@themightyant Honestly, although I would prefer more granular mastery type of achievements as I described, I think it would be rather cool if we got separate mastery/platinum achievements for DLCs.
Although I have no clue if the achievement DB inside Xbox SDK's even splits DLC achievements though, since they don't on the UI (PlayStation ones do split each DLC's achievement lists).
I just hope it is a very different take because I hate the way platinum trophies work. It's universally "get every launch achievement" in a game, and that always annoyed me.
I wish it was smarter, like "you got every single player mode achievement".
I doubt we will get anything too elaborate, but I can hope for them to leverage data that is out there (like from TrueAchievement's db) that flag various type of achievement categories (story/multiplayer/finished the story, etc)
But chances are they will just award a global generically titled Mastery Achievement for getting every achievement.
Multiple versions of cloud saves would be a huge blessing for getting certain achievements that require some branching choices yet offer no manual saves (looking at you, Elden Ring). Such game usually require doing external save backups, not exactly rocket science but way easier to just pull an older cloud save from a drop down menu.
The only thing that had happened prior to the E-Day announcement was the ability to Wishlist the games, but again, that is not a binding contract so Sharma could have cancelled the games, endured the ire of the PlayStation community, and made the games exclusive had she wanted to do so, but for whatever reason, she chose not too. I think it was the wrong decision, but what do I know...
Were you not one of the ones that was against EDay being canceled from PS5 due to concerns of it hurting the health of the studio? But if I read you right, you now seem to feel not dong the same for Halo and Fable was a mistake?
I for one was all in on the multi-platform strategy at first, and if I read you right, today I agree with you. The low volume of sales these games are bringing on PS5 did not seem to have done much to offset the negatives. I do think Halo Campaign was too close to release to get the PS5 version canceled, but do think they still should cancel both Fable and Horizon 6 for PS5.
@CallMeDuraSouka I am not sure PS has ever been that big on western rpgs, they always been bigger on PC (and historically on Xbox before Xbox One happened).
But we shall see next year if the PS5 audience does indeed cares enough about Fable to drop the Laufey game, that is way more aligned with the PS audience's taste for third person action/fantasy trends.
My favorite part of the Tokyo Game Shows tends to be all the announcements of partnership deals with developers that historically skipped the platform, especially when they embrace Play Anywhere.
Looking forward to seeing what comes off this show under the new management, although I am a bit concerned since Sara used to be the main Japanese dev liaison behind most such partnerships.
@Mr-Cage I generally dont oppose the concept of multiplat releases, but outside of Forza, PS base has not proven to be all that into the releases.
That said, I will agree with one BIG thing: if Xbox wants to keep up multiplat releases at any level, ALL of them should go to both Switch 2 and PS, not just PS.
I seriously think PS5 would not be as dominant as it is right now if players could actually buy the latest Call of Duty day one on Switch 2. Every time Xbox launches a game on PS but not on Switch, they are giving PS5 an even bigger slice of the market. If they really wanted to level the playing field, they would do all they can to release all their multiplatform titles (service or otherwise) on S2 day one, or delay the PS version as long as it takes so it launches alongside the S2 edition.
Edit to add: Also, I seriously have come to feel that PS5 editions don't boost sales as much as they cannibalize Steam/Xbox PC sales. A huge chunk of the gaming community that does not have an Xbox likely has a PC capable of running most these games at least at minimum settings, and given no other option they would had purchased the games on a PC storefront instead. Again, this just gives PS more market share instead of leveling the playing field and that's the last thing Xbox should want.
I really expect the PS5 sales to drop fast. This initial burst likely was the "novelty" crowd, while pc and Xbox players are more likely to actually want to play this.
Honestly, PS players these days have proven they are a lot more interested in service games than campaign focused experiences, especially if they are third party or "new" IPs for them.
I seriously would not be shocked if Asha took a huge gambit and canceled the PS5 version of Fable. I am certain that version will flop HARD.
I know the Switch 2 has half the storage as the Series S, but still having a higher price than the Switch 2 in some regions is confounding.
A huge benefit of the Series S was that it was the cheapest entry into console gaming for players that don't mind a hit in fidelity, a market that heavily overlaps with Switch player base.
I feel that at least Xbox should try to introduce a new Series S SKU with less storage if that can bring down the entry price to $399. I **think** there might be a market for a 256gb Series S, even if it would restrict most players to a single triple A game or a handful AA ones installed at once.
Side note: Xbox REALLY should consider a revision that at least replaces the storage expansion slot with a microSD EX card slot (similar to the Switch). Sure those are still expensive as hell, but people are more likely to have one around somewhere. Alternatively, just a standard NVME compartment slot.
