Today was supposed to be an opportunity for "fans" to get a chance to pre-order the new, limited edition Xbox Series X25. Yet it's questionable as to how many genuine fans may have actually got their hands on one.
Reddit is filled with bad experiences, people talking about having a console in their cart and it was gone before they could check out. That stock evaporated in "milliseconds."
And yet almost instantly they were cropping up on eBay. The highest listing I saw was for a ridiculous THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS.
To its credit, eBay seems to be taking action and shutting these listings down, as three I've already seen have been ended due to the "item no longer being available", not "sold". It was never available in the first place, and frankly, handing over thousands on a promise of getting a thing in the future is the dumbest idea anyway.
Obviously this is a limited edition, with each console uniquely numbered, and was always going to be in hot demand. But while eBay might be taking listings down, more are popping up across the globe.
If you're a scalper I sincerely hope both sides of your pillow are always warm. (Image credit: eBay)
Scalpers are going to scalp. They're not going to cancel their order, and they're going to try somehow to move it on for a premium price. It's the Pokémon card fiasco all over again.
My advice is clear: Do not buy a console from a scalper. In fact, if you can't get one directly from a retailer, don't buy one unless you actually see it and can pick it up with your bare hands. These people have no morals; don't hand over your money and trust that you'll actually even get the thing.
I was never going to try and get one myself, as I don't have a spare $899 to throw at a console I already have in a different body. But scalpers really make me angry. It's a constant battle in trading card collecting, especially. There's reselling and then there's just existing to rip people off by using your bots to scoop up stock from legitimate buyers.
Anyway, rant over. If you did manage to secure an Xbox Series X25 let us know in the comments. Unless you're a scalper.
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One of the more unsung announcements from this year's Gamescom that has me personally excited is that Shadow of the Road, an upcoming CRPG published by Owlcat Games of Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader fame, has revealed that it's releasing on November 12, 2026, for PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG.
This game has you command a group of ex-samurai and Shogun retainers traveling with a child gifted with mysterious powers, his mother, and their massive bodyguard on a quest to put an end to a bloody civil war that's tearing Japan apart.
Shadow of the Road will have you explore a gritty, alternative history version of Japan in 1868 where Steampunk technology reigns supreme, manage a team of powerful warriors in intense tactical turn-based battles, make tough dialogue choices that will determine the course of the story and your party's friendships, and obtain the dark power of being able to transform into horrifying yōkai in battle.
I previewed Shadow of the Road's alpha test back in 2025, and I was rather enthralled by its Japanese setting, in-depth turn-based combat, and unique take on dialogue choices in RPGs, as it allowed the entire party, not just the main character, to have dialogue options during conversations based on who the player wants to speak first.
So I can't wait to finally play the full version when Shadow of the Road launches on PC this November.
Although I'm sad that there's no word of Shadow of the Road releasing on Xbox anytime soon, as this game would be cool to play on Xbox Ally via Xbox Play Anywhere, like Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader was.
But who knows? If this game does well on PC, maybe it will release on consoles at some point later? Only time will tell the answer.
The land of feudal-era Japan is embroiled in a terrible civil war waged with steampunk war machines and otherworldly sorcery. Journey with a band of heroes across this war-torn realm, battle hordes of villains and monsters, and decide Japan’s fate in Shadow of the Road.
Fable is not skimping out on any details at this year's Gamescom, as it provided a metric ton of new gameplay information through an 18-minute gameplay demo, accompanied by a gameplay preview write-up at Xbox Wire.
There's a lot to unpack here, so let's not waste any more time and get into the nitty-gritty of what Playground Games has in store for this highly anticipated reboot of the Fable series.
The demo begins with a recap of Fable's life-sim elements, where you can mingle with NPCs to potentially start a family, buy a home, or start a business. The player then sets off on a quest to save their grandma and village, which have been turned to stone by the mysterious hero-turned-villain, Isabel.
Throughout the demo, we see the player engaging in dialogue choices that determine how NPCs feel towards them, some funny cinematics that play off like a fantasy version of the iconic sitcom, 'The Office', exploring the city, developing skills in the skill tree, and most of all, beating the stuffing out of bandits with the game's combat system.
Judging from the footage shown in the Gamescom demo and from Xbox Wire's preview write-up, this game's combat system is shaping up to be the most in-depth one any Fable title has had to date.
You can parry and dodge enemy attacks, blast enemies off of cliffs using fireballs, catch incoming arrows and throw them back at enemies, trip or knock weapons out of enemies' hands using bows and crossbows, stun enemies by filling their stagger gauge before performing melee finishers on them, turn enemies into chickens using magic, and so much more.
And all this is done without messing about in menus or loadout bars, so you can focus on the action intuitively without immersion-breaking menu micromanagement.
You will need to master this evolved take on Fable's combat quickly, as you will contend with more dangerous foes than bandits throughout the game, including reanimated skeletons, wraiths, Cockatrices, and tough mini-bosses like the ghostly Lantern Keeper, to name a few.
Windows Central's take
I admit it's been a LONG time since I played the original Fable from 2004, but I do remember combat not being the most in-depth thing in the world, as it mainly amounted to whacking enemies once, moving back to shoot fireballs, rinse and repeat.
