Tag: Xbox Series S - Page 55
News Recent Studio Closures Tied To 'Long Term' Health Of The Business, Claims Xbox President
"It's hard when you have to make decisions like that"
It's been another rough week for the video game industry, with Microsoft shutting down four Xbox studios. One closure in particular though that's created a lot of confusion (and even some outrage) is Tango Gameworks - the same team behind the award-winning and critically-acclaimed title Hi-Fi...
News 'Galacticare' Brings Its Intergalactic Hospitals To Xbox Game Pass This Month
Save the (literal) Galaxy
It was all the way back at the 2023 Xbox Extended Showcase that we first learned of Galacticare heading to Xbox Game Pass, and now it's got a date! The game will arrive for Xbox Series X, Series S and PC on May 23rd, 2024. In Galacticare, it's your job to "build, manage and optimise" intergalactic hospitals - either in t
News Xbox Game Pass's Dead Island 2 'Isn't Over Yet', Vows Developer Dambuster
"We know a lot of you are wondering what's next"
After years and years of development delays, Dead Island 2 finally launched in April 2023 - with an Xbox Game Pass arrival following up last month. It seemed that after this Game Pass drop, and the team's second story DLC release, Dead Island 2's time was up - but that's not going to
Review Little Kitty, Big City (Xbox) - A Purrfect Addition to Xbox Game Pass
Cats are cute, Humans should have faces.
Little Kitty, Big City is the inaugural release for indie developer Double Dagger Studio. It’s a fun and silly venture centering around a mischievous little kitty trying to find their way back home. We were interested to understand where the makers of such wholesome content had been, and let us tell you, we...
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (May 9-12)
Included with Game Pass Core and Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox's Free Play Days selection for this week is now live, with four games in total playable for free this weekend. Crime Boss: Rockay City is probably the highlight of the bunch here, with 505's star-studded FPS only launching last summer. Here's your full Xbox Free Play Days lineup for the...
News Little Kitty, Big City Is Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (May 9)
Find your way back home
Today marks another day one arrival on Xbox Game Pass in the form of Little Kitty, Big City, in which you'll embark on a "whimsical adventure" within an open-world playground as a "curious little kitty with a big personality". The release time for Little Kitty, Big City on Xbox Game Pass is 9am PT / 12pm ET / 5pm BST. We've...
News Xbox Apparently Still Needs Smaller Games For 'Prestige And Awards'
Matt Booty outlines the division's future goals at the latest town hall
Just a day after Xbox announced the closure of four studios including the Hi-Fi RUSH developer Tango Gameworks, it's apparently touched on the importance of "smaller games" during its latest town hall meeting. According to "internal remarks" shared with The Verge, Xbox Game...
News Tango Gameworks Had Hopes For Hi-Fi RUSH 2 Before Xbox Closure, Says Report
"Tango was in the process of pitching a sequel"
Sorry to add to the pain of this week's news, but for those who are big fans of the great Xbox first-party title Hi-Fi RUSH, you'll be sad to know that Tango Gameworks was seemingly trying to get a sequel greenlit prior to the studio's closure. This is according to the latest report from Bloomberg...
News PS1-Style Horror Game 'Crow Country' Is Launching On Xbox To Amazing Reviews
"It is a real triumph"
Earlier this month, we included the PS1-style survival horror game Crow Country in our roundup of exciting indies to look forward to on Xbox, and the good news is that the critics appear to be absolutely loving the game so far! Some of the highlights here include a 5/5 from The Guardian, a 4/5
Report Ubisoft's Japan-Themed Assassin's Creed Set For Gameplay Reveal Next Month
A sea of red is coming
'Assassin's Creed Red' was officially unveiled back in September 2022, but we're still waiting for a proper reveal from the folks over at Ubisoft following the tiny teaser trailer up above. Earlier this year we heard that a new trailer could be dropping in May before a gameplay deep dive during Ubisoft Forward,
News Subscription Services Like Xbox Game Pass Appear To Have 'Stalled' In The US
The figures are barely moving
We've heard for a while now that Xbox Game Pass growth is slowing down these days - Microsoft has said that the service has struggled to expand numbers-wise since at least late 2022. Well, the overall US numbers seem to be backing that up, and that's across gaming subscriptions in general. Circana's Mat Piscatella (NPD...
News Starfield's New Camera View Is Getting Rave Reviews Ahead Of May's Xbox Update
"I'm completely rediscovering the game"
This time last week, Bethesda unveiled plans for the biggest update in Starfield history, adding a bunch of new features including better surface maps, new ways to customise gameplay and a 60FPS mode on Xbox Series X. Something that was also mentioned was the ability to stick to a third-person camera during...
