@Gabrie The CPUs are much, much weaker in last-gen consoles. It does feel like we're not seeing that in practice as you say, but that's maybe because much of the industry is still in this cross-gen, possibly think about Nintendo development environment? One day it'd be nice to see current-gen properly taken advantage of 😅
@Tdx To be fair, it's a pretty massive month in general. If you choose any month to up your sub price, one with Ninja Gaiden 4, The Outer Worlds 2 and Double Fine's next game all launching day one is probably the one to do it.
@themightyant I agree on Gears, but I still think this was probably the right move. TC's Gears games are solid and we all know how hard it seems to be for Xbox to spin up new IP...
@Kaloudz No it doesn't get day one releases. But, Microsoft has cleared things up and said basically aside from COD, all of their first party games will go on Premium within a year of release. And personally, I think that's a better option than paying double the price 🤷
@LeonR They haven't fully clarified that. MS has basically said that everything other than COD moves to Premium within a year, and have left the door open for COD. It could be just after a year, it could be whenever they feel like it. My guess would be the latter.
By the way, this article isn't me justifying Xbox's GPU price hike... I'm merely saying that with that in mind, Premium is looking like an attractive option, and the tier has been tightened up a good chunk since it was introduced as Standard - loads of games added, clarity on when Xbox exclusives go in the library etc.
@GamerScore200K To be fair, it's 30 dollars not 30 quid. £22.99 in the UK... Regardless, I agree, GPU is out of my price bracket now. The extras just aren't worth it for what I use the service for - as I've said elsewhere on PX, I think premium looks the best option now.
@SoKarma I notice Grounded 1 is in the 2022 section and it actually came out in 2020 for early access, so maybe Grounded 2 will be added when it goes 1.0? Probably should be on there anyway, mind.
@Coletrain Yeah, it's disappointing but unfortunately it's not a new thing. It's just that recently there's been a string of high profile games that have suffered from it. I hope you all enjoyed the review anyway and won't mind if we have to turn to PC or PS5 at times to get the process started 🙏
This is getting ridiculous! Honestly, people are going to be priced out of anything but free mobile gaming at this rate... Hey, at least early adopters were finally rewarded this gen 😄
@Tasuki We won't be reviewing Borderlands 4 at Pure Xbox.
No outlets got console code before launch, and considering the site is predominantly Fraser and I at the moment, we don't have the capacity to review such a big game post-launch.
We always do our best to cover things that are more manageable and/or have a good review lead time.
@AndrosTheGeeklyGrind The headline says 'Xbox Game Pass helps...' - if Dead Island 2 has been on Game Pass for over a year, how would the service have not helped to the 20 million milestone? Just because the developer doesn't outright mention XGP doesn't mean we're not being factual. It's our job to give the news a unique spin and stand out , especially with an Xbox-related angle.
@yeaman I know it's maybe a bit redundant, but something where they did more 1 to 1 movie scenes would have been cool to me like the Lost Ark example... Wolfenstein 2 had this 'Freedom Chronicles' DLC where it was short, separate episodes - I'd have loved that where they just picked a few of the movie series' most iconic scenes.
Borderlands 3 has been removed from the table, my bad, it's been a busy few weeks and it slipped my mind that it'd left! 2K really don't like their games sticking around on XGP...
@Fishticon I believe they're slightly different and based on Gears Ultimate Edition. These have slightly different backgrounds and even the omen is a little different.
@awp69 This was just down to it being Gamescom week unfortunately. The day before it launched Xbox did some surprise XGP drops so we didn't cover it thinking there might be more - and then the week got away from us. We'll see if anything crops up for it this week that's worth covering, glad folks are enjoying it though!
@Tuloom Google is your friend: Dictionary niggly adjective 1. causing slight but persistent discomfort or anxiety. "he has had a niggly injury which he is now over" 2. denoting or engaging in trivial or irritating criticism. "we get very niggly with each other"
@BaldB3lper78 You're not being dumb it is a little confusing! This device (or pair of devices) will play downloaded games - but those will essentially be PC games like a Steam Deck can play.
