and joining team Xbox. Throughout it, there...
News Here's A Look At Microsoft And Xbox's New Gaming Leadership Structure
See for yourself
It's been another big week for team Xbox with the latest announcement of a Microsoft reshuffle which sees some familiar faces promoted. Perhaps the biggest changes apart from Activision Blizzard, are the promotions of two execs. As noted in the initial announcement, Matt Booty is now 'president of game content and studios'...
News Microsoft Reshuffle Makes Huge Changes To Team Xbox, Matt Booty & Sarah Bond Promoted
We have a new structure in place at Xbox
Xbox is in the midst of making massive changes to its leadership structure, as a result of recent acquisitions like that of Bethesda Softworks and Activision Blizzard. As detailed by The Verge, multiple Xbox execs will hold new roles after the company reshuffle, including familiar faces like Sarah Bond and
News Xbox's New Marketing Campaign Is Producing Some Amazing Adverts In Europe
You won't miss these!
A week ago, Microsoft launched a brand-new Xbox marketing campaign - right after the company confirmed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Well, as it turns out, that campaign isn't limited to TV & YouTube ads (and giant s
News Xbox Boss Praises Activision Blizzard's 'Amazing Teams' After A Week Of Studio Tours
Phil thinks they're "really inspiring"
Since finalising its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Xbox's leadership team have kept themselves busy with a bunch of studio tours. Most recently, Phil Spencer and co visited Blizzard's headquarters in Irvine, California, and now in a follow-up to this, the Xbox boss has shared a brief message on social...
Xbox technically owns the franchise now
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 may be missing out on a day one Xbox Game Pass launch this year, but it isn't stopping Microsoft from including the title as a highlight in its
Deals All 30+ Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (October 24-31)
Spooky deals, 'Fallout Day' sales & more!
We have quite a few backwards compatible classics on offer this week! Thanks to the ongoing Shocktober sale and this week's Fallout Day discounts, there are lots of old school games and DLC packs available on the cheap right now. <related ids="157377,157318"> As a result, we've rounded up all of the...
News Starfield Launch Set Record For "Most Game Pass Subscriptions Added On A Single Day Ever"
According to Microsoft's CEO
Bethesda's new space RPG Starfield has been a huge success for Xbox since it arrived on Game Pass and multiple platforms in September. In less than a month it surpassed 10 million players and since then, it's had ongoing success in the charts. Now, in an update during Microsoft's latest earnings call for FY24 Q1, the...
News Xbox's Leadership Team Visits Blizzard Post-Acquisition
Microsoft strives to be a "source of trust" for the studio
Following Microsoft's recent acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Phil Spencer and team Xbox have been busy doing studio tours all around the world. The latest visit was Blizzard's headquarters in Irvine, California and while Xbox's leadership team hasn't formally shared what exactly went on...
News Xbox Gaming Revenue Up 9% YoY In Latest Earnings Report
Hardware revenue had a decline of 7%
Microsoft has released its earning results for FY24 Q1 and Xbox's gaming revenue is up by 9% year-over-year. Xbox's content and revenue services in this latest quarter grew, this time by 13%. It's driven by the growth of the Xbox Game Pass service and first-party content. Xbox hardware revenue had a decline of...
News Bethesda Revealed Elder Scrolls 6 Early Because The 'Pitchforks And Torches Were Out'
Todd Howard had to say it was happening
The former Skyrim lead designer and Starfield systems designer Bruce Nesmith has explained why The Elder Scrolls 6 was apparently revealed by Bethesda in 2018. While the company prefers to reveal its games as close as possible to release dates, according to Nesmith, Bethesda was supposedly feeling the...
News 800+ Games Included In This Week's Xbox Sales As 'Shocktober' Deals Continue
Time for a Halloween treat?
Xbox's Shocktober Sale continues this week with lots of spooky offers available on Xbox titles. This year's version of the sale went live last week, and it's now joined by other promotions this week, including "Franchise Hits", "Publisher Spotlight", "Sales & Specials", "Bandai Namco" offers and of course, the...
News Starfield Dev Proud Of The Game's Launch Despite Being 'Stressed For 2 Years Straight'
"Goddamn am I proud of what we achieved"
Starfield was in the works for a long time over at Bethesda Game Studios — long before Xbox bought the company — and it seems the game's protracted development period wasn't always easy to deal with. In a recent Twitter thread, BGS Design Director Emil Pagliarulo reflected on Starfield's development, and...
