In response to news that the UK CMA is moving onto phase two of its investigation into Microsoft's planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has published a new blog post further detailing its plans for the company post-merger. In short, Microsoft is now more firmly committing to keeping Activision Blizzard …
Read More »UK CMA concerned over Microsoft’s planned Activision Blizzard acquisition
We learned a while ago that the UK authorities had begun their investigation into Microsoft's planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard and after gathering preliminary information, they have come to the decision that Microsoft owning the publisher could impact competition in the market. Now, the CMA will move into phase two …
Read More »Humble Games announces partnership with Game Pass for day-one releases
Over the years, Humble Games has gone from merely operating a storefront to publishing their own titles, such as was the case with the much-loved A Hat in Time. Now, the publisher has announced that they are partnering up with Microsoft to bring 7 upcoming Humble Games to Xbox Game …
Read More »Xbox Games With Gold announced for September
Each month, those with an Xbox Live Gold account (or an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription) are able to get their hands on a number of games for ‘free’. For the month of September, subscribers will be able to get their hands on a number of classic titles including Portal …
Read More »Microsoft and Nintendo have no plans to increase price of Xbox or Switch consoles
This week, Sony announced plans to raise the MSRP of the PlayStation 5 in most regions outside of the US, blaming inflation and the ‘global economic situation'. While the PS5 is about to get more expensive, Microsoft and Nintendo have both confirmed that there are no plans to raise the …
Read More »Ubisoft+ might finally be coming to Xbox
Back in January, Ubisoft announced it would bring its Ubisoft+ subscription service to the Xbox platform. Seven months have passed since then, and we are still waiting for Ubisoft+ to arrive, but new evidence suggests launch is just around the corner. Twitter user @ALumia_Italia is known for datamining and sharing interesting …
Read More »Death Stranding is coming to Xbox Game Pass for PC next week
Recently, there has been some discussion around Sony's exclusivity practices, including paying for ‘blocking rights' to keep certain titles from launching on Xbox Game Pass. Despite all of this, Death Stranding is now coming to Microsoft's service. While Sony owns the Death Stranding IP, the game was developed by Kojima …
Read More »Death Stranding is heading to Xbox Game Pass for PC
The Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass Twitter accounts are both known for their teasers. While most titles coming to Game Pass this month have already been revealed, Microsoft seems to have one big surprise up its sleeve – Death Stranding for Game Pass on PC. The PC Game …
Read More »Xbox Game Pass is losing some major titles this month
Yesterday, Microsoft officially announced the next batch of titles for Xbox Game Pass, all of which will land on the service before the end of the month. Unfortunately, some titles have to be cycled out due to expiring agreements. Typically, we see just a handful of titles removed each month, …
Read More »Immortals Fenyx Rising, Exapunk and more join Xbox Game Pass
The first half of the month saw titles like Ghost Recon Wildlands, Two Point Campus, Cooking Simulator and Offworld Trading Company joining the Xbox Game Pass library. Now, Microsoft has revealed the titles coming in the second half of August, including another big Ubisoft release. Ubisoft is continuing to add …
Read More »Legal documents confirm PS4 outsold Xbox One 2:1
Microsoft is currently in the process of having its massive acquisition of Activision Blizzard approved by governments across the world. While most countries don't publicly publish documents involved in these investigations, things work a bit differently in Brazil, which has given us an excellent look behind the curtain. The latest …
Read More »Microsoft will soon let you stream any Xbox game you own via xCloud
Back in June, Microsoft announced a number of improvements coming to Xbox Cloud Gaming, including new low-latency tech and support for a broader range of games. Recent updates to Xbox Store pages indicate that soon Microsoft will allow you to stream any game you own via xCloud. Currently, Xbox Cloud …
Read More »The Xbox Game Pass family plan lets you share subscription with four people
Earlier this year, multiple sources began claiming that Xbox was planning to roll out a new tier for Game Pass – a family plan tier that would allow up to five users on one subscription. Now just a few months later, it looks like Microsoft is pushing ahead with this. …
Read More »Here’s what Sony, Ubisoft, WB, Riot and others think of Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard deal
We're over six months on from Microsoft announcing plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, kicking off the lengthy process of gaining approvals from anti-trust organisations across the world. Most of the time, these investigations are highly secretive, but we do know that they involve seeking opinions from competing companies across the industry. Now thanks to recent filings in Brazil, documents containing these opinions have been posted online, giving us insight into what the likes of Sony, Ubisoft, WB and others think of the deal.