Microsoft is then advertising that you can play 'console' games from the cloud, but of course, most of those games are also native on PC and will play from a download on the Ally.
@GeeEssEff Yeah I could see that. I suppose MS probably just lumped it all together as 'Nintendo', hoping that Switch 2 would be strong enough. Hopefully once the initial launch has come and gone we see a Switch 2 version, and hopefully parity in future years.
@GeeEssEff to be fair, it would have been nigh-on impossible to get the current cod engine running on Switch without massive cutbacks. I think it'll come to Switch 2, this November just might be too short a turnaround.
@Kaloudz If you look at the shadows and the distant trees there's a difference 😄 I think the upgrade is also just for better stability and those res/fps improvements.
@Fiendish-Beaver I think it will be all quiet on E-Day until next year tbh. Likely Developer Direct or even the summer showcase if they want to focus on new reveals at DD.
Gamescom is looking good though, and it's right around the launch of Gears: Reloaded too...
@GeeEssEff Well, it's weird because retailers seem to only have the deluxe versions listed for Xbox. For instance, when you look for either game on Amazon UK, it's only the PS5 that has a standard edition listing.
Hopefully this move to a disc means that Xbox will be getting standard editions as well.
@Tasuki Yeah, they probably will. Although I'm not sure how we're supposed to have a crystal ball or a time machine to go find out... These are their lowest prices up to this point.
@Fiendish-Beaver Just access to them for the next couple weeks. All you get to keep is "all the currencies, gear, Title, Triumphs, and cosmetics" earned when playing them.
@Kaloudz Yeah there are definitely some missing here... could just be that these titles have responded to whatever maintenance tweaks they made and the rest need work? Who knows, hopefully we find out soon.
@RiverGenie It's not apples to apples but I hear you, I think Hello Games were in a little over their heads... I don't hold grudges either, definitely agree that life's too short. I just think folks acting as PR reps for massive studios like CDPR should maybe be a little more cautious. Doesn't mean you can't celebrate the final product if it's great.
Folks are very quick to forget about how bad Cyberpunk was. A limited edition Xbox One X came out for a game that barely worked on that system. It may have always been a tech demo but the gameplay segment was presented like it was a chunk of the game. I think people have the right to scrutinise, personally. I thought we'd moved on from the era of pointless vertical slices...
@Kaloudz We haven't had a proper update for the first half of June yet! We do have a few more games already locked in though: https://www.purexbox.com/guides/xbox-game-pass-all-games-coming-soon-in-june-2025 As for the next roundup, MS is becoming a bit less predictable with them these days. Hopefully we get one in and around the showcase.
@Rob3008 We'll do our best with this! Sometimes we include prices, but it can be time consuming with regional pricing etc. If we don't include prices there's always a link provided so you can quickly check the store price for what you're interested in
@Romans12 It's always hard to say these days, but considering the team is changing puzzles and gameplay mechanics, I'd say remake? But they're calling it a remaster... confusing!
Comments 654
Re: Battlefield 6 Dev Explains Why It Isn't Following Black Ops 7 With Xbox One Version
@Gabrie The CPUs are much, much weaker in last-gen consoles.
It does feel like we're not seeing that in practice as you say, but that's maybe because much of the industry is still in this cross-gen, possibly think about Nintendo development environment?
One day it'd be nice to see current-gen properly taken advantage of 😅
Re: The Full Black Ops 6 Campaign Will Be Entirely Free For A Week, Starting This Thursday
@beltmenot You'll have to download the base game + campaign pack. It won't be 200GB but likely 60-70 odd.
Re: Pick One: Which Is Your Favourite Double Fine Game On Xbox?
Edited Brutal Legend to '09! Got my wires crossed there...
Re: Two Games Are Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (October 7)
@Coletrain We're covering that on the site shortly...
Re: Two Games Are Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (October 7)
@Decimateh should be 👀
Re: Two Games Are Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (October 7)
@Tdx To be fair, it's a pretty massive month in general. If you choose any month to up your sub price, one with Ninja Gaiden 4, The Outer Worlds 2 and Double Fine's next game all launching day one is probably the one to do it.