So to go from that to this new Fable where we're catching arrows to throw them back in enemies' faces, parrying attacks Sekiro-style, and blasting enemies with magic doesn't take forever to cast anymore is a massive improvement.
For the first time, press and content creators are getting hands on with Fable's style-weaving combat at @gamescom 2026. Check out this article from @XBOXWire to find out more about how combat works in Fable: https://t.co/GIJ8EGUwY1 #Fable #FableTheGame #Gamescom2026 pic.twitter.com/nGD0wYnvyxAugust 26, 2026
If Playground Games can continue polishing this promising combat system to be more speedy and perhaps show off more destructive spells, Fable could be a massive shoo-in for a 2027 Game of the Year contender.
The iconic Fable franchise returns with an epic reboot where you will embark on a journey to save the land of Albion from evil foes while changing the lives of everyone around you based on your choices.
Microsoft officialise son système Xbox Disc-to-Digital. Il permet de convertir certains jeux sur disque en droits numériques utilisables sur plusieurs appareils.
Rockstar Games continue de dévoiler au compte-gouttes les fonctionnalités de GTA 6. Dans une interview accordée au magazine Dazed, les développeurs ont confirmé le retour d’une mécanique adorée par les fans depuis 2004 : la gestion physique de son personnage.
The next-gen Xbox Helix is gradually appearing on the horizon, but there's very big question marks over how it will actually show up.
Microsoft's attempts to disrupt the gaming industry ended mostly with it disrupting itself, harming its own Xbox console business as well as third-party developers in its ecosystem. As Xbox's hardware footprint has shrank due to poor marketing and lack of exclusive games, so too has its relevancy on the general gaming stage. The turmoil has been turbo charged by the AI-driven RAMpocalypse, which has seen consumer electronics prices soar due to RAM shortages.
New CEO Asha Sharma has been tasked with reviving Xbox's gaming fortunes, starting by bringing back exclusive games (including the amazing-looking Gears of War: E-Day), and delivering a barrage of fan-requested features.
Fans are increasingly wondering how Xbox will respond to PlayStation's own PR nightmare right now. PlayStation inexplicably announced a gradual phase out of disc-based games on its platform, with discs going away entirely by 2028. Microsoft has moved in the opposite direction, revealing today that Xbox discs will now grant digital entitlements for gamers in that ecosystem, including Xbox Cloud Gaming access and Xbox Play Anywhere.
In conversations with BBC reporter Laura Cress, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma acknowledged the backlash to Sony's physical phase out.
"I know players love physical media, and I know there's a lot of benefits in digital media, and I want to make sure people have a choice," Sharma said. "There are stacks of games on everybody's shelves. We're announcing the ability for players for 1,000 titles with physical discs to be able to have a digital entitlement."
"We've long pioneered backwards compatibility and so you'll continue to see that as we go forward in the generations. This next generation, we have to be thinking about efficiency and affordability alongside performance."
Will Xbox give disc-loving gamers the lifeline PlayStation won't?
Xbox faces a difficult choice. (Image credit: Future via Michael Hoglund)
Speaking to my own Xbox hardware sources, I was told that it's less about the discs themselves and more about the supply chain around optical disc drives collapsing. Factories and assembly lines previously oriented around making optical disc drives are moving towards other, more lucrative and more scalable industries, such as camera lenses and the like. Demand for optical disc drives revolves entirely around Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 right now, with laptops, Blu-Ray devices, and other formats essentially phasing out the tech.
Consumers opted overwhelming for digital-only in the last few years, although the downsides are becoming increasingly apparent. The lack of rights consumers have over digital content has come into focus, as licenses can be revoked remotely at any time potentially. At least with a physical game or Blu-ray movie, it's definitively yours in perpetuity.
It's ironic perhaps given the revival of vinyl records in recent years, as more of us seek ownership and hobby-oriented collecting. Digital games, books, and movies don't create the same sense of participation, and lending games and sharing content with families is obviously much harder generally speaking when the content is tied to a specific account.
Xbox doesn't have strong family-sharing systems like Steam yet, nor does it come with the ability to re-sell digital games as some have called for. There's also no legislation in place to refund users when digital games are sunset or revoked.
It'll be interesting to see how Microsoft and the next-gen Xbox Helix navigates this impending reality for optical disc drive manufacturing, given the widespread backlash to PlayStation's vocal policies on it.
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Frankly I have no idea why it didn't always work this way, but better late than never eh?!
Speaking at Gamescom, Microsoft confirmed that the long-expected disc-to-digital program is going live on Monday for Xbox Insiders, and it works exactly as you would've hoped and expected.
First detailed by Tom Warren at The Verge following datamining leaks, codename "Positron" is a new feature that will be available across Xbox One and Xbox Series X consoles with a disc drive. Simply insert your Xbox physical game disc into a console, and you'll be prompted to redeem a digital version of the game too.
Naturally, it needs to be a game that actually works on Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S. OG Xbox and Xbox 360 discs aren't compatible, since they were never manufactured with digital identifiers in mind.
