Doing the direct sequels MW2-MW3 and BO6-BO7 is the dumbest thing they could've done in my opinion. They've taken away the one thing that differentiates the yearly releases. The one thing that broke up the monotony of COD was that every year we had a different sub genre that was just different enough to justify itself being a separate experience.
With these direct sequels there's absolutely nothing that seperates the experience, in fact most people, myself included feel like MW3 should've just been dlc for MW2 or that BO7 should've been Black Ops 6 year 2 DLC. If Activision doesn't go back to releasing 3 different sub genre of COD every year, then there's ZERO doubt in my mind that COD will be on a collision course for failure worse than it already has been.
This is not me hating on COD either, I'm an avid zombies fan. I play and beat every maps easter egg when it releases but other than that I don't play anything else COD has to offer anymore. For me personally it's zombies or bust. Happy gaming ✌️
I really wish I could get the Xbox Ally X but I personally can't justify $1000 on a portable gaming PC. The base Xbox Ally is extremely underwhelming considering you can get a handheld gaming PC with a Ryzen Z1 Extreme that blows the Z2A powering the Xbox Ally out the water. The Xbox Ally X is a beast but I'm still out of by the fact it's a PC that can't play the majority of my Xbox games (although massive KUDOS to Microsoft for expanding their Xbox Play Anywhere initiative).
All that being said, I'm looking forward to the future of Xbox. The deal they made with AMD is very intriguing, plus the leaks about the AMD Magnus APU that'll power the Series X successor, is mind blowing. It'll truly be the biggest leap we've seen in a generation (just as Sarah Bond alluded).
Also intriguing is that there's a lower TDP version of the AMD Magnus APU that's expected to power the Series S successor. The most interesting part is that it's speculated to be a hybrid handheld gaming console. This would be brilliant on Microsofts part as the Series S has been EXTREMELY successful, it would allow them another entry level next gen device but it would also compete with the Switch 2. The lower TDP version of the AMD Magnus APU (the Magnus Lite if you will) would likely run at 15w-40w which makes perfect sense for a hybrid handheld. Obviously the TDP would be lower in handheld mode and then boosted in Docked Mode offering an entry level next gen Xbox. Of course all of this is speculation based on what we know about the Magnus APU as well as the AMD roadmap of products coming as well as the deal with Microsoft for chipsets powering "Console, Cloud, PC, and devices of different form factors" AKA mobile lol.
No matter what happens, I'm with Xbox next generation. I'll be running whatever the Series X successor ends up being and if they make the Series S successor a hybrid handheld console I'd most likely end up with one day one lol.
As always, everything with a grain of salt, speculation is fun and happy gaming everyone ✌️
@Ricky-Spanish that's REALLY the trend nowadays, instead of enjoying the game for what it is, people would rather go online and hate on it. Black Ops 6 is fun as hell, especially for a dedicated zombies player like myself. I've beaten all the main quest easter eggs on every zombies map in Black Ops 6 so far, I am bummed we're not getting any more Zombies content for Black Ops 6 but thankfully the zombies reveal for Black Ops 7 was released today lol and it looks pretty good so far 💯
Xbox has been on a savage tear in 2025. From excellent final fantasy games finally coming to Xbox to Gamepass offering PHENOMENAL titles like Avowed, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, DOOM the Dark Ages, Persona 4, Gears Reloaded and Oblivion Remastered I've been EXTREMELY busy with my catalog lol plus we got Helldiver's 2 which is a super fun game that works extremely well on Xbox. Despite all the doom posting I see, people constantly hating on Xbox, I genuinely believe Xbox is the best platform for console gamers. The amount of freedom I have over my library is crazy, I can save a game on my Series X and pick up on Xbox Cloud Gaming essentially anywhere is brilliant.
Also, the fact Microsoft is investing heavily in Xbox Cloud Gaming as well as it's next gen consoles has me excited for the future.
Is this upgrade available for everyone right now? I've always been impressed with Xbox Cloud Gaming and I've noticed in the past few months it's been extremely consistent, I'm looking forward to testing 1440p and seeing how well the latency holds up.
Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra looks amazing, the cinematics are top tier! I'm just hoping that moving forward we get some gameplay deep dives. All the amazing cinematics in the world can never replace core gameplay. If gameplay is lacking then all my attention is lost.
I got my Series S in 2022 as a companion to my PS5 and it ended up becoming my console of choice, leaving my PS5 solely for playing a few PlayStation exclusives here and there. The Xbox Series S punches way above its weight in terms of performance, offering upscaled 4K gaming at 60fps and up to 1440p native gaming at 120fps (although most games that hit 120fps run at dynamic 1080p).
I got my Xbox Series X in 2024 & instead of getting rid of my Series S I decided to get a portable gaming monitor & now my Series S goes with me when I'm away from home and it's the perfect size for travelling.
When I was growing up (PS2 era-Xbox 360 era) I'd get PS2 demos from magazines, demos were everywhere on Xbox 360 and they really were a great way to learn about a game you're interested in purchasing, by actually trying it out before you buy it.
I'm actually glad to see Xbox embracing demos in the modern era, especially when we have launch disasters where games aren't even close to what's advertised. With a demo you're more likely to get a better representation of what's coming in the full release. Happy gaming ✌️
I'm apart of the insiders beta program and I got an update on my Series X and everything was smooth sailing, however my wife's Series S got stuck with the error code last night. Woke up this morning and everything is back to normal
I wasn't interested in another fps game but after reading the devs Q&A it's clear they're passionate about their product and it's something I may need to give a shot however it sounds like the game will get better with time as a lot of features are in their infancy or are planned for future updates.
@Ricky-Spanish honestly I feel the same way. It doesn't matter what it is nowadays, gamers will b'tch and complain. Black Ops 7 could've announced traditional boots on ground gameplay with ONLY army guy skins and people would've had a meltdown.
I feel like Black Ops 6 is the best COD experience released since Black Ops Cold War and MW19. The campaign was cool, the multiplayers solid, and the Zombies is the most fun I've had in Zombies in a long time. I've beaten the main Easter Egg in every zombies map in Black Ops 6 & I still go back to play the maps again looking for secrets and helping others who haven't beaten the boss fights. Although I hope we get OUTBREAK Zombies along side the traditional round based zombies because the community deserves to have the brilliant open area nature that Outbreak brings to the table with the vehicles and cool wonder weapons as well as the smaller round based experiences. I love them both and I know many zombies players who'd love to have both.
Anyways, I'm there with you man. People are going to whine ni matter what it is. Activision could announced a Black Ops 2 remake complete with modern engine upgrades running at 4K and 60fps with ALL the DLC included and people would stink whine and cry lol 😆 happy gaming ✌️
I got the gamepass upgrade for Black Ops 6 and was worth it imo because it came with the season 1 battle pass along with the Black Cell upgrade (which itself costs $30).
I'm not sure I'll do the same with Black Ops 7 although as someone who plays zombies 99% of the time, the Ultra Rarity Gobble Gums are tempting as hell lol.
@fatpunkslim some simple research would show why this is the case when it comes to pricing and exchange rates. Also, a little bit of research would also show why the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S cost more now than they did when they launched in 2020. Logistics story short, economical instability, tariffs and inflation have lead to the current situation we're in now. Unfortunately people would rather spout out nonsense like "Xbox abandoned Europe" than actually do the research to see what's really going on. Good on you for sharing your findings, happy gaming ✌️
Bro are you really trying to troll me for being excited about Xbox and sharing said excitement on an Xbox website? Xbox is NOT dead by any means and it makes Microsoft way, way too much money to "kill it". I'm so sick of people like you trolling on an Xbox centric website, this is a GOOD site and the majority of this community enjoys each other's conversations and they enjoy playing Xbox. Stop trying to ruin the vibes just because you're not happy with whatever it is that drives you to troll. Happy gaming ✌️
I'm waiting for the handheld Xbox Series S successor. That's the CONSOLE I personally want more than anything. AMD leaks already mentioned the Magnus APU powering the Xbox Series X Successor but they also found another lower TDP version of the AMD Magnus APU that caps at 35w. That would be a perfect Series S successor if you think about it, 15w-25w while in handheld mode and the full 35w docked mode. So Microsoft can continue it's "entry level" next gen Xbox series. We've seen that the Series S is incredibly successful as it's accounted for 49% of all current gen Xbox consoles sold, while the Series X sits at 51%. I'd imagine Microsoft is well aware of this, and they're also well aware of the high demand for portable gaming devices.
The Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X are fantastic devices but they're still a Windows PC and they're still way too costly to truly hit the mainstream mass market appeal. A handheld Xbox CONSOLE that retails for $399-499 alongside the Series X Successor launching at $599 I truly think that'd be a winning combination. I know myself personally would pick up a handheld Xbox console day one, just for the sheer versatility of taking my games with em everywhere and playing them natively.
I'm glad Helldiver's 2 is coming to Xbox, it's great news for the games player base to be expanded across platforms instead of being stuck to one. I'm looking forward to Helldiver's 2 being expanded thanks to the larger player base as it'll help with galactic missions and the spread of "democracy" by any means lol 😆
@Martsmall I'm excited for Fable, I'm not worried about the game, I'm glad the devs are taking their time to polish everything and make sure it launches in a good playable state 💯
I'm looking forward to seeing more of The Outer Worlds 2, Grounded 2, High on Life 2, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: The Order of the Giants. Those are my most hyped games (Grounded 2 is great btw, I'm looking forward to seeing more of a roadmap). Xbox is looking good at gamescom ngl, happy gaming ✌️
While the Xbox Ally and Ally X look amazing, the are still Windows devices that will NOT play Xbox games natively. As much as I'd love an Xbox Ally I can't justify the price, nor can I accept the Windows OS that means most of my Xbox library isn't playable.
That being said, what I am excited about is the confirmation that the next generation Xbox will again be using an incredibly powerful AMD Magnus APU with a 192 but BUS delivering raw graphics performance in the range of an RTX 5080 with the architectural advancements that Zen 6, Zen 6c, RDNA 5, and XDNA will bring with it.
While that's great news for the next gen Xbox, another tid bit has me even more optimistic. There will be a version of the AMD Magnus APU that targets a 35w TDP. It's suggested it'll power a Series S successor that'll be a handheld hybrid. The handheld CONSOLE will target 15w-25w in handheld mode and 35w in docked mode. This will allow easy development and porting across the 2 while giving Xbox another entry level next gen Xbox to sell. It only makes sense that a Series S successor would be a handheld Xbox hybrid console. I'm not making this up either, these information nuggets were recently leaked from AMD.
Xbox for next generation is going to be a beast, and I'm all for it. Xbox has been plugging away at bringing it's Xbox ecosystem together and it's finally taking shape. The Xbox ecosystem is thriving across consoles, Xbox on PC, and Xbox Cloud Gaming. They have over 100 million MAU across devices and their software is selling gangbusters, so much so that we're seeing Sony pivot themselves from being hardware focused to wanting to be ecosystem software centric. I suspect that console exclusivity will only exist with timed exclusives but eventually the companies will want their software to reach as many players as possible and that means selling their software across multiple platforms.
The console wars are dead, have been dead. Microsoft envisioned this years ago, it's no longer viable to have console sales dictate success as it's proven ecosystem is the way forward. We will see ecosystems become the measurement of success and right now the Xbox ecosystem is thriving. Don't believe me, research it yourself. Happy gaming ✌️
@Kaloudz the irony isn't lost on me either lol the first game was praised (at the time) for the very things it's sequel is dismissed for. I enjoyed both games for what they were instead of being upset at what they aren't.
They're both great at immersion using audio and visuals to portray psychosis in a way never seen before. The gameplay is very light on purpose. Hellblade and hellblade 2 were never meant to be the normal action adventure AAA game which is why Ninja Theory coined the term "independent AAA" when describing the hellblade games.
Hellblade 1 was praised for being a linear, minimalist, immersive experience that blurred the line between game and psychological "art piece". Hellblade 2 doubled down on that same vision and people act like they were betrayed or something lol.
Hellblade 2 isn't a game that's played to win, it's a game that's endured to understand.
Sony is literally changing its strategy to match Microsoft lol everyone had a meltdown when Microsoft stopped worrying about console sales and has watched profits sky rocket as they've become the best selling 3rd party publisher on PlayStation Store. Yes they had layoffs but that 9,000 number wasn't SOLELY from Xbox and PlayStation has laid off around the same amount across various PlayStation studios and at Bungie. I'm so damn tired of the "Xbox is dying" narrative. If anyone took the time to do a little digging they'd see this is FAR from true.
Xbox is doing better than ever. Microsoft recently confirmed that Xbox now has over 100 million monthly active users across console, PC, and cloud, proving the Xbox ecosystem is thriving like never before. Xbox Cloud Gaming has seen double digit growth which kinda surprised me, but it's really popular nowadays! (I use it to try games before downloading) my little brother has friends (aged 15-16) that play Xbox with him via Xbox Cloud Gaming. We've already heard console engagement is at an all time high, with Xbox Series X|S users spending more time & money in the ecosystem than previous generations. Game Pass continues to be a massive success, with a high percentage of attach rate from console users. Microsoft had 34 million gamepass subscribers in early 2024 even BEFORE BO6 released into the service.
When it comes to hardware Microsoft is all in, which is FAR from the "exiting" narrative, quite the opposite actually lol. Microsoft is working with AMD on the next-generation Xbox platform powered by the extremely powerful AMD “Magnus” APU, which will deliver unprecedented performance and efficiency. Even more exciting is the leaks of a low TDP variant of Magnus, which will supposedly power a dedicated Xbox handheld CONSOLE, a true Series S successor built for handheld, native Xbox gaming on the go with the option to dock for entry level next gen gaming. So no, Xbox isn’t dying, it’s evolving, expanding, and outperforming expectations across the board. So much so that Sony announced this week they are no longer focused on hardware as they want to grow their software business ACROSS PLATFORMS lol man the irony.. Happy gaming ✌️
It makes sense given the increasing development costs of games. It's funny to me though when Xbox brought games to PlayStation it was considered atrocious and detrimental to Xbox (Xbox is doing better than ever, Xbox studios is the top 6 best selling games on PS store). Now that PlayStation plans to do the EXACT same thing people are calling it brilliant and "great financial decision" lol
Once again, Xbox is ahead of the trend. I do fully believe that games will only be exclusive for periods of time going forward. Timed exclusives make way more sense now than ever. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was phenomenal and did great on Xbox, PC and Xbox Cloud & arriving on PlayStation 6 months later it once again sold gang busters so Microsoft and in turn Xbox really benefitted twice.
I think Sony is starting to realize they cant recoup the astronomical development costs on exclusives. The best example of recent memory would be Spiderman 2 which was a PHENOMENAL game but it barely broke even, making a small profit (this is according to leaked documents from the infamous insomniac hack) but it wasn't until it was put on PC that the game REALLY started making money which makes sense given the PC install base vs the PS5 install base of 2023.
Going forward, I'd like to see games available on every platform & if a company chooses to do exclusives make it timed exclusives that last about 12 months. I think that really makes sense to sell games to the most players possible, not just a fixed amount on a fixed box. Happy gaming ✌️
@Isca I actually agree 💯 percent with your sentiment. Odyssey isn't just the best AC game, it's also the best game of its type. I personally had such a hard time going from Odyssey to Valhalla because Odyssey truly felt bigger and better, mainly because the era it's set upon is that of peak Greek supremacy and civilization is at an all time high. Valhalla is completely opposite, it's set in the beginning of what would be called the "Dark Ages" where warring brought civilization down a few pegs, no longer was there great communities in sprawling city states like Athens, Thebes, Sparta, Corinth and Delphi.
Valhalla was post collapse of the Roman Empire where kingdoms rose & violence followed which saw humanity suffering through fragmentation, survival, and conquest. We witness the Vikings expansion into Europe which wasn't to build empires themselves but to escape scarcity and seek opportunities. Valhalla exposes a very dark period of life during the Dark Ages while Odyssey does an excellent job of recreating the brilliance that was Ancient Greece, not only in its buildings & civilization but also in its philosophy, the birth of democracy and daily life assurances that came with being a Greek citizen at the time.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey will forever be my favorite AC game of all time but for all intents and purposes it's also my favorite historical game of all time. When walking around Athens or Delphi, you get a true sense of scale of what life was like back then and just how advanced Ancient Greece was for its time period.
