Microsoft

One Year Later, Did Microsoft Keep Its E3 2017 Promises?

E3 fast approaches, and you know what that means: New game announcements and all the gaming news you can handle are headed our way. It also means it’s time to rewind to 2017, when the three console makers made a plethora of promises during last year’s E3 festivities. Did they keep them? Let’s find out.…

New Shark Hunt Finally Gets Sea Of Thieves Players To Cooperate

Sea of Thieves only has a few things for players to do, and that lack of variety has been the Xbox One and PC game’s biggest weakness. A new event, The Hungering Deep, tries to break up the grinding with a quest that brings players together to hunt a massive shark. The quest itself is…

The Xbox Has Quietly Gotten Some Cool Features

This week, Microsoft revealed the Xbox Adaptive Controller, a new peripheral to help make gaming more accessible. It includes two large, programmable buttons and works in conjunction with a mix of joysticks and other devices like the Quadstick, a controller designed specifically for people living with different forms of paralysis. It’s just the latest in…

Halo Is Coming To Arcades

Microsoft just showed off Halo: Fireteam Raven, a lightgun shooter for the arcade that’s set during the events of the first game in the series. It’ll be out this Summer at Dave & Busters.

Microsoft Announces New Controller For Gamers With Disabilities

Microsoft has a new control system on the way designed specifically for those with limited mobility, which through a base unit and add-ons will make playing Xbox One games a lot easier for those who might struggle with the current controller. The Xbox Adaptive Controller features a large white base unit, which has a few…

Sea Of Thieves Finally Gets Private Crews

Sea of Thieves is adding some welcome features that will keep crews together and help them on their plunder-filled quests. The pirate game now allows players to make their crews private and sail even the biggest ships with only a few hands on deck. One of the most annoying things in Sea of Thieves was…

Microsoft One-Ups Sony And Nintendo By Allowing Game-Gifting On Xbox One

While it’s been possible to gift video games to people on digital PC storefronts like Steam for years, Xbox One is now the first modern console to offer it. Microsoft has offered the option to Xbox One Insiders since last fall, and later expanded it to more people for select games. Today, Microsoft is enabling…

Nintendo And Sony’s Console Warranties Now Suck A Little Less [UPDATE]

Last month the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent letters to the three big console manufactures, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, telling them they had 30 days to update their warranties or face possible legal action. So far, both Sony and Nintendo have made changes in an effort to comply. Today, Sony announced that it had updated…

Kinect is alive again, sort of. Microsoft announced last fall it would no longer be manufacturing the Xbox peripheral, but now it’s back as…Project Kinect for Azure? The dev kit uses Kinect sensors and cloud computing to help people do new things with AI, like one day make Cortana for real

I Met A Genuine Pirate Legend In Sea Of Thieves

This weekend, I sat down to play Sea of Thieves. As I sailed on my lonesome, passing time until my friends could log on, I returned to port and ran into another group of players. This type of encounter usually leads to disaster, but I was instead treated to a surprise: I had come face…

FTC Warns Nintendo, Microsoft, And Sony To Review Warranty Terms

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) gave Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony a 30-day window in to change their console warranty language to let consumers know they can make repairs or use third-party replacement products without voiding them. The FTC said in a press release on April 10 that various companies, including some in the video game…

Halo Online Fan Project Goes On Hold After Microsoft Intervenes 

A team of modders working to make the unreleased Halo Online playable have halted work after Microsoft contacted them in an effort to protect its intellectual property. Developed for the Russian market and based in the Halo 3 engine, Halo Online would have been only the third game in the series to be playable online…

Microsoft plans to let Xbox users link their Discord accounts in the future. This means Discord users on PC will be able to see if their friends are playing Xbox One games. There won’t be any direct communication beyond that between the two platforms but it’s a nice addition. 

Sea of Thieves Players Compete To See Who Can Find The Most Treasure

Finding a single treasure chest in the Xbox One pirate game Sea of Thieves can involve up to 30 minutes of sailing and riddle-solving. Sail longer, and players can stack their ship with loot. Some intrepid pirate crews are doing that, waging a treasure “arms” race as they cover their decks with hundreds of chests…

It Seems That Metal Gear Solid V and Vanquish Will Be Free For XBL Subscribers Next Month

An unlisted video on the official Xbox YouTube channel has appears to have revealed May’s Games with Gold lineup, so get ready to hit some home runs in Super Mega Baseball 2 and ride a horse in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. According to the video, May’s Games with Gold are: Xbox One…

Sea of Thieves, One Month Later

Sea of Thieves released one month ago, offering a massive ocean playground for cool player stories along with a frustrating lack of activities and grindy progression. Developer Rare has outlined new content plans for the future, but even without fancy new ships or expansions, the story of Sea of Thieves has as many ups and…

Modders Are Still Working On The Never-Released Halo Online Game

Halo Online is a free-to-play version of the popular shooter series that was only ever offered in a closed beta test in Russia in 2015. After years on ice, a mod that makes it playable the world over is getting a brand new version on April 20. A new trailer, first spotted by PC Gamer,…

Morrowind, Bioware & Star Wars Classics Coming To Xbox One Backwards Compatibility

Microsoft has just announced a new batch of original Xbox games coming to the Xbox One’s backwards compatibility feature, and there are some damn good ones on offer, including KOTOR, Morrowind, Jade Empire and the original Star Wars: Battlefront games. Here’s the full list of original Xbox games on the way: Hey, if you’ve never…

Sea Of Thieves: The Kotaku Review

Playing Sea of Thieves feels a bit like working in a theater before the set has been completely built. There’s plenty of space to goof around and a few swords in the wings to have mock fights with, but none of its quite ready for show time. A lack of features and polish has frustrated…

Sea Of Thieves Players Can’t Stop “Insta-Brigging” Each Other

Sometimes, you need to get a little rowdy when playing Sea of Thieves. But if you cause too much trouble, your crewmates might end up locking you in the brig. Or they might just lock you up for the hell of it. Many solo players joining crews are finding themselves instantly locked up without any…