Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (April 25-26)
Catching up on some April releases?
- Xbox
- Features
- Talking Point
- What Are You Playing
News Xbox Is Officially 'Reevaluating' What To Do About Exclusivity
Update: Asha Sharma shares more details
- Xbox
- Exclusives
- Asha Sharma
- Matt Booty
News Xbox Leadership Issues Massive Statement On The Future Of The Brand
"We have work to do"
- Xbox
- Asha Sharma
- Matt Booty
- Statement
News Xbox Unveils New Logo And Explains How To Make It Your Series X|S Background
"We are Xbox"
- Xbox
- Logo
News Four Key Priorities For Xbox's Future Outlined By CEO Asha Sharma & EVP Matt Booty
"We will execute this through four priorities"
- Xbox
- Matt Booty
- Asha Sharma
Roundup Here's What Was Revealed At The ID@Xbox April 2026 Showcase
The full list of all reveals from today's Xbox event
- Xbox
- ID@Xbox
- Showcase
- Features
- Xbox Series X
Latest News
TodaySat, 25th Apr 2026
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (April 25-26)
Catching up on some April releases?
Welcome to your final weekend of April 2026! It's been a busy week of activity across Xbox and Game Pass, with the latter even getting a new Microsoft first-party release in recent days. Here's what we're playing this weekend: Ben Kerry, Staff Writer: I was away on my holidays last weekend, so aside from a...
- Xbox
- Features
- Talking Point
- What Are You Playing
YesterdayFri, 24th Apr 2026
Guide Xbox Adds More Perks For Game Pass Members (April 2026)
The latest freebies for XGP subscribers
The Xbox Game Pass Perks program is continuing to add a bunch of freebies for Game Pass members throughout April 2026, including for the likes of Sea of Thieves, Minecraft, FragPunk, PUBG: Battlegrounds and various other games. Since we first published this article at the start of April, we've also see
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Perks
- Guides
- Xbox Series X
News Asha Sharma Says Xbox Is Investing To Make Series X|S Consoles A 'First-Class Experience Again'
That's how important they are to the new leadership
In yesterday's big Xbox statement from Asha Sharma and Matt Booty, there was a mention in one of the priority sections about how they wanted to "stabilize Gen9 as a healthy and high-quality base", with Gen9 referring to the ninth generation of Xbox consoles in the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S...
- Xbox
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox Series S
- Asha Sharma
- Xbox Boss
News It's Been Years Since Xbox Acquired A Studio, But It Sounds Like They're Considering It Again
There's a mention of "M&A" in the big new statement
It's been a very long time since Xbox last acquired a studio, and to be honest we're still a little traumatised by that whole process (!) — it was a very drawn out takeover of Activision Blizzard that lasted almost two full years. The takeover finally completed in late 2023, and we haven't seen...
- Xbox
- Acquisitions
- Xbox Game Studios
News Xbox Unveils New Logo And Explains How To Make It Your Series X|S Background
"We are Xbox"
We officially have a new Xbox logo! To accompany last night's massive statement on the future of the brand, the official Xbox account on X/Twitter posted a 4K version of the new logo along with the words "we are Xbox" next to it. Xbox does tend to play with the colours of the logo quite often anyway, but this version of it seems to be...
- Xbox
- Logo
News Xbox Game Pass 'Starter Edition' Revealed Via Discord Nitro Leak
Here's what we know so far
Remember back in late March when an Xbox fan had claimed to have discovered a new tier of Xbox Game Pass with the codename of TRITON? Well, it looks like that's now been unveiled in the form of Xbox Game Pass "Starter Edition", which has been uncovered via a leak from Discord Previews over on social media. The account has...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Discord Nitro
News Kiln Players Share Their First Reviews Of The New Xbox Game Studios Title
Here's what people are saying on day one
Yesterday was a bit of an unfortunate day for Xbox and Double Fine to launch Kiln — not only is it a smaller-scale release anyway, but it got caught up in the major statement about Xbox's future that dominated the headlines. Still, there are definitely people checking this game out on Xbox Game Pass and...
- Xbox
- Kiln
- Review Roundup
- Xbox Game Pass
Random Three New Xbox Slogans Have Been Added To The Office Windows At Microsoft HQ
Defining the next era of Xbox
At the very end of yesterday's big Xbox statement about where the brand is going in the future, Xbox boss Asha Sharma and EVP Matt Booty mentioned how they've "honored our commitments of great games, return of Xbox, and future of play" after 62 days of being in their new roles. It turns out that these three slogans —...
