Timeline
YesterdayThu, 19th Mar 2026
News Two More Xbox Game Pass Titles Quietly Announced For April & May 2026
A release date for one, release window for the other
The XGP news is coming thick and fast at the moment! Following the reveal of 12 upcoming Game Pass titles on Tuesday, followed by Xbox's Kiln release date yesterday, we've now been treated to another two quiet Game Pass announcements - Vampire Crawlers for April 2026, and
News Xbox's Starfield Is Already One Of The Top Three Pre-Orders On PS5
And the Premium Edition is outselling the Standard Edition
There's been renewed debate recently about whether Xbox should stick with its multiplatform plans or go back to exclusives, but we've known for a while now that Starfield would be getting a PS5 release, and it's set to fare pretty well. Starfield's official PS5 release date was revealed on...
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (March 19-22)
All playable from now until Sunday night
The latest edition of Xbox Free Play Days has officially begun on the Xbox Store today, with five games available to play until late on Sunday night, three of which are totally free for everyone (even non-Xbox Game Pass subscribers). Here's your full Xbox Free Play Days selection for March 19th to March...
News Former Xbox Leader Don Mattrick Lands Major New Role As CEO Of Photonic
His first CEO role since leaving Zynga in 2015
When it comes to former Xbox leaders, we've often heard about what the likes of Seamus Blackley and Peter Moore are getting up to, but Don Mattrick, who led the brand during part of the Xbox 360 era and the start of the Xbox One era, tends to remain in the background these days. That's probably because...
News Disco Elysium Is One Of The Best RPGs Ever, And It's Available Today With Xbox Game Pass
Specifically the Final Cut edition
We've got a new Xbox Game Pass addition today (March 19th), and it's surely one of the greatest RPGs of all time! Disco Elysium: The Final Cut has entered the Game Pass library for Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PC users (as well as Xbox Cloud Gaming) across the Ultimate, Premium and PC tiers, and this...
News 'Keep The Feedback Coming' - Xbox Boss Says New Console Features Were Built Two Weeks Ago
An impressive start to Asha Sharma's reign
Yesterday, we were treated to the surprising news that the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles were getting a major dashboard update for the first time in what feels like forever, with multiple features being implemented including custom colour settings, the ability to disable Quick Resume for certain...
News No Crimson Desert Xbox Reviews Until Launch, But Here's How The PC Version Is Faring
The embargo for PC impressions dropped last night
Today's the day for Crimson Desert — it releases late this evening at 6pm ET / 10pm GMT, and therefore the first reviews started going live last night for the PC version specifically (there are no Xbox or PS5 reviews until after launch). As you may seen, there's been some disappointment around the...
Wednesday18th Mar 2026
Guide Marathon Data Reconstruction Contract: Part 1
NuCaloric is calling
Marathon has pleasantly surprised us with its contracts and their fluidity since the server slam, and NuCaloric’s line of contracts called “Data Reconstruction” are no exception. However, they can catch you out if you're not careful, which is why this guide is here to give you an idea of what you will be coming up against...
News Xbox Fan Shows Off Their Collection Of 'Almost' Every OXM Demo Disc
"The discs include demos of never released games"
Remember the good old days of demo discs? Back in the '90s and the 2000s, it wasn't uncommon for magazines to ship with playable demos on a disc, and that was indeed the case for Official Xbox Magazine for many years. We always love a good excuse to reminisce about them, and one particular Xbox fan...
News Microsoft's Next First-Party Release Officially Launches On Xbox Game Pass This April
Early playtests also announced!
We have a new Xbox Game Studios launch date! Kiln, from the fine folks over at Double Fine Productions, officially releases for Xbox, PS5 and PC on April 23rd, 2026 - including on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Early playtests are also planned, but we're not 100% sure on the specific platforms for those j
News Xbox Series X|S Is Getting Its First Dashboard Update In Ages, Quick Resume Upgrade Included
New console features are coming
After what feels like months and months of Xbox updates centred around PC and Cloud, Microsoft has today unveiled a new set of Xbox Series X|S console features, rolling out now to Xbox Insiders. Yep, the Xbox dashboard is getting some fresh refinements, including the ability to add more Groups to your home page, new...
News Highguard Players Are Getting Refunded As Developer Seemingly Closes Its Doors
Sony is issuing refunds, will Xbox follow suit?
Xbox FPS Highguard has been offline for almost a week now, and we have a few more developments regarding the ill-fated shooter cropping up online this week. The first of those surrounds refunds for the game's DLC, while another is a second unfortunate casualty that relates to the game's developer...
News Playground Games Says Ditching Xbox One Will Help Forza Horizon 6's Post-Launch Plans
FH6 "has more potential" in terms of updates & DLC
With the last few Forza Horizon entries, the team at Playground Games has made a big effort to provide post-launch support — with new expansions, seasonal content and plentiful updates — and it sounds as though leaving Xbox One behind with Forza Horizon 6 is going to allow the team to be even...
