Timeline
Friday27th Feb 2026
News Halo: The Master Chief Collection Gets Surprise Update On Xbox & PC
The first in a good while!
Halo: The Master Chief Collection has gotten a surprise update this week on Xbox and PC, with the team at Halo Studios focusing on an upgrade to the game's 'Exchange' feature here in February 2026. The Exchange is a post-launch MCC feature where players can earn 'Spartan Points' to grab gear customisations - and in this...
Roundup All The Biggest Xbox Reveals From IGN Fan Fest 2026
Many more great games on the way to Xbox consoles!
Over the past two nights, IGN has been running a special event known as IGN Fan Fest 2026, and in addition to featuring plenty of trailers for upcoming games we already knew about, it also contained some brand-new announcements! Each night featured multiple hours' worth of content, so there's too...
Thursday26th Feb 2026
Poll How Optimistic Are You Feeling About The Future Of Xbox?
What do you think's in store over the next few years?
We've obviously talked a lot over the past few days about the retirement of Phil Spencer and addition of Asha Sharma as the new boss over at Xbox, and it sounds like there's at least potential for some major strategy changes in the future. Sharma talked about this in a
News The First Xbox Studios Release Of 2026 Is Here, And It's Been Vastly Reworked For Launch
You've seen Towerborne before, but not like this
It might not seem like it, but today technically marks the first Xbox Game Studios release of 2026! The game is Towerborne, which has been in early access for years now, but is only officially getting its 1.0 release today. It's going to feel like a brand-new game in many ways, as the developers have...
News 'I Think She'll Be Fine' - Xbox Legend Peter Moore Reveals His Advice For Asha Sharma
He also wants her to put some fun back into the industry
Everyone's having an opinion on the new Xbox boss Asha Sharma at the moment, and Peter Moore (a former Xbox boss himself) is one of them — he's just been interviewed by the folks over at GamesBeat. Moore is of the opinion that Sharma is going to be "just fine" in the role as Microsoft...
News Wolfenstein 3 'Casting Call' Reportedly Leaked, Performance Capture Set To Begin
It could still be years before we see it though
There have been rumours for a long time that Xbox and Bethesda might be interested in working on Wolfenstein 3, and then back in January, it was suggested that the game was indeed in the plans. Now, a new report from outlet MP1st claims that performance capture is set to begin for Wolfenstein 3 as...
Video Phil Spencer Introduces New Xbox Leader At Microsoft HQ
"An emotional day here for the team."
It's been a busy week for Asha Sharma — not only has she started her first few days on the job as Microsoft Gaming CEO and overall Xbox boss, but she's also been interviewed and introduced to the team over at Microsoft HQ. Posting on social media recently, Xbox exec Aaron Greenberg shared a video of Phil...
News Analyst Provides Interesting Data On How Well January's Big Game Pass Additions Performed
Outlaws, Space Marine 2 and Death Stranding all analysed
Despite a lack of big day one releases last month (naturally, not many games launch in January), Xbox Game Pass saw some major additions in the first month of 2026 - and the folks over at Alinea Analytics have provided some interesting data on how these big games performed on the service...
A massive title headlining FPD!
Xbox's latest Free Play Days lineup has been revealed! This week, we've got five games playable in total over the next few days - including the Marathon 'Server Slam' test ahead of Bungie's full launch in early March. Here are your Free Play Days games for this weekend:
News Resident Evil Requiem Comparison Shows Difference Between Xbox Series X And Series S
How the Xbox versions stack up
The big release of Resident Evil Requiem officially comes our way this Friday, and before we get there, we've already got footage of how the game plays on both the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S! We're once again using Fuzion Xbox Testing for this footage, which has shown off the Series X and Series S versions...
News Six Classic Games To Feature In 'Marvel MaXimum Collection' On Xbox Series X|S
"A compendium of classic Marvel titles from the golden age"
A new collection of classic games has been announced this evening in the form of the Marvel MaXimum Collection, which doesn't have a release date just yet, but will definitely be coming to PC, Switch, PS5 and Xbox Series X and S. The collection bundles six games, with multiple versions for...
Wednesday25th Feb 2026
News Xbox Issues Apology For Spamming Users With 'Braze' Test Messages
"The Xbox App got a little too enthusiastic"
If you're someone who uses the Xbox app on mobile, you may have noticed today that you've been spammed with a bunch of "Mobile Test Message" notifications, said to be a "dummy message sent via Braze". This has become a big topic on social media over the past couple of hours, with hundreds of Xbox fans...
News Amazon 'Abandons' Maverick Games As Former Forza Devs Seek New Publisher
A sharp u-turn
Back in 2023, we heard that a bunch of Forza Horizon devs were splitting off and making their own studio in Maverick Games, before Amazon announced the following year that it would publish the title at some stage. Well, the game seems to still be in production - but Amazon's gaming department will no longer fund the title. As shared...