I never been interested in this series but suddenly getting an urge to play it and debating if to jump into EDay "first".
I do have an interesting background with this series. Shortly as I married my ex, she went to a GameStop to get me a game. Since I am a big gamer and she knew nothing about games, she asked for recommendations. The store guy recommended their newest Xbox game: Gears of War 2.
I never played the first one, and was never into such gory games (I am cool with violence, just not so much gore and always been more of an RPG girl). I was surprised at the gift because I know my GF also hates seeing gory stuff, she had no clue what she gave me! Anyways I did buy the first game to try it but never got far, so never even got to launch the gifted game.
This release is for some reason now starting to trigger some memories of those days and am tempted to buy this (only a GP Essentials subscriber) just so I can play the campaign, and perhaps then play the Gears 1 remake...
Too big of a backlog, though... Will make up my mind later but kinda hope they eventually give Gears 2 the remake treatment they gave the first one. If they did, it would be a no-brainer for me to venture on the journey.
@Sindayl Like it or hate it, it's not unlike Nintendo and Zelda/Mario/Metroid.
And just like Nintendo, especially these days, Xbox has a lot more than just those IP's. Those are just logical to highlight in the context of the anniversary.
New gears is console exclusive to Xbox playstation literally got the worst version of the worst gears game same aswell with halo a single game with just campaign no multiplayer.
And according to this article, Halo is getting as weak a reception on PS5 as Gears, so for sure this multi-platform experiment is over.
Intrigued by Beast of Reincarnation, but my backlog is huge so likely will hold out until I see it on sale since chances are I won't get around to it until it's on deep discount EVEN if I bought it day one.
Never played it, I kept feeling if I hopped in I would be very disappointed about hopping into the non-remastered Gears 2.
I might hop into the series if they ever give Gears 3 the remaster treatment too. I still had some eek memories after playing Halo 3 in MCC and it looking so bad relative to Halo 1, 2 and 4.
Sounds like the only thing people didn’t like about the “this is an Xbox” campaign was the slogan, because they are not showing any signs at slowing down the expansion.
I think a lot of people are taking the focus on consoles wrong. It’s not just about XSX, and not even Helix. It’s about canceling attempts at propping up competitor consoles.
Every Xbox game you buy from either an Xbox or PC Xbox app still fleets you on their ecosystem. Even Steam sales at least keep you playing on Windows.
But a sake of an Xbox game on PS is likely stealing what would had otherwise been a PC Xbox or Steam sale, removing a user from their ecosystem.
To make their whole strategy thrive, they need to focus on console first because those game sales attach users not only to Xbox consoles, but also Windows and Cloud streaming.
Honestly, it sounds the “everything is an xbox” campaign is full steam ahead, just without the pitch line. Just look at news from today about cloud streaming coming to even more TV apps.
@Millionski this page tends to be better than most at flaming the console warfare (and I admire PureXbox’s resilience seeing how their sister site thrives on console war trolling) but I do get frustrated that most Xbox finished communities ignore what has made Xbox the preferred play to play for so many that have jumped into this ecosystem: the flexibility of PlayAnywhere.
I don’t need an Xbox Series Max because I built my own (48gb ram on my livingroom PC and a 5070ti, 16gb video ram and 32gb DDR5 on my office desk PC) at the same time I can take most my games on the go with my ROG Ally x.
Yea, the PS5Pro might technically be the most powerful console (I own one!), but playing anything on it comes with so many restrictions… if I’m ever dissatisfied with the performance of one of my PlayAnywhere games, I just hop from the console to the PC nearly seamlessly. I can’t do that with PlayStation.
But I guess the bulk of these sites readers are here exclusively for console centric coverage. I do wonder how sites will adapt to a Helix future, though…
@Banjo- I would not say everyone (Capcom is still very hit and miss), but a lot of people are.
Maybe this is a staged thing. They did only started adding Steam achievements retroactively to their games a few years back and that actually got them a sales boost.
Here I’m crossing my fingers. I tend to mostly buy PlayAnywhere games on Xbox but something in Ubisoft games makes me prefer playing them on Xbox over Steam or PS. Would be fantastic to just get the flexibility to hop back and forth between my Xbox and the Rog Ally X instead of being stuck on my couch even if the weather is great outside.
@Michael2008ish I will literally buy the same game in multiple platforms to reearn achievements 😅
Not all games, only ones I absolutely love. Mostly AC and FarCry games. I beat Odyssey to 100% on Xbox and Steam and I assure you I’ll someday do the same on PlayStation.
So, I had a hiccup just at midnight but was able to play for an hour before going to bed. The only game I wanted to play was Black Flag, and was not able to by the time I woke up. It was fixed by late evening but at that point I was just super sleepy and called it a night.