Re: Xbox Report Details Cancelled 'Uncharted Rival' Once Being Made By Gears Of War Dev
@themightyant I agree on Gears, but I still think this was probably the right move.
TC's Gears games are solid and we all know how hard it seems to be for Xbox to spin up new IP...
Re: How To Download The Black Ops 7 Beta On Xbox
@RetroMan71 Me too! BF6 should be crackin' 😁
Re: Xbox Reveals New Conversion Rates For Game Pass Premium & Ultimate
@Kaloudz No it doesn't get day one releases. But, Microsoft has cleared things up and said basically aside from COD, all of their first party games will go on Premium within a year of release.
And personally, I think that's a better option than paying double the price 🤷
Re: Xbox Game Pass Premium May Be The Best-Value Tier Right Now, With Almost 50 Games Added
@LeonR They haven't fully clarified that. MS has basically said that everything other than COD moves to Premium within a year, and have left the door open for COD.
It could be just after a year, it could be whenever they feel like it. My guess would be the latter.
Re: Xbox Game Pass Premium May Be The Best-Value Tier Right Now, With Almost 50 Games Added
By the way, this article isn't me justifying Xbox's GPU price hike...
I'm merely saying that with that in mind, Premium is looking like an attractive option, and the tier has been tightened up a good chunk since it was introduced as Standard - loads of games added, clarity on when Xbox exclusives go in the library etc.
Re: Xbox Reveals New Conversion Rates For Game Pass Premium & Ultimate
@GamerScore200K To be fair, it's 30 dollars not 30 quid. £22.99 in the UK...
Regardless, I agree, GPU is out of my price bracket now. The extras just aren't worth it for what I use the service for - as I've said elsewhere on PX, I think premium looks the best option now.
Re: Here's A Look At The Updated Xbox Game Studios Roadmap From September 2025
@SoKarma I notice Grounded 1 is in the 2022 section and it actually came out in 2020 for early access, so maybe Grounded 2 will be added when it goes 1.0?
Probably should be on there anyway, mind.
Re: Review: Silent Hill F (Xbox) - A New Front For Konami As Silent Hill Makes Its Return
@Coletrain Yeah, it's disappointing but unfortunately it's not a new thing. It's just that recently there's been a string of high profile games that have suffered from it.
I hope you all enjoyed the review anyway and won't mind if we have to turn to PC or PS5 at times to get the process started 🙏
Re: Microsoft Announces New Price Increases For Xbox Series X|S In The US
This is getting ridiculous! Honestly, people are going to be priced out of anything but free mobile gaming at this rate...
Hey, at least early adopters were finally rewarded this gen 😄
Re: Halo: The Master Chief Collection Gets Surprise Update On Xbox & PC
@Echtzeit The whole generation as far as I'm aware?
https://www.purexbox.com/news/2020/10/halo_the_master_chief_collection_to_receive_120fps_upgrade_on_xbox_series_xs
Re: Roundup: Here's What The Reviews Are Saying About Borderlands 4
@Tasuki We won't be reviewing Borderlands 4 at Pure Xbox.
No outlets got console code before launch, and considering the site is predominantly Fraser and I at the moment, we don't have the capacity to review such a big game post-launch.
We always do our best to cover things that are more manageable and/or have a good review lead time.
Re: Xbox Game Pass Helps Dead Island 2 To Huge Player Milestone As Dev Teases Sequel
@AndrosTheGeeklyGrind The headline says 'Xbox Game Pass helps...' - if Dead Island 2 has been on Game Pass for over a year, how would the service have not helped to the 20 million milestone?
Just because the developer doesn't outright mention XGP doesn't mean we're not being factual. It's our job to give the news a unique spin and stand out , especially with an Xbox-related angle.
Re: Review: Indiana Jones: The Order Of Giants - Puzzle-Focused DLC Expands On Xbox's Indy Adventure
@yeaman I know it's maybe a bit redundant, but something where they did more 1 to 1 movie scenes would have been cool to me like the Lost Ark example...
Wolfenstein 2 had this 'Freedom Chronicles' DLC where it was short, separate episodes - I'd have loved that where they just picked a few of the movie series' most iconic scenes.