News Xbox Won't Back Away From First-Party And Become 'Just A Publisher', Insists EVP Matt Booty
Good to know!
Ever since Xbox started putting its games on other platforms (particularly PS5), there's been speculation about whether the brand could ultimately end up going the way of SEGA during the Dreamcast days and become "just a publisher". Xbox EVP and CCO Matt Booty actually addressed this during yesterday's Windows Central interview,...
News Here's What's Included In The Xbox February 2026 Update
1440p streaming on console, ROG Xbox Ally updates and more
The Xbox February 2026 update is now being highlighted by the folks over at Xbox Wire, and this week we've got new features across console, PC and handheld devices. We're looking at higher resolution streaming for Xbox Cloud Gaming on console, new navigation sounds on the Xbox PC app and...
Roundup Here's What The Critics Think Of Resident Evil Requiem
The newest RE title is almost here!
With Resident Evil Requiem reviews now out in the wild — including our very own here at Pure Xbox — we thought we'd gather up what folks think ahead of the game's launch later in the week. Indeed, if you'd like to know all the details on Requiem's upcoming launch, we'll throw our full guide on the game...
Review Resident Evil Requiem (Xbox) - Capcom Delivers A Masterful Mix Of Action & Horror
Resident ol'reliable
During the current generation of gaming, it feels like a good cluster of once-mainstay franchises have started to fall by the wayside. Either by declining in quality or simply due to a less-frequent launch schedule, many of the AAA franchises I grew up playing on Xbox 360 and Xbox One just don't deliver what they once did for...
News Xbox Boss Questioned On Whether Exclusives Could Return In The Future
"The plan's the plan until it's not the plan."
Ever since Asha Sharma was announced as the new Xbox boss last Friday, there's been speculation about whether exclusive games could become part of Xbox's strategy in the future once again, and she's at least partially addressed this in a new interview with Windows Central. Speaking on a whole range of...
News RoboCop, Test Drive Publisher Nacon In Financial Trouble As Company Files For Insolvency
Money woes are "significantly affecting operations"
French game publisher and accessory maker Nacon has today announced that at the tail end of last week, the company filed for insolvency after hitting serious financial trouble. Looking at the team's press release on matters, it's been revealed that majority shareholder Bigben Interactive has...
News Xbox Says 'Hardware Announcements Are Coming Up' As Team Looks Ahead To Next-Gen
"You will hear more about that soon."
You may have read about Asha Sharma recently and her renewed focus on the console side of the Xbox business - and in a new interview with Windows Central, the Xbox boss has hinted that we'll hear about new console hardware very soon. Indeed, when elaborating on her recent comments about 'returning to Xbox',...
Tuesday24th Feb 2026
Talking Point You're The New Head Of Xbox, What Do You Do Now?
If you were in those shoes, what would be your first steps?
Much has been said already about the retiring Phil Spencer and new Xbox boss Asha Sharma, and regardless of whatever viewpoint you might have about it, one thing's for sure — a job like this isn't easy for anyone to step into. Head of Xbox (otherwise known as "Microsoft Gaming CEO")...
News Vampire Crawlers Gets Free Xbox Demo Ahead Of 2026 Game Pass Launch
Try out the Vampire Survivors sequel for free!
Vampire Survivors took the world by storm when it first dropped on Xbox a few years ago, and in 2026 the team is delivering a follow up in the form of Vampire Crawlers, which just got a free demo on Xbox! Yep, the Vampire Crawlers demo for Xbox Series X|S and PC is now live on the Microsoft Store - and...
Feature Seven Amazing Things Phil Spencer Did During His Reign As Head Of Xbox
Making an impact
This week marks a seismic shift over at Xbox HQ. Phil Spencer, the brand's long-time leader, is retiring - bringing an end to his decade-plus reign as Xbox boss. In the aftermath of Phil making this announcement, we've seen plenty of negativity surrounding the news (this is the internet, after all). However, Phil achieved some...
News Cuphead-Style Xbox Shooter Mouse: P.I. For Hire Sees Last-Minute Delay
"We want to ensure we are taking the extra time..."
Ever since it was first announced all the way back in 2023, we've taken a particular interest in MOUSE: P.I. For Hire; the noir-inspired first-person shooter from developer Fumi Games. Late last year, we thought we finally had our locked-in release date for March 2026 - but now, the team ha
News 'Return To Our Roots' - Xbox CEO Reiterates Her Goals For The Future
Asha Sharma has officially completed her first day in the role
This past Monday marked Asha Sharma's first day in the job as Microsoft Gaming CEO and overall Xbox boss, and she used the opportunity to reiterate her "goal" and "focus" points for the future. She mentioned this as part of the response to IGN's Ryan McCaffrey about her gamertag...