Your physical game library is more than a collection of discs. It holds years of memories and stories worth preserving. Starting next week, XBOX Insiders can unlock a digital entitlement for supported physical games. We’ll start with thousands of titles and add more as we can. pic.twitter.com/XATsa8sjBtAugust 26, 2026
The digital version will have all the same benefits as any other digital Xbox copy of a game: Xbox Play Anywhere support, meaning access on an Xbox Ally handheld or Windows PC and support for Xbox Cloud Gaming. If you console share with a family member, they'll also get access to the license via your account. Once you've activated the digital version, you won't need the disc to play the game. However, the disc you used doesn't become inert — it still contains the digital license, too.
Just like sharing a physical game in the real world, if you sell or give the disc away, the digital license will then transfer to the Microsoft Account of the new user, and off your account.
Your Xbox discs will gain new life next week. (Image credit: Future via Michael Hoglund)
The system will go live for Xbox Insiders on Monday will support for "thousands" of games, sources tell me. Microsoft plans to roll out support for more discs over time as it refines and polishes the service, although it seems that some discs may be incompatible due to how they were manufactured at the time.
Microsoft still hasn't really put its mark on the debate, although sources tell me it's less about the discs and more about the disc drives themselves; the entire supply chain for the components required to make optical disc drives is collapsing, with assembly lines pivoting away from the tech as users actively opt for digital-only.
Microsoft has also been actively building out Xbox game emulation on PC as well, with planned support for all Xbox 360 games, and potentially Xbox One and above in the future too. It's great, in my view, that Xbox is offering some sort of exit for those with digital collections — it remains to be seen if those on other platforms will be so lucky.
It'll be interesting to see how they navigate the inevitable phase out with the next-gen Xbox Helix as well, as users call on Xbox to take a different path to PlayStation.
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Microsoft vient d’officialiser une fonction capable de convertir les jeux Xbox One et Xbox Series sur disque en licences dématérialisées. Une réponse plutôt habile à la disparition annoncée du support physique chez Sony, même si le système impose quelques garde-fous.
Un partenariat entre IKEA et Xbox, ça donne des accessoires et du mobilier au look de la célèbre console de Microsoft. L'idéal pour les gamers qui veulent recréer un univers de jeu 100% Xbox.
After Xbox's controversial 'reset' that laid off over 3,000 people and rumors of State of Decay 3 not coming to Xbox Game Pass flying about, fans of the long-awaited zombie survival game were starting to panic and think State of Decay 3 was going to be canceled.
State of Decay 3's closed beta playtests are coming before 2026 wraps up. Learn more about what's next and sign up now for your shot at surviving early: https://t.co/dmUcHMr6c2August 26, 2026
It will feature the largest map in a State of Decay game to date with untethered multiplayer, allow more people to join than the previous alpha tests, and incorporate gameplay improvements based on feedback players made during the alpha tests.
Windows Central's take
State of Decay 3 is the latest entry in the popular State of Decay series, where players band together in online multiplayer to survive the zombie apocalypse by scavenging for weapons and building settlements to hide in.
Stay tuned for further updates as we continue this highly anticipated zombie survival game that refuses to die before it sees the light of day.
Band together with friends to withstand the zombie apocalypse in the biggest, darkest, and most brutal entry of the State of Decay 3 franchise to date, with more gore, bigger maps, tougher choices, and more challenging zombies to fend off.
This upcoming action-RPG is, as you might expect, set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe. After watching this intriguing trailer, it's shaping up to be the biggest AAA video game adaptation of the franchise since Baldur's Gate 3.
Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons has you assume the role of Kaatri, a Warlock who made a dark pact with an ancient witch named Tasha to gain the power to find someone precious to her that she lost.
To accomplish her mission, Kaatri must feed on raw magic throughout the forgotten realms, discover and master forbidden spells, rituals, and weapons, and battle her way through hordes of monsters infesting the Mists of Darkon.
As seen in the trailer, you will have a ton of magic spells at your disposal, and you will decide which ones are best employed for exploration, puzzle solving, and combat.
Windows Central's take
Kaatri the Warlock battling a zombie ogre. (Image credit: Wizards of the Coast)
As someone who spent many years playing the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop RPG, Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons is looking promising even in its early stages of development.
Most of the iconic spells of the Warlock's kits from the tabletop RPG have been faithfully recreated in this game, from the laser-spewing Eldritch Blast, the telekinetic Mage Hand, and the shadowy Tentacle of the Deeps, to name a few.
It even shows a sequence where the player is casting a ritual to summon rain by sacrificing rare materials to make the environment and enemies more susceptible to lightning attacks.
If the developers can polish up its graphics and performance, and show off more insane spells from the Warlock's kit, this could be a great game for action-RPG and D&D fans alike, especially for those who like playing games on the go on the Xbox Ally since this game is getting Xbox Play Anywhere support.
Either way, we'll keep an eye out for future developments on Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons to see if the final product's performance earns the Xbox Play Anywhere blessing.
Forge a dark pact with an ancient witch and carve a bloody path battling evil monsters throughout the Forgotten Realms to find your lost precious one in Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons.
The Witcher 3 is inarguably one of the best games ever made, and it's getting a big remaster version on September 29, 2026, and is also COMPLETELY FREE for users who own the existing game.
"Remastered is a free upgrade for players who own The Witcher 3 on GOG, Steam, Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, and includes both Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions. It is also available for pre-purchase on Battle.net and Nintendo Switch 2."