I wish more than anything they'd put Diablo 3 or Diablo 4 apart of the "Stream your own games" initiative, however due to the ABK deal they had to relinquish streaming rights to Ubisoft (which is crazy) and I'm not about to pay for another service just to stream 2 games I already own. I can still use remote play to play Diablo 3 and Diablo 4 but it defeats the purpose when I'm trying not to heat up a room in the hot summer heat lol hopefully as time passes they'll be added to the stream your own games initiative.
I'm looking forward to Gears of War Reloaded although I am bummed out about it only being the 1st game. I really wish we had gotten the entire trilogy remastered though, Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 3 definitely deserve the remastered treatment. That being said I am grateful they have fps boosts and auto HDR making them look and play extremely well on Xbox Series X|S.
I really hope Battlefield 6 sticks the landing, 2042 was atrocious at launch and it destroyed any hope for the game (even though it finally got a lot better). Dice is in a position to capitalize on the COD burnout players are feeling, especially when it comes to ridiculous clown skins running around. My favorite Battlefield games remain as BF3, BF4, and Bad Company 2. If BF6 can offer the quality of 3 and 4 then we'll finally have the franchise back, if not IDK where they go from here.
What I love about Starfield is how it blends expansive space exploration with deep, narrative driven experiences that Bethesda is known for. the massive scale of the planets can be daunting BUT some how every journey feels meaningful. Whether I’m wandering across a barren moon or caught in a tense standoff between morally complex factions, there’s always something worth discovering. Bethesda nailed that immersive feeling, and for me personally, the real magic lies in how the game rewards my curiosity. I find myself drawn to both the big story arcs, the truly remarkable side missions, and the freedom to carve out my own path through the stars. I don't care what anyone says, Starfield is a great ggame by the hhggame that's genuinely fun to play and explore
Xbox has some of the best sales, hands down. I used to buy games on release in my 20s but now, I'm content with waiting for a sale to occur. Far Cry 6 was a game I wanted at launch, I waited and got the ultimate edition for $30. Watch Dogs 1 ultimate edition I got for $5, Assassin's Creed Mirage Digital Deluxe Edition I got for $11 so yeah, I am more content with waiting for sales nowadays. Assassin's Creed Shadows is a game I really want to play but I'm waiting until I can get it at a bigger discount possibly with DLC included. That's what I did with AC Origins, AC Odyssey, and Valhalla, I waited and ended up buying all of them in the collectors edition that included a bunch of other AC games for $40 when the regular price was like $120 or $150 or something like that. I am a fan of owning games (digital never really own anything) but it allows me to build up a nice library of excellent games that I fully enjoy playing. AC Odyssey is still the best in the series for me and I will probably die on that hill lol 😆
When PlayStation ended the ability to buy it rent movies I was bummed, but now that Xbox removing the ability too it really is the end of an era. I loved booting up my Xbox on a Friday night with my wifey and renting a random movie just because we could. Definitely the end of an era, it's almost strange that the PS3 and 360 era when these services first launched they were game changers and now they've become obsolete and will be relics of the past. Oh well, thankfully my Xbox is home to a bunch of games across 4 generations of Xbox and that library of games is all I really care about on my console. Digital Movies were a nice cherry on top sorta thing, luckily I have a nice Blu Ray collection.
My favorite 'feature' of the Xbox Series X is backwards compatibility. I can play most of my OG Xbox and Xbox 360 discs no problem, not only that but there's SO many hidden gems that Xbox puts on sale that I've discovered over time. Backwards compatibility is something I'm genuinely glad we have.
@Kaloudz it's a great game NGL, however it was extremely buggy and full of jank when I played it around the time of release. Hopefully Horror 2.0 will make the game enjoyable because I was a bit disappointed. Least I own the game so I can check out the new update when it releases, until then my back catalog is stacked, (I'm the type of gamer who plays more than one game at once, I don't solely play one game until it's finished I usually bounce back and forth).
This is good news because when it 1st launched on Xbox by buddy gifted it to me so we could play together, and it was so buggy and fully jankyness that it made the game not fun to play.. hopefully Horror 2.0 brings us the horror game we've been waiting for.
@ScalenePowers brutal legend is awesome, I played it againast year but it's definitely rough around the edges thankfully the Series X|S make it a bit better. If you can get around some jankyness you are in for a treat.
Double Fine is legendary in my book, my favorites by them are Brutal Legend (one of the coolest games ever with Jack Black), Costume Quest + Costume Quest 2, Psychonauts and Psychonauts 2.
I'm definitely looking forward to Keeper, the trailer was intriguing and I'm curious what the storyline will be. Love Double Fine games & I'm excited to see what they bring us next 💯
@AverageGamer the main problem is CEO of giant publishing companies expect a game to be done in x amount of time so then they tell their shareholders when to expect growth from game sales, this right here puts unnecessary time constraints on projects leading to CRUNCH, unethical work environments, and developer burnout. Many studios over promise to shareholders & the public then scramble to deliver.
One problem we've seen a LOT of recent from Microsoft, Sony, Ubisoft, and more shareholder driven companies. The CEOs chase quarterly earning boosts to appease shareholders with little to no regard for their developers.
Believe it or not, there's an ethical alternative that has been utilized by smaller and indie studios. One would be to build company cultures that prioritize the well-being of its employees, offering generous paid time off, mental health days and no crunch policies.
This can be effective even within companies that rely on investors. The companies need to build a culture of long term investments instead of short term speculation, be honest with stakeholders and offer realistic timelines. Go to them and say, "we are delaying our game to ensure our teams health and the quality of the product". There are investors that align with sustainable growth and they're who you want funding your projects.
I also think that empowering developers is absolutely key to success. Like we've seen in abundance RECENTLY creative decisions often coming from disconnected executives rather than the devs building the games. Think of what happened with Dragon Age The Veil guard. A PROPER solution would be to involve developers at ALL levels of planning, and give them autonomy. Let the teams work and voice their concerns freely, this would've saved dragon age from becoming the mess that it became due to execs making creative decisions forcing devs to fall inline resulting in a worse game.
One last issue, CEOs make tens to hundreds of millions of dollars meanwhile their teams are underpayed and overworked. One solution to this would be to implement some sort of pay ratio and bonuses that reflect the success of the teams, ensuring good teams are shutdown while CEOs gobble millions of dollars. that way the rewards of success are SHARED across the organization. Redirect excess executive bonuses into team well-being and retention programs.
I'm just a gamer in his 30s that's sick of the BS they feed us. It's not one company, it's all of them. We the gamers deserve better but especially the teams who create these works of art we live so much, THEY deserve better than what they're getting. It can be achieved, we've seen it be done, however the big dogs are the ones who don't want change because they thrive on the cutthroat culture of the current unstable games industry. Happy gaming ✌️
DEATHLOOP was such a fun game, it had immense replay value and once you learned the mechanics of it all each run you became better and better. Knowing it's the same team that made DEATHLOOP makes me extremely excited for Marvels Blade game. I'm genuinely curious as to what the vibe of the game will be, I mean obviously we know what the movies are like but what will the gameplay entail, what will make this story unique, I'm very excited to play it.
To be honest I'd be happy with an Oblivion Remastered style remake or remaster of Fallout 4. That game is such a good game that was released towards the beginning of the PS4 generation and is a victim of falling through the cracks as far as continued support goes, thankfully we've got mods that makes revisiting the game really fun. I'd like to see a remaster though, I think it would look and play so much better on modern consoles. Happy gaming ✌️
I already own Helldiver's 2 on PlayStation 5 but I am definitely buying Helldiver's 2 for Xbox day one. Once I do that, I won't need to renew my PS+ membership because the only online game I play on PlayStation is Helldiver's 2 and once it's on Xbox I won't need PS+ anymore.
Besides just that, I am extremely excited for the influx of players into Helldiver's 2 because HD2 is the type of game that thrives thanks to it's community and now when Super Earth calls my fellow Xbox divers will be ready to answer the call alongside our PlayStation brethren....
