#Xbox

Xbox Wire's Next Week on Xbox for September 14 to 18 locks dates for TCG Card Shop Simulator 1.0, RuneScape: Dragonwilds, ENDLESS Legend 2, NASCAR 26, Aniimo, Two Point Hospital, Dune Awakening Deluxe, Walking Dead: Streets of Survival and EA SPORTS FC 27 Ultimate Edition.

Microsoft's weekend Free Play Days promotion on Xbox runs September 10-13 with Borderlands 4, F1 25 2026 Season Edition, Surviving Mars: Relaunched, CarX Drift Racing Online and Dustborn for Game Pass members, plus Madden NFL 27 free for all Xbox players.

World's Edge, Forgotten Empires and Tantalus Media have launched The Baltic Powers, the new Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition expansion that adds the Danes and the Poles as playable civilizations, more than 25 new maps, the Independence and Regicide game modes and over 50 hero cosmetics.

PlayStation Studios says it has ended its collaboration with KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS on the action-espionage game PHYSINT, with Xbox announcing moments later that it will now publish the Hideo Kojima-led project alongside OD.

Playground Games has told PlayStation 5 owners that Forza Horizon 6 is still on track to release on Sony's console later this year, repeating the same wording in its latest British Automotive blog post despite earlier reports that the port had slipped into 2027.

Five months after announcing the live-service shooter's retirement, MY.GAMES has shut down Hawked's console servers on PlayStation and Xbox. The game is now completely unplayable across all platforms.

Playground Games flips the switch on Drift Attack today, permanently turning Forza Horizon 6's Shimanoyama Circuit into a seamless Shared World drift arena. The 1990 Jaguar XJ-S Forza Edition headlines the rewards, and a British Automotive celebration follows on September 10.

NBA 2K27 from Visual Concepts and 2K is live worldwide on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam and Nintendo Switch 2. The Standard ($69.99), Deluxe ($99.99) and limited Ultra ($149.99) editions feature Victor Wembanyama, Caitlin Clark and Derrick Rose, with co-op MyCAREER and a built from ProPLAY engine refresh headlining the launch.

Microsoft is ending unlimited Xbox Cloud Gaming for Game Pass subscribers in November, replacing it with tiered monthly hour caps and a new pay-as-you-go option for players without a subscription.

Microsoft has locked in nine titles for Xbox Game Pass in September 2026, with Shelldiver launching today and Moonlighter 2, SpeedRunners 2, Dice a Million, Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage, RuneScape: Dragonwilds, Dune: Awakening, Well Dweller, and Minecraft Dungeons 2 following through the month.

Microsoft's long-rumored disc-to-digital entitlement program goes live for Xbox Insiders on August 31, letting supported Xbox One and Xbox Series X discs unlock a permanent digital license, Play Anywhere access, and cloud streaming without surrendering the physical disc.

According to a Eurogamer Spain Gamescom podcast, Sony is weighing a one- to two-year delay to its January 2028 digital-only cutoff after publishers raised concerns that Microsoft's next console, codenamed Project Helix, could pull disc-favoring players and major third-party support away from PlayStation.

Playground Games explains how Fable’s combat blends melee, ranged and magic into a single “style-weaving” system, with an uninterrupted gameplay demo and a February 23, 2027 PS5 launch.

Microsoft has officially confirmed its Xbox Disc-to-Digital feature: Xbox Insiders can insert supported Xbox One or Xbox Series X discs on August 31 to claim a digital entitlement that unlocks Xbox Play Anywhere and Cloud Gaming, while the physical disc keeps working as before.

Marvel Rivals opened the limited-time Infinity Saga store tab today at 02:00 UTC, bundling every previously released MCU costume with a free 20 percent Encore Coupon for players through September 11.

Xbox Wire has confirmed this weekend's Free Play Days lineup: Modern Warfare 4 Open Beta access for all, plus Control Ultimate Edition, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, ARK: Survival Ascended and Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker free through Sunday, August 30.

Asha Sharma tells the BBC that rising component costs driven by AI demand are reshaping how Microsoft will build Project Helix, while a new disc-to-digital entitlement feature gives 1,000 physical Xbox games a digital future on consoles that may or may not include a disc drive.