Update: I missed this part on the initial write up, but yes, The Witcher 3 is also coming to Microsoft and Blizzard's Battle.net. It's part of a wider initiative to open up Battle.net to third-party developers so I'm told, which we should hear more about at BlizzCon 2026 in September. Stay tuned for that one.
Furthermore, CD Projekt RED revealed in the small print that it also grabs Xbox Play Anywhere support, finally bridging the gap between Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Ally versions. It'll also get FSR 4.0 support on the Xbox Ally X, giving it massively improved performance.
Here's just some of the changes you can expect in the free update:
Improved combat flow, with new finishing moves and skills.
Boosted traversal with more intelligent and dynamic vaulting, platforming, etc.
Overhauled visuals, with improved lighting and spell effects.
Improved monster AI, giving them new moves of their own.
Revamped horse riding.
A complete Cyberpunk 2077-style overhaul of the skill tree.
Armor transmogrification.
Improved photo mode.
A variety of other smaller enhancements, such as boosted looting systems, UI interactions, tutorial modernization, HDR improvements, lighting overhaul, Xbox Play Anywhere, and more.
DLSS 4.5, AMD FSR 4.0 (great for Xbox Ally), Path Tracing on high-end systems, raytraced hair (wtf?), and more visual features.
Witcher 3 expansion "Songs of the Past" gets teased, too!
CD Projekt RED also recently announced that The Witcher 4 is slated for 2028, with yet another Witcher 3 expansion slated for later in 2027.
Additionally, CD Projekt RED also showed off the first teaser trailer for the third and final Witcher 3 DLC, titled "Songs of the Past."
"This full-fledged third expansion takes the White Wolf on a new adventure to the peaceful realm of Letten, where dark secrets lurk beneath the surface… Coming in 2027."
In the trailer, we catch a glimpse at a new hook-like tool Geralt has for pulling in enemies, as well as twisted nature-oriented enemies.
CD Projekt RED has been over-delivering almost none-stop since Cyberpunk 2077's launch, which disappointed users on PS4 and Xbox One owing to its performance. Fast forward half a decade, and Cyberpunk 2077 was fully revived and revamped, it had an award-winning TV show, and now we're getting an absolute mountain of free content for Witcher 3, the game that helped CD Projekt RED claim its top spot at the RPG pile.
Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2 are deep in development as well, and there's every reason to think they too will continue CD Projekt RED's path towards legendary status.
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Gears of War is having something of a renaissance right now, as The Coalition go all out to put the franchise back on the map.
Gears has been one of the most consistent Xbox staples in the brand's history, popularizing the third-person shooter genre with its gritty storytelling and bleak world. Gears 4 and 5 experimented away from the formula a bit, and perhaps got lost in the weeds in some ways as they sought to give the franchise new footing. After a successful Gears of War: E-Day beta event, increasingly it's looking like the key to Gears' future may, in fact, lie in the past.
Recently, I was lucky enough to go hands-on with two missions from Gears of War: E-Day's campaign, set during the initial attacks from the vile Locust swarm.
E-Day follows a younger Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago, worn down already from a major civil war that society had only just begun to recover from. Then, subterranean horrors emerged from the ground, bringing with them a whole host of terrifying war beasts and brutal makeshift weaponry in a legendary surprise attack that would eventually leave humanity on the brink of extinction.
E-Day is about those early years, and if the full game is even close to as good as what I experienced last week, Gears of War: E-Day could cement its place as the best Gears of War story in history.
A painstakingly detailed, reactive world
The older Gears of War titles took place in dilapidated ruins. Gears of War: E-Day demands something more detailed. (Image credit: Windows Central | Jez Corden | Xbox)
The original Gears of War is very much a product of its time, but also its setting. The game is essentially post-apocalyptic, taking place years after E-Day, with much of civilization already reduced to grey-brown ash and ruins.
Given that Gears of War: E-Day takes place at the very start of the war, The Coalition had to approach it like it is: a very different beast, ultimately. The stakes are far higher; there are still survivors running around, trapped in their homes, and The Coalition weaves that bleak reality into every pixel of E-Day's presentation and gameplay.
Taking place in the town of Kalona, the levels I experienced are right up there with the most painstakingly detailed urban environments I've experienced this gen. It feels less like it's designed specifically as a gameplay canvas, and more like it's designed to feel lived in. The Coalition absolutely delivered here, while still sneakily dotting the map with chest-high (and now shin-high) walls to hide behind with its dynamic cover system.
A Silent Hill-esque map greets you in some segments. Marcus will literally doodle notes onto the map as you explore, adding side objectives and exploration opportunities as you go. (Image credit: Windows Central | Jez Corden | Xbox)
If you played Gears of War's Siege mode beta, you might already have some idea of what I'm talking about with regard to environmental detail. Car tires puncture and deflate under gunfire, windows shatter, and cover deforms, giving E-Day a sense of life that was missing from the older games.
The town is full of storefronts and interiors, without even a whiff of copy-and-paste. Gears' campaign seems to connect linear segments into wider areas, complete with a mapping tool that was reminiscent of Silent Hill's own. Marcus will sketch notes and routes on the map as you move, which opens up exploration opportunities and side objectives for unlocking weapon mods and equipment for your loadout, as well as lore-enriching collectibles.