News Microsoft 'Doubling Down As A Game Producer' After ActiBlizz Deal, Says CEO
"Now we'll be one of the largest game publishers"
After Microsoft closed its Activision Blizzard deal earlier this month, Xbox Game Studios has grown exponentially. As you can see here, the amount of studios now under Microsoft's wing is kind of mind-blowing, and the company's CEO is relishing the opportunity to start producing more games. Speaking...
News 'Fallout Day Sale' Now Live On Xbox, Featuring Steep DLC Discounts
Crawl out through the fallout, baby
Slightly ahead of Xbox's typical digital deals roundup each and every Tuesday, a new Fallout-flavoured promotion has just gone live on the Xbox Store. These discounts mostly include Fallout games and their respective DLC packs - although Skyrim also manages to barge its way into the promo as well. Anyway, seeing...
News Square Enix Confirms Early 2024 Launch For Final Fantasy 14 Beta On Xbox
"Mark your calendars Xbox fans!"
Ever since Phil Spencer & co. worked towards a much closer partnership with Japanese developer Square Enix, Xbox fans have been eagerly awaiting news on Final Fantasy 14 and its rollout on Xbox Series X and S. Well, Square Enix has narrowed down a release window for the MMORPG's upcoming open beta - ahead of the...
News Microsoft & People Can Fly Project Confirmed As 'Triple-A Game' Via New Job Post
"A Triple-A game developed in collaboration with Microsoft"
Earlier this summer, we caught wind of a brand-new project in the works between Microsoft and People Can Fly, thanks to a Polish business site that spotted the collaboration. While the Xbox owner hasn't officially confirmed the title since, a new job post from People Can Fly once again...
News Josh Sawyer Reveals The Obsidian Game He'd Revisit With A 'Baldur's Gate 3 Budget'
Between Pentiment 2, Pillars of Eternity 3, or Fallout New Vegas 2
Xbox's Obsidian Entertainment is already hard at work on Avowed, but this is a dev team that seems to always have multiple projects spinning up at once, and the studio's design director has hinted at one Obsidian series he'd like to revisit - given the right budget. Speaking with...
News Nintendo Boss Showers Praise On 'Great Relationship' With Xbox & Microsoft
"We consider them to be partners in many, many ways"
We've seen a nice partnership developing between Xbox and Nintendo over the past few years, with multiple Xbox games making their way over to the Switch such as Minecraft and Ori and the Will of the Wisps, and now in a new interview with Inverse, Nintendo's Doug Bowser has showered praise on that...
News Phil Spencer & Co. Given 'Sweet Welcome' As They Visit Candy Crush Developer King
One of the new ActiBlizz teams welcomes Xbox
Phil Spencer and the Xbox leadership team have wasted no time in the wake of Microsoft's huge Activision Blizzard deal. Shortly after the Xbox owner acquired the mega-publisher, Phil & co. have been to visit King Games - the team behind the mobile hit Candy Crush. As posted to Twitter, King has...
News Digital Foundry Host Discusses Missing 'Resolution Boost' Program For Xbox One Games
"It never actually came out"
Microsoft has pioneered plenty of system-level enhancements for Xbox this generation - FPS Boost instantly comes to mind with its frame rate improvements across select Xbox 360 and Xbox One titles. However, some of the team's plans for Xbox Series X|S seemingly never materialised, including its 'Resolution Boost'...
News Giant Animated 'XSphere' Showcases Xbox Games Lineup In Las Vegas
To coincide with Twitchcon
Microsoft's latest advertising campaign for all things Xbox is in full swing as the team closes out its huge Activision Blizzard deal. Earlier this week, Xbox launched the brand-new 'Wake Up and Dream' trailer set to premiere as the main Xbox TV ad for the holiday season, and now team green has taken over Las Vegas with...
Reaction Seriously, Microsoft Doesn't Care About Using Call Of Duty To Sell Xboxes
"We have no goal of trying to use Call of Duty to get you to buy an Xbox console"
We've seen Microsoft move away from the goal of sheer console sales for years now - the team has almost given up the ghost with PlayStation and has accepted that Sony is likely to sell more systems for the time being. Having said that, the acquisition of Activision...