From what I read, this sucked worse than PlayStation’s outage because even physical disks would not work. I do think the outage was shorter than Sony’s though.
It really angered me that most their communication updates were through Twitter. I won’t ever again use that app and they have a Threads account. They should have shared updates there too!!!
@Michael2008ish most these should sync save data with consoles if you have that enabled. Ubisoft added their own save cloud syncing a while back and games released post that all sync to all platforms, even competing consoles.
Personally I disable it because I’m a maniac that loves re-earning her achievements 🙃
@HelloCraigo this is confusing me so much more now… these games got added to the pc Xbox store but the giveaway is for Ubisoft connect store versions? If I want the Xbox pc store version I still must buy that? Am I reading this right?
And yea, for some reason Ubisoft stop adding achievements to their Ubisoft connect portal. Used to be all their games had native platform AND Ubisoft achievements but no more.
I already sent so much money on this sale… might still spend some more… but maybe I’ll hold until the next sale. I played AC Shadows via Uplay so didn't really own it. I considered buying it on this sale but going to wait because I’m sure there will be another sale that actually includes the DLC later on.
There are other games that still are tempting me, though…
I want every single game that was developed and published by any studio that is owned by Xbox to get PC backwards compatibility EVEN if it means they need to renew any IP licenses (looking specifically at all the ABK licensed games on that one).
Even when there is a PC version out there, I still want the Xbox versions to get the BC treatment if only because of Achievement support, something that is lacking on a ton of Steam pc games from the pre 2010 era.
As for third party titles, I think a lot of publishers (not all) are likely to jump at the chance to monetize dead games that would cost too much to remaster or port.
Continuing my 7 seas journey with Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced. Doubt I'll finish it this weekend but if I do, feeling like hopping on a metroidviania game next. Maybe Hollow Knight, I never played it and everyone seems to sing praises about it.
@Quantyx it’s clear already the future of the console IS a PC. Helix will be a specialized full screen focused PC device and all of this is likely paving the road to make sure as much content as possible is BC in Helix.
As far as Xbox cares, the platform is not just the console despite how much they are re-focusing on it. The platform is the Xbox store itself, regardless if you are accessing it from dedicated hardware or general purpose PCs.
@Sindayl I’ll be here for every single one! We already had quite a few remasters, though. I’m looking forward to remakes with revamped combat systems and expanded content.
Said it before and say it again: love Shadows, Valhalla and all modern AC but I feel we lost something unique with that shift. I hope this leads to more games like Mirrage and more remakes in between large “RPG” entries. Also hope we get new DLC for Black flag, or at least Freedom Cry.
Do hope future remakes add a bit more improvements/content.
This actually concerns me a bit if it’s working as assumed.
If this is a Xefu pc port, then it does not really hint at anything. But if it’s the thing is running under Xenia (the x86 360 emulator) it might mean all existing compatibility limitations that prevented games like Blinx 2 from becoming BC might still apply.
I do think it’s most likely a standalone Xefu port that might come with new improvements and broader compatibility (given achievements are coming).
I, of course, expect 360 Xenia also to make its way into PC BC, just not the way this data mining implies.
I honestly don’t expect much from third parties to be added to the BC program, but getting all games that already belong to Xbox (including ABK/Bethesda titles) would be huge.
@nomither6 the fact that some of the biggest switch hits were enhanced ports of Wii U games should make that obvious.
Also, the second screen was honestly an amazing feature only hindered by poor range. Hell, both Sony and Xbox were so terrified it would become the next big thing that both scrambled to create apps to simulate second screen experiences via smartphones.
There were flaws to the Wii U, but it was a fantastic machine with a great lineup of games. It also, ironically, proved great exclusives won’t do jack towards the success of a console.
@fatpunkslim I mean, if the plan is to hard disconnect me when i potentially won’t see a save point for another half hour, then I would at least like the option to “suspend and watch some ads” instead of losing progress and be forced to wait in queue to resume my play session. Session I might waste time just trying to catch up to where I was before the disconnect.
@kantaroo To me, ads that make me aware of upcoming games I might actually be interested in do add value to my experience.
My personal hatred of ads mostly how out-of-context they tend to be wherever they show up. I don’t want pharmaceutical, sports or political campaign ads while consuming gaming content. Hell, even if I’m playing a racing game, I don’t want to see an add for some real world racing competition or car show.
Also what's the point u still have to own the games
Point is this will let you play third party games that are not play-anywhere, or even first party ones that are missing since they launched ore-acquisitions. Also can let you play games in potato powered devices, even phones.