I'm excited for the future of consoles as well. I'm not a fan of gaming PCs mainly because I don't want a PC even if it's more than powerful enough to run games. I have friends that game on PC but the amount of issues they have is sometimes comical me. For example, my buddy Gabe got a new gaming PC about 5 months ago with an Intel core ultra 7, a RTX 4070 super, 32GB of RAM with a 1TB SSD and a 2TB HDD running windows 11. Since he's gotten this PC there's been more times than I can count that he's had to fix or update something before we could jump into a game. Whether that's Black Ops 6 Zombies, Fortnite, Borderlands 3, or literally any other game, we've had to wait while he goes through updating drivers or windows because the game won't run or won't load or has stutters or bad performance, you get the point lol. Meanwhile my Xbox Series X runs the same games with excellent performance, frame rates with no issues whatsoever, which is why I love consoles and do NOT want a gaming PC.
Consoles can achieve exceptional performance because they use standardized hardware across every unit. (Think about Series X and PS5 using the same Zen 2 CPU, RDNA 2 GPU, NVMe SSD and 16GB of RAM) This allows developers to optimize games directly for one fixed set of specs. Consoles also run lightweight, gaming focused operating systems with minimal background processes. These OS are designed to use minimal resources. Low level APIs also give developers more direct control over the console hardware allowing for excellent optimization. PCs, on the other hand, come in countless combinations of CPUs, GPUs, RAM, and storage device types (SSD and HDD). Developers must account for all these variables, which limits how much they can optimize for any one setup. Instead they try to make their games playable across a wide variety of PC setups. Not only that but PCs run heavier operating systems (windows 11, looking at you) with background tasks, driver inconsistencies, and sometimes third party software that can hurt game performance.
As powerful as a gaming PC can be, I would much rather have a console. I boot up my Xbox Series X choose whatever game I want to play and boom there I am enjoying the best games available in beautiful 4K at 60fps in most games. I am actually very excited for the next generation of consoles, I will be getting whatever next gen Xbox launches without a doubt. The main reason for this above everything else is the confirmation of backwards compatibility, meaning my entire library of Xbox games comes with me to the new console. This means day one I'll have my amazing collection of games all playable on the new Xbox, this generation I've found backwards compatibility from all generations actually means more to me than I'd ever anticipated. My ability to load up OG Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One games all on my Series X has made me feel good seeing all the games I've purchased are all there available to play.
Long story short, Xbox has a bright future and I'm definitely excited to see what the next generation Xbox brings to the next gen table. Happy Gaming, ✌️
Trillion dollar companies "trimming the fat" in order to appease their investors and corporate overlords. Sony did the same thing last year laying off thousands. It's obviously extremely disheartening, especially for the poor souls who lost their jobs.
The games industry on a whole is severely lacking, not just Microsoft, not just Xbox. Sony is feeling it too, their exclusives are barely breaking even which is why almost every new PlayStation exclusive is now available day one on PC or ends up going to PC down the road. Games have gotten SO DAMN EXPENSIVE to make with budgets ballooning past 500 million easily on some projects with most AAA games around the $250 million mark.
I think Xbox is going to bounce back, they have the most momentum they've had since the 360 era when it comes to excellent games releasing and their release cadence is picking up steam.
Also, this site for some reason attracts some of the worst fanboy nonsense I've seen in a long time. The amount of doom posting in the comments and the amount of hate for a plastic box is palpable. I personally don't understand because I'm 30+ year old adult with a wife, a home, a family and we all enjoy games. I have a PS5, my wife has a PS5, I have a Series X my wife has a Series S. We enjoy the GAMES and we come together with family and friends to ENJOY the games, nobody is sitting here wishing the death of Xbox or PlayStation but when I come here, all I see is the hatred for Xbox. It wouldn't matter what they did people are going to hate em, but for an Xbox centric site the negativity in the comments section is crazy to me.
Not everyone on this site is like that, I've had back and forths with some extremely insightful individuals who clearly have their heads on straight. Y'all know who you are lol everyone else though, just chill out and enjoy the games
I had played a little bit of space marine 2, I think about 4 hours or so then the remastered first one hit gamepass so I stopped playing 2 so I can play the first one (I've never played the space marine series before). I am looking forward to playing more of these games, I'm definitely interested in the PVE side of things though.
The ONLY time I sub to PS+ is if there's a good selection of games on the essential tier then I'll spend $10 and subscribe for a month. Other than that, no tier of PS+ even comes close to having what gamepass ultimate offers.
Xbox Play Anywhere is honestly a brilliant initiative. I don't own a PC but it's nice to my a lot of my games would be playable if I had one.
One thing I have done recently, is I got a Gamesir X2S type C controller for $30 and turned my phone into a handheld Xbox console via Xbox Cloud Gaming. The direct type C connection helps mitigate latency and the hall effect sticks actually help with that too so now what I have is a pretty decent cloud gaming setup.
Xbox Cloud Gaming has come a long way, over the past month I've put about 11 hours into a new Skyrim playthrough and it's being done solely via Xbox Cloud Gaming on a Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. Long story short, it's been a great way to play without being tethered to a console. I may even upgrade to a more comfortable setup but the Gamesir X2S type C controller gets the job done
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Re: Call Of Duty Dev Admits 'Worry' About Franchise Fatigue With Black Ops 7
Doing the direct sequels MW2-MW3 and BO6-BO7 is the dumbest thing they could've done in my opinion. They've taken away the one thing that differentiates the yearly releases. The one thing that broke up the monotony of COD was that every year we had a different sub genre that was just different enough to justify itself being a separate experience.
With these direct sequels there's absolutely nothing that seperates the experience, in fact most people, myself included feel like MW3 should've just been dlc for MW2 or that BO7 should've been Black Ops 6 year 2 DLC. If Activision doesn't go back to releasing 3 different sub genre of COD every year, then there's ZERO doubt in my mind that COD will be on a collision course for failure worse than it already has been.
This is not me hating on COD either, I'm an avid zombies fan. I play and beat every maps easter egg when it releases but other than that I don't play anything else COD has to offer anymore. For me personally it's zombies or bust. Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Where To Buy The ROG Xbox Ally & ROG Xbox Ally X Handhelds
I really wish I could get the Xbox Ally X but I personally can't justify $1000 on a portable gaming PC. The base Xbox Ally is extremely underwhelming considering you can get a handheld gaming PC with a Ryzen Z1 Extreme that blows the Z2A powering the Xbox Ally out the water. The Xbox Ally X is a beast but I'm still out of by the fact it's a PC that can't play the majority of my Xbox games (although massive KUDOS to Microsoft for expanding their Xbox Play Anywhere initiative).
All that being said, I'm looking forward to the future of Xbox. The deal they made with AMD is very intriguing, plus the leaks about the AMD Magnus APU that'll power the Series X successor, is mind blowing. It'll truly be the biggest leap we've seen in a generation (just as Sarah Bond alluded).
Also intriguing is that there's a lower TDP version of the AMD Magnus APU that's expected to power the Series S successor. The most interesting part is that it's speculated to be a hybrid handheld gaming console. This would be brilliant on Microsofts part as the Series S has been EXTREMELY successful, it would allow them another entry level next gen device but it would also compete with the Switch 2. The lower TDP version of the AMD Magnus APU (the Magnus Lite if you will) would likely run at 15w-40w which makes perfect sense for a hybrid handheld. Obviously the TDP would be lower in handheld mode and then boosted in Docked Mode offering an entry level next gen Xbox. Of course all of this is speculation based on what we know about the Magnus APU as well as the AMD roadmap of products coming as well as the deal with Microsoft for chipsets powering "Console, Cloud, PC, and devices of different form factors" AKA mobile lol.
No matter what happens, I'm with Xbox next generation. I'll be running whatever the Series X successor ends up being and if they make the Series S successor a hybrid handheld console I'd most likely end up with one day one lol.