News EA CEO 'Couldn't Be More Excited' About What The Team Is Making With Battlefield
"This is the largest Battlefield team in franchise history"
Battlefield 2042 development recently wrapped up over at EA and DICE, so naturally, murmurings about the next instalment in this famous FPS franchise are starting to appear. This week, EA CEO Andrew Wilson has been hyping up the next game in the company's latest financial report (thanks,
News The Excellent 'Banishers: Ghosts Of New Eden' Now Has A Free Trial On Xbox
Play the game for free on Xbox Series X|S
DON'T NOD's Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden flew under the radar when it launched on Xbox back in February, but when we did get around to playing it, we really enjoyed our time with this spooky investigative adventure. Three months on, and now anyone can try the game out as the team has added a free trial to...
Random Xbox Drops 'Feel The Burn' Tagline On New Controller After Four Studio Closures
It was feeling the burn...
Xbox yesterday lifted the lid on its new Fire Vapor Special Edition Xbox Series X|S controller. Attached to the reveal was the tagline "feel the burn today", and unsurprisingly this didn't go down very well after it announced four studio closures. In an update, it seems Microsoft has now made a quick edit to the...
News Tango Gameworks Founder Responds To Xbox Shutting Down Studio
"Sad"
It's another tough period for the video game industry this week with Xbox announcing the immediate closure of four teams - including its Japanese studio Tango Gameworks, responsible for Hi-Fi RUSH and multiple other IP over the years. Past and present developers have been sending their messages to these teams and now the studio founder, who...
Reaction Xbox's Push Towards 'Microsoft Gaming' Looks More Drastic Than We First Thought
The price of ever-expanding growth
It's been a wild few years over at Team Xbox, with the brand being marked by vast change since the launch of Xbox Series X and S back in late 2020 - which is starting to feel like a lifetime ago now. Huge acquisitions like that of both Bethesda and Activision Blizzard have massively changed how the team now...
News Xbox Exec Provides Reasoning Behind Bethesda Studio Closures
"I’m sharing changes we are making to our Bethesda teams"
We're all somewhat in shock by today's news surrounding the closure of four Bethesda development studios, including the teams behind the likes of Hi-Fi RUSH and Redfall. While it's hard to wrap your head around why Xbox would go out and buy these studios only to shut them down a few years...
News Xbox Is Hosting Another 'Buy One, Get Two Free' Sale This Week
But honestly, these aren't great deals
Xbox's new weekly sales are now live, and alongside a pretty great selection of standard deals on some recently released titles, the team is hosting another one of its 'Buy One, Get Two Free' sales right now. This particular promotion has a wide range of games on offer, but they're hardly what we'd call...
News New Xbox 'Achievement' Sale Includes Great Deals For Many 2023 & 2024 Releases
Grab 'em while you can
It's Tuesday, so that means we've got a new batch of discounts on the Xbox Store! Around 350 games have been added to the pile today, made up of "Achievement", "Xbox Game Studios", "Sofa Co-Op" and Xbox Game Pass sales. In the mix are some recent Xbox releases such as Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Banishers: Ghosts of New...
News Kona 2: Brume Is Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (May 7)
Explore the Canadian wilderness on Game Pass
Welcome to your latest Xbox Game Pass library update! Today, developer Parabole welcomes you to the Canadian wilderness in Kona 2: Brume, the recent sequel to 2017's Kona; which is already in the Game Pass library. Here's a quick look at Kona 2, which is now live on Xbox Game Pass: Kona 2: Brume...
News Hades 2 Gets A Surprise Early Access Release, Initial Impressions 'Overwhelmingly Positive'
A console release is on the way
Following some previews in April, the highly anticipated roguelike Hades 2 has now got an early access launch. Unfortunately, it's only for PC right now, but it could be a sign that an update about the Xbox version of Hades 2 is nearby. Supergiant's official website notes how the title is expected to be in "early...
Talking Point What Are Your Favourite Quick Resume Games On Xbox Series X|S?
Jump in, jump out
Back at the end of 2023, we polled the Pure Xbox community on what everyone thought about Quick Resume on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, and the vast majority told us that they "love it" and "use it all the time". So, let's take this to the next level! Clearly this instant-resume feature has proven extremely popular since its...
News Xbox Fan Helps Bromley FC Achieve Greatest Success In 132 Years
A dream come true
Last year, Xbox and Football Manager held a competition to give one lucky Xbox fan a job at Bromley FC as a "Support Performance Tactician", and it was ultimately won by Nathan Owolabi who has become the star of a mini documentary. If that wasn't cool enough, Owolabi played a part in Bromley's biggest success in their 132 years as...
News Microsoft & CI Games Strike Deal For Two New Xbox Game Pass Additions
One was already rumoured to be coming!
Following a rumour about Lords of the Fallen coming to Xbox Game Pass this month, we seem to have confirmation of that particular title and another from publisher CI Games joining the library soon. As picked up by Polish business site Bankier, Microsoft appears to have agreed to bring t
Talking Point Would You Mind If The Next Xbox Was A Portable Console?
