Last week, it was reported that the European Commission would announce its decision on Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard this week. As it turns out, that report was indeed accurate, with the commission publishing its press release today, approving the deal.
Read More »Trackmania comes to consoles and Amazon Luna today
Nearly 3 years after the game debuted on the Epic Games Store as well as Ubisoft Connect in July 2020, the free-to-play Trackmania reboot (known simply as ‘Trackmania’) dropped onto Steam back in February of this year. Now, the title is making its way to consoles (and Amazon Luna), with …
Read More »The EU will reportedly approve Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition this month
While the FTC and the CMA are opposing Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, reports this week claim that the European Commission has a different view on the deal and plans to approve it. According to sources speaking with Reuters, the EU will approve Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition. Previously, the Commission …
Read More »Activision PC game sales are outpacing console sales
Call of Duty is a massive seller every year but for the most part, console versions beat out the PC version in sales. That might be starting to change, as Activision's latest earnings report shows. Activision's latest earnings report shows that PC sales outperformed console sales between January and the …
Read More »Microsoft will appeal CMA’s block on Activision Blizzard deal
It has been a couple of weeks since the CMA first announced plans to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Since then, both Microsoft and Activision have made it clear that they plan to appeal, a process that should begin this week. According to a report from The Telegraph, Microsoft …
Read More »Dead Rising reboot reportedly in development
During the Xbox 360 era, one of the console’s more notable exclusives was the Dead Rising series. While the game’s sequels never managed to quite hit the same as the 2006 original, fans of the franchise continue to hope for a new entry at some point. Fortunately, it seems as …
Read More »Seagate’s storage expansion SSDs for Xbox Series X|S are getting a price drop
Microsoft has just announced via Twitter that the Seagate storage expansion card range for the Xbox Series consoles has received a price cut. While it is still unclear whether this discount is temporary or permanent, the move is expected to bring the expansion cards to more reasonable prices, which is …
Read More »Xbox head admits Redfall fell well below expectations
We're just two days on from Redfall's launch and already, Xbox head, Phil Spencer, is doing the rounds with media interviews. In an interview with KindaFunny this week, Spencer admitted that internally, Microsoft's mock reviews projected that the game would score much higher than it did. Redfall had a poor …
Read More »Razer launches Kaira HyperSpeed Xbox Edition gaming headset
Razer has unveiled its latest wireless gaming headset, the Razer Kaira HyperSpeed. With Razer's HyperSpeed Wireless technology, the headset provides gaming-grade, low-latency performance, ensuring seamless, low-latency audio to meet the demands of gamers on numerous platforms. The Razer Kaira HyperSpeed features 50mm drivers fine-tuned so users can differentiate the highs, …
Read More »Xbox Game Pass referral program allows you to hand out free Game Pass trials to friends
Microsoft has been looking to boost PC Game Pass over the last year. Now, the company hopes to continue that growth with a new referral program, allowing PC Game Pass and Game Pass Ultimate subscribers to give out free 14-day trials of Game Pass to friends. With the free trial, …
Read More »Microsoft outlines Xbox and Bethesda summer showcase plans
Microsoft announced that it would be holding its usual summer games showcase in June, adding that Starfield would get its own dedicated show after the main event. Now, the Xbox team has unveiled its full schedule, with the Xbox Games Showcase happening on the 11th of June, followed by Starfield …
Read More »Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II could finally come out this year
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II was the very first Xbox Series X/S video game to be announced by Microsoft, officially unveiled alongside the then-next-gen console during the 2019 Game Awards. Despite its early announcement, the status of Hellblade II’s release date remains unknown. That said, Microsoft could finally be teasing the …
Read More »Star Wars Jedi: Survivor patch promises improved performance and less crashes
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor launched in rough shape last week, as we've previously covered. Now, Respawn has kicked off the rollout of patches, promising improved performance and fewer crashes. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor has had issues across all platforms, although EA did specifically apologise for the state of the PC …
Read More »Microsoft unveils next wave of titles for Xbox Game Pass
It is the first Tuesday of the month, which means it is time for a new round of Xbox Game Pass titles to be revealed. Today, the first wave of games heading to Game Pass in May has been revealed, with Arkane's Redfall headlining. Redfall is the ‘biggest' game hitting …
Read More »Xbox is teaming up with OPI for summer-themed special edition Xbox controllers
Following the addition of palette of colours in partnership with OPI in Spring 2022, Xbox is partnering up with OPI again to launch a new colourful addition to its controller lineup – the Sunkissed Vibes OPI Special Edition Xbox wireless controller. This special edition controller features four summer shades inspired …