IKEA and Xbox have officially unveiled YXSTABY, a nine-piece gaming-inspired furniture and accessories collection co-designed by both teams and built to blend gaming gear back into the home. The collection was announced at Gamescom 2026 and ships in IKEA stores and online from October 1, 2026.

Microsoft has opened pre-orders for the Designed for Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection, a translucent-green hardware lineup from Razer, 8BitDo, Backbone, PowerA and GameSir that revives the look of the original 2001 console to mark 25 years of Xbox.

Asus has quietly opened standalone pre-orders for the 20th anniversary ROG Xbox Ally X20, letting players buy the OLED handheld without the AR bundle. Best Buy and Asus are taking orders now, with units shipping on October 15.

Xbox has stopped tagging PS5 and Switch 2 in a new Minecraft Dungeons 2 trailer, while a fresh Sony ad rebrands Marvel's Wolverine, Ghost of Yotei and more as PS5-only. PushSquare and IGN read the shift as both console makers doubling down on exclusivity messaging.

Microsoft has rolled out a fresh cluster of official Xbox 25th-anniversary celebrations: a new Xbox Gear merchandise store opening today, community-made gamerpics and themes, a free 25th-anniversary profile badge, curated Game Pass anniversary collections, and the full international FanFest tour schedule through November.

Moon Studios CEO and Ori series creator Thomas Mahler has publicly denied rumours that a third Ori game is in development at Xbox, even as reports suggested a surprise Gamescom 2026 reveal.

Fuse Games and GameSpot have premiered an exclusive Star Wars: Galactic Racer multiplayer overview trailer, breaking down the Multiplayer Tour and Podracing Tour modes ahead of the racer's October 6 release on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.

Konami has put a concrete number on the Silent Hill: Townfall console exclusivity, stating the PS5 version will not arrive on other consoles for at least six months after its September 24, 2026 release.

Tim Schafer has confirmed that Double Fine has fully transitioned out of Microsoft ownership and now earns all revenue from sales of Psychonauts 2, Keeper and its other Xbox-era titles, while announcing an Amnesia Fortnight 2026 Kickstarter campaign that will let backers pick the studio's next small game.

Dealabs leaks put the translucent OG Green Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition at €899.99 in Europe, with billbil-kun pointing to a US figure of $899.99 and a November 27 launch on Black Friday. Microsoft still has not announced official pricing.

CEO Guillaume Provost confirms a management buyout is complete, returning ownership of the studio's three games to Compulsion and ending months of speculation that began when Microsoft announced it would divest five Xbox studios.

IO Interactive confirms 007 First Light has sold more than 4 million copies in three months, ranking it among the biggest 2026 releases so far while a Switch 2 version is still in development.

Rare's August 2026 update for Sea of Thieves is live on PS5, Xbox and PC, introducing Custom Seas toggles, a friendly Blunderbuss perk, fresh cosmetics and new Live Events as part of the free update roadmap.

Xbox Insiders are testing new console options for cleaning up Home, managing unused local game saves, exploring profile badges and automatically removing purchased games from wishlists.

Xbox has confirmed its second August 2026 Game Pass wave, with Egging On available today and day-one launches for Vapor World: Over the Mind, Blood Dungeon and Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy. The Xbox Wire announcement also flags titles leaving the service on August 31 and September 6.

Xbox and PlayStation now compete as complete ecosystems. Here are the main advantages, drawbacks, and future outlook for both platforms in 2026.

Warner Bros. Discovery has officially confirmed that a second Hogwarts Legacy game is in development, but release details and platforms remain unknown.

Gamescom 2026 hasn't even started yet, but the world's biggest gaming event is already setting new milestones. Exhibition space is fully booked for the first time, major publishers are heading to Cologne, Saturday tickets are disappearing fast, and Games Done Quick is joining the show with a dedicated event.

Physical game collections could soon become a relic of the past. As publishers increasingly embrace digital-only releases, players are facing uncomfortable questions about ownership, preservation and what happens to their libraries when storefronts disappear.