As always, everything with a grain of salt, speculation is fun and happy gaming everyone ✌️
Re: Black Ops 7's Game Pass Upgrade Is Already One Of The Top Sellers On The Xbox Store
@Ricky-Spanish that's REALLY the trend nowadays, instead of enjoying the game for what it is, people would rather go online and hate on it. Black Ops 6 is fun as hell, especially for a dedicated zombies player like myself. I've beaten all the main quest easter eggs on every zombies map in Black Ops 6 so far, I am bummed we're not getting any more Zombies content for Black Ops 6 but thankfully the zombies reveal for Black Ops 7 was released today lol and it looks pretty good so far 💯
Re: Microsoft Has Made Its 'Largest Investment' In Xbox Game Pass Ever This Year
Xbox has been on a savage tear in 2025. From excellent final fantasy games finally coming to Xbox to Gamepass offering PHENOMENAL titles like Avowed, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, DOOM the Dark Ages, Persona 4, Gears Reloaded and Oblivion Remastered I've been EXTREMELY busy with my catalog lol plus we got Helldiver's 2 which is a super fun game that works extremely well on Xbox. Despite all the doom posting I see, people constantly hating on Xbox, I genuinely believe Xbox is the best platform for console gamers. The amount of freedom I have over my library is crazy, I can save a game on my Series X and pick up on Xbox Cloud Gaming essentially anywhere is brilliant.
Also, the fact Microsoft is investing heavily in Xbox Cloud Gaming as well as it's next gen consoles has me excited for the future.
Re: Xbox Cloud Gaming Quality Bump Shows 'Dramatic Improvement' Says Digital Foundry
Is this upgrade available for everyone right now? I've always been impressed with Xbox Cloud Gaming and I've noticed in the past few months it's been extremely consistent, I'm looking forward to testing 1440p and seeing how well the latency holds up.
Re: Marvel 1943: Rise Of Hydra Delayed Out Of 2025, Now Arriving On Xbox In 'Early 2026'
1943 is going to look phenomenal on my Xbox Series X and my 65inch 4K tv lol
Re: Marvel 1943: Rise Of Hydra Early Footage Leaks Ahead Of 2026 Release
Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra looks amazing, the cinematics are top tier! I'm just hoping that moving forward we get some gameplay deep dives. All the amazing cinematics in the world can never replace core gameplay. If gameplay is lacking then all my attention is lost.
Re: Opinion: The Value Proposition Of Xbox Series S Is Better Than Ever In 2025
I got my Series S in 2022 as a companion to my PS5 and it ended up becoming my console of choice, leaving my PS5 solely for playing a few PlayStation exclusives here and there. The Xbox Series S punches way above its weight in terms of performance, offering upscaled 4K gaming at 60fps and up to 1440p native gaming at 120fps (although most games that hit 120fps run at dynamic 1080p).
I got my Xbox Series X in 2024 & instead of getting rid of my Series S I decided to get a portable gaming monitor & now my Series S goes with me when I'm away from home and it's the perfect size for travelling.
Re: Xbox Demo Fest Now Live, 40+ Games Available To Play For Free
When I was growing up (PS2 era-Xbox 360 era) I'd get PS2 demos from magazines, demos were everywhere on Xbox 360 and they really were a great way to learn about a game you're interested in purchasing, by actually trying it out before you buy it.
I'm actually glad to see Xbox embracing demos in the modern era, especially when we have launch disasters where games aren't even close to what's advertised. With a demo you're more likely to get a better representation of what's coming in the full release. Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Xbox 'Problem With The Update' Error Is Plaguing Insiders, But There's A Workaround
I'm apart of the insiders beta program and I got an update on my Series X and everything was smooth sailing, however my wife's Series S got stuck with the error code last night. Woke up this morning and everything is back to normal
Re: Delta Force Dev Announces Plans For Lots More Xbox Features And FPS Improvements
I wasn't interested in another fps game but after reading the devs Q&A it's clear they're passionate about their product and it's something I may need to give a shot however it sounds like the game will get better with time as a lot of features are in their infancy or are planned for future updates.
Re: High On Life 2's Xbox Game Pass Launch Will Include 'More Than Five' Extra Games
I can't wait to play High on Life 2! The first game was fun as hell, I beat it twice.
Re: Black Ops 7's Game Pass Upgrade Is Already One Of The Top Sellers On The Xbox Store
@Ricky-Spanish honestly I feel the same way. It doesn't matter what it is nowadays, gamers will b'tch and complain. Black Ops 7 could've announced traditional boots on ground gameplay with ONLY army guy skins and people would've had a meltdown.
I feel like Black Ops 6 is the best COD experience released since Black Ops Cold War and MW19. The campaign was cool, the multiplayers solid, and the Zombies is the most fun I've had in Zombies in a long time. I've beaten the main Easter Egg in every zombies map in Black Ops 6 & I still go back to play the maps again looking for secrets and helping others who haven't beaten the boss fights. Although I hope we get OUTBREAK Zombies along side the traditional round based zombies because the community deserves to have the brilliant open area nature that Outbreak brings to the table with the vehicles and cool wonder weapons as well as the smaller round based experiences. I love them both and I know many zombies players who'd love to have both.
Anyways, I'm there with you man. People are going to whine ni matter what it is. Activision could announced a Black Ops 2 remake complete with modern engine upgrades running at 4K and 60fps with ALL the DLC included and people would stink whine and cry lol 😆 happy gaming ✌️
Re: Black Ops 7's Game Pass Upgrade Is Already One Of The Top Sellers On The Xbox Store
I got the gamepass upgrade for Black Ops 6 and was worth it imo because it came with the season 1 battle pass along with the Black Cell upgrade (which itself costs $30).
I'm not sure I'll do the same with Black Ops 7 although as someone who plays zombies 99% of the time, the Ultra Rarity Gobble Gums are tempting as hell lol.
Re: Black Myth: Zhong Kui Is In Development, And It's Set To Launch Day One On Xbox
This is exciting news for sure, another Xbox game I have to look forward too lol seems like there's a lot of that going around lately. 😁
Re: ROG Xbox Ally Infographic Appears Alongside Early Amazon Listing
@fatpunkslim some simple research would show why this is the case when it comes to pricing and exchange rates. Also, a little bit of research would also show why the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S cost more now than they did when they launched in 2020. Logistics story short, economical instability, tariffs and inflation have lead to the current situation we're in now. Unfortunately people would rather spout out nonsense like "Xbox abandoned Europe" than actually do the research to see what's really going on. Good on you for sharing your findings, happy gaming ✌️
Re: ROG Xbox Ally Infographic Appears Alongside Early Amazon Listing
Bro are you really trying to troll me for being excited about Xbox and sharing said excitement on an Xbox website? Xbox is NOT dead by any means and it makes Microsoft way, way too much money to "kill it". I'm so sick of people like you trolling on an Xbox centric website, this is a GOOD site and the majority of this community enjoys each other's conversations and they enjoy playing Xbox. Stop trying to ruin the vibes just because you're not happy with whatever it is that drives you to troll. Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Microsoft Explains Target Audiences For ROG Xbox Ally And ROG Xbox Ally X
I'm waiting for the handheld Xbox Series S successor. That's the CONSOLE I personally want more than anything. AMD leaks already mentioned the Magnus APU powering the Xbox Series X Successor but they also found another lower TDP version of the AMD Magnus APU that caps at 35w. That would be a perfect Series S successor if you think about it, 15w-25w while in handheld mode and the full 35w docked mode. So Microsoft can continue it's "entry level" next gen Xbox series. We've seen that the Series S is incredibly successful as it's accounted for 49% of all current gen Xbox consoles sold, while the Series X sits at 51%. I'd imagine Microsoft is well aware of this, and they're also well aware of the high demand for portable gaming devices.
The Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X are fantastic devices but they're still a Windows PC and they're still way too costly to truly hit the mainstream mass market appeal. A handheld Xbox CONSOLE that retails for $399-499 alongside the Series X Successor launching at $599 I truly think that'd be a winning combination. I know myself personally would pick up a handheld Xbox console day one, just for the sheer versatility of taking my games with em everywhere and playing them natively.