It's still unmistakably Gears, complete with a rough prototype chainsaw lancer machine gun, canned execution animations, atop a more dynamic cover system. But it also feels fresh in a way that many franchises struggle with several games deep. I dare say The Coalition cooked here.
A darker, more desperate tone
You can still saw enemies in half, of course. (Image credit: Windows Central | Jez Corden | Xbox)
Gears of War: E-Day is every bit as violent as the previous games, although I feel like we're getting more up close and personal with the reptilian Locust than ever before.
I mentioned stakes in the intro, but there's a keen sense of vulnerability for a C.O.G. that has been caught with its collective pants down — NPCs are seen fleeing the warzone, being gunned down (or worse) in cold blood, as wretches screech through, devouring up the remains.
This first wave of Locust is chaotic and visceral, armed with the ballistic equivalent of axes and clubs intent on murdering anything and everything with a human pulse. The top brass have no idea what's going on. One day, everyone woke up to murderous, hungry monsters writhing out of the ground, and E-Day leans hard into that dark fantasy.
The Locust Horde are not here to give mercy. (Image credit: Windows Central | Jez Corden | Xbox)
Marcus' self-assured stoicism hasn't fully hardened in E-Day; that sense of inexperience is oddly exposing, giving E-Day a tangible sense of vulnerability. The Coalition uses the game's side objectives to tell short stories within the game's world as well, giving you opportunities to see how regular civilians are being slaughtered en masse in the Locust feeding frenzy. It's an extension of the side-objectives system The Coalition seemed to explore a bit in Gears 5, although I'd argue it makes a lot more sense in E-Day's dense urban climbs. It doesn't rely on vehicular traversal, which arguably tripped up the game's pacing a bit in 5, and there are fewer engine limitations on injecting new areas on the fly.
Speaking of the engine, I think Gears of War: E-Day is probably the most visually impressive game I've played so far this gen. The Coalition are without a doubt the masters of Unreal Engine, perhaps surpassing Epic Games itself. The visual density, the lighting quality, the detailing, all while running at 60 FPS in an inexplicably crisp resolution, demand wonder and immersion like few other developers can muster.
The visuals and music delivery make Gears of War: E-Day's darkly cinematic presentation all the more evocative as you scrape through the blood-soaked streets of cities that are undoubtedly in the process of total destruction.
The Coalition takes Gears to the next level with total and complete confidence
Delta Squad is back. (Image credit: Windows Central | Jez Corden | Xbox)
There's little room for hope in Gears of War: E-Day. We all know the conclusion. But for the first time, we're going to experience that hopelessness firsthand.
Right after playing through the E-Day campaign preview, I loaded up the original Gears of War to do a direct comparison. It's easy to forget sometimes just how far we've come in terms of visuals, presentation, gameplay fidelity, and general polish. It's also easy to fill in the blanks with your imagination — that's practically what we had to do back in the day, playing games at 480p.
The Coalition and other developers working on legacy franchises have some of the toughest jobs in the business. How can you deliver experiences that compete with our nostalgia-tinted imagination? How can you exceed expectations that are, in part, misremembered through fragments of fading memories?
The Coalition's answer seems to be: "you have to over-deliver."
If Gears of War: E-Day's full campaign offers the kind of quality I experienced last week throughout — I'm confident it'll not only be remembered as the best entry in the franchise ... Gears: E-Day could also represent the starting point for a new decade of an Xbox dominated by The Coalition.
Gears of War: E-Day drops on October 6, 2026, for Xbox Series X|S and PC exclusively. Experience Emergence Day, when the Locust originally emerged and destroyed Sera's civilization. Guerrilla warfare in destroyed urban environments wrapped in the best visuals this gen has seen yet.
The game is incredibly popular and has amassed a global audience across every platform, landing itself 30 million~ players across its versions. It won the Player's Choice award at last year's Game Awards, and continues to find growth owing to large free content updates.
Unfortunately, though, the Xbox version is broken.
Current state of Wuthering Waves on Xbox#Xbox #WutheringWaves #WuWa pic.twitter.com/7CNhPQMVDYAugust 24, 2026
Wuthering Waves (affectionally nicknamed WuWa by the community) recently got a sizeable content patch, adding new story beats and features to the game. The update has, however, once again put a spotlight on the Xbox version, which seems more broken than ever.
"The situation has worsened as I’ve progressed through the game. I’m currently in Lahai-Roi, and it’s been impossible to play for 40 minutes without the game closing unexpectedly," one user wrote on Reddit. "I play on Xbox Series X, but the same bug persists even on Xbox Cloud Gaming, where high local processing power isn't required. Other players have reported similar issues."
The most recent video showcases new visual glitches introduced in this week's patch, where textures get stretched infinitely across the playspace until the game crashes.
We are still waiting for Wuthering Waves to be fixed on Xbox btw. Waiting two years for an Xbox port and getting worse experience is just sad. Absolutely unacceptable. https://t.co/3zHVBoElObAugust 4, 2026
Users have been tracking Wuthering Waves' lack of quality on Xbox since the game launched, and had hoped it would be improved in subsequent updates. Sadly, things have gotten worse rather than better.