I wonder if GTA 6 will slow cloud streaming… because if it does, that’s another big selling point for this.
I honestly would rather see an ad that is gaming centric during the green rocket waiting window than… that boring green rocket window.
I think the biggest flaw of the feature is the one hour session limit. I would rather see a “game will suspend in 1 minute for another ad” warning than have it drop my session entirely mid game session.
@dskatter hey, my Wii U still hooked up even if i think any game I would want to play on it has has Switch ports. I think the machine was strongly underrated and mostly a marketing failure.
@FraserG I know the first collection is not PlayAnywere but think more recently newer Konami games are being PA… is there any info yet if vol 2 is going to be Play Anywhere?
@Banjo- they used to do that with Steam, but they seem to have realized that integrating the native store’s platform ecosystems results in more engagement and sales. So… maybe down the line. For now it likely was the fastest way to get the games listed on Xbox pc store.
If they don’t support achievements AND don’t support Play Anywhere, I don’t care.
Here is hoping they do retrofit achievements as they eventually did on Steam. I tend to prefer my AC games on Xbox, for some reason that’s where I prefer playing them, but really saddens me I don’t get the flexibility of play anywhere with them.
I tend to double dip on them eventually for Steam, but that’s delegated for secondary play throughs to re-earn all achievements all over again in a separate ecosystem. Hell, sometimes I do it for a third time on PlayStation…
Already owned Conker physically AND digitally, but never played it on Xbox. Tangent but I found odd that MS censored the cussing when Nintendo, in the 64 days, let it all through.
Still, looking forward to play this when the game gets achievement support.
I’m REALLY hoping Xbox does these drops (PC BC) at least once a month, if not every other week.
I also hope they leverage all the ABK catalog and redirect many of those OG/360 licensed games for both consoles and PC via this new BC program.
Comments 4,151
Re: Xbox Set To Announce 'Beautiful' New Controller For Gears Of War: E-Day
I would be surprised if they didn't, since even Redfall got special edition controllers (even if they were design lab editions.)
Re: Xbox Boss Teases Platinum Trophy Equivalent For Achievements In 2026
@themightyant Honestly, although I would prefer more granular mastery type of achievements as I described, I think it would be rather cool if we got separate mastery/platinum achievements for DLCs.
Although I have no clue if the achievement DB inside Xbox SDK's even splits DLC achievements though, since they don't on the UI (PlayStation ones do split each DLC's achievement lists).
Re: Xbox Boss Teases Platinum Trophy Equivalent For Achievements In 2026
@Markatron84 are those counted anywhere though? I always thought they were just a decoration on the progress bar.
Re: Xbox Boss Teases Platinum Trophy Equivalent For Achievements In 2026
Said this in Push Square on the topic:
I just hope it is a very different take because I hate the way platinum trophies work. It's universally "get every launch achievement" in a game, and that always annoyed me.
I wish it was smarter, like "you got every single player mode achievement".
I doubt we will get anything too elaborate, but I can hope for them to leverage data that is out there (like from TrueAchievement's db) that flag various type of achievement categories (story/multiplayer/finished the story, etc)
But chances are they will just award a global generically titled Mastery Achievement for getting every achievement.
Re: Xbox Announces Four More Console Features, Including Two Highly-Requested Ones
Multiple versions of cloud saves would be a huge blessing for getting certain achievements that require some branching choices yet offer no manual saves (looking at you, Elden Ring). Such game usually require doing external save backups, not exactly rocket science but way easier to just pull an older cloud save from a drop down menu.
Re: Halo: Campaign Evolved Is Getting Some Surprising Sales Estimates For Xbox, PC & PS5
@Fiendish-Beaver
Were you not one of the ones that was against EDay being canceled from PS5 due to concerns of it hurting the health of the studio? But if I read you right, you now seem to feel not dong the same for Halo and Fable was a mistake?
I for one was all in on the multi-platform strategy at first, and if I read you right, today I agree with you. The low volume of sales these games are bringing on PS5 did not seem to have done much to offset the negatives. I do think Halo Campaign was too close to release to get the PS5 version canceled, but do think they still should cancel both Fable and Horizon 6 for PS5.
Re: Halo: Campaign Evolved Is Getting Some Surprising Sales Estimates For Xbox, PC & PS5
@CallMeDuraSouka I am not sure PS has ever been that big on western rpgs, they always been bigger on PC (and historically on Xbox before Xbox One happened).
But we shall see next year if the PS5 audience does indeed cares enough about Fable to drop the Laufey game, that is way more aligned with the PS audience's taste for third person action/fantasy trends.