Re: Official PlayStation Website Adds Big Xbox Advertisement For Helldivers 2
I own it on PlayStation and yes, I am ABSOLUTELY going to buy it on Xbox! That's how good of a game Helldiver's 2 is, the ability to load up with a few friends and just let loose in some co-op mayhem is extremely satisfying. Also, the Helldiver's 2 community is super chill, for the most part. I've played some incredibly close nail biting games where we barely made it out & I can honestly say I've met more open minded people than I have A$$ H©L3$ but every online game has their fair share of douchebag idiots Helldiver's 2 included, however for the most part I've had good experiences with ransoms.
I'm glad Helldiver's 2 is coming to Xbox, it's great news for the games player base to be expanded across platforms instead of being stuck to one. I'm looking forward to Helldiver's 2 being expanded thanks to the larger player base as it'll help with galactic missions and the spread of "democracy" by any means lol 😆
Re: Delta Force Release Date, Release Times & Free-To-Play Details On Xbox
Very intriguing lol
Re: Xbox Announces Big List Of Games For Its Two Gamescom Broadcasts Next Week
@Martsmall I'm excited for Fable, I'm not worried about the game, I'm glad the devs are taking their time to polish everything and make sure it launches in a good playable state 💯
Re: Xbox Announces Big List Of Games For Its Two Gamescom Broadcasts Next Week
@Cakefish Keeper definitely has me intrigued! Psychonauts 2 was truly remarkable and I'm really interested to see what Keeper brings to the table.
Re: Xbox Announces Big List Of Games For Its Two Gamescom Broadcasts Next Week
I'm looking forward to seeing more of The Outer Worlds 2, Grounded 2, High on Life 2, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: The Order of the Giants. Those are my most hyped games (Grounded 2 is great btw, I'm looking forward to seeing more of a roadmap). Xbox is looking good at gamescom ngl, happy gaming ✌️
Re: ROG Xbox Ally Infographic Appears Alongside Early Amazon Listing
While the Xbox Ally and Ally X look amazing, the are still Windows devices that will NOT play Xbox games natively. As much as I'd love an Xbox Ally I can't justify the price, nor can I accept the Windows OS that means most of my Xbox library isn't playable.
That being said, what I am excited about is the confirmation that the next generation Xbox will again be using an incredibly powerful AMD Magnus APU with a 192 but BUS delivering raw graphics performance in the range of an RTX 5080 with the architectural advancements that Zen 6, Zen 6c, RDNA 5, and XDNA will bring with it.
While that's great news for the next gen Xbox, another tid bit has me even more optimistic. There will be a version of the AMD Magnus APU that targets a 35w TDP. It's suggested it'll power a Series S successor that'll be a handheld hybrid. The handheld CONSOLE will target 15w-25w in handheld mode and 35w in docked mode. This will allow easy development and porting across the 2 while giving Xbox another entry level next gen Xbox to sell. It only makes sense that a Series S successor would be a handheld Xbox hybrid console. I'm not making this up either, these information nuggets were recently leaked from AMD.
Xbox for next generation is going to be a beast, and I'm all for it. Xbox has been plugging away at bringing it's Xbox ecosystem together and it's finally taking shape. The Xbox ecosystem is thriving across consoles, Xbox on PC, and Xbox Cloud Gaming. They have over 100 million MAU across devices and their software is selling gangbusters, so much so that we're seeing Sony pivot themselves from being hardware focused to wanting to be ecosystem software centric. I suspect that console exclusivity will only exist with timed exclusives but eventually the companies will want their software to reach as many players as possible and that means selling their software across multiple platforms.
The console wars are dead, have been dead. Microsoft envisioned this years ago, it's no longer viable to have console sales dictate success as it's proven ecosystem is the way forward. We will see ecosystems become the measurement of success and right now the Xbox ecosystem is thriving. Don't believe me, research it yourself.
Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Roundup: Here's What The PS5 Reviews Are Saying About Xbox's 'Hellblade 2 Enhanced'
@Kaloudz the irony isn't lost on me either lol the first game was praised (at the time) for the very things it's sequel is dismissed for. I enjoyed both games for what they were instead of being upset at what they aren't.
They're both great at immersion using audio and visuals to portray psychosis in a way never seen before. The gameplay is very light on purpose. Hellblade and hellblade 2 were never meant to be the normal action adventure AAA game which is why Ninja Theory coined the term "independent AAA" when describing the hellblade games.
Hellblade 1 was praised for being a linear, minimalist, immersive experience that blurred the line between game and psychological "art piece". Hellblade 2 doubled down on that same vision and people act like they were betrayed or something lol.
Hellblade 2 isn't a game that's played to win, it's a game that's endured to understand.
Re: Sony SVP Says PlayStation Is 'Moving Away From A Hardware-Centric Business Model'
Sony is literally changing its strategy to match Microsoft lol everyone had a meltdown when Microsoft stopped worrying about console sales and has watched profits sky rocket as they've become the best selling 3rd party publisher on PlayStation Store. Yes they had layoffs but that 9,000 number wasn't SOLELY from Xbox and PlayStation has laid off around the same amount across various PlayStation studios and at Bungie. I'm so damn tired of the "Xbox is dying" narrative. If anyone took the time to do a little digging they'd see this is FAR from true.
Xbox is doing better than ever. Microsoft recently confirmed that Xbox now has over 100 million monthly active users across console, PC, and cloud, proving the Xbox ecosystem is thriving like never before. Xbox Cloud Gaming has seen double digit growth which kinda surprised me, but it's really popular nowadays! (I use it to try games before downloading) my little brother has friends (aged 15-16) that play Xbox with him via Xbox Cloud Gaming. We've already heard console engagement is at an all time high, with Xbox Series X|S users spending more time & money in the ecosystem than previous generations. Game Pass continues to be a massive success, with a high percentage of attach rate from console users. Microsoft had 34 million gamepass subscribers in early 2024 even BEFORE BO6 released into the service.
When it comes to hardware Microsoft is all in, which is FAR from the "exiting" narrative, quite the opposite actually lol. Microsoft is working with AMD on the next-generation Xbox platform powered by the extremely powerful AMD “Magnus” APU, which will deliver unprecedented performance and efficiency. Even more exciting is the leaks of a low TDP variant of Magnus, which will supposedly power a dedicated Xbox handheld CONSOLE, a true Series S successor built for handheld, native Xbox gaming on the go with the option to dock for entry level next gen gaming. So no, Xbox isn’t dying, it’s evolving, expanding, and outperforming expectations across the board. So much so that Sony announced this week they are no longer focused on hardware as they want to grow their software business ACROSS PLATFORMS lol man the irony..
Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Rumour: Sony Is Planning To Bring More PS5 Games To Xbox
It makes sense given the increasing development costs of games. It's funny to me though when Xbox brought games to PlayStation it was considered atrocious and detrimental to Xbox (Xbox is doing better than ever, Xbox studios is the top 6 best selling games on PS store). Now that PlayStation plans to do the EXACT same thing people are calling it brilliant and "great financial decision" lol
Once again, Xbox is ahead of the trend. I do fully believe that games will only be exclusive for periods of time going forward. Timed exclusives make way more sense now than ever. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was phenomenal and did great on Xbox, PC and Xbox Cloud & arriving on PlayStation 6 months later it once again sold gang busters so Microsoft and in turn Xbox really benefitted twice.
I think Sony is starting to realize they cant recoup the astronomical development costs on exclusives. The best example of recent memory would be Spiderman 2 which was a PHENOMENAL game but it barely broke even, making a small profit (this is according to leaked documents from the infamous insomniac hack) but it wasn't until it was put on PC that the game REALLY started making money which makes sense given the PC install base vs the PS5 install base of 2023.
Going forward, I'd like to see games available on every platform & if a company chooses to do exclusives make it timed exclusives that last about 12 months. I think that really makes sense to sell games to the most players possible, not just a fixed amount on a fixed box.
Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Talking Point: As A Game Pass Subscriber, Do You Still Spend Money In Xbox Sales?
@Isca I actually agree 💯 percent with your sentiment. Odyssey isn't just the best AC game, it's also the best game of its type. I personally had such a hard time going from Odyssey to Valhalla because Odyssey truly felt bigger and better, mainly because the era it's set upon is that of peak Greek supremacy and civilization is at an all time high. Valhalla is completely opposite, it's set in the beginning of what would be called the "Dark Ages" where warring brought civilization down a few pegs, no longer was there great communities in sprawling city states like Athens, Thebes, Sparta, Corinth and Delphi.
