Tom Warren
Happy iPhone day, John.
As soon as I saw the Halo memes of the orange iPhone 17 Pro and green TechWoven case, I couldn’t resist.
Xbox
Microsoft’s Xbox has been around since 2001, and over that time the gaming brand has given us huge hits like Halo, Gears of War, Forza, and more. Today, the Xbox brand covers consoles like the Xbox One, PC gaming, and has even expanded to other platforms. You can play Minecraft on everything from a computer to an iPhone to a Nintendo Switch. Along the way, Microsoft has pioneered modern services like Xbox Live and Game Pass, introducing new ways to play games. And with Project Scarlett on the horizon, the Xbox looks to have a bright future.
Sean Hollister
Tom Warren
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 gets better DLSS 4 support.
Asobo Studios has updated Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 to include DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation support. RTX 50-series owners will be able to enable up to 4x Multi Frame Generation, while RTX 40-series GPUs can still enable the regular Frame Generation support with DLSS 4.
Richard Lawler
Helldivers 2’s Halo crossover, explained.
Once the PlayStation-published shooter is available on Xbox consoles on August 26th, there will also be a new Helldivers 2 x Halo: ODST Legendary Warbond available, with armor seats, weapon skins, ODST-themed player cards, and a Warthog-style vehicle pattern, for the price of 1,500 Super Credits that you can pick up in-game or purchase.
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Jay Peters
PUBG is moving on from PS4 and Xbox One.
Beginning November 13th, the console version of PUBG: Battlegrounds will only be supported on PS5 and Xbox Series X / S, Krafton says.
Richard Lawler
Helldivers 2 teases a Halo 3 ODST tie-in ahead of its launch on Xbox.
This trailer starts with the PlayStation logo and ends with a teaser for Xbox’s most prized gaming franchise, before the game arrives on Microsoft’s consoles on August 26th. Meanwhile, formerly Xbox-exclusive Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga is launching on PlayStation.
Are the platform wars over?
Tom Warren
Xbox PC and Xbox on PC again.
Microsoft still can’t decide whether to use Xbox PC or Xbox on PC. Last month I highlighted how the company has been using both brands in recent weeks, before seemingly settling on Xbox on PC. Now, Xbox game studio Ninja Theory has just used both brands in a single post on X 🙃
Ash Parrish
Contraband is (possibly) no more.
Development on Contraband, the next game from Just Cause developer Avalanche Studios, is now on pause. According to a post on its website, Avalanche and publisher Xbox are “evaluating the project’s future.” Contraband was revealed during E3 2021 before Xbox went radio silent on its development. The news of the game’s production pause comes shortly after Microsoft laid off 9,000 employees.
An Update on Contraband - Avalanche Studios Group
[Avalanche Studios Group]
Andrew Liszewski
The Xbox Edition of 8BitDo’s smartphone controller supports the iPhone.
The original version of 8BitDo’s clamp-on smartphone controller featuring Hall effect sticks and a rechargeable battery since it connects to devices over Bluetooth is only compatible with Android.
The functionality and price of its new $49.99 Ultimate Mobile Gaming Controller Xbox Edition is the same as the original, but it now features Xbox branding, a dedicated Xbox button, and (finally!) support for both Apple and Android Devices.
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1/2The Xbox Edition of 8BitDo’s Ultimate Mobile Gaming Controller is priced the same as the original but includes additional functionality. Image: 8BitDo
Jay Peters
Xbox is adding Accessible Games Initiative tags on “all digital Xbox experiences.”
The tags were made in partnership with big gaming companies like EA, Google, Nintendo of America, and Ubisoft. They add to the tags Xbox already uses, according to an Xbox Wire post.
Ash Parrish
Update: Romero Games is closing.
The dominoes from Microsoft’s layoffs continue to fall. Several games have been cancelled or their development halted with other studios, like The Initiative being permanently shuttered. Now Romero Games has announced that due to the layoffs, Microsoft has cancelled funding for its game. Update July 3rd: According to several employees’ posts on LinkedIn, Romero Games is closing outright due to the layoffs.
In the announcement, Brenda Romero wrote that the unannounced game had been progressing well. “We are incredibly proud of the work being done and the of the talented team behind it,” Romero wrote. “The best we’ve worked with.”
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