Xbox Wire

Halo Wars 2 Beta: Thanks to You, the Game is Changing

by Dan Ayoub, Studio Head of Strategy Games at 343 Industries Posted on August 11, 2016August 11, 2016

Hey Guys, I first wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who participated in the Halo Wars 2 Multiplayer Beta this past June. As a reminder, this was more a technical preview of where we are in development, or as I like to refer to it, a true development beta. This not only enabled us to test our backend and tuning, but also to put the game in the hands of players early enough that we could respond to feedback. The Halo Wars team, across 343 Industries and Creative Assembly, felt it important to share with you our key takeaways, and how we will be adapting the game based on your feedback. You took the time to play, so now we are taking the time to respond to things YOU have made... Read more

Games

Microsoft Acquires Interactive Livestreaming Service Beam

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 11, 2016August 11, 2016

Today, in a blog post on Microsoft News Center, it was announced that Microsoft has acquired Beam, an innovative and interactive livestreaming service that gives viewers the ability to watch and play along with their favorite game streamers in real-time. Beam has evolved game streaming from a passive, watch-and-chat experience into one with real-time participation by allowing the viewer to directly influence a streamer’s gameplay and live broadcast. “We at Xbox are excited about this convergence between playing and watching, and want to provide gamers with the freedom and choice to have great multiplayer experiences across all of Beam’s platforms,” wrote Chad Gibson, Partner... Read more

Games

Gears of War 4 Pre-Order Bonuses Detailed

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 10, 2016August 10, 2016

Today we’re excited to announce the Brothers to the End Elite Gear Pack, a new pre-order bonus included in all editions of Gears of War 4. This pack pays homage to some of the most beloved characters from the Gears of War universe, and extends the tradition of offering gold weapons to day one players. New and current Gears of War 4 pre-order customers will receive three unique characters. “Tomorrow Anya” is named after her famous words following the end of the Locust War (“Tomorrow Marcus. We finally have a tomorrow.”) Her appearance is based on her look in the Gears of War 4 television commercial, “Tomorrow,” where she was introduced as the mother of JD Fenix. ... Read more

Games

Special Edition of Quantum Break for PC Hitting Retail and Steam on September 14

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 10, 2016August 10, 2016

Microsoft Studios and Remedy Entertainment are happy to announce that they are bringing their hit action game Quantum Break to even more Windows PC gamers on September 14 with the retail release of Quantum Break: Timeless Collector’s Edition and the digital release of Quantum Break for Steam. Currently available for purchase in the Windows Store and Xbox Store, Quantum Break will be made available to more gamers across a number of operating systems when it hits Steam next month. This digital download will include all of the latest updates, a list of which can be found on the game’s official site. Starting today, both the Quantum Break: Timeless Collector’s Edition and Windows Store... Read more

Games

Tear up the Outback in Week 4 of the Forza Horizon 3 Garage

Games

Action-packed Platformer Unit 4 is Coming to Xbox One in Early 2017

by Alberto Belli, Founder and CEO at Gamera Interactive Posted on August 4, 2016August 4, 2016

I'm thrilled to share with you that our pixelated action platform Unit 4 is on its way to the Xbox One in early 2017. Gamera Interactive is a brand new development studio made by industry veterans and Unit 4 is our first game. We're working hard to create the best gaming experience on console, delivering the ultimate old-school platforming mayhem for you and your friends. An evil army of aliens has stolen a sacred artifact while invading your home planet. Similar reports are coming from other planets of the solar system that it is starting to decay without the vital support of these artifacts. Our heroes will begin an epic and dangerous journey to uncover the truth behind this invasion.... Read more

Xbox One

How to Watch the Summer Games on Xbox One

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 5, 2016August 5, 2016

The year’s most anticipated sporting event kicks off tonight with the Opening Ceremony of the Summer Games. The 2016 entry in this long-running tradition will take place in and around Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with athletes from more than 200 countries competing in more than 300 events from August 5-21. It’s going to be an exciting few weeks, so we wanted to make sure Xbox One owners know where they can experience this momentous event. Watch the Olympics Live with the Official NBC Sports App for Xbox One Watch every minute from the Summer Games live and on-demand, with the NBC Sports app, a free download on your Xbox One! Plus, stream thousands of live sporting events airing... Read more

Games

Fight to Survive When #killallzombies Invades Xbox One on August 10

by Nick Alfieri, Director at Digerati Distribution Posted on August 4, 2016August 4, 2016