Soapbox Gears Of War Should Return To Its Horror-Themed 'Mad World' Roots
Thinking back to original game's iconic trailer
It's that time of year where the horror fans among us start thinking about what spooky games we might play over the Halloween period, and this year, I feel a little stuck to be quite honest. I've spent some time with the likes of Resident Evil 4, Layers of Fear and Amnesia: The Bunker already in 2023,...
News This Diablo 4 Custom Console Is So Epic It Doesn't Even Look Like An Xbox
It doesn't work like one either, weirdly
Just as Microsoft finally acquires Diablo 4 developer Blizzard, the team announces another custom Xbox Series X console, and not only does this thing look hellish in its design - it also functions like its been plunged into the depths of hell too. Yep, weirdly, this latest Xbox Series X custom console...
News Halo Infinite Hits Highest PC Player Count In Over A Year As Season 5 Lands
The Steam numbers are up
There's quite a bit of hype building around Halo Infinite Season 5 at the moment - and that hype is already translating into a healthy PC player bump for 343 Industries and Microsoft. We're not talking astronomical numbers here, but the Steam version of Halo Infinite surpassed 15k concurrent players yesterday for the first...
Deals All 10+ Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (October 17-24)
Get up to 90% off!
Another fresh batch of Xbox deals & discounts are now live, with over 900 titles on offer this week - including the yearly 'Shocktober' sale as we approach Halloween. In and amongst these offers are a selection of backwards compatible classics from the original Xbox and Xbox 360 eras; discounted on the digital Xbox Store...
News Xbox Head Thanks Bethesda Veteran Pete Hines For His Services
"24 years of being at the heart of Bethesda"
Yesterday, Bethesda veteran and head of publishing, Pete Hines, announced he would be retiring after 24 years of service at the company. In a follow-up to this, Phil Spencer and some others within the Xbox family have thanked Hines for his contribution to the Bethesda family over the years. Xbox and...
Talking Point Which Activision Blizzard Series Do You Want To Play Most On Xbox Game Pass?
Come tell us what you're excited to play
Okay, so, the big Activision Blizzard deal is officially happening - and we're already starting to get giddy about the future of Xbox Game Pass with them on board. Sure, we know that some of the team's newer titles like Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Diablo 4
News Bethesda's Longtime Publishing Head Pete Hines Is Leaving The Company
"I have decided my time at Bethesda Softworks has come to an end"
Wow, this is a bit of a bombshell! Head of Publishing at Bethesda, Pete Hines, is officially leaving the company following the huge launch of Starfield. Yep, Hines has been a prominent public figure at Bethesda for more than two decades, but the exec has decided it's time to retire...
Rumour Halo's Next Story Campaign Is In Development On Unreal Engine
"Yes, they do have a team working on the next Halo campaign"
Earlier this year, we heard reports that 343 Industries had decided not to bother pursuing any sort of single-player DLC for Halo Infinite - instead focusing on multiplayer content post-launch. However, that doesn't mean the team hasn't started work on an entirely new Halo campaign, and a...
News Activision Says Xbox Can 'Take Games In The Library And Remake Them' Post-Acquisition
Which Activision Blizzard game do you want remade?
Now that the Activision Blizzard deal has officially gone through, we can all look forward to the future - a future where Xbox has total control over ActiBlizz IP. The Call of Duty owner is sitting on a treasure trove of other gaming franchises, and we could even see some of them return in 'remake'...
Talking Point What Do You Want To See From Xbox & Activision Blizzard?
The return of classic IP? A CoD overhaul? Tell us!
Alright, so the news is finally starting to settle that Microsoft now owns Activision Blizzard King, and we're expecting a little bit of a lull before the company comes out and reveals more of what to expect from this unprecedented takeover. It's been nearly two years since the intent to purchase...
News Activision CEO Bobby Kotick Set To Leave The Company In Early 2024
"I will do that through the end of 2023"
Although Activision Blizzard is officially a part of Xbox now (we still can't believe it either), questions remain about the future of the company under Microsoft and if there'll be any structural changes in the near future. Well, thanks to statements from both Phil Spencer and Activision CEO Bobby Kotick, we...