- Xbox
- Microsoft
- Return of Xbox
- Random
News Expedition 33 Celebrates One-Year Anniversary With Small Update On Xbox & Beyond
"Happy 1 Year Anniversary of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33!!"
Can you believe it's been one year since Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 first launched on Xbox Game Pass back in April of 2025?! The game ended up being a massive success — more than anyone could have expected — and took home the Game of the Year award at The Game Awards 2025, while also...
- Xbox
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Updates
- Patch Notes
Thursday23rd Apr 2026
News Xbox Announces 10 Titles Coming To Game Pass At April's Indie Showcase
Loads of XGP additions that have never been announced before!
Today's Xbox indie showcase is officially in the books, and as we expected, it contained a ridiculous number of Xbox Game Pass titles — 10 of which had never been announced for Game Pass until this event. Those are the games we're going to focus on in this article, but if you want to...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Showcase
- ID@Xbox
- Indie Games
News Xbox Rewards Adds Brand-New 'Birthday Gift' Feature With Special Benefits
Xbox employee confirms it launched this past Monday
We've got a new feature for Xbox Rewards / Microsoft Rewards! From now on, you'll receive some special Xbox Rewards benefits when you get to the week of your birthday, including a "birthday gift" that can be redeemed. This was first spotted by Rewards users yesterday, and confirmed by Xbox...
- Xbox
- Xbox Rewards
- Microsoft Rewards
News Xbox Leadership Issues Massive Statement On The Future Of The Brand
"We have work to do"
This might be one of the most important messages we've ever seen in the 25 years of Xbox! New boss Asha Sharma and EVP Matt Booty have issued a massive statement to employees (and subsequently the public) today about the future of the brand, outlining how Xbox needs to evolve in the years ahead. It starts off by mentioning that...
- Xbox
- Asha Sharma
- Matt Booty
- Statement
News Xbox Is Officially 'Reevaluating' What To Do About Exclusivity
Update: Asha Sharma shares more details
There have been rumbles for a while that Xbox might be considering a change to its plans around exclusivity following the arrival of new boss Asha Sharma, and now it's been officially confirmed that this will be "reevaluated". In the massi
- Xbox
- Exclusives
- Asha Sharma
- Matt Booty
News Four Key Priorities For Xbox's Future Outlined By CEO Asha Sharma & EVP Matt Booty
"We will execute this through four priorities"
We mentioned today as part of our coverage of the massive statement from Xbox leadership on the brand's future that Asha Sharma and Matt Booty had outlined four main priorities for the future, so let's dive deeper into each of those! The first of these priorities is hardware, which encompasses a few...
- Xbox
- Matt Booty
- Asha Sharma
News Microsoft Gaming Scrapped As Asha Sharma Promotes 'Return Of Xbox' At MS HQ
Update: Now official!
It's been a busy few months for Asha Sharma as she settles into her new role at Xbox, and it sounds as though she's rounding out that initial period by promoting a complete "return of Xbox" over at Microsoft HQ. According to Tom Warren of
- Xbox
- Microsoft Gaming
- Asha Sharma
- Xbox Boss
News Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced Formally Unveiled, Heading To Xbox In July 2026
"Totally rebuilt from the ground up..."
After plenty of rumours, speculation and even a cheeky mention from Ubisoft itself earlier this week, the company has properly unveiled Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced; a new "from the ground up" remake of 2013's Assassin's Creed 4. This new version, which you can take a look at via the game overview...
- Xbox
- Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynched
- Ubisoft
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox Series S
Roundup Here's What Was Revealed At The ID@Xbox April 2026 Showcase
The full list of all reveals from today's Xbox event
Weren't able to catch April 2026's ID@Xbox Showcase earlier today? No worries! You can always go back and watch the on-demand version for yourself, which you'll find elsewhere on Pure Xbox. If you don't want to watch it all the way through, we've also detailed all the important reveals in this...
- Xbox
- ID@Xbox
- Showcase
- Features
- Xbox Series X
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (April 23-26)
Featuring a Sony-developed title!
Welcome to your latest Xbox Free Play Days lineup! This week, we've got four games available as part of the program - including Sony San Diego's MLB The Show 26, as pictured above. Here's your full list of FPD games this weekend: Age of Mythology: Retold
- Xbox
- Microsoft
- Free Play Days
- Xbox Game Pass
- Xbox Series X
Live Watch The ID@Xbox April 2026 Showcase Here
Plus the AC Black Flag Resynced reveal as a bonus pre-show!
It's time for the ID@Xbox Showcase - April 2026 edition! As usual with these events, we're expecting lots of new indie game reveals, trailers, updates and release dates, along with a few Xbox Game Pass confirmations as well. "IGN is proud to partner once again with ID@Xbox for another...