Create chaos whilst you spectate! #killallzombies is coming soon to Xbox One. Can you survive the undead Arena? We are terrified and excited to announce a new top-down shooter with game-changing streaming interactions called #killallzombies, arriving on August 10 on Xbox One. In a cruel future, #killallzombies thrusts innocent civilians into a sport of survival in which a ravenous zombie horde 1000 strong is unleashed in the name of pure entertainment! Xbox Live and Twitch spectators can vote upon how many zombies they want to uncage to make staying alive all the more difficult, or trigger perks and pickup drops to help out if they admire your courage and skill. The 3 varied... Read more

Games

Sign up Today for the Largest Competitive Gaming Event in Forza History

by Brian Ekberg, Community Manager at Turn 10 Studios Posted on August 4, 2016August 4, 2016

Forza Motorsport has been on the forefront of competitive racing for years and 2016 has proven to be the biggest year yet. The first half of 2016 has been a momentous one for Forza Motorsport 6 and its commitment to competitive online racing and esports. There are currently three million players racing in Forza games every month, competing in events such as June’s Le Mans-timed Michelin 24 Hour Forza Challenge and Audi 24 Hours of Le Forza Contest, where over 700,000 unique viewers tuned in. In addition, recent Forza Motorsport 6 FIA Formula E Race Off competitions garnered over 600,000 unique viewers. In early June, we announced the Forza Racing Championship (#ForzaRC), our all-new... Read more

Games

Happy Dungeons Now Available via Xbox One Game Preview

by Yoshiya Nishii, Producer at Toylogic Posted on August 3, 2016August 4, 2016

Konnichiwa. A big thank you (in advance) from our entire team here at Toylogic to all of you, our community, for playing and supporting Happy Wars over the last 4 years. We are overjoyed to introduce the newest member of our “Happy” universe - Happy Dungeons. Inheriting the comical and lighthearted look, design and play elements from Happy Wars that we love so much (and hope you do too), we humbly unveil Happy Dungeons to you today as an Xbox One Game Preview title. With Happy Dungeons, up to 4 players can jump right into some action-RPG fun either solo or with friends (online or on-the-couch) to battle, crawl and look for loot. The thrilling sword fights are only part of the fun,... Read more

Games

Performance Classics Lead Week Three of Forza Horizon 3 Garage

Windows 10

Gaming on Windows 10 One Year Later

by Larry Hyrb, Xbox Live Community Manager Posted on August 2, 2016August 2, 2016

Across Microsoft today we’re celebrating the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, and in turn, commemorating the first birthday for our latest and greatest OS (July 29) – which after just one year already lives on more than 350 million devices. That’s everything from PCs like laptops and desktops, tablets of all sizes, Surface and hybrids, phones, Xbox One consoles, and even HoloLens development kits. It turns out that a lot of those devices are playing games. In fact, more than 19 billion hours of gameplay were logged on Windows 10 in year one and games were the top app download category in the Windows Store. It’s not just the Windows Store that’s seeing a boon from gaming on... Read more

Games

Forza Motorsport 6 Heats Up with the Turn 10 Summer Car Pack

by Brian Ekberg, Community Manager at Turn 10 Studios Posted on August 2, 2016August 2, 2016

The Turn 10 Summer Car Pack for Forza Motorsport 6 has arrived! Whether you’re looking to recreate the legends of motorsport’s past, or you want to create your own legend online in Forza Motorsport 6, this pack has something for everyone. First up, we have four stunning racers, three of which were driven by racing legends: John Surtees’ Ferrari F-158 F1, A.J. Foyt’s Watson #1 Sheraton-Thompson Special Roadster and Paul Newman’s Datsun #33 Bob Sharp Racing 280ZX Turbo. Of course, cars don’t need to have race liveries to be terrifyingly fast, as the monstrous 2016 Cadillac CTS-V Sedan amply demonstrates. And if you value speed over size, you can head straight to the 2016 Abarth... Read more

Games

HCS Pro League Summer Finals Recap

Entertainment

Announcing the Gears eSports Pro Circuit for Gears of War 4 with $1,000,000 Prize Pool

by Jack Felling, eSports Producer, The Coalition Posted on August 1, 2016August 4, 2016

Xbox and The Coalition are proud to announce the Gears eSports Pro Circuit for Gears of War 4. Gears of War players can compete in marquee live open events around the world operated by world-class tournament organizers Major League Gaming (MLG) and Gfinity for a starting $1,000,000 in cash prizes. Players worldwide can earn “Gears Pro Points” by competing in regional MLG GameBattles online ladders and in daily and weekly tournaments. Gears Pro Points qualify players for the international circuit open LAN events that take place every 1-2 months from the Gears of War 4 game launch in October 2016 to July 2017. The Gears Pro Circuit features more international crossplay and... Read more