Re: Here's What Might Leave Xbox Game Pass In October 2025
Borderlands 3 has been removed from the table, my bad, it's been a busy few weeks and it slipped my mind that it'd left!
2K really don't like their games sticking around on XGP...
Re: Hollow Knight: Silksong Is Crashing The Xbox Store, Here's How To Install It
Glad we're seeing some success with the mobile app!
Re: Microsoft Is Adding Free Gamerpics To Celebrate Gears Of War: Reloaded's Xbox Release
@Fishticon I believe they're slightly different and based on Gears Ultimate Edition. These have slightly different backgrounds and even the omen is a little different.
Re: Two Huge Games Are Available This Week With Xbox Game Pass (August 26-28)
@awp69 This was just down to it being Gamescom week unfortunately. The day before it launched Xbox did some surprise XGP drops so we didn't cover it thinking there might be more - and then the week got away from us.
We'll see if anything crops up for it this week that's worth covering, glad folks are enjoying it though!
Re: Opinion: Delta Force Is Solid On Xbox, But Another Upcoming FPS Runs Rings Around It
@Tuloom Google is your friend:
Dictionary
niggly
adjective
1.
causing slight but persistent discomfort or anxiety.
"he has had a niggly injury which he is now over"
2.
denoting or engaging in trivial or irritating criticism.
"we get very niggly with each other"
Re: Opinion: Delta Force Is Solid On Xbox, But Another Upcoming FPS Runs Rings Around It
@Fiendish-Beaver I'll do my best! At the minute I'm busy with another upcoming Xbox title so I shall see how next week goes
Re: Here's What The Windows Gaming UI Looks Like On ROG Xbox Ally
@BaldB3lper78 You're not being dumb it is a little confusing! This device (or pair of devices) will play downloaded games - but those will essentially be PC games like a Steam Deck can play.
Microsoft is then advertising that you can play 'console' games from the cloud, but of course, most of those games are also native on PC and will play from a download on the Ally.
Re: Report: Microsoft Has No Plans To Bring Black Ops 7 To Switch 2 At Launch
@GeeEssEff Yeah I could see that. I suppose MS probably just lumped it all together as 'Nintendo', hoping that Switch 2 would be strong enough.
Hopefully once the initial launch has come and gone we see a Switch 2 version, and hopefully parity in future years.
Re: Report: Microsoft Has No Plans To Bring Black Ops 7 To Switch 2 At Launch
@GeeEssEff to be fair, it would have been nigh-on impossible to get the current cod engine running on Switch without massive cutbacks.
I think it'll come to Switch 2, this November just might be too short a turnaround.
Re: PUBG Getting Free Current-Gen Upgrade, Xbox One Version Going Offline This November
@Kaloudz If you look at the shadows and the distant trees there's a difference 😄
I think the upgrade is also just for better stability and those res/fps improvements.
Re: Xbox Announces Gamescom Livestream Schedule For August 2025
@Fiendish-Beaver Yep, hopefully we know officially soon! Personally I'd love a big Developer Direct blowout for E-Day ☺️
Re: Xbox Announces Gamescom Livestream Schedule For August 2025
@Fiendish-Beaver I think it will be all quiet on E-Day until next year tbh. Likely Developer Direct or even the summer showcase if they want to focus on new reveals at DD.
Gamescom is looking good though, and it's right around the launch of Gears: Reloaded too...
Re: Two Xbox First-Party Games Now Shipping On Disc In 2025, Says Retailer
@GeeEssEff Well, it's weird because retailers seem to only have the deluxe versions listed for Xbox. For instance, when you look for either game on Amazon UK, it's only the PS5 that has a standard edition listing.
Hopefully this move to a disc means that Xbox will be getting standard editions as well.
Re: Nacon Commits To Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown With Extensive Year 2 Roadmap
@Simu001 Yep. Word is that they have 'plans' for an offline mode but I'd suspect that won't come until after they've done updating the game.
Re: These 20+ Xbox Games Are At Their 'Lowest Price Ever' In The 2025 Summer Sale
@Tasuki Yeah, they probably will. Although I'm not sure how we're supposed to have a crystal ball or a time machine to go find out...