Re: Xbox Announces Tokyo Game Show 2026 Broadcast, Following Massive Reveal At Last Year's Event
My favorite part of the Tokyo Game Shows tends to be all the announcements of partnership deals with developers that historically skipped the platform, especially when they embrace Play Anywhere.
Looking forward to seeing what comes off this show under the new management, although I am a bit concerned since Sara used to be the main Japanese dev liaison behind most such partnerships.
Re: Halo: Campaign Evolved Is Getting Some Surprising Sales Estimates For Xbox, PC & PS5
@Mr-Cage I generally dont oppose the concept of multiplat releases, but outside of Forza, PS base has not proven to be all that into the releases.
That said, I will agree with one BIG thing: if Xbox wants to keep up multiplat releases at any level, ALL of them should go to both Switch 2 and PS, not just PS.
I seriously think PS5 would not be as dominant as it is right now if players could actually buy the latest Call of Duty day one on Switch 2. Every time Xbox launches a game on PS but not on Switch, they are giving PS5 an even bigger slice of the market. If they really wanted to level the playing field, they would do all they can to release all their multiplatform titles (service or otherwise) on S2 day one, or delay the PS version as long as it takes so it launches alongside the S2 edition.
Edit to add: Also, I seriously have come to feel that PS5 editions don't boost sales as much as they cannibalize Steam/Xbox PC sales. A huge chunk of the gaming community that does not have an Xbox likely has a PC capable of running most these games at least at minimum settings, and given no other option they would had purchased the games on a PC storefront instead. Again, this just gives PS more market share instead of leveling the playing field and that's the last thing Xbox should want.
Re: Halo: Campaign Evolved Is Getting Some Surprising Sales Estimates For Xbox, PC & PS5
I really expect the PS5 sales to drop fast. This initial burst likely was the "novelty" crowd, while pc and Xbox players are more likely to actually want to play this.
Honestly, PS players these days have proven they are a lot more interested in service games than campaign focused experiences, especially if they are third party or "new" IPs for them.
I seriously would not be shocked if Asha took a huge gambit and canceled the PS5 version of Fable. I am certain that version will flop HARD.
Re: Here's A Breakdown Of The New Prices For Xbox Series X|S Consoles As Of August 2026
I know the Switch 2 has half the storage as the Series S, but still having a higher price than the Switch 2 in some regions is confounding.
A huge benefit of the Series S was that it was the cheapest entry into console gaming for players that don't mind a hit in fidelity, a market that heavily overlaps with Switch player base.
I feel that at least Xbox should try to introduce a new Series S SKU with less storage if that can bring down the entry price to $399. I **think** there might be a market for a 256gb Series S, even if it would restrict most players to a single triple A game or a handful AA ones installed at once.
Side note: Xbox REALLY should consider a revision that at least replaces the storage expansion slot with a microSD EX card slot (similar to the Switch). Sure those are still expensive as hell, but people are more likely to have one around somewhere. Alternatively, just a standard NVME compartment slot.
Re: Gears Of War: E-Day Preload Now Live Ahead Of Multiplayer Beta
I never been interested in this series but suddenly getting an urge to play it and debating if to jump into EDay "first".
I do have an interesting background with this series. Shortly as I married my ex, she went to a GameStop to get me a game. Since I am a big gamer and she knew nothing about games, she asked for recommendations. The store guy recommended their newest Xbox game: Gears of War 2.
I never played the first one, and was never into such gory games (I am cool with violence, just not so much gore and always been more of an RPG girl). I was surprised at the gift because I know my GF also hates seeing gory stuff, she had no clue what she gave me! Anyways I did buy the first game to try it but never got far, so never even got to launch the gifted game.
This release is for some reason now starting to trigger some memories of those days and am tempted to buy this (only a GP Essentials subscriber) just so I can play the campaign, and perhaps then play the Gears 1 remake...
Too big of a backlog, though... Will make up my mind later but kinda hope they eventually give Gears 2 the remake treatment they gave the first one. If they did, it would be a no-brainer for me to venture on the journey.
Re: Xbox Adds Dynamic Background & Gamer Pics To Celebrate 25 Years Of Play
@Sindayl Like it or hate it, it's not unlike Nintendo and Zelda/Mario/Metroid.
And just like Nintendo, especially these days, Xbox has a lot more than just those IP's. Those are just logical to highlight in the context of the anniversary.
Re: Xbox Adds Dynamic Background & Gamer Pics To Celebrate 25 Years Of Play
@Mr-Cage
And according to this article, Halo is getting as weak a reception on PS5 as Gears, so for sure this multi-platform experiment is over.