Valhalla was post collapse of the Roman Empire where kingdoms rose & violence followed which saw humanity suffering through fragmentation, survival, and conquest. We witness the Vikings expansion into Europe which wasn't to build empires themselves but to escape scarcity and seek opportunities. Valhalla exposes a very dark period of life during the Dark Ages while Odyssey does an excellent job of recreating the brilliance that was Ancient Greece, not only in its buildings & civilization but also in its philosophy, the birth of democracy and daily life assurances that came with being a Greek citizen at the time.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey will forever be my favorite AC game of all time but for all intents and purposes it's also my favorite historical game of all time. When walking around Athens or Delphi, you get a true sense of scale of what life was like back then and just how advanced Ancient Greece was for its time period.
Thanks for your response, I enjoy the discussion.
Re: 100 New Games Added To Xbox 'Stream Your Own Game' For August
I wish more than anything they'd put Diablo 3 or Diablo 4 apart of the "Stream your own games" initiative, however due to the ABK deal they had to relinquish streaming rights to Ubisoft (which is crazy) and I'm not about to pay for another service just to stream 2 games I already own. I can still use remote play to play Diablo 3 and Diablo 4 but it defeats the purpose when I'm trying not to heat up a room in the hot summer heat lol hopefully as time passes they'll be added to the stream your own games initiative.
Re: 100 New Games Added To Xbox 'Stream Your Own Game' For August
MX vs ATV legends is my favorite motocross game ever! Now I can play it anywhere I've got Internet, pretty awesome!
Re: Xbox Game Pass: All Games Coming Soon In August 2025
I'm looking forward to Gears of War Reloaded although I am bummed out about it only being the 1st game. I really wish we had gotten the entire trilogy remastered though, Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 3 definitely deserve the remastered treatment. That being said I am grateful they have fps boosts and auto HDR making them look and play extremely well on Xbox Series X|S.
Re: Battlefield 6 Price & Release Date Leak Ahead Of 2025 Xbox Launch
I really hope Battlefield 6 sticks the landing, 2042 was atrocious at launch and it destroyed any hope for the game (even though it finally got a lot better). Dice is in a position to capitalize on the COD burnout players are feeling, especially when it comes to ridiculous clown skins running around. My favorite Battlefield games remain as BF3, BF4, and Bad Company 2. If BF6 can offer the quality of 3 and 4 then we'll finally have the franchise back, if not IDK where they go from here.
Re: Bethesda Has 'Exciting Things Planned' For Starfield As Beta Update Goes Live
What I love about Starfield is how it blends expansive space exploration with deep, narrative driven experiences that Bethesda is known for. the massive scale of the planets can be daunting BUT some how every journey feels meaningful. Whether I’m wandering across a barren moon or caught in a tense standoff between morally complex factions, there’s always something worth discovering. Bethesda nailed that immersive feeling, and for me personally, the real magic lies in how the game rewards my curiosity. I find myself drawn to both the big story arcs, the truly remarkable side missions, and the freedom to carve out my own path through the stars. I don't care what anyone says, Starfield is a great ggame by the hhggame that's genuinely fun to play and explore
Re: Talking Point: As A Game Pass Subscriber, Do You Still Spend Money In Xbox Sales?
@Sol4ris haha I feel that my friend! 😂
Re: Talking Point: As A Game Pass Subscriber, Do You Still Spend Money In Xbox Sales?
Xbox has some of the best sales, hands down. I used to buy games on release in my 20s but now, I'm content with waiting for a sale to occur. Far Cry 6 was a game I wanted at launch, I waited and got the ultimate edition for $30. Watch Dogs 1 ultimate edition I got for $5, Assassin's Creed Mirage Digital Deluxe Edition I got for $11 so yeah, I am more content with waiting for sales nowadays. Assassin's Creed Shadows is a game I really want to play but I'm waiting until I can get it at a bigger discount possibly with DLC included. That's what I did with AC Origins, AC Odyssey, and Valhalla, I waited and ended up buying all of them in the collectors edition that included a bunch of other AC games for $40 when the regular price was like $120 or $150 or something like that. I am a fan of owning games (digital never really own anything) but it allows me to build up a nice library of excellent games that I fully enjoy playing. AC Odyssey is still the best in the series for me and I will probably die on that hill lol 😆
Re: Microsoft Movies & TV Is Officially Ending, Which Will Have A Big Impact On Xbox
When PlayStation ended the ability to buy it rent movies I was bummed, but now that Xbox removing the ability too it really is the end of an era. I loved booting up my Xbox on a Friday night with my wifey and renting a random movie just because we could. Definitely the end of an era, it's almost strange that the PS3 and 360 era when these services first launched they were game changers and now they've become obsolete and will be relics of the past. Oh well, thankfully my Xbox is home to a bunch of games across 4 generations of Xbox and that library of games is all I really care about on my console. Digital Movies were a nice cherry on top sorta thing, luckily I have a nice Blu Ray collection.
Re: Deals: All 70+ Backwards Compatible Games In The Xbox Summer Sale 2025
My favorite 'feature' of the Xbox Series X is backwards compatibility. I can play most of my OG Xbox and Xbox 360 discs no problem, not only that but there's SO many hidden gems that Xbox puts on sale that I've discovered over time. Backwards compatibility is something I'm genuinely glad we have.
Re: Phasmophobia Is Getting A Complete Overhaul On Xbox In 2026
@Kaloudz it's a great game NGL, however it was extremely buggy and full of jank when I played it around the time of release. Hopefully Horror 2.0 will make the game enjoyable because I was a bit disappointed. Least I own the game so I can check out the new update when it releases, until then my back catalog is stacked, (I'm the type of gamer who plays more than one game at once, I don't solely play one game until it's finished I usually bounce back and forth).
Re: Phasmophobia Is Getting A Complete Overhaul On Xbox In 2026
This is good news because when it 1st launched on Xbox by buddy gifted it to me so we could play together, and it was so buggy and fully jankyness that it made the game not fun to play.. hopefully Horror 2.0 brings us the horror game we've been waiting for.
Re: Talking Point: Are You Excited For Double Fine's Follow-Up To Psychonauts 2?
@ScalenePowers brutal legend is awesome, I played it againast year but it's definitely rough around the edges thankfully the Series X|S make it a bit better. If you can get around some jankyness you are in for a treat.
Re: Talking Point: Are You Excited For Double Fine's Follow-Up To Psychonauts 2?
Double Fine is legendary in my book, my favorites by them are Brutal Legend (one of the coolest games ever with Jack Black), Costume Quest + Costume Quest 2, Psychonauts and Psychonauts 2.
I'm definitely looking forward to Keeper, the trailer was intriguing and I'm curious what the storyline will be. Love Double Fine games & I'm excited to see what they bring us next 💯
Re: Marvel's Blade Seemingly Entered Full Production At Xbox In Late 2024
@AverageGamer the main problem is CEO of giant publishing companies expect a game to be done in x amount of time so then they tell their shareholders when to expect growth from game sales, this right here puts unnecessary time constraints on projects leading to CRUNCH, unethical work environments, and developer burnout. Many studios over promise to shareholders & the public then scramble to deliver.
One problem we've seen a LOT of recent from Microsoft, Sony, Ubisoft, and more shareholder driven companies. The CEOs chase quarterly earning boosts to appease shareholders with little to no regard for their developers.
Believe it or not, there's an ethical alternative that has been utilized by smaller and indie studios. One would be to build company cultures that prioritize the well-being of its employees, offering generous paid time off, mental health days and no crunch policies.
This can be effective even within companies that rely on investors. The companies need to build a culture of long term investments instead of short term speculation, be honest with stakeholders and offer realistic timelines. Go to them and say, "we are delaying our game to ensure our teams health and the quality of the product". There are investors that align with sustainable growth and they're who you want funding your projects.