There are theories that Wuthering Waves on Xbox is a port of the iOS and Android version of the game, owing to a lack of shadows, foilage, and other post-processing improvements. The PlayStation 5 version is is far far better looking, far less crash-prone, and generally more performant than the Xbox Series X version. This absolutely shouldn't be the case in a game designed to run on low-end mobile phones.
Wuthering Waves on Xbox is missing foilage, shadows, and other features, leading many to assume that the Xbox version is a bad mobile port. (Image credit: @jianxin501st)
We've reached out to Wuthering Waves' developer Kuro Games via their PR firm to get a comment, but I would be surprised if they offered one up.
If they thought the Xbox audience wasn't worth providing a high-quality port for, I'm confused as to why they bothered spending the money to deliver a port in the first place. Genshin Impact and other HoYoverse gatcha games like Zenless Zone Zero run incredibly well on Xbox. HoYoverse also did dedicated launches for Xbox, complete with bonuses and freebies for new players joining the ranks via Team Green.
Wuthering Waves' treatment of the Xbox audience by comparison has been a sad joke.
There's also some blame to be levied at Microsoft here I would argue. PlayStation demands that developers create visual parity with their multiplatform versions within reason. Xbox's certification processes are also notoriously strict compared to other platforms — what's the point of those apparent strict rules if they allow games like Wuthering Waves to launch in such a lamentable state? It makes Xbox look inferior for one thing, and treats Xbox customers like second class citizens in the other.
Either way, it sucks for Wuthering Waves fans on Xbox that Kuro Games doesn't seem to consider them worthwhile. I would recommend players stick to HoYoverse options instead. Hopefully Honkai Star Rail makes its way across to Xbox in the future too. PerhaHoYoverse' next big games come to Xbox on day one as well, further reducing the need to consider Wuthering Waves as an option.
If Kuro replies, I'll be sure to update this piece, but I wouldn't hold my breath. They don't seem to care about the Xbox version even slightly.
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Recently, the fan-run Xbox Game Preservation website saw a major surge in votes from players who want classic Transformers games playable on modern Xbox consoles via Xbox Backward Compatibility, with at least 58,489 votes. This number makes Transformers the most-requested third-party franchise fans want preserved on Xbox, and the second-most-requested franchise, behind Skylanders, which has over 163,000 votes.
The games that make up the most of this number (with 33,969 votes combined) are Transformers: War for Cybertron, Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, and Transformers: Devastation. All of these are fantastic games in their own right, especially if you're a longtime Transformer fan like me.
Over 58K votes for Transformers games to become XBOX backwards compatible, making it the most-requested third-party franchise.Nearly 27K votes are for just two games: Transformers: War for Cybertron, and Transformers: Fall of Cybertron. https://t.co/TrzQuZjlHnAugust 22, 2026
The War for Cybertron and Fall of Cybertron games (released in 2010 and 2012, respectively) are brilliant third-person shooters with grim yet entertaining campaigns and slick gameplay that mixed Gears of War-style gunplay (without cover mechanics because Transformers don't need cover) with Transformers-style transformation mechanics.
Transformers: Devastation (released in 2015) was an equally fun third-person beat-em-up that took the high-octane insanity of Devil May Cry and Bayonetta and applied it to the Transformers universe with an addictive combat system.
I still own my copies of Transformers: War for Cybertron and Transformers: Fall of Cybertron over a decade later. (Image credit: Windows Central (Alex Cope) | Activision)
Unfortunately, these games have been locked behind the previous Xbox 360 and Xbox One console generations and have not been re-released on modern systems or PC platforms to this day, even after over a decade.
They've also been delisted from digital stores, so the only way to play them (without resorting to piracy) is to track down their physical copies, which are pretty rare these days.
As someone who grew up with Transformers ever since the incredible (and surprisingly dark) Transformers: Beast Wars series in the 1990s, I loved these games for how fun they were and how faithful they were to the source material (which were the palette cleansers after watching those awful Michael Bay live-action Transformers movies).
A limited-edition translucent green Series X console was unveiled earlier this year at the Xbox Showcase as the "Xbox Series X25", planned for release in November with no confirmed pricing, alongside a matching Series X|S wireless controller.
Fans who attended the show were told they'd receive one for free, but regular consumers have been left in the dark until an apparent €899.99 European price and November 27 release were revealed by "billbil-kun" via Dealabs' High-Tech magazine earlier today.
According to the data in our possession, we are able to say that the price of the XBOX Series X25 limited edition console will be €899.99 in France and Europe.
billbil-kun, Dealabs (Translated)
It's connected to a previous rumor that potential pre-orders for the translucent controller could start during Gamescom 2026, but billbil-kun couldn't confirm whether that aligns with listings for the Series X25 console. Interestingly, Black Friday lands on November 27 this year, kicking off the holiday shopping season.
How much will the Series X25 cost in the US?
(Image credit: Xbox)
Right now, a standard Xbox Series X "1TB Disc Drive Carbon Black" on the official Xbox Store costs €799.99 in France and $799.99 in the US. The same currency-symbol switch applies in the same way to the "1TB All-Digital Robot White" at €749.99/$749.99, so it's reasonable to assume that the limited-edition Xbox Series X25 could cost $899.99.