Read More »The FTC could make a final decision on Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard deal in August
Back in February, a few weeks after Microsoft announced plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, the FTC, along with other regulators across the globe, launched investigations to figure out whether or not the deal should be approved. Now, It looks like the FTC's investigation will soon come to an end. The …
Read More »Microsoft reportedly planning Windows 12 for 2024
Prior to Windows 10, Microsoft would release a new version of Windows roughly every three to four years. It seems that following on from Windows 11, Microsoft will be returning to this release cadence, meaning we'll be seeing Windows 12 in 2024. As reported by Windows Central, Microsoft is shaking …
Read More »Xbox Games with Gold will stop offering X360 games from October
Xbox Live Gold is Microsoft’s long running subscription service which allows for console owners to access multiplayer functions within games, while also giving away a number of titles for ‘free’ on a monthly basis. From October onwards however, Microsoft will no longer include Xbox 360 games as part of ‘Games …
Read More »343i is “internally exploring” adding microtransactions to Halo: MCC
Ever since Bungie parted ways with Microsoft to work on Destiny, 343 Industries have been in charge of the Halo franchise – to varying levels of success. The latest controversy comes from the team’s most recent community update, where they announced that the team is “internally exploring” the notion of …
Read More »Microsoft bringing major latency improvements, mouse & keyboard support to xCloud
Xbox Cloud Gaming is now available across a pretty huge range of devices, from iOS and Android, to PCs, Xbox consoles and even Samsung TVs. As the service continues to gain momentum, Microsoft is looking to make new upgrades. At this point, xCloud servers have already been upgraded with Xbox …
Read More »Xbox app update adds Game Performance Indicator in major UI upgrade
Microsoft has made a number of key improvements to the Xbox app on PC recently. Not only has the app been upgraded to give users more freedom over their game installs and files, but soon the app will also let you know if your PC is up to the task …
Read More »Riot is bringing all of its games to Xbox Game Pass
Today during the Xbox and Bethesda showcase, Microsoft announced a new partnership with Riot Games. Moving forward, all of Riot's titles will be available on Xbox Game Pass, giving subscribers premium access to games like League of Legends, Valorant and more. On PC, League of Legends will be available on …
Read More »Xbox plans to release at least five exclusives over the next year
During a press pre-briefing ahead of the Xbox and Bethesda showcase this weekend, the Xbox team made some interesting comments. While vaguely discussing the outlook for Xbox Game Studios over the next year, Microsoft plans to release at least five exclusives. As reported by Windows Central, during the briefing, a …
Read More »The Call of Duty franchise has made over $30 Billion
The Call of Duty franchise is without a doubt one of the biggest in gaming. Ever since the explosive success of 2007’s Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the first-person shooter franchise has become the game to beat each year when it comes to sales – with very few other …
Read More »Microsoft might require an SSD for Windows 11 starting in 2023
Currently, the only storage requirement to install Windows 11 is 64GB of free space. There's no mention regarding the type of storage device, allowing users to install on an HDD or an SSD. However, according to a new report, Microsoft may soon limit Windows 11 installations to SSDs. According to …
Read More »Microsoft to follow PlayStation with limited-time game demos
For many, Xbox Game Pass is seen as being one of the best deals in gaming, offering hundreds of games for a relatively low monthly price. That being said, one area where PlayStation has managed to outdo Microsoft is with their recent offering of limited-time game trials to PS Plus …
Read More »Microsoft launches surprisingly affordable Surface Laptop Go 2
The Microsoft Go series of laptops have been well received so far. They might not reach pinnacle levels of performance in their respective form factors, but they usually offer a good experience for the price. With the Surface Laptop Go 2, Microsoft will look to continue that trend. With the …
Read More »Xbox is giving away a free game for Pride month
Each year across the world, millions of people celebrate Pride month. Xbox has outwardly been a supporter of the cause in the past, and this year is no different, with the console manufacturer giving away a free game on Steam while also donating to charities. Making the announcement on their …
Read More »AC Origins, For Honor and more coming to Game Pass in June
Microsoft refuses to let up with its consistent addition of new games to its Game Pass subscription service. Though not the biggest month ever, the console manufacturer has now announced what games will be joining the service during the first half of June. Making the announcement on the Xbox Blog, …
Read More »Sony’s marketing deal with Call of Duty may last until 2026
Microsoft’s surprise purchase of Activision Blizzard for $68.7 Billion shook the video games industry in many ways, leading to a number of secondary and knock-on effects. One of these pertains to PlayStation’s existing relationship with Call of Duty. With Microsoft promising to honour all previously inked contracts, it seems as …
Read More »Electronics company claims new Xbox Series and PS5 Pro consoles coming by 2024
Due to on-going stock shortages and pandemic-related game delays, it still feels like the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S console generation has barely begun. Early adopters haven't had many next-gen only releases yet, but it looks like Sony and Microsoft may be planning to introduce more powerful hardware already. Last …
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