I also think that empowering developers is absolutely key to success. Like we've seen in abundance RECENTLY creative decisions often coming from disconnected executives rather than the devs building the games. Think of what happened with Dragon Age The Veil guard. A PROPER solution would be to involve developers at ALL levels of planning, and give them autonomy. Let the teams work and voice their concerns freely, this would've saved dragon age from becoming the mess that it became due to execs making creative decisions forcing devs to fall inline resulting in a worse game.
One last issue, CEOs make tens to hundreds of millions of dollars meanwhile their teams are underpayed and overworked. One solution to this would be to implement some sort of pay ratio and bonuses that reflect the success of the teams, ensuring good teams are shutdown while CEOs gobble millions of dollars. that way the rewards of success are SHARED across the organization. Redirect excess executive bonuses into team well-being and retention programs.
I'm just a gamer in his 30s that's sick of the BS they feed us. It's not one company, it's all of them. We the gamers deserve better but especially the teams who create these works of art we live so much, THEY deserve better than what they're getting. It can be achieved, we've seen it be done, however the big dogs are the ones who don't want change because they thrive on the cutthroat culture of the current unstable games industry. Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Marvel's Blade Seemingly Entered Full Production At Xbox In Late 2024
DEATHLOOP was such a fun game, it had immense replay value and once you learned the mechanics of it all each run you became better and better. Knowing it's the same team that made DEATHLOOP makes me extremely excited for Marvels Blade game. I'm genuinely curious as to what the vibe of the game will be, I mean obviously we know what the movies are like but what will the gameplay entail, what will make this story unique, I'm very excited to play it.
Re: Rumour: Xbox Has Multiple Fallout Projects In Development, Including 'One You're All Wanting'
To be honest I'd be happy with an Oblivion Remastered style remake or remaster of Fallout 4. That game is such a good game that was released towards the beginning of the PS4 generation and is a victim of falling through the cracks as far as continued support goes, thankfully we've got mods that makes revisiting the game really fun. I'd like to see a remaster though, I think it would look and play so much better on modern consoles. Happy gaming ✌️
Re: Poll: Helldivers 2 Isn't On Xbox Game Pass, So Will You Be Buying It?
I already own Helldiver's 2 on PlayStation 5 but I am definitely buying Helldiver's 2 for Xbox day one. Once I do that, I won't need to renew my PS+ membership because the only online game I play on PlayStation is Helldiver's 2 and once it's on Xbox I won't need PS+ anymore.
Besides just that, I am extremely excited for the influx of players into Helldiver's 2 because HD2 is the type of game that thrives thanks to it's community and now when Super Earth calls my fellow Xbox divers will be ready to answer the call alongside our PlayStation brethren....
Re: SEGA President Excited For Future Of Consoles Despite 'Huge Trend' Of PC & Mobile
I'm excited for the future of consoles as well. I'm not a fan of gaming PCs mainly because I don't want a PC even if it's more than powerful enough to run games. I have friends that game on PC but the amount of issues they have is sometimes comical me. For example, my buddy Gabe got a new gaming PC about 5 months ago with an Intel core ultra 7, a RTX 4070 super, 32GB of RAM with a 1TB SSD and a 2TB HDD running windows 11. Since he's gotten this PC there's been more times than I can count that he's had to fix or update something before we could jump into a game. Whether that's Black Ops 6 Zombies, Fortnite, Borderlands 3, or literally any other game, we've had to wait while he goes through updating drivers or windows because the game won't run or won't load or has stutters or bad performance, you get the point lol. Meanwhile my Xbox Series X runs the same games with excellent performance, frame rates with no issues whatsoever, which is why I love consoles and do NOT want a gaming PC.
Consoles can achieve exceptional performance because they use standardized hardware across every unit. (Think about Series X and PS5 using the same Zen 2 CPU, RDNA 2 GPU, NVMe SSD and 16GB of RAM) This allows developers to optimize games directly for one fixed set of specs. Consoles also run lightweight, gaming focused operating systems with minimal background processes. These OS are designed to use minimal resources. Low level APIs also give developers more direct control over the console hardware allowing for excellent optimization. PCs, on the other hand, come in countless combinations of CPUs, GPUs, RAM, and storage device types (SSD and HDD). Developers must account for all these variables, which limits how much they can optimize for any one setup. Instead they try to make their games playable across a wide variety of PC setups. Not only that but PCs run heavier operating systems (windows 11, looking at you) with background tasks, driver inconsistencies, and sometimes third party software that can hurt game performance.
As powerful as a gaming PC can be, I would much rather have a console. I boot up my Xbox Series X choose whatever game I want to play and boom there I am enjoying the best games available in beautiful 4K at 60fps in most games. I am actually very excited for the next generation of consoles, I will be getting whatever next gen Xbox launches without a doubt. The main reason for this above everything else is the confirmation of backwards compatibility, meaning my entire library of Xbox games comes with me to the new console. This means day one I'll have my amazing collection of games all playable on the new Xbox, this generation I've found backwards compatibility from all generations actually means more to me than I'd ever anticipated. My ability to load up OG Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One games all on my Series X has made me feel good seeing all the games I've purchased are all there available to play.
Long story short, Xbox has a bright future and I'm definitely excited to see what the next generation Xbox brings to the next gen table. Happy Gaming, ✌️
Re: Xbox's Matt Booty Issues Statement On Layoffs And Game Cancellations
Trillion dollar companies "trimming the fat" in order to appease their investors and corporate overlords. Sony did the same thing last year laying off thousands. It's obviously extremely disheartening, especially for the poor souls who lost their jobs.
The games industry on a whole is severely lacking, not just Microsoft, not just Xbox. Sony is feeling it too, their exclusives are barely breaking even which is why almost every new PlayStation exclusive is now available day one on PC or ends up going to PC down the road. Games have gotten SO DAMN EXPENSIVE to make with budgets ballooning past 500 million easily on some projects with most AAA games around the $250 million mark.
I think Xbox is going to bounce back, they have the most momentum they've had since the 360 era when it comes to excellent games releasing and their release cadence is picking up steam.
Also, this site for some reason attracts some of the worst fanboy nonsense I've seen in a long time. The amount of doom posting in the comments and the amount of hate for a plastic box is palpable. I personally don't understand because I'm 30+ year old adult with a wife, a home, a family and we all enjoy games. I have a PS5, my wife has a PS5, I have a Series X my wife has a Series S. We enjoy the GAMES and we come together with family and friends to ENJOY the games, nobody is sitting here wishing the death of Xbox or PlayStation but when I come here, all I see is the hatred for Xbox. It wouldn't matter what they did people are going to hate em, but for an Xbox centric site the negativity in the comments section is crazy to me.
Not everyone on this site is like that, I've had back and forths with some extremely insightful individuals who clearly have their heads on straight. Y'all know who you are lol everyone else though, just chill out and enjoy the games
Re: Deals: Space Marine 2 Drops To 'Lowest Price Ever' For Xbox Game Pass Members
I had played a little bit of space marine 2, I think about 4 hours or so then the remastered first one hit gamepass so I stopped playing 2 so I can play the first one (I've never played the space marine series before). I am looking forward to playing more of these games, I'm definitely interested in the PVE side of things though.
Re: PS Plus Has 'Surpassed Expectations' Since Becoming More Like Xbox Game Pass
The ONLY time I sub to PS+ is if there's a good selection of games on the essential tier then I'll spend $10 and subscribe for a month. Other than that, no tier of PS+ even comes close to having what gamepass ultimate offers.
Re: Xbox Play Anywhere Is Growing Massively In 2025, And There's A Lot More To Come
Xbox Play Anywhere is honestly a brilliant initiative. I don't own a PC but it's nice to my a lot of my games would be playable if I had one.
One thing I have done recently, is I got a Gamesir X2S type C controller for $30 and turned my phone into a handheld Xbox console via Xbox Cloud Gaming. The direct type C connection helps mitigate latency and the hall effect sticks actually help with that too so now what I have is a pretty decent cloud gaming setup.
Xbox Cloud Gaming has come a long way, over the past month I've put about 11 hours into a new Skyrim playthrough and it's being done solely via Xbox Cloud Gaming on a Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. Long story short, it's been a great way to play without being tethered to a console. I may even upgrade to a more comfortable setup but the Gamesir X2S type C controller gets the job done