Dealabs rightly assumes the same, with another translation explaining, "the equivalent of this price is expected to be $899.99 in the US," putting what is otherwise a functionally identical Xbox Series X console at $100 above its standard variant for the benefit of its "OG Green" shell and green-tinted light on its power button.
It all follows Microsoft's earlier hardware price hike announcement, which increased the Xbox Series X price from $649.99 to its current $799.99. That $150 increase was already unpopular among Xbox fans, and particularly so with our readers, who voted that "Xbox consoles are too expensive now." If the price leak is true, asking for another $100 will presumably be equally shunned.
Since the start of its 25th-anniversary celebrations, I've been more interested in the translucent green controller. The original console is special to me, but I can't justify spending hundreds of dollars on something like a build-your-own OG Xbox console. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an affordable X25 joypad.
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A buildable recreation of the original Xbox from 2001 is coming from Mattel Brick Shop, technically under the same brand umbrella as the MEGA-branded 3:4 scale Xbox 360 from 2023. Listing the "Microsoft Xbox Building Toy Kit For Collectors" without a firm release date for $329.99 at Best Buy, and even less information at Amazon, the pricey set hides some nostalgic dioramas inside.
Wanna build gaming history? 🎮Get your hands on the Original XBOX Console Collector Building Set from Mattel Brick Shop: https://t.co/LoL6GTj5xm pic.twitter.com/kcBnKNGADUAugust 19, 2026
Alongside the chunky console itself is a close-enough representation of the original "Duke" controller, and three internal displays based on popular titles from the console's lifespan. Miniature set pieces from Halo, Psychonauts, and The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind have built-in lighting that's activated by the Duke joypad and fit comfortably inside this 1:1 set with 3,509 pieces.
Slightly bigger, but a lot more expensive
(Image credit: Mattel | Microsoft)
I'm admittedly the target audience for this sort of thing; a total sucker for nostalgia. I already own LEGO models of the SEGA Mega Drive (Genesis) console and its controller, displayed on shelves alongside other happy memories from my childhood. A full-sized, 1:1 recreation of the gigantic original Xbox wouldn't fit with it, but I'm sure I'd find somewhere else.
This isn't LEGO, though. It's the other brand, and it's asking a lot more money for this more complicated representation of Microsoft's hardware than Mattel's bricked-up Xbox 360 set that launched for $150 — one I already skipped. Asking over $300 for a follow-up toy feels steep, especially when many of us could find the real console on eBay for less.
OH MY GOD that price!I could get a real original Xbox in great condition with those 3 games and way more for much less.
@stok54, X
On the other hand, the cute Morrowind feature appeals to a very specific part of my nostalgic heart, and ditto for Psychonauts. Still, to show off those parts and have them all visible, I'd need some serious display space. At that point, I'd rather buy the dioramas separately and show those off instead of a set that just looks like the real thing from a distance.
It's a neat way to celebrate Xbox's 25th anniversary, but I'm still patiently waiting for that translucent green Series X|S joypad instead. Rumor has it we'll see controller reservations opening at Gamescom for an October 20 release (via @eXtas1stv). Fingers crossed. I only have so much disposable income to burn on nostalgic accessories before my family starts getting concerned.
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Xbox has been on a bit of a tear recently with platform updates, and Microsoft just announced another raft of improvements big and small.
The biggest features recently include boosts to how Xbox Cloud saves work, the ability to record your own voice in gameplay clips, and improvements on Xbox achievement visibility. Announced today on Xbox Wire, we're now getting some other goodies, set to go live later today to Alpha Skip-Ahead and Alpha members.
Some solid improvements here, methinks. (Image credit: Microsoft)
Users can now customize any item in the recent games and apps list.
Using the Menu button (start button) you can remove items from the list of recents apps and games, including the "Play History" segment which some don't find as useful as others. I personally like it, but understand those who don't.
You can also hide all the home screen tiles by pressing the right stick, leaving your dynamic background to take center stage on your TV.
This is a fun cosmetic change I've seen people ask for. Xbox has a range of dynamic backgrounds which are hidden by the tiles and ads on the home screen. If you want to show off your dynamic background and turn your wall-mounted TV into an interactive work of art, now you can, simply by pressing the right stick. Would be cool if they could add slideshows to this in the future too. A connected OneDrive photos album might be rad.
Improvements to local game storage management.
Microsoft is now letting you manage local game saves more easily, giving you the ability to sort save files by size. For those using smaller storage solutions, sometimes games can take up deceptively large amounts of space. In the new Settings > System > Storage > Manage Local Game Saves section, you can now see all of your local saves in one place, and delete them at will.
If you eventually want to play the game again, Xbox will download your most recent save file from the cloud instead, saving you local storage. Xbox Cloud saves are free by the way, unlike many other platforms.
Xbox profile badges are getting some beefy improvements. (Image credit: Xbox)
You can now click into profile badges, giving users an explanation of what they represent.
Xbox profile badges are getting a big improvement. You can now click on a user's profile badge to see an explanation of what the badge represents.
Part of me is wondering whether this change is designed to facilitate Xbox's future "Platinum" trophies. I wouldn't be surprised if the reward for 100%'ing an Xbox game's achievements comes not with a "platinum" trophy, but instead a custom badge you can place on your profile instead. It would give developers an extra way to let their biggest fans show off some flair for their games, but we'll have to wait and see on that.