Or do you hope Microsoft sticks to a traditional system?
As we move through the fourth year of Xbox Series X|S, we're surely approaching the back-half of this generation of gaming - which has us often pondering where Microsoft might go next. Lately, 'Xbox handheld' rumours have been swirling — fuelled by the likes of Phil Spencer talking about...
News TopSpin 2K25 Has A New Xbox Rival As 'Tennis Elbow 4' Makes Console Debut
Some are calling it "the most realistic tennis simulation ever"
It's definitely a great time for tennis fans on Xbox right now! We've been having a blast with TopSpin 2K25 ever since it was released a couple of weeks ago, and yet another tennis game is about to make its debut on Xbox this week. The latest one is called Tennis Elbow 4, and many of...
News Fallout 4's Next-Gen Update 'Weirdly Undercooked', Says Digital Foundry
It may have needed more time in the vault
We waited a long time for Bethesda to deliver its next-gen upgrade for Fallout 4, and it's safe to say that last month's update hasn't turned out to be a particularly smooth transition for Xbox Series X|S players. Now, the team at Digital Foundry has had a good look at how
News Xbox Is Apparently 'Very Confident' In Its 2024 Summer Showcase Lineup
Just over a month until the big day!
We're closing in on the big Xbox Games Showcase for 2024, with this year's event recently confirmed to be airing on June 9th - and it's sounding like we might be in for a treat during the 2024 show and beyond. Windows Central's Jez Corden has been hyping up the event on Twitter, discussing his most anticipated...
Feature These 20+ Games Are Coming To Xbox Next Week (May 6-10)
Including two Game Pass titles!
Welcome to your Xbox games roundup for May 6-10! Although there aren't too many big releases next week, there's some great-looking stuff on the way including PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs, Indika and
News 24 Years Later, This Obscure SEGA Dreamcast Game Arrives On Xbox Next Week
This time it's "massively improved"
Hands up, who remembers Rainbow Cotton for the SEGA Dreamcast? There are probably quite a few people who do, but for the majority of Xbox fans, we'd suggest that this 3D rail shooter from 2000 likely passed you by. That doesn't matter though, because 24 years after it first launched, we're now getting it on Xbox!...
News Hellblade 2 Will Display With Black Bars Outside Of Ultrawide Mode
The game has a 2.39:1 aspect ratio
Xbox and Ninja Theory have officially started the hype train for the release of Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 later this month, and as part of this, some interesting details have been confirmed about the game's aspect ratio. Taking to social media earlier this week, Ninja Theory shared the screenshot you see above,...
News Xbox Exec Hypes Up Hellblade 2 As Team Green Lays Out Launch Plans
"Excited to share more & celebrate this visually stunning masterpiece"
We're about two and a half weeks away from Hellblade 2 releasing on Xbox Game Pass, and it looks like launch plans are kicking into gear over at Microsoft and Ninja Theory. Not only is the developer starting to "share something every day" from now until launch, but Xbox exec...
News Resident Evil 9 Rumoured To Release In January After 'Longest Dev Time' In Series History
Resident rumours, more like
Another fresh Resident Evil 9 rumour is doing the rounds today after leaker Dusk Golem has once again spoken about Capcom's upcoming series entry. Previously rumoured to be "internally delayed" at Capcom, it's looking like things might be back on track at the Japanese developer. Dusk Golem now says that his own...
Feature Redfall One Year On: Xbox's Vampire Misfire Still Lacks Bite
Man, this sucks
Was it really only this time last year that Redfall launched? Actually? It seems so much longer in game industry terms. So many huge titles have come and gone in the interim, so many genre-defining monsters (any excuse to big up Baldur’s Gate 3, honestly), and the particular style of looting and shooting that Arkane settled on for...
News A Few Star Wars Games Are Reduced By 90-95% On Xbox This Week
Alongside Back 4 Blood, Injustice 2 and others
Looking for some cheap Xbox games in this week's Xbox sales? As usual, we've got a few 90-95% discounts to highlight on the Xbox Store right now, including the likes of Back 4 Blood and Injustice 2 that have appeared on the list in recent weeks. There are also plenty of Star Wars games in here - Jedi:...
News Diablo 4's New Season 'Loot Reborn' Launches On Xbox This Month
"Season 4 is going to be the biggest update"
Following its debut on Xbox Game Pass in March, Diablo IV will soon be getting its "biggest update" since launch in the form of the Season 4: Loot Reborn update. This update will roll out on May 14th, 2024 and promises to overhaul many "core game systems" to refresh how items are earned, how they...