News Two Games Are Available Today With Xbox Game Pass Premium (March 18)
Including an Xbox first-party release!
Welcome to your latest Xbox Game Pass update! Today, we've got just the two games moving over to Microsoft's XGP Premium library, including first-party release South of Midnight. Here's what's new on Game Pass Premium today (March 18): South of Midnight (Series X|S, PC, Cloud) - Premium: "S
Tuesday17th Mar 2026
News 'I'm Of Two Minds' - Todd Howard Gives His Thoughts On Xbox's Leadership Changes
Excited for the future, but sad to see Phil Spencer go
With the announcement of a major Starfield update earlier today, Bethesda's Todd Howard has been sitting down with IGN for a wide-ranging interview, and he's been asked about how he f
News First Reviews & Xbox Gameplay Revealed For Thomas & Friends: Wonders Of Sodor
It's out today, and it's also an Xbox Play Anywhere title!
Recently we highlighted the upcoming release of the Thomas The Tank Engine game on Xbox, known as Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor. That game is actually out today across all platforms including Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, and it's been live for a few hours now... but we're...
News Forza Horizon 6 Brings Back Seasonal Weather Changes, But Playground Has 'Learned From' FH4
Winter will be more forgiving overall
In another look at Forza Horizon 6, the IGN First program has gone into a bit more detail on the seasonal weather changes coming to Playground's new open-world racing title, with a bit more context from members of the dev team as well. In short, seasons are back in a bigger way than ever in FH6; taking more...
News Starfield Gets Major Free Update & New Expansion Next Month, Alongside PS5 Release
Say hello to Free Lanes & Terran Armada
After months of rumours and speculation, Bethesda has today lifted the lid on its next batch of content for Starfield - with a huge free update, a new premium expansion and the game's PS5 release all landing on April 7th, 2026. First off, let's talk about the broader update, dubbed Free Lanes and set to bring...
News Just Two Games Are Leaving Xbox Game Pass In Late March 2026
The final batch of departures this month
Microsoft has just revealed the final games leaving Xbox Game Pass in late March 2026, and the good news is that we only have two of them — both of which arguably aren't massive losses for the service. The first of these is Mad Streets, which is a fun multiplayer brawler that's actually exclusive to Xbox...
News These 12 Games Are Coming To Xbox Game Pass (March 17 - April 7)
We have our next batch of XGP titles!
Microsoft has today revealed the latest official roundup of Xbox Game Pass titles for March and April 2026, with 12 games joining the service from March 17th to April 7th, including Disco Elysium and Resident Evil 7. If you're a Premium Xbox Game Pass member, South of Midnight, The Alters
News Bethesda Says Starfield Looks 'Amazing' With Nvidia's DLSS 5, But Don't Expect It On Xbox
"We've played it..."
Yesterday, Nvidia lifted the lid on its DLSS 5 technology, and it's safe to say that the company's newest AI-based visual fidelity "breakthrough" hasn't exactly gone down well with the internet so far. Here at PX HQ, we're trying to reserve full judgment until the tech is out there and in the wild - but one man that's already...
News Final Fantasy 7 Remake Drops To 'Lowest Xbox Price Ever' In New Square Enix Sale
A massive discount already!
It was back in January that Xbox Series X and S owners were finally treated to Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade after years of waiting, and if you've been hanging around waiting for a discount, now's the perfect time to bite! As part of a new Square Enix Publisher Sale that's just gone live on the Xbox Store, Final...
Monday16th Mar 2026
News Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War Is Out Now On Xbox, And It's Getting Good Reviews
"Every bit as entertaining as the movie that inspired it"
We mentioned in our recent list of Xbox indie games that should be on your radar in March 2026 that Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War was coming to Xbox on the 16th — and therefore it's officially available now on the Xbox Store! But is it any good? Well, the first reviews have started...
News LEGO Batman Switches Release Date, Will Now Launch Next To Xbox's Forza Horizon 6
Interesting choice
We've got a little release date switch to bring to your attention! The highly-anticipated LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight will now be releasing a week earlier across all platforms, launching on May 22nd, 2026. This actually brings it in-line with Xbox's release of Forza Horizon 6, which launches on May 19th. LEGO Batman...
News 'The Day Has Finally Arrived' - Xbox One Receives Its First Major Hack After 12+ Years
The seemingly unhackable console has been hacked
It's no secret at this point that the original Xbox and Xbox 360 are two consoles that have been hacked in all sorts of ways over the years — it's generally just what happens to older systems as hackers begin to understand how they work. In fact, there have been many examples where consoles have...