Re: Xbox Game Pass: All Games Coming Soon In August 2026
Intrigued by Beast of Reincarnation, but my backlog is huge so likely will hold out until I see it on sale since chances are I won't get around to it until it's on deep discount EVEN if I bought it day one.
Re: Poll: One Year Later, What Do You Think Of Xbox's Most Recent Gears Of War Release?
Never played it, I kept feeling if I hopped in I would be very disappointed about hopping into the non-remastered Gears 2.
I might hop into the series if they ever give Gears 3 the remaster treatment too. I still had some eek memories after playing Halo 3 in MCC and it looking so bad relative to Halo 1, 2 and 4.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (August 1-2)
Still playing my way through Black Flag Resynced. Hopefully I'm done with the campaign this weekend and maybe even get 100% achievements.
Feeling cravings to play a Metroidvania next, so passively deciding if to hop on Hollowknight or Ori.
Re: Xbox Cloud Gaming Arrives On Hisense & VIDAA TVs With Dedicated App
Sounds like the only thing people didn’t like about the “this is an Xbox” campaign was the slogan, because they are not showing any signs at slowing down the expansion.
Re: Xbox's Four Priorities Detailed By Asha Sharma After Major 'Reset'
I think a lot of people are taking the focus on consoles wrong. It’s not just about XSX, and not even Helix. It’s about canceling attempts at propping up competitor consoles.
Every Xbox game you buy from either an Xbox or PC Xbox app still fleets you on their ecosystem. Even Steam sales at least keep you playing on Windows.
But a sake of an Xbox game on PS is likely stealing what would had otherwise been a PC Xbox or Steam sale, removing a user from their ecosystem.
To make their whole strategy thrive, they need to focus on console first because those game sales attach users not only to Xbox consoles, but also Windows and Cloud streaming.
Honestly, it sounds the “everything is an xbox” campaign is full steam ahead, just without the pitch line. Just look at news from today about cloud streaming coming to even more TV apps.
So, no. “Console first” does not mean just XSX|S.
Re: Not A Good Look For Xbox As Halo: Campaign Evolved Plays Best On PlayStation
@Lanmanna bit of an editing typo. I have two PCs. One has 48GB DDR5, the other 32.
The 32GB one sits in my desk, the 48GB one on my TV.
Re: Not A Good Look For Xbox As Halo: Campaign Evolved Plays Best On PlayStation
@Millionski this page tends to be better than most at flaming the console warfare (and I admire PureXbox’s resilience seeing how their sister site thrives on console war trolling) but I do get frustrated that most Xbox finished communities ignore what has made Xbox the preferred play to play for so many that have jumped into this ecosystem: the flexibility of PlayAnywhere.
I don’t need an Xbox Series Max because I built my own (48gb ram on my livingroom PC and a 5070ti, 16gb video ram and 32gb DDR5 on my office desk PC) at the same time I can take most my games on the go with my ROG Ally x.
Yea, the PS5Pro might technically be the most powerful console (I own one!), but playing anything on it comes with so many restrictions… if I’m ever dissatisfied with the performance of one of my PlayAnywhere games, I just hop from the console to the PC nearly seamlessly. I can’t do that with PlayStation.
But I guess the bulk of these sites readers are here exclusively for console centric coverage. I do wonder how sites will adapt to a Helix future, though…
Re: Not A Good Look For Xbox As Halo: Campaign Evolved Plays Best On PlayStation
Counter argument: it plays best on Windows PC.
Re: Xbox Owners Get Free PC Copies Of Select Ubisoft Games
@Banjo- I would not say everyone (Capcom is still very hit and miss), but a lot of people are.
Maybe this is a staged thing. They did only started adding Steam achievements retroactively to their games a few years back and that actually got them a sales boost.
Here I’m crossing my fingers. I tend to mostly buy PlayAnywhere games on Xbox but something in Ubisoft games makes me prefer playing them on Xbox over Steam or PS. Would be fantastic to just get the flexibility to hop back and forth between my Xbox and the Rog Ally X instead of being stuck on my couch even if the weather is great outside.
Re: Xbox Owners Get Free PC Copies Of Select Ubisoft Games
@Banjo- that’s the confusing thing, given they just added these games to the Xbox PC Store, I would had imagined that would be the natural next step.
Re: Xbox Owners Get Free PC Copies Of Select Ubisoft Games
@Michael2008ish I will literally buy the same game in multiple platforms to reearn achievements 😅
Not all games, only ones I absolutely love. Mostly AC and FarCry games. I beat Odyssey to 100% on Xbox and Steam and I assure you I’ll someday do the same on PlayStation.
Re: Talking Point: How Much Has The Xbox Outage Affected You?
