game pass

Pac‑Man’s 45th anniversary is getting a proper party: Bandai Namco’s year‑long “Make imPACt” campaign has been joined this weekend by an Xbox Free Play Days spotlight that lets Game Pass members jump into three Pac‑Man titles for free while limited‑time discounts make ownership tempting...

Microsoft’s new handheld-first layer for Windows 11 — the full‑screen, Xbox‑centric “home app” experience shown on the ROG Xbox Ally family at Gamescom — is the clearest signal yet that Redmond intends to stop treating handheld gaming as an afterthought and start treating it as a first-class...

ASUS and Microsoft have locked in October 16, 2025 as the global ship date for the ROG Xbox Ally family — two Windows‑based, controller‑first handhelds (the ROG Xbox Ally and the higher‑end ROG Xbox Ally X) that promise a full‑screen Xbox experience on a compact, purpose‑built chassis...

Microsoft and ASUS’ ROG Xbox Ally gives the clearest look yet at what a purpose‑built, console‑inspired Windows gaming UI feels like on a handheld — a full‑screen Xbox experience that boots into a game‑first shell, ties deeply into Game Pass and Xbox services, and pairs with ASUS’ Armoury Crate...

Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming service is officially being discussed as a candidate for a lower‑cost, more widely available tier — possibly ad‑supported — even as Microsoft simultaneously pushes forward on next‑generation hardware, AI features, and a deeper partnership with AMD that will shape...

Microsoft’s Xbox cloud ambitions appear to be entering a new phase: executives are publicly acknowledging that many subscribers use Xbox Cloud Gaming primarily for streaming, and Microsoft is actively exploring a lower-cost, cloud-only entry point that would decouple xCloud access from the full...

Microsoft has begun rolling out an Insider-stage update to the Xbox PC app that finally lets eligible Arm‑based Windows 11 PCs download and run selected PC titles locally instead of being restricted to cloud streaming — a practical, incremental shift that ties new Xbox app behavior to deeper...

Carl Ledbetter’s short, reflective note about the Xbox Series X and Series S is less a farewell than a bookmark: an acknowledgment that one clearly defined hardware era is closing even as Microsoft’s ambition to expand “what Xbox means” accelerates into new form factors and a Windows‑centric...

Microsoft confirmed that five titles will leave Xbox Game Pass at the end of August, with Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition and Sea of Stars among the most notable removals — players have until August 31 to finish, download, or buy these games before they disappear from the service. Background Xbox...

Microsoft’s Windows 11 reveal marked a clear stylistic and strategic pivot: a softer, more mobile‑friendly desktop that folds touch, cloud, and cross‑platform access into the classic PC ecosystem, anchored by a redesigned, centered taskbar and an app store renewed with developer‑friendly...

Microsoft has quietly unlocked one of the most consequential features Windows on Arm owners have been waiting for: the Xbox PC app can now — in preview — download and run compatible games locally on Arm-based Windows 11 devices. Background Windows on Arm has long been pitched as the...

The current surge in PC-style gaming handhelds looks strikingly familiar: a democratic, low-cost champion (Valve’s Steam Deck) sparks a boom, long-established OEMs pile in with premium alternatives, and suddenly the market is crowded with devices trying to one-up each other on raw performance...

Microsoft is starting a staged Insider preview that finally lets some Windows on Arm systems download and run compatible games locally from the Xbox PC app — a practical, incremental shift away from the cloud-only model that has dominated Arm-powered Surface and Snapdragon devices until now...

Microsoft’s Xbox PC app is beginning to let Windows on Arm devices do something they’ve long been denied: download and run select PC games locally instead of being forced to stream everything from Xbox Cloud Gaming — a staged Insider preview that signals a practical shift in Microsoft’s approach...

Microsoft’s surprise removal of a briefly live Amazon product page for the Asus ROG Xbox Ally has ratcheted up the heat on one of this year’s most talked-about handhelds, and the incident offers a revealing snapshot of how leaks, retailer metadata, and platform partnerships now shape major...

Microsoft’s Xbox app is shedding a major limitation for Arm-powered Windows PCs: Insiders can now download and run selected ARM64-compatible games locally, moving Windows on Arm from “cloud-only” convenience closer to legitimate local gaming capability for the first time in years. Background...

Microsoft’s latest move to let Arm-based Windows machines download and run compatible PC games locally marks a meaningful shift for Windows on Arm gaming — not a revolution, but an important, practical step that widens the gap between cloud-only play and a genuinely usable native gaming...

Microsoft has begun rolling out an update that expands the Xbox PC app’s functionality on Arm®-based Windows 11 PCs — most notably adding support for game downloads and local play from the Xbox PC catalog to eligible Arm laptops and handhelds — a shift that marks the most tangible step yet...

Microsoft is rolling out a targeted update that begins to change how the Xbox PC app behaves on Arm®-based Windows 11 devices, and for the first time Microsoft is letting Insiders download and run more PC titles locally on ARM hardware rather than relying solely on cloud streaming. This shift —...

Arkane Studios’ Lyon-based union has publicly joined calls for Microsoft to sever ties with the Israeli military, putting one of the games industry’s most respected studios at the center of a widening debate about cloud providers, AI, corporate responsibility, and the ethics of doing business in...