These are their lowest prices up to this point.
Re: All Of Destiny 2's Expansions Are Free On Xbox For The Next Few Weeks
@Fiendish-Beaver Just access to them for the next couple weeks. All you get to keep is "all the currencies, gear, Title, Triumphs, and cosmetics" earned when playing them.
Re: All Of Destiny 2's Expansions Are Free On Xbox For The Next Few Weeks
@Markatron84 They're not included, you're right, we're not super well-versed in D2 these days with what is and isn't vaulted. Edited!
Re: Xbox Has Briefly Taken Down A Bunch Of Classic COD Games For 'Maintenance'
@Kaloudz Yeah there are definitely some missing here... could just be that these titles have responded to whatever maintenance tweaks they made and the rest need work? Who knows, hopefully we find out soon.
Re: Gears Of War: Reloaded Beta Extended, Extra Mode Added For Weekend 2
@Fiendish-Beaver It's a completely separate app so yeah, it should have new achievements.
I'd assume it's a repeat of the list from Gears: UE.
Re: Opinion: The Best Call Of Duty Of The Xbox One Era Hits Game Pass Later This Month
@Fanat1c Fair play! For some reason MW19 didn't quite grab me, aside from the Warzone launch of course.
Re: SEGA's Space Marine Remaster Is Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (June 10)
@Ricky-Spanish how's online looking? any takers?
Re: Xbox Game Studios: All Microsoft First-Party Developers & What They're Working On
@Fiendish-Beaver Nope, you're right, I'm not sure what happened there! Possibly a typo from updating the article... 😩
All fixed now, thank you!
Re: Resident Evil Requiem Is Capcom's Next Horror Epic, Launches On Xbox In February 2026
@Kaloudz we are eating GOOD!!
Re: The Witcher 4 Dev Says Tech Demo 'Doesn't Represent The Game' In Bizarre Interview
@RiverGenie It's not apples to apples but I hear you, I think Hello Games were in a little over their heads...
I don't hold grudges either, definitely agree that life's too short. I just think folks acting as PR reps for massive studios like CDPR should maybe be a little more cautious. Doesn't mean you can't celebrate the final product if it's great.
Re: The Witcher 4 Dev Says Tech Demo 'Doesn't Represent The Game' In Bizarre Interview
Folks are very quick to forget about how bad Cyberpunk was. A limited edition Xbox One X came out for a game that barely worked on that system.
It may have always been a tech demo but the gameplay segment was presented like it was a chunk of the game. I think people have the right to scrutinise, personally.
I thought we'd moved on from the era of pointless vertical slices...
Re: Two Games Are Available Today With Xbox Game Pass (June 3)
@Kaloudz We haven't had a proper update for the first half of June yet! We do have a few more games already locked in though: https://www.purexbox.com/guides/xbox-game-pass-all-games-coming-soon-in-june-2025
As for the next roundup, MS is becoming a bit less predictable with them these days. Hopefully we get one in and around the showcase.
Re: Xbox 'Bundles Sale' Now Live, Featuring Some Hefty Discounts On AAA Titles
@Rob3008 We'll do our best with this! Sometimes we include prices, but it can be time consuming with regional pricing etc.
If we don't include prices there's always a link provided so you can quickly check the store price for what you're interested in
Re: Hellblade 2 Is Getting A Physical Release On Xbox, But Not By Microsoft
@dannnylee blame Microsoft and their X|S naming convention 😅
Re: Syberia - Remastered Delivers Huge Overhaul On Xbox Series X|S In 2025
@Romans12 It's always hard to say these days, but considering the team is changing puzzles and gameplay mechanics, I'd say remake? But they're calling it a remaster... confusing!
Re: Fantasy Life's Xbox Debut Has Been Delayed Due To 'Ongoing Technical Issue' With Microsoft
@KlipKlop Thanks for this, our bad, didn't spot the message. Updated!
Re: Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (May 8-11)
@jesse_dylan Annoyingly it's only a two-hour trial... we've updated the post now.