News Ubisoft Unveils New Leadership Team For Assassin's Creed's 'Ambitious New Chapter'
Creatives who will forge its future
Ubisoft is starting to talk a little bit more about what's next for the Assassin's Creed franchise today, unveiling a new leadership team that will guide the IP into its "ambitious new chapter". The head of the overall brand will be Martin Schelling, Head of Content will be Jean Guesdon, and François De Billy...
Deals Dead Island 2 + All DLC Is Less Than $7 On Xbox Right Now
A crazy deal for Dead Island 2 Ultimate Edition!
Publisher Deep Silver is hosting some big offers on Xbox right now — with a particular focus on game bundles — and we've spotted that Dead Island 2 in particular has an absolutely massive discount on the Microsoft Store. We're not talking about just the base game here (which is still on Xbox Game...
News Xbox Boss Explains Her Gamertag Activity, Says 'Faking Would Be A Terrible Idea'
She didn't expect it to get so much attention
Over the weekend, new Xbox boss Asha Sharma received a ton of attention after sharing her Xbox gamertag on social media, and there was some skepticism about how much gamerscore she'd managed to rack up so quickly. We highlighted this in a post on Pure Xbox yesterday — she'd been getting full...
Monday23rd Feb 2026
News Forza Horizon 6 Dev Explains Campaign Progression & How You Can 'Deliver Food As A Side Hustle'
"Forza Horizon 6 introduces a vast campaign of discovery"
On the back of Xbox Developer Direct last month, we broke down how Forza Horizon 6 is bringing back the 'Festival Wristband' mechanic from the first Forza Horizon game - and how that system aims to alleviate some issues players have had with a lack of meaningful pro
Guide Resident Evil Requiem Release Date, Release Times & Install Size On Xbox Series X|S
Everything you need to know
Resident Evil Requiem brings Capcom's latest survival horror experience to players later this week, and it's safe to say this is one of the most highly-anticipated Xbox Series X|S games of the year so far. With that in mind, we've gathered up all the key details about RE Requiem ahead of its Xbox launch. From the game's...
News Xbox's 'Pivot Away From Console' Had Been Failing And Questioned At Microsoft, Claims Report
What does that mean for the future?
A huge report has come out today about the supposed behind-the-scenes details of Phil Spencer's Xbox retirement, Sarah Bond's sudden departure and the arrival of new Xbox boss Asha Sharma, and the bit that everyone's focusing on is centred around the "Xbox everywhere" strategy
News Xbox Creator Reveals His Two Tips For The New Microsoft Gaming CEO
"I think younger me would be screaming about this"
All the way back in 2001, Seamus Blackley and his team did the unthinkable by creating a video game console over at Microsoft, and that original Xbox is about to celebrate its 25th anniversary later this year in November! Blackley hasn't been involved with Microsoft for a long time now, but he's...
News Former Xbox Employee Returns After 13 Years As New Chief Of Staff
"I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position"
In the midst of all the leadership changes taking place at Xbox last week, it was quietly revealed on LinkedIn by former Xbox employee Craig Cincotta that he's now the new "Chief of Staff, OCEO Xbox". OCEO stands for "Office of the CEO", and Cincotta has a few connections to the new...
News Phil Spencer Responds As Industry Legends Celebrate His Xbox Career
"Games will definitely continue to be a passion"
The sudden announcement of Phil Spencer's retirement at Xbox last Friday sent shockwaves throughout the gaming industry, and a whole lot of industry legends have been taking to social media to celebrate his career over the weekend. He's been responding to a lot of them, too! The likes of former Xbox...
News Xbox CEO Shares Her Three Favourite Games Of All Time, Along With Her Gamertag
It's a good list, and she's a Chrono Trigger fan too!
We all know that ex-Xbox boss Phil Spencer is a massive gamer, but new Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma doesn't come from a gaming background in terms of her career. That said, she's still got great taste in Xbox games! Sharma was asked about her three favourite games on social media over the...
News Three Games Are Available This Week With Xbox Game Pass (February 24-26)
Including an Xbox first-party release!
Welcome to your latest Xbox Game Pass update! This week, we've got three games entering the library — starting on Tuesday — with that first title being the surprisingly popular TCG Card Shop Simulator for Xbox Series X|S and PC. Here's a quick breakdown on that one, alongside your two other XGP additions...
Sunday22nd Feb 2026
News 'No Tolerance For Bad AI' - New Xbox Boss Says Games Need 'Great Stories Created By Humans'
AI slop is out of the question, she says
With the new Xbox boss (Asha Sharma) coming from an AI background inside of Microsoft, there's been a lot of discussion about how AI will be integrated into her Xbox vision, which she chose to address in an interview with Variety. Speaking to the outlet on Friday, Sharma advised that she has "no tolerance...