News Phil Spencer Comments On What It Means To Merge Activision Blizzard With Xbox First Party
"It is incredible to welcome such legendary teams to Xbox"
Well, the megaton news we've all been waiting for has finally landed. Activision Blizzard is officially a part of team Xbox as Microsoft eventually pushes its huge merger through after almost two years of work. Now that we've waded through all of the legislation and whatnot though, it's...
News It's Finally Over! Activision Blizzard Is Now Officially Part Of Xbox
"Welcoming the legendary teams and franchises"
It's time! Microsoft has announced today that Activision Blizzard King is now officially part of the company, bringing the likes of Call of Duty, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Diablo and many more "legendary franchises" under the Xbox banner. This news
News CMA Criticises 'Tactics Employed By Microsoft' Despite Agreeing To ActiBlizz Deal
Related to the initial investigation
Although the UK Competition and Markets Authority has today agreed to Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the regulator has had some harsh words to share about Microsoft's "tactics" along the way. In an official press release, CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell criticised Microsoft's handling of the...
News UK CMA Approves Microsoft's Acquisition Of Activision Blizzard
It's official!
Microsoft's long dispute with the UK Competition and Markets Authority over the acquisition of Activision Blizzard is finally over! The UK regulator officially approved the deal earlier today, paving the way for the takeover to go through. The CMA confirmed this was on condition of Microsoft selling cloud streaming rights to Ubisoft...
News Xbox's Latest 'Buy 1, Get 1' Sale Revolves Around Overpriced Racers
£50 for WRC 9 anyone?
Whenever we see one of these 'Buy 1, Get 1' promotions crop up on our Xbox dashboards we feel the need to inform the Pure Xbox community of their existence, but it's quite hard to be positive about this latest roundup of offers, we must admit. Yep, a new Buy 1, Get 1 50% off sale is now live on Xbox - containing mostly racing...
News Microsoft Plans To Appeal As IRS Requests $28.9 Billion In Back Taxes
"Microsoft disagrees with these proposed adjustments"
There's some big news coming out of Microsoft this morning related to the IRS, with Microsoft confirming that the Internal Revenue Service is requesting $28.9 billion (!) in back taxes relating to the period between 2004 and 2013. Microsoft says it disagrees with the "proposed adjustments" put...
News Xbox's ActiBlizz Deal Will 'Avoid Another EU Probe', Suggests Report
Ready to go in Europe
We're still awaiting the announcement that Microsoft's takeover of Activision Blizzard has been completed, but until then, we've got a report from Bloomberg suggesting the EU won't be creating any roadblocks over the next few days. You may recall that
News Xbox's Latest Console Sweepstakes Includes A Literal Forza Motorsport RC Car
Fancy taking this for a spin?
We've covered plenty of Xbox console competitions over the last few years, but this one might just take the cake! Rather than a custom-themed console, you get a whole Forza Motorsport RC car here - one big enough to fit a Carbon Black Xbox Series S right in the middle of it! Yep, this sweepstakes competition includes...
Talking Point Would You Like A Detachable Disc Drive For Xbox Series S?
Would it come in handy?
Sony finally announced its much-rumoured console revisions last night in the form of new Disc and Digital PS5 models launching this November, which made us think, what about a similar option for Xbox users? Microsoft has its very own digital console with Xbox Series S, but as of yet, you cannot add any sort of disc drive to...
News Activision CEO Namedrops Guitar Hero While Discussing Xbox Takeover's 'Unlimited Potential'
"Just endless possibilities for the future"
We're getting closer and closer to a final decision being made on Xbox's takeover of Activision Blizzard, and assuming everything goes to plan, the acquisition could finally become a reality in the next few days. Ahead of that point, details from a recent internal Activision Blizzard meeting have been...
News Disney Reportedly Encouraging Its CEO To Look At Acquiring A Company Like EA
But no commitments have been made
According to a new report from outlet Bloomberg, Disney CEO Bob Iger has been pressed in recent times about acquiring a "gaming giant" such as EA, in an attempt to "transform" Disney's games business. It doesn't sound like any sort of approach towards EA has been made, or even a concrete internal plan committed to...
Deals All 30+ Backwards Compatible Games In This Week's Xbox Sales (October 10-17)
Time to pick up a new classic?
Xbox's latest set of digital deals is now live, and as usual, we have a selection of backwards compatible classics on offer this week. We'll drop our full deals roundup down below for all things Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, and of course, you can check out every backwards compatible offer from the OG Xbox and Xbox 360...