News With Project Helix On The Horizon, Xbox Is Now Letting You Add Games Manually On PC
The same goes for apps as well
We've heard a lot this month about Xbox's new Project Helix console and how it'll support both console and PC games, and the belief is that it'll work similarly to how the ROG Xbox Ally handheld currently does — you'll boot into an "Xbox Mode" interface, but with the ability to exit out to Windows if you want the...
Talking Point What Should Xbox Call Its 'Project Helix' Console?
Any ideas for the name of the next Xbox?
With details slowly starting to trickle out about Project Helix and Microsoft's next generation plans, we've begun thinking about what the team may end up calling its next-gen Xbox console once the Project Helix codename is presumably retired. This is always an interesting topic with Xbox because, well...
Guide Crimson Desert On Xbox: Release Date, Release Times & Download Size
All the key details for the big Xbox release this week
We've got a massive release coming our way on Xbox this week! Crimson Desert is officially bringing its open-world action adventure game to Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S along with a bunch of other platforms, and based on what we've seen pre-release, it looks like it's going to prove extremely...
News Over 50,000 Votes For 'Xbox Game Preservation' Titles Have Been Added In A Week
And there's a new number one
Just over a week ago now, we highlighted a new resource called Xbox Game Preservation that had been set up to track the most-requested backwards compatibility additions from the original Xbox and Xbox 360 eras. At the time, there had only been around 5,000 votes submitted on the site, but when Xbox revealed at GDC a few...
News Cyberpunk 2077 Dev Has 'No Plans' For More DLC Following Xbox Game Pass Launch
Putting a bow on things
Cyberpunk 2077 made its Xbox Game Pass debut last week after years of DLC, updates and support from developer CD Projekt RED, and the company has now confirmed that it has "no plans" for any more big expansions to the game. Taking to social media on the day of its Xbox Game Pass launch, CDPR responded to a fan query about...
Sunday15th Mar 2026
News The Coin Game Is Bringing Its Open-World Arcade Paradise To Xbox This Thursday
"Featuring 50+ modern inspired arcade machines..."
In our big list of all the games coming to next week that we published yesterday, we assume most people will have glossed over one called "The Coin Game" — but if you like ticket-style arcades, it should definitely be on your radar! The Coin Game has been on Steam for a few years in early access...
Feature Xbox Backwards Compatibility Helped Me Rediscover This Forgotten Call Of Duty Horde Mode
Playable fully offline on modern Xbox consoles!
I'll openly admit that I'm a bit of a sucker for going back and playing classic Call of Duty on modern Xbox consoles, but I usually stick to a few personal favourites; Modern Warfare 2 for the nostalgia, Black Ops for Zombies mode, you know the drill. This week though, I decided to load up 2011's...
Talking Point What Do You 'Expect' From Xbox Over The Next Five Years?
How will things look when the 30th anniversary arrives?
Back at the start of the week, we shared how Microsoft boss Satya Nadella recently had some very interesting things to say about fan expectations at Xbox, including a need to "make sure they love us for what they expect us to do". Nadella didn't really go into specifics about this though, only...
News According To Metacritic, These Are The 10 Best Xbox Games Of 2026 So Far
Does it tell the full story though?
Now that we're almost three months into the year, we're getting our first chance to look at the 10 best Xbox games of 2026 so far according to Metacritic — and that's because there are only 10 games that fit the mould as things stand. As you may be aware, Metacritic doesn't rank anything in its "Best Games"...
Saturday14th Mar 2026
Talking Point Xbox Game Pass Players, What Do You Think Of Cyberpunk 2077?
Enjoying your time in Night City?
Microsoft's biggest addition to Xbox Game Pass this past week was definitely Cyberpunk 2077, with CD Projekt RED's massive futuristic RPG finally available to XGP subscribers. With it being added to Game Pass Premium and Ultimate a good few days ago now, we're going to assume that a fair few of you have tried it -...
News Two Games Are Confirmed For Xbox Game Pass In April 2026 So Far
An early look at what's coming next month
As we always do around this time of the month, we're taking an early look today at what's ahead for April 2026's Xbox Game Pass selection - and at the time of writing, we have two games confirmed for the lineup next month so far. One of those games is Replaced from Sad Cat Studios; the long-in-development...
Feature These 30+ Games Are Coming To Xbox Next Week (March 16-20)
Including this massive new open-world RPG!
Welcome to your Xbox games roundup for March 16-20! The big release of the next few days is undoubtedly the new open-world RPG Crimson Desert, but we've also got the likes of MLB The Show 26 and Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor on the
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (March 14-15)
Exploring Night City on Xbox Game Pass?
Welcome to another weekend! With Mother's Day landing this Sunday here in the UK, some of us are going to be spending a bit more time with family this weekend, but that doesn't mean we're not sneaking in some Xbox time as well. Indeed, here's what we're playing over the next few days: Ben Kerry, Staff...