Xbox One

Xbox One S: 4K, HDR and what you need to know

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 2, 2016August 2, 2016

The highly anticipated, newly designed Xbox One S starts hitting shelves today. Since Xbox One S features 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, 4K video streaming and High Dynamic Range (HDR) for games and video, we wanted to ensure those who are about to unbox their new console know all the ins-and-outs when it comes to 4K, HDR and what you need to do in order to enable your 4K TV. Getting Started: Three Things You’ll Need to Experience 4K Before you can experience 4K and HDR games and video, you’ll need to make sure you’re set up properly and have the right equipment. 1. You’ll need a 4K capable device Good news, the Xbox One S is 4K Ultra HD capable 2. You’ll need a 4K TV To check... Read more

Games

Details on Xbox FanFest: gamescom 2016

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 1, 2016August 1, 2016

Xbox will give 200 lucky fans a one-of-a-kind experience at gamescom, the world’s largest video game consumer show. The Xbox gamescom FanFest Ticket will include: An exclusive “Xbox FanFest Showcase” on Thursday Night, August 18, from 20:00 – 23:00 CEST at the Xbox Booth, Hall 8. Experience all the games and cool surprises in the Xbox booth after the crowds have gone for the night. Special Xbox day-time activity on Wednesday August 17. Meet and greet some of the industry’s top developers, leaders and influencers. Swag bag full of Xbox-gaming content How can I get my Xbox FanFest: gamescom 2016 ticket? The majority of tickets will be first-come, first-serve,... Read more

Events

Tune in to Food Network Tonight for a Halo-themed Episode of Cake Wars

by Major Nelson Posted on August 1, 2016August 1, 2016

Recently I had the opportunity to serve as the guest judge for a Halo-themed episode of the Food Network show, Cake Wars, and the episode is airing tonight at 9 p.m. EDT / 8 p.m. CDT. In the episode, four awesome bakers face off to create cakes based on the Halo universe, with the winning contestant earning $10,000 and a trip for them and their cake to the Halo World Championship finals that took place this past March. Tune in to the special episode tonight as I sit at the judges table along with Cake Wars judges Waylynn Lucas and Ron Ben-Israel to determine who will come out on top in a Halo match like none you’ve ever seen. Hit me up on Twitter and let me know what you think of... Read more

Consoles

Xbox One S 2TB Launch Edition is Available Now

by Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief Posted on August 2, 2016August 2, 2016

Today is the day – Xbox One S has arrived. The 2TB Xbox One S launch edition is now available in select markets at Microsoft Stores or your local retailer. Demand is extremely high and the 2TB launch edition is only available in limited quantities, so go out and get yours today to enjoy this holiday’s greatest games. A few of our favorite features of the highly anticipated, newly designed Xbox One S include: Xbox One S offers a great value as one of the top 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray players on the market – which means you can watch your favorite movies in stunning 4K. The 2TB launch edition Xbox One S will be available for $399 USD with 1TB and 500GB Xbox One S options starting at... Read more

Xbox One

The Xbox Summer Update Starts Rolling Out

by Mike Ybarra, Head of Platform Engineering Posted on July 30, 2016July 30, 2016

The latest system update for Xbox One and the Xbox app starts rolling out today, continuing our commitment to give gamers more choice in how and where they play. Cortana is now on Xbox One, Background Music will be available through music apps like Pandora, we’re bringing the most played PC games to Xbox Live with their own Game Hubs and we’re starting to combine the best of the Xbox Store and Windows Store for a single cohesive experience across devices. And of course, these updates will be available on the new, highly-anticipated, Xbox One S when the 2TB launch edition becomes available on August 2 for $399. The update will also be ready for the 1TB and 500GB Xbox One S models later... Read more

Games

Team Minecraft celebrates the First Anniversary of Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition Beta

by Jesse Merriam, Executive Producer for Minecraft Posted on July 28, 2016July 28, 2016

What a year it has been! This morning we celebrated the first anniversary of Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition Beta. Since the Windows 10 Edition released last July we have committed over 12,000 code check-ins and fixed over 6000 bugs. All that work has resulted in 15 updates with dozens of new features for you, with lots more to come. Over the last year, zombie villagers got upgraded wardrobes, while rabbits got new coats and headed out to the desert and snow biomes. Our squid learned how to flee and our cauldrons learned how to dye armor. Somewhere along the way our baby zombies even learned how to ride chickens, (…um, watch out for that!) Acacia villages started popping up in your... Read more

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