So, I had a hiccup just at midnight but was able to play for an hour before going to bed. The only game I wanted to play was Black Flag, and was not able to by the time I woke up. It was fixed by late evening but at that point I was just super sleepy and called it a night.
From what I read, this sucked worse than PlayStation’s outage because even physical disks would not work. I do think the outage was shorter than Sony’s though.
It really angered me that most their communication updates were through Twitter. I won’t ever again use that app and they have a Threads account. They should have shared updates there too!!!
Re: Xbox Owners Get Free PC Copies Of Select Ubisoft Games
@Michael2008ish most these should sync save data with consoles if you have that enabled. Ubisoft added their own save cloud syncing a while back and games released post that all sync to all platforms, even competing consoles.
Personally I disable it because I’m a maniac that loves re-earning her achievements 🙃
Re: Xbox Owners Get Free PC Copies Of Select Ubisoft Games
@HelloCraigo this is confusing me so much more now… these games got added to the pc Xbox store but the giveaway is for Ubisoft connect store versions? If I want the Xbox pc store version I still must buy that? Am I reading this right?
And yea, for some reason Ubisoft stop adding achievements to their Ubisoft connect portal. Used to be all their games had native platform AND Ubisoft achievements but no more.
Re: Xbox Owners Get Free PC Copies Of Select Ubisoft Games
This is cool, but wish they did proper PlayAnywhere implementation instead.
Re: Last Chance To Bag A Bargain: Xbox Summer Sale 2026 Ends Tomorrow
I already sent so much money on this sale… might still spend some more… but maybe I’ll hold until the next sale. I played AC Shadows via Uplay so didn't really own it. I considered buying it on this sale but going to wait because I’m sure there will be another sale that actually includes the DLC later on.
There are other games that still are tempting me, though…
Re: Talking Point: What Have You Bought In The Xbox Summer Sale 2026?
I bought way too much stuff...
There was more I wanted to buy but I had to stop myself at some point!!! Now if I could actually play any of it...
Re: 10 Games We'd Love To See Added To Xbox Backwards Compatibility On PC
Instead of making a list I'll just say this much:
I want every single game that was developed and published by any studio that is owned by Xbox to get PC backwards compatibility EVEN if it means they need to renew any IP licenses (looking specifically at all the ABK licensed games on that one).
Even when there is a PC version out there, I still want the Xbox versions to get the BC treatment if only because of Achievement support, something that is lacking on a ton of Steam pc games from the pre 2010 era.
As for third party titles, I think a lot of publishers (not all) are likely to jump at the chance to monetize dead games that would cost too much to remaster or port.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (July 25-26)
Continuing my 7 seas journey with Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced. Doubt I'll finish it this weekend but if I do, feeling like hopping on a metroidviania game next. Maybe Hollow Knight, I never played it and everyone seems to sing praises about it.
Re: It Sure Sounds Like Xbox 360 Games Are Coming To Backwards Compatibility On PC
@Sindayl hey, if I can play Lost odyssey on my ROG Ally X, I’ll be an extremely happy girl!
Re: It Sure Sounds Like Xbox 360 Games Are Coming To Backwards Compatibility On PC
@Quantyx it’s clear already the future of the console IS a PC. Helix will be a specialized full screen focused PC device and all of this is likely paving the road to make sure as much content as possible is BC in Helix.
As far as Xbox cares, the platform is not just the console despite how much they are re-focusing on it. The platform is the Xbox store itself, regardless if you are accessing it from dedicated hardware or general purpose PCs.
Re: Black Flag Resynced Tops The Xbox Charts As Ubisoft Says It's Massively Exceeded Expectations
@Sindayl I’ll be here for every single one! We already had quite a few remasters, though. I’m looking forward to remakes with revamped combat systems and expanded content.
Re: Black Flag Resynced Tops The Xbox Charts As Ubisoft Says It's Massively Exceeded Expectations
Said it before and say it again: love Shadows, Valhalla and all modern AC but I feel we lost something unique with that shift. I hope this leads to more games like Mirrage and more remakes in between large “RPG” entries.
Also hope we get new DLC for Black flag, or at least Freedom Cry.
Do hope future remakes add a bit more improvements/content.
Re: It Sure Sounds Like Xbox 360 Games Are Coming To Backwards Compatibility On PC
This actually concerns me a bit if it’s working as assumed.
If this is a Xefu pc port, then it does not really hint at anything. But if it’s the thing is running under Xenia (the x86 360 emulator) it might mean all existing compatibility limitations that prevented games like Blinx 2 from becoming BC might still apply.
I do think it’s most likely a standalone Xefu port that might come with new improvements and broader compatibility (given achievements are coming).