- Live Chat
- Xbox
- ID@Xbox
- Showcase
News Xbox Engineer Hints At More 'Fun Surprises' And Features Based On Fan Feedback
There's apparently an internal roadmap
We've seen lots of new Xbox features rolling out across console and beyond over the past few weeks, and earlier in April, Xbox boss Asha Sharma revealed that a new team dedicated to fan feedback had been created as well. Last night, Xbox engineering lead Eden Marie revealed that she's part of this fan fe
- Xbox
- Dashboard
- Updates
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox Series S
News 'This Change Is Not Surprising At All' - Industry Analyses Xbox Game Pass Price Drop
Cost down, COD out
This week, we've seen some pretty big news regarding Xbox Game Pass and the future of the service. Microsoft has decided to drop Game Pass Ultimate back down to a more manageable cost, whilst announcing that Call of Duty will no longer arrive day one in the service. In the days since, the industry has reacted, with
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Microsoft
- Call Of Duty
- Industry
News Xbox First-Party Title 'Kiln' Is Available Today With Game Pass Ultimate (April 23)
Spring roadmap also revealed!
Today's Xbox Game Pass update brings us the latest Microsoft first-party release in Kiln; a new multiplayer brawler from the folks over at Double Fine Productions. You'll see this one roll out on XGP later today, and ahead of that launch, the team has also revealed a Spring 2026 roadmap for the game. So, we'll give you...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Kiln
- Microsoft
- Xbox Series X
Poll How Would You Grade The ID@Xbox April 2026 Showcase?
Give us your verdict
The dust is now beginning to settle on the ID@Xbox Showcase for April 2026! If you haven't had a chance to watch it yet, you can catch the full thing over at our live coverage page, and we'll soon provide an extensive recap of everything that happened as part of the show. So, all things considered, what grade would you give...
- Xbox
- Features
- Polls
- Showcase
- ID@Xbox
Wednesday22nd Apr 2026
News Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Gets New Conversion Rates Following Price Decrease
The ratios have changed when upgrading to XGPU
As part of the reduction in price for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate that was announced yesterday, there's also been a change to the conversion rates that apply when you go from a different tier of Game Pass over to Game Pass Ultimate. If you didn't know already, you can buy prepaid memberships for the likes...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
News Xbox & Halo Veteran Makes 'Difficult' Decision To Leave Microsoft After 28 Years
"What a gift the last 28 years has been"
We've got a departure to report from Team Xbox today, as Kiki Wolfkill has announced she's left Microsoft after 28 years, describing it as a "difficult but exhilarating" decision that allows her to explore new opportunities going forward. Wolfkill was most recently the Head of Film and TV at Xbox (since late...
- Xbox
- Halo
- Microsoft
- Kiki Wolfkill
News 'The Idea Is Not Dead' - Xbox Boss Explains Why She's Still Keen On A Mobile Store
It seemed to have been killed off, but apparently not!
For years now, we've been hearing about potential plans for Xbox to build a mobile store that could compete with the likes of the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, but nothing has ever come of it (there's a storefront on the actual Xbox app itself, but it's only for buying console and PC...
- Xbox
- Mobile Store
- Asha Sharma
- Xbox Boss
Rumour Xbox Might Introduce Customisable Plans For Game Pass In The Future
As a way to make the service more flexible
At the moment, when it comes to Xbox Game Pass, we've got three options (or four if you count PC Game Pass) in the form of XGP Essential, Premium and Ultimate. You pay your money, and you get a specific set of benefits for each tier. However, as part of trying to make Xbox Game Pass more "flexible" in the...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Rumours
News What's In The Box? Kojima Meets Asha Sharma And Receives Mysterious Xbox Gift
It says "Xbox for Kojima" on it
We're all well aware that Hideo Kojima is working on a project for Xbox right now in the form of "OD", and so it's probably no surprise that he's paid a visit to Xbox HQ to visit new boss Asha Sharma and EVP Matt Booty. There's nevertheless been a lot of interest in the photo he's shared though, in which he's...
- Xbox
- Hideo Kojima
- Asha Sharma
News Asha Sharma Teases New Xbox Game Pass & Discord Partnership
"We're teaming up again as we continue to make Game Pass more flexible"
We've got even more Xbox Game Pass news to bring your way today! Following yesterday's price reduction for Game Pass Ultimate, Xbox boss Asha Sharma has teased a new partnership with Game Pass and Discord. Sharma says they're "teaming up again" in order to help make Game Pass...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Discord
- Asha Sharma
- Xbox Boss
News If You Like Metal Slug, Xbox Is Having A Massive Sale On Nine Of Its Games Right Now
Nine titles discounted by up to 80%
There's no doubt that Metal Slug is one of the most beloved run-and-gun franchises in gaming history, and if you fancy either reliving some classics or discovering them for the first time, they're part of a massive sale on Xbox right now. Nine Metal Slug titles are discounted in all, spanning six ACA NEOGEO...