News Lords Of The Fallen Is Apparently Bringing Its Soulslike To Xbox Game Pass In Late May
According to a new report
We just got our first Xbox Game Pass roundup for May 2024, which breaks down the service's early May additions, but we're already starting to hear about a title that could be included in the late May lineup as well. According to outlet eXputer, 2023's soulslike Lords Of The Fallen will be coming to the
News Ubisoft's XDefiant Officially Launches On Xbox Series X|S Later This Month
XDefiant is finally coming out!
Well, we finally have a full launch date for Ubisoft's XDefiant! The Xbox Series X|S shooter, which has gone through multiple rounds of testing over the last year or so, is finally launching on May 21st, 2024. Originally expected to release in 2023, the free-to-play FPS just went through a huge server test on Xbox...
News Skate 4 Developer Update Hints At Xbox Playtests In The Near Future
"Make sure you sign up"
It's been almost four years since the Skate reboot was first announced back at EA Play Live in 2020, and since then the game has been getting periodic development updates - alongside playtest sessions for lucky participants on PC. Speaking of playtests, it sounds like Skate 4 (or just "Skate" if you want to call it that!)...
News 'Age Of Water' Is One Of Multiple New Games In The Xbox Charts This Week
"Become a sea captain of a post-apocalyptic Earth"
The "Top Paid" Xbox charts have been refreshed once again over the past couple of days, and alongside some of the big sellers from the most recent selection of Xbox deals, we've also got quite a few new releases in the mix. We've mentioned the success of Sker Ritual and House Flipper 2 before, and...
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (May 2-5)
Included with Game Pass Core and Game Pass Ultimate
Update: Microsoft has since revealed that Star Wars Jedi: Survivor's inclusion in Free Play Days only features a five-hour gameplay trial. As mentioned below though, the game is available in full on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and EA Play. Original Story: Xbox's Free Play Days titles are now live for...
Talking Point Will You Be Playing Through Starfield Again At 60FPS On Xbox Series X?
Or are you done with Bethesda's 2023 RPG?
Well, Bethesda has delivered some fantastic news this week with the reveal of a huge update for Starfield - an update that will bring new high frame rate modes to the game on Xbox Series X amongst lots of other new features. So, will all of this be enough to tempt you into a second playthrough of Bethesda's...
Soapbox The Best Modern Tomb Raider Is Well Worth Your Time On Xbox Game Pass
The island of Yamatai awaits
May 2024's very first Xbox Game Pass update has brought Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition to the service more than 10 years after it launched on Xbox One, however, don't let the game's age put you off trying it out. This Tomb Raider reboot may have originated as an Xbox 360 game way back in 2013, but it's easily the best...
News Xbox Cloud Gaming Is Adding The Ability To Manage Save Files
Starting out with Insiders
Following this week's news about dynamic backgrounds being improved over at Microsoft HQ, Xbox Insiders are also being treated to another neat quality-of-life feature; this time in regards to cloud gaming on other devices. As spotted by The Verge's Tom Warren, a new Xbox Cloud Gaming save feature has started to appear for...
News New Xbox Update Makes It Easier To Swap Between Wi-Fi Networks
"Another day, another great Xbox dashboard feature"
Xbox is always tinkering with the system dashboard, and following the news about a feature to improve backgrounds, another handy new feature has now been revealed. As highlighted by The Verge's senior editor Tom Warren, Microsoft is currently testing the "ability for Xbox consoles to remember...
News Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition Is Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (May 2)
A top-tier Tomb Raider title
Your first Xbox Game Pass title for May 2024 is officially here! Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition is now live on the service, as Crystal Dynamics brings the Xbox One version of its Tomb Raider reboot to Game Pass. To this day we reckon this is one of the best Tomb Raider games ever, so if you've not tried it yet, we...
News 'HUMANITY' Was A Huge Hit On PS5 Last Year, And It's Coming To Xbox Game Pass This May
"A unique blend of puzzle-solving and action-platforming"
Hidden deep within Xbox's April Indie Showcase was the reveal of HUMANITY; a unique puzzle-platformer that's been out on PlayStation and PC for a year-or-so at this point. It felt as though the ID@Xbox livestream glossed over this one a little bit, but it probably shouldn't have - given how...
News Bethesda Shares A Sneak Peek At Starfield's First Land Vehicle
"You can drive around on planets"
It's been a busy day for Starfield! Bethesda has revealed some of the massive new features heading to the game's new update on May 15th across Xbox and PC - but we've also got a very small teaser of what's to come beyond that. At the end of the May Update video you see above, Starfield's Lead Creative Producer...
News Starfield Is Getting A 60FPS Performance Mode On Xbox Series X
Coming as part of the big May update
As part of today's May update reveal for Starfield, Xbox Series X players are being treated to some brand-new display options for Bethesda's mammoth RPG. The big news here is that the game is getting a proper 60FPS Performance mode on Xbox Series X, although Xbox Series S appears to miss out for now. There's...