Friday13th Mar 2026
News Tomb Raider Remastered's Big Xbox Discount Is Perfect Timing For The Free New DLC
In fact, all the "Remastered" bundles have been heavily discounted!
Yesterday, it was announced that Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered was getting free Challenge Mode DLC, and it also launched on the same day - you can literally go and check it out right now on all platforms including Xbox consoles. The DLC adds various difficulty customisation options,...
News ROG Xbox Ally X Set To Receive FPS Boosts Via 'Auto SR' Technology In April 2026
Video shows Forza Horizon 5 getting an "up to 30% FPS boost"
The ROG Xbox Ally X is already a super-powerful handheld that we've been having a blast with here at Pure Xbox, and there are all sorts of ways to improve the visuals and frame rate on a whole bunch of titles. However, due to Microsoft's Auto SR technology, we're about to get yet another...
News Xbox Announces Policy Changes To Treat Games More 'Fairly' On The Microsoft Store
"You won’t see the same bundle five times across New Releases"
Over the past few years, we've seen occasional grumbles amongst the Xbox community when it comes to certain games - especially with new bundles of older titles, which can sometimes hog the "New Releases" section on Xbox. This was actually addressed last year when developers were...
Guide Apex Legends x Gundam Event - How To Get The New Skins And Free Rewards
Suit up
The Gundam x Apex Legends collaboration comes flying onto your screens in style, featuring outfits from your favourite Gundam shows along with a new update to the game's Wildcard mode, where you can get your hands on the new Bit Staves. There's also the fearsome new Buster Rifle, which completely changes how you choose to play the mode...
News Data Firm Predicts PC Revenue Will Soon Surpass Console As Xbox Prepares To Bridge The Gap
"PC revenue will surpass console revenue by 2028"
With everything we've heard about Project Helix recently and all of the Xbox news coming out GDC this week, we know that Microsoft is moving towards bridging the gap between console and PC as part of its
News 'We Will See More Games Come To Xbox Quicker' - Microsoft Exec Talks Plans For The Future
One of the ID@Xbox leads discusses the benefits for developers
There's obviously been a lot of focus on the future of Xbox at this week's GDC 2026 presentations, and Microsoft executive / ID@Xbox director Guy Richards has been speaking about this in a recent interview with The Game Business. Richards was asked during the interview about why...
News That Viral Thomas The Tank Engine Game Is Officially Releasing On Xbox Next Week
Wonders of Sodor is about to arrive at the platform
Just over a week ago, it was quietly revealed that a Thomas the Tank Engine game would be "coming soon" to Xbox consoles, and the reaction has been significant from fans over on the official Xbox YouTube channel. The game is specifically called "Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor", and it's being...
News Two Xbox Game Pass Titles Got New Trailers At This Week's 'Future Games Show' Event
And we also might have a release date for a third
Last night, we covered all the 20+ Xbox reveals from the Future Games Show Spring Showcase 2026, and we mentioned how two Xbox Game Pass titles were part of the coverage - Aphelion and There Are No Ghosts At The Grand. Aphelion is a game we've seen be
Thursday12th Mar 2026
Roundup All The 20+ Xbox Reveals From The Future Games Show Spring Showcase 2026
A 90-minute extravaganza of upcoming games!
Today marked the first Future Games Show event of 2026, with this one known as the "Spring Showcase" featuring countless upcoming games for a variety of platforms, with many of them confirmed for Xbox. This show was 90 minutes long, so there's a lot to get through here, and the reveals included various...
News 'Xbox Mode' For Windows 11 Is Progress, And It Could Shape Microsoft's Project Helix Console
An evolution of the Xbox Full Screen Experience
As part of this week's GDC news, Microsoft has announced 'Xbox Mode' for Windows 11 PCs, and it sounds like a big step forward for the team's existing Xbox Full Screen Experience. Xbox Mode will be a new way to play games on PC starting next month, aiming to streamline the Windows gami
News Nintendo 3DS Classic 'Bravely Default' Releases On Xbox Today In Its HD Remaster Form
Shadow drop alert!
Surprise! Square Enix has announced that after 14 years, the Nintendo 3DS classic Bravely Default is officially coming to Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and Xbox PC today, and we've spotted that you can already buy it on the Xbox Store! For those who aren't aware, Bravely Default was a very popular RPG back in the 3DS days, racking...
News Forza Horizon 6 Dev Wants A 'Rich' Tokyo, Japan As Team Admits FH5 Map Didn't Resonate
"This map is rich and full of things to do"
In Playground Games' latest collaboration with IGN, the team discusses building Tokyo / Japan for the Forza Horizon 6 map, and how it's taken feedback on board from past Forza Horizon titles to create a "rich" experience for franchise fans. Indeed, the above video kicks off with a rather candid...