- Xbox
- Metal Slug
- Deals
Roundup Here's What The Reviews Are Saying About Tides Of Tomorrow
The next game from the Road 96 team
We've got an intriguing game called Tides of Tomorrow releasing on Xbox today, and it's something that's had our attention for quite a long time now, as it's the next title from the developer behind the excellent Road 96. On the face of it, this seems like your pretty typical narrative adventure with some...
- Xbox
- Tides of Tomorrow
- Review Roundup
- Round Up
Tuesday21st Apr 2026
News Xbox Announces Price Reductions For Game Pass Ultimate & PC Game Pass
Starting now!
Woah, woah, woah! Microsoft has announced today that both Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass are officially getting price reductions, and they're literally going into effect over the next few hours. In the US, Xbox Game Pass will now drop from $29.99 to $22.99 per-month, while PC Game Pass will go from $16.49 to $13.49...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
News Fable Creator Says His New Game Is 'Most Significant Event' In His Entire 40-Year Career
It launches this week, but only for PC at first
You may hear about a game called Masters of Albion this week — it's launching on April 22nd for just PC at first, but we're expecting an Xbox version in the future, and it's being helmed by none other than Fable creator, Peter Molyneux. The game is described as a "bold reimagining of the God Game...
- Xbox
- PC
- Fable
- Masters of Albion
News Here's A Breakdown Of The New Prices For Xbox Game Pass As Of April 2026
Specifically the UK, US, Canada, Europe and Australian prices
By now, you've probably heard that Xbox has lowered the price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass (while also taking away day one Call of Duty titles), so we thought it was a good idea to bring you a breakdown of the new prices across multiple regions - five of them to be exact...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Prices
News Xbox PC Project Might Have Solved How To Fix Hundreds Of 'Broken' Windows Games
They're trying to get the attention of Xbox's leadership team with it
If you've ever tried to play a Windows 8-era game via the Xbox PC app, you might have run into an issue where it simply refuses to connect to any online services, and one particular project is aiming to raise awareness of how to fix it. The Xbox Collection Tracker project on...
- Xbox
- PC
- Windows
News Call Of Duty Titles Will No Longer Join Xbox Game Pass On Day One
"We’ll continue to support Game Pass through catalog titles"
As part of today's announcement regarding the price reduction for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, it's been revealed that Call of Duty games will no longer be launching "day one" into either tier going forward. Instead, the plan is now to wait a year and introduce them the...
- Xbox
- Call of Duty
- Xbox Game Pass
News Xbox Exec Chimes In As Rumours Suggest Project Helix Chip Will Be Used For 'Other Machines'
Jason Ronald makes it clear we're getting a first-party console
At this point, we know for sure that Xbox is working on a next-gen console that's currently known as Project Helix, and that it will support both console and PC games and be an actual first-party console developed by Xbox in-house. However, there have been rumours for some time that...
- Xbox
- Project Helix
- Next-Gen
- New Xbox Console
- Jason Ronald
News Three Games Are Available Today Across Various Tiers Of Xbox Game Pass (April 21)
Two are new to Premium only, one is new to Ultimate & PC
Today marks our first Xbox Game Pass drop of the week, with three games joining various tiers of the service — two being brand-new to just the Xbox Game Pass Premium tier, and one joining Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC. The highlight here is undoubtedly Vampire Crawlers, which is a spin-off...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox Series S
- Xbox One
News Vampire Crawlers Is Getting Great Reviews Alongside Its Xbox Launch
Here's what the critics are saying
We've got two fully new additions to Xbox Game Pass this week in the form of Kiln and Vampire Crawlers, and the reviews for the latter have just gone live. As expected from the dev behind Vampire Survivors, they're pretty great! This turn-based deckbuilder spin-off has caught our eye for some time, es
- Xbox
- Vampire Crawlers
- Round Up
- Review Roundup
News Xbox's Starfield Tops The US Gaming Charts For First Time Since 2023
Not much competition, but a win's a win!
Last week, we shared how Starfield had reportedly sold around 140,000 copies on PS5 during its first week on Sony's platform, which was described at the time by Alinea Analytics as "a middling start" but still better than other recent Xbox first-party titles such as Ninja Gaiden 4 and The Outer Worlds
- Xbox
- Starfield
- Charts
- PS5
Monday20th Apr 2026
News Xbox Unveils New Controller And Headset For Forza Horizon 6
Pre-orders go live today!