I, of course, expect 360 Xenia also to make its way into PC BC, just not the way this data mining implies.
I honestly don’t expect much from third parties to be added to the BC program, but getting all games that already belong to Xbox (including ABK/Bethesda titles) would be huge.
Re: Xbox Achieves Its Biggest Month For US Console Sales In 2026 So Far
@nomither6 the fact that some of the biggest switch hits were enhanced ports of Wii U games should make that obvious.
Also, the second screen was honestly an amazing feature only hindered by poor range. Hell, both Sony and Xbox were so terrified it would become the next big thing that both scrambled to create apps to simulate second screen experiences via smartphones.
There were flaws to the Wii U, but it was a fantastic machine with a great lineup of games. It also, ironically, proved great exclusives won’t do jack towards the success of a console.
Re: Roundup: Here's What The Critics Are Saying About Halo: Campaign Evolved
@BigRedPaper isn’t 7/10 their “we didn’t really review this, just slapped lots of words into a template and left our default score” signal?
Re: Xbox Introduces Free Game Streaming With Ads, Outlines Five Principles They'll Adhere To
@fatpunkslim I mean, if the plan is to hard disconnect me when i potentially won’t see a save point for another half hour, then I would at least like the option to “suspend and watch some ads” instead of losing progress and be forced to wait in queue to resume my play session. Session I might waste time just trying to catch up to where I was before the disconnect.
Re: Xbox Introduces Free Game Streaming With Ads, Outlines Five Principles They'll Adhere To
@kantaroo To me, ads that make me aware of upcoming games I might actually be interested in do add value to my experience.
My personal hatred of ads mostly how out-of-context they tend to be wherever they show up. I don’t want pharmaceutical, sports or political campaign ads while consuming gaming content. Hell, even if I’m playing a racing game, I don’t want to see an add for some real world racing competition or car show.
Re: Xbox Introduces Free Game Streaming With Ads, Outlines Five Principles They'll Adhere To
@Martsmall
Point is this will let you play third party games that are not play-anywhere, or even first party ones that are missing since they launched ore-acquisitions. Also can let you play games in potato powered devices, even phones.
I wonder if GTA 6 will slow cloud streaming… because if it does, that’s another big selling point for this.
Re: Xbox Introduces Free Game Streaming With Ads, Outlines Five Principles They'll Adhere To
I honestly would rather see an ad that is gaming centric during the green rocket waiting window than… that boring green rocket window.
I think the biggest flaw of the feature is the one hour session limit. I would rather see a “game will suspend in 1 minute for another ad” warning than have it drop my session entirely mid game session.
Re: Xbox Achieves Its Biggest Month For US Console Sales In 2026 So Far
@dskatter hey, my Wii U still hooked up even if i think any game I would want to play on it has has Switch ports. I think the machine was strongly underrated and mostly a marketing failure.
Re: Xbox Achieves Its Biggest Month For US Console Sales In 2026 So Far
@dskatter Wii Us lifespan made falling past rock bottom look very damn easy.
Re: Metal Gear Solid 4's Full Resolution & FPS Details Revealed For Xbox Series X|S
@FraserG I know the first collection is not PlayAnywere but think more recently newer Konami games are being PA… is there any info yet if vol 2 is going to be Play Anywhere?
Re: 80+ Ubisoft Games Have Suddenly Been Added To The Xbox Store On PC
@Banjo- they used to do that with Steam, but they seem to have realized that integrating the native store’s platform ecosystems results in more engagement and sales. So… maybe down the line. For now it likely was the fastest way to get the games listed on Xbox pc store.
Re: 80+ Ubisoft Games Have Suddenly Been Added To The Xbox Store On PC
If they don’t support achievements AND don’t support Play Anywhere, I don’t care.
Here is hoping they do retrofit achievements as they eventually did on Steam. I tend to prefer my AC games on Xbox, for some reason that’s where I prefer playing them, but really saddens me I don’t get the flexibility of play anywhere with them.
I tend to double dip on them eventually for Steam, but that’s delegated for secondary play throughs to re-earn all achievements all over again in a separate ecosystem. Hell, sometimes I do it for a third time on PlayStation…
Re: These Are The Final Two Xbox Game Pass Additions To Finish Off The Week (July 23)
Already owned Conker physically AND digitally, but never played it on Xbox. Tangent but I found odd that MS censored the cussing when Nintendo, in the 64 days, let it all through.
Still, looking forward to play this when the game gets achievement support.
I’m REALLY hoping Xbox does these drops (PC BC) at least once a month, if not every other week.
I also hope they leverage all the ABK catalog and redirect many of those OG/360 licensed games for both consoles and PC via this new BC program.