Read More »Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty sells 1 million copies as total players surpass 3.8 million
Last week, we reported on the claims by publisher Koei Tecmo that the open-world action game Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty has been deemed an early success – though no concrete sales data was shared at the time. Now, the team has officially announced that Wo Long has sold over 1 …
Read More »Minecraft Legends surpasses 3 million players in two weeks
Minecraft is the best-selling game of all time, having shifted over 238 million copies across the game’s many platforms. While we are unlikely to ever see a Minecraft 2, the team at Mojang have been keeping the Minecraft name going with a number of spin-offs crossing many different genres. The …
Read More »Microsoft signs another 10-year cloud gaming deal
The CMA may have opted to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard but Microsoft is showing no signs of backing down. The company is already preparing to appeal the ruling and in the meantime, the company is also still signing 10-year deals guaranteeing access to major IP to other cloud …
Read More »Nvidia and others speak out against CMA’s decision to block Xbox-Activision merger
Earlier this week, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) officially announced its decision to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, citing concerns around the future of the cloud gaming market. Now, some of the cloud gaming companies that Microsoft signed deals with are speaking out in favour of the …
Read More »Xbox Design Lab offers Redfall limited edition controllers
Microsoft has been sprucing up the Xbox Design Lab recently, adding more customisation options for personalised controllers. Now with Redfall coming up, Xbox Design Lab has unveiled its latest limited edition range of Redfall-inspired gamepads. Devinder's design mimics rust and steel from his cryptid-hunting adventures, while Jacob's highlights his sniper …
Read More »High on Life surpasses 7.5 million players
In recent years we have seen a whole host of brand new IPs rocket to success, not needing the cache of a franchise or series in order to sell millions of copies. One of the most unique new IPs from 2022 was the comedic first-person shooter High on Life. Just …
Read More »May’s Games with Gold includes Star Wars Episode I Racer
Ever since Microsoft debuted its Xbox Game Pass subscription service we have seen the console manufacturer’s legacy Xbox Live Gold fall somewhat out of relevancy. Despite this, Xbox Live Gold and its Games with Gold program remains – though with a noticeable decrease in the quality of its offerings. Fortunately, …
Read More »Quantum Break returns to Game Pass and digital stores
Just a couple of weeks after being removed from digital stores and Xbox Game Pass, Quantum Break has officially returned. The game had to be removed due to expiring licenses but it would seem that Microsoft and Remedy were swiftly able to fix the problem. Quantum Break had to be …
Read More »Tango Gameworks’ next title will feature multiplayer
Ever since the release of their first game back in 2014, Tango Gameworks have been known for developing tense 3rd-person survival horror titles. That said, in the past few years the team has spread its wings, creating an open world action-horror first-person shooter (Ghostwire Tokyo) and most recently a comedic …
Read More »Game Pass accounted for roughly 30% of Xbox revenue in Q3
Microsoft held its quarterly earnings call this week, revealing the latest batch of stats on how Xbox is doing. As expected, Xbox console sales are indeed down, but the company is seeing continued success in gaming subscriptions, with revenue nearing $1 billion for the quarter. Microsoft did not announce a …
Read More »Microsoft and Activision respond to CMA’s block on acquisition
The CMA announced its final decision on Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard today, moving to block the deal based on concerns around the future of the cloud gaming market. As you would expect, Microsoft and Activision have been quick to issue statements, with Activision going as far as to …
Read More »Microsoft Flight Simulator’s 13th World Update goes live
Ever since its initial launch back in 2020, the team at Asobo Studio have continually improved all aspects of Microsoft’s Flight Simulator, with various tech and content updates making for a much more complete and bespoke experience. MSFS’s 13th World Update has now gone live, bringing bespoke recreations of Oceania …
Read More »UK moves to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard
While Microsoft was able to convince the UK's Competition & Markets Authority that its acquisition of Activision Blizzard would not harm the console gaming market, it would seem the CMA was not convinced that the deal wouldn't impede competition in the cloud gaming market.
Read More »Grounded 1.2 update goes live alongside Steam Deck verification
Grounded is one of the more interesting titles published by Xbox Game Studios. Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, this ‘Honey I Shrunk the Kids’ styled survival game spent many years in Early Access, with the title finally going 1.0 in September of last year. The team have continued to work on …
Read More »Forza Motorsport is in its “polishing” phase ahead of launch later this year
First announced all the way back in 2020, Forza Motorsport is one of the biggest Xbox titles planned to be released in 2023. Ahead of its launch however, the team at Turn 10 have released a new dev update, confirming that the much-anticipated racer is in the ‘polishing’ phase of …
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