Microsoft

With their reboot of Phantom Dust dead in the water, Microsoft has instead decided to just go remaster the original. It’ll be out on Xbox One in 2017.

The Entire Xbox E3 Press Conference Leaked Before It Started

Microsoft is a leaky company, but today we saw something unprecedented: Minutes before the Xbox E3 press conference, the entire lineup leaked on Twitter. Granted, we already knew a lot of it. Kotaku broke news of Xbox Slim and Scorpio last month, and leaks last week pointed to Dead Rising 4 and State of Decay…

Scalebound Looks Crazy, Features Giant Enemy Crab

Today at Microsoft’s E3 press conference, Platinum Games showed off a massive co-op boss fight from Scalebound, their take on Monster Hunter-ish co-op beast slaying. Platinum’s Hideki Kamiya called this sequence “the biggest boss fight platinum has ever made,” which is saying something. Having watched the clip, I buy it. That is a very big…

Today Microsoft announced some much-requested new features for Xbox Live including clubs for organizing with other players, an integrated looking for group tool, and an “Arena” system for multiplayer tournaments.

Gears of War 4 Will Have Cross-Play And Cross-Buy On Xbox And PC 

Day one of E3 kicks off today with Microsoft’s press conference, where we learned that anyone who purchases Gears of War 4 will get it on both PC and Xbox One—and there will be crossplay between both platforms. It’s all part of a larger program called “Xbox Play Anywhere,” which will allow crossbuy/crossplay for Xbox…

Xbox One Slim Announced, Out This August [UPDATE]

UPDATE (6/13): And now it’s official. Today at their press conference, Microsoft announced the Xbox One S, which will be 40% smaller than the Xbox One. It’ll start at $300 and be out this August. Pricing will vary based on the hard-drive size, Microsoft said. The 500GB version will be $300; a 1TB version will…

We’re Liveblogging Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference [Update: It Is Done]

Microsoft kicks off day two of E3 2016 press conferences. They’ll be introducing new Xbox hardware and games to the masses, some of which managed to not leak before the show! Come follow along. “`

Watch Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference, Right Here [UPDATE: Over]

It’s time to see what Microsoft’s got up their neon green sleeves. Will today be the day we see the Xbox Scorpio? We’re also expecting an Xbox Slim, some new Dead Rising, some Gears of War 4, and hopefully a lot of other surprises. The big E3 Xbox press conference starts at 12:30pm Eastern. You…

Limbo Is Currently Free On Xbox

It’s raining free Xbox games! Only a few days after Fallout 4 accidentally went on sale for $0.00 on the Xbox Store, the brilliant death simulator Limbo is now also free. Though this reduction looks more deliberate. The “try it free” and strike through the $9.99 price clearly show that this is meant to be…

Last year at Gamescom, Microsoft said that the Xbox One was going to get DVR functionality in 2016. Yesterday, the company shelved those plans, saying they were going to instead “focus our attention on launching new, higher fan-requested gaming experiences across Xbox One and Windows 10″.

When Windows 10 Updates Install In The Middle Of A Counter-Strike Livestream

All Erik Flom wanted to do was stream Counter-Strike for nine hours. Microsoft had other ideas. Flom, aka fl0m (he’s a former pro CS player) had been livestreaming the game on his Twitch channel earlier this month when, whomp, Windows 10 did its thing, interrupting his session right in the middle of a game to…

Windows 10’s Upgrading Tricks Have Gotten More Insidious

In the next few years, Microsoft wantsWindows 10 running on a billion devices. One way it’s making sure that happens is by tricking users into upgrading in shady ways. But here’s the real problem: Windows 10 is a good operating system, and Microsoft’s tactics are giving it a bad rap. Those stories about people getting…

Sources: Smaller Xbox One Coming This Year, More Powerful Xbox One In 2017 [UPDATE]

Microsoft is preparing at least two new Xbox models for release in the next two years, sources tell Kotaku. Later this year we’ll see a cheaper, smaller Xbox One, and next year Microsoft will release a more powerful version of their premiere console. The 2017 Xbox, which is codenamed Scorpio, will have a more powerful…

Spontaneous Windows 10 Update Prevents Game Dev From Checking Out Of Hotel

Microsoft really wants people to upgrade their machines to Windows 10, to the point that computers will now install the new operating system without your knowledge. This lead to a frustrating (but darkly humorous) situation today for Vlambeer co-founder Rami Ismail, while checking out of a hotel. “I woke up all chill and relaxed and…

That Time Bill Gates Starred In A DOOM Promo Video

Yes, that’s Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates pretending to walk around in a level from DOOM and firing a shotgun at a demon marine. When the original DOOM was released, it was installed on millions of PCs across the country. Microsoft, interested in pushing Windows 95, wanted id Software (and DOOM) involved in the OS. Microsoft…

Xbox Live Is Freeing Up A Million Gamertags

This week, Microsoft will release close to a million Xbox Live gamertags to the public, the company said today. These handles, which Microsoft says have been inactive since the original Xbox era, will start going free on May 18 at 2pm ET. Microsoftwon’t give the full list, so you’ll have to use trial and error…

Microsoft Kills Project Spark

Project Spark is no more. Microsoft announced Friday afternoon—prime news-burying hour!—that their online game creator is no longer for sale as of today. Online services will end in August. “For existing users of Project Spark, online services will be unavailable after 8/12/16,” community manager Thomas Gratz wrote on their website. “Without services, players will no…

An Inside Look At How Lionhead Collapsed

Two months ago, in a stunning and surprising move, Microsoft shut down the renowned British studio Lionhead. Now, details have emerged about how it happened: in short, Fable Legends cost too much money, and nobody really wanted to make it. Eurogamer’s Wesley Yin-Poole today published an extensive, remarkably well-sourced story about the demise of Lionhead.…

Becoming A Mimic In Dark Souls III Is A Good Way To Confuse Invaders

Mimics are just the worst in Dark Souls III. So, role-playing as one during invasions is a fantastic way to have some fun and troll invaders. The rules are simple: After dressing up as a Mimic (more or less), wait patiently guarding loot. If the invader approaches and takes the item or attacks, you have…

Former Xbox Japan honcho Takashi Sensui has joined Tokyo-based game company Marvelous as Executive Vice President, Nikkei reports. Previously, Sensui had returned to the U.S. to work at Microsoft after Xbox Japan went pear-shaped.