More wishlist improvements.
Wishlisting games has become a major part of the industry's marketing layer, with Steam wishlists becoming a cornerstone for financial projections on how well a game is likely to perform. Microsoft is also trying to ride this wave, adding a variety of improvements and visibility options for its own wishlisting system.
Now, purchased games will automatically be removed from your wishlist for example, which I think is a good change considering how often I've fallen afoul of this one.
I think Microsoft could/should do more to surface wishlisting features on the web, and I'm sure they're working on doing more in this space.
More goodies
The Xbox Insider Program has been pretty boring the last few years, with Microsoft's engineering teams focusing primarily on features like Xbox Cloud Gaming and things beyond Xbox Series X|S. With Xbox CEO Asha Sharma coming on board, the focus has returned to the core user base (namely us), delivering many long-awaited improvements a lot of us have been asking for for over a decade in some cases.
Microsoft says this update will hit Xbox Insiders on the Alpha Skip Ahead and Alpha rings today, with other updates arriving for all users as well more quickly.
If you want to leave feedback for the Xbox Series X|S OS, you should check out the Xbox Feedback Portal over here.
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Back in August 2015, Microsoft was working to link console, PC, and mobile gaming into a single network. Coverage at the time framed this "games everywhere" approach as a major shift, with Windows, ironically, serving as the central hub to keep game libraries synced across devices. Phil Spencer was early in his tenure, working through the fallout of the Xbox One's rocky launch and its controversial DRM policies. Industry observers remained skeptical, and players questioned whether Microsoft could actually pull off cross-platform play and cloud integration.
The original questions around brand identity and hardware relevance haven't gone away, but their context has completely changed. Looking back at this 2015 report shows that the foundation for today's strategy was already being built, even if the execution took over a decade to solidify (if you can even call it that). — Daniel Rubino, Editor-in-Chief.
The original article below, "The future of Xbox is bright, and it's everywhere," was published on August 13th, 2015, by Richard Devine.
Gamescom 2015 was a blast for Xbox fans. Just as E3 was before it. Microsoft keeps floating the phrase, "the best games line up in Xbox history," and it's probably true. After a flaky launch for the Xbox One by anyone's standards, under Phil Spencer's stewardship things are going in the right direction.
And that direction is out. Xbox is finally becoming something bigger than the box that sits under your television. Gaming is important to Microsoft, and Xbox is its brand. Everywhere.
There have been smatterings of it outside the console for a while, like Xbox Live Achievement support for Windows 8 and Windows Phone games, and the now revoked Xbox branding for Microsoft's music and video services. With the removal of the latter, Xbox is now exactly what it should be for Microsoft. It's all about the games.
The big push really began in January when Spencer appeared at Microsoft's big Windows 10 event. It was the launch of Xbox on Windows 10 and while it all sounded grand, as the months have passed the vision has become so much clearer. Phones, tablets, PCs, consoles, HoloLens, Xbox is going to be everywhere. Cross-buy, cross-play and game streaming are but the beginning.
Take this quote from Spencer in a recent interview with Polygon as an example:
"I think when we look back on Xbox five years from now or so, I think Windows itself will be a critical component to the success I think we can realize of Xbox itself — and gaming will be a critical component of the success of Windows. I really believe that. When we say 'putting gamers at the center,' that's different than putting a piece of plastic or a specific device at the center."
Our recent trip to Cologne for Gamescom helped further put this into perspective. The vast space that was the Xbox booth was lined with both consoles and Windows 10 side-by-side. Windows wasn't shoved away in a corner; it was right there alongside the biggest new titles Microsoft had to show. Games like Fable Legends and Gigantic played together on both platforms. The only difference, your preference for a controller or keyboard and mouse.
Windows 10 is a big step forward for Microsoft in so many spaces. It's allowing the company to do things that it, nor anyone else has done before. Sure, Sony has dabbled with game streaming, but unless you own a PlayStation and at least one other Sony product, it's useless. How many more people already have what they need to stream Xbox One games? A Windows PC. Sony can't boast what Microsoft is able to do with its games on Windows 10. No-one can.
It's also going to become, I believe, less important to focus on how many consoles Microsoft sells versus Sony. And that's because of the platform. In the same way that a smartphone is a way to deliver Microsoft services to your pocket, the Xbox One will be a way to deliver Xbox to your living room. With Xbox as the games platform available here and on hundreds of millions of Windows 10 PCs around the world, who really gets the bigger marketshare?
And let's not forget that as of Windows 10, official Xbox peripherals, including the forthcoming Elite Controller, are compatible out of the box. Just plug 'em in and away you go.
We're only at the beginning. There's so much to look forward to that we do and don't know about. The new Xbox One experience powered by Windows 10, cross-play games like Gigantic, Fable Legends and Killer Instinct, not to mention Halo Wars 2 in 2016. Engineers have told us that yes, they'd love to reverse the Xbox One game streaming feature, but whether it happens or not is still an open question. The Xbox app on Windows 10 will get better every month and we've got things like Crackdown 3, leveraging the power of the Microsoft cloud, to look forward to.
To sum up, I heard this phrase while at Gamescom that I think says everything. What if you could imagine a future where there weren't Xbox One games and Windows games, there were just Xbox games.
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Connexion