Poll What Are Your First Impressions Of Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora On Xbox Game Pass?
Have you been enjoying your trip to Pandora so far?
Almost a week ago now, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora joined the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate library as the latest Ubisoft title to become a part of the service, and we want to know what you make of the open-world action-adventure game so far. This has been a real Xbox Series X|S sho
Review The 'Nacon Revolution X Unlimited' Is A Fantastic-Feeling Xbox Controller, At A Cost
A genuine Elite Series 2 competitor?
These days, I struggle to deviate from using first-party controllers in some fashion, especially when I have my beloved SCUF Instinct on-hand; an Elite-style version of Microsoft's Xbox Series X|S controller. Every now and then though, I do dabble with third-party pads — particularly on PlayStation where the...
News Xbox's Sarah Bond Issues Statement On Her Departure From Microsoft
"This is the right time for me to take my next step"
Everyone was pretty shocked last week when it was revealed that not only would Phil Spencer be retiring as Microsoft Gaming CEO, but Xbox President Sarah Bond would also be departing at the same time. Bond has since taken to LinkedIn to issue a statement on her departure from the company, which...
Saturday21st Feb 2026
News 'We Have Good Reasons To Believe In What's Ahead', Insists New Xbox Chief Content Officer
Matt Booty says navigating change is nothing new for Microsoft
We've already covered the statements from Phil Spencer, Asha Sharma and Satya Nadella following last night's major leadership shakeup at Xbox, but what about
Feature Who Is Asha Sharma? A Look Back At The Career Of The New Xbox Boss
Phil Spencer's successor!
Whenever Phil Spencer eventually decided to retire from his position as Xbox boss and Microsoft Gaming CEO, we naturally assumed that position would go to Xbox president Sarah Bond — but with Sarah leaving the company following Phil Spencer's retirement last night, it's ended up going to the relatively unknown Asha Sharma...
Feature These 30+ Games Are Coming To Xbox Next Week (February 23-27)
Including another three Game Pass titles!
Welcome to your Xbox games roundup for February 23-27! We've got plenty of exciting games on the way over the next few days, including the big release of Resident Evil Requiem! Don't forget about the three Game Pass titles as well — we're particularly interested in the day one release of TCG Card Shop...
News New Xbox Head Suggests Bringing Back The Blades Dashboard In First Social Media Posts
She's already been active on X
Following the announcement of Asha Sharma as the new Xbox boss last night, she immediately took to social media and began replying to various fans and Xbox-related accounts with suggestions and acknowledgements. The one that's getting all the attention relates to her suggestion to "bring the blade dashboard", which...
News Microsoft CEO Shares His Thoughts On The Major Leadership Changes At Xbox
Satya Nadella is "excited for how we will capture the opportunity ahead"
Last night, we received some of the most important news in Xbox history — Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer is leaving the company after 38 years, Xbox president Sarah Bond is leaving too, and the new boss is Asha Sharma (the former President of Microsoft CoreAI), to be...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (February 21-22)
We've had some big Game Pass additions this week!
Another weekend is upon us! It's been quite a busy week in terms of XGP additions so we've got plenty to be going at here; Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, The Witcher 3 and more have entered the library over the past few days. With that being said, here's what we're playing this weekend: Ben Kerry,...
Friday20th Feb 2026
News Xbox President Sarah Bond Is Also Leaving The Company, Microsoft Confirms
"Sarah Bond has decided to leave Microsoft..."
Much of the spotlight has been on Phil Spencer and new Xbox boss Asha Sharma in relation to today's huge shakeup over at Microsoft Gaming - but thanks to a departing statement from Phil himself, we now know for sure that Xbox Preside
News New Xbox Boss Makes Official Statement As She Takes Over From Phil Spencer
"I feel two things at once: humility and urgency."
In a seismic bit of news today, Phil Spencer announced that he's retiring as Xbox boss - which means that naturally, someone else has to assume that position over at Xbox HQ. The person taking over is Microsoft's Asha Sharma, who has just shared her first statement as she begins her role as CEO of...
News Phil Spencer Announces That He's Retiring From Xbox
A massive shakeup for Microsoft Gaming
Posting out to his personal LinkedIn account today, Phil Spencer has announced that he's retiring from Xbox, with the current President of Microsoft's CoreAI product Asha Sharma taking over from the long-time chief of Microsoft's gaming division. Phil
Talking Point What Are The Best 'Hidden Gem' Xbox Games You've Played In Recent Years?
We can think of a bunch
These days, it's easier than ever to discover hidden gems on Xbox — partly thanks to how many titles are being curated by the ID@Xbox program, but also due to how many of them are also included as part of Xbox Game Pass. In the past year alone, we've been treated to so many amazing lesser-known titles that many of us...