We've got a new Xbox controller and headset coming our way for Forza Horizon 6! Both of them have now been officially unveiled, with pre-orders starting today ahead of a May 19th release — they retail at £84.99 / $89.99 and £124.99 / $134.99 MSRP respectively. Let's start with the controller, which is your standard...
- Xbox
- Controllers
- Headsets
- Forza Horizon 6
News These 10 Games Are Coming To Xbox Game Pass (April 21-May 5)
The final batch of April, plus another one for May!
Microsoft has today unveiled another 10 games coming to Xbox Game Pass later this month and at the start of next month, including a couple we hadn't heard about before in the form of Trepang2 and Final Fantasy V. Here's everything coming to Xbox Game Pass from April 21 throu
- Xbox
- Microsoft
- Xbox Game Pass
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox Series S
News Microsoft Rewards Announces Major Changes For May 2026 Across Multiple Regions
"We are excited to announce new changes coming soon"
Over the past few months, we've noticed a few Microsoft Rewards / Xbox Rewards users mentioning that they'd seen a notification of major changes coming to their membership, but the rollout has been quite scattered up until now. However, over the past few days, it seems like a lot more people have...
- Xbox
- Microsoft Rewards
- Xbox Rewards
News Xbox Rewards Points Are Being Turned Into An Actual Currency For Buying Games On Console
No more having to redeem Xbox Gift Cards
At the moment, if you want to buy a game with your Microsoft / Xbox Rewards points on console, you have to go to the Rewards dashboard and redeem an Xbox or Microsoft Gift Card in order to add funds to your account. That option isn't going away, but Xbox Rewards points will soon become an actual currency on...
- Xbox
- Xbox Rewards
- Microsoft Rewards
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox Series S
News Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced Is Getting A 'Worldwide Reveal Showcase' This Week
Ubisoft prepares to unveil its new version of AC:BF
We've heard for ages now that Ubisoft might be working on some kind of remake or remaster for Assassin's Creed: Black Flag, and now the company has unveiled a Worldwide Reveal Showcase for the game this week. The showcase will be viewable via the video you see above at the following times on April...
- Xbox
- Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced
- Ubisoft
News Xbox's Next First-Party Game Arrives This Week, And Preloads Have Already Begun
Are you ready for Kiln?
It feels like it's gone under the radar a little bit, but we've got a new Xbox first-party game arriving this week! That game is Double Fine's Kiln, which launches day one on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC on April 23rd (Thursday). If you haven't been following this one, Kiln is an online multiplayer game centred around...
- Xbox
- Kiln
- First-Party
- Xbox Game Studios
News Xbox Boss Wants A 'Chat' With Ex-PlayStation Exec Over Criticisms Of Game Pass
Asha Sharma is willing to listen
Recently, we've heard how Asha Sharma is interested in finding ways to make Xbox Game Pass less expensive and more "flexible" in the future, which various rumours swirling about how that might be achieved. When Sharma's leaked memo about reducing the price of Game Pass was revealed, former PlayStation boss Shawn...
- Xbox
- Xbox Game Pass
- Asha Sharma
- Xbox Boss
- Shawn Layden
News Xbox To Highlight 'Tons' Of Games In ID@Xbox Showcase Later This Week
Plenty of Xbox Game Pass titles set to feature
We've got yet another Xbox showcase happening very soon! It's been announced today that the ID@Xbox April 2026 Showcase will take place on April 23rd, featuring "tons" of indie games that are coming to Xbox consoles in the future. The first four games have already been confirmed for the event, which...
- Xbox
- Showcase
- ID@Xbox
- Indie Games
Sunday19th Apr 2026
Retro Recap All The Classic Gaming News From The Past Week (April 19th 2026)
Time Extension Neo Geo+! Polymega! Zelda!
Welcome to Retro Recap, a regular feature we run each and every weekend which rounds up all of the best retro gaming news and content of the past week in one place. Polymega Gets An Upgrade As 'Remix' Units Complete Mass Production: Polymega maker Playmaji has revealed that it is giving its modular emulation system an...
- Retro Recap
- Features
Talking Point What's A 'Good Deal' For An Xbox Series X or S In 2026?
It's getting harder and harder to say!
Here and there, we still come across questions from people who have spotted an Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S, or perhaps even bought one already, and are asking whether they got a "good deal" in the process. Truth be told, that question is becoming harder and harder to answer these days. The current console...
- Xbox
- Talking Point
- Features
