Xbox Game Pass Core has been announced by Microsoft as a replacement for the most basic tier of Xbox Live Gold membership, which will be happening on September 14th.

Xbox Live Gold has been around for about 20 years now, but with Xbox Game Pass Core you will get a collection of over 25 games for the cost of £6.99 a month, or £49.99 per year. If you’re a current XBLG member, you don’t actually need to do anything if you’re happy with the service going forwards, as it’ll automatically update at launch to reflect the new membership name and status.

Here’s the list of games that will be part of Xbox Game Pass Core. Note that the Xbox team says there will be new titles added two to three times a year.

• Among Us
• Descenders
• Dishonored 2
• Doom Eternal
• Fable Anniversary
• Fallout 4
• Fallout 76
• Forza Horizon 4
• Gears 5
• Grounded
• Halo 5: Guardians
• Halo Wars 2
• Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
• Human Fall Flat
• Inside
• Ori & The Will of the Wisps
• Psychonauts 2
• State of Decay 2
• The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited

There are four plans, total, as per the image below.

Jerret West, CVP, Gaming Marketing explained on the official blog post, and said: “Thank you to everyone who has been with us since the early days, joined along the way with friends, and now with us in Xbox Game Pass. I’m proud and humbled by the stories we hear about online teammates becoming real-life friends after years playing, or even marriages whose initial spark was ignited in a pre-match lobby. We can’t wait to hear more from the community when it launches on September 14, and we’ll see you online!”.

Here’s some quick bullet points for you:

• On September 14, Xbox Live Gold members will automatically become Game Pass Core members, with no change in pricing, and have immediate access to a new library of over 25 high-quality games.
• Member deals & discounts will also be part of Game Pass Core.
• Games with Gold will come to an end on September 1.
• Players can continue to access any Xbox One games they previously redeemed through Games with Gold if they remain a Game Pass Core or Game Pass Ultimate member.
• Regardless of subscription status, any Xbox 360 titles redeemed via Games with Gold in the past will be kept in a player’s library.

The post Xbox Game Pass Core announced, replaces Xbox Live Gold appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Xbox has today announced a new platform-wide, reactive voice reporting feature to Xbox Insiders that starts this week. The new feature will give players the option to capture and report inappropriate in-game voice chats, meaning Xbox is ramping up its safety features with the innovative feature.

The reactive voice reporting feature for Xbox allows players to capture 60-second video clips of an in-game voice incident which they believe violates the Community Standards, then submit it as evidence to the Xbox Safety Team for review. This will then be evaluating to see if a policy violation has taken place. The whole process minimises disruption to play, as the clip stays on a player’s console for 24 online hours.

This means a player can hold off reporting until after their session or until they’re ready. Of course, it can still be sent immediately, but the option provides flexibility. Xbox will also send a report to the player who haven’t sent a grievance within the 24-hour period. If the choice is made not to report, the clip will be erased from the console immediately.

“As a woman online, I often find myself staying silent in online multiplayer to avoid abuse and harassment,” said CamicaziBoss, an Xbox Ambassador. “I am excited for features like this that can help give people like me their voices back. Nobody should miss out on interaction with their fellow gamers because they are afraid to speak.”

The feature was built following on from extensive research and feedback from the player community. It will first be issued to Xbox Insiders before going out to the console player base in English-language speaking markets like the US, Great Britain, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia. Xbox is also testing and exploring additional languages.

The reactive voice reporting feature is detailed in much more detail on the Xbox Wire blog, which you can read here.

The post Xbox announce reactive voice reporting feature, starting next week appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Developer Frame Break has announced the launch window for Lightyear Frontier via the Xbox Games Showcase Extended, and also revealed a new trailer featuring multiplayer gameplay.

So let’s not keep it a secret any more, as Lightyear Frontier will hit early access in early 2024 on Xbox Series S|X, and on PC. That might be a bit later than most people would have hoped, or expected, especially those of us who love titles like Astroneer, but better that the game is good, right?

Lightyear Frontier offers budding exofarmers a peaceful opportunity to explore a strange and beautiful new planet, setting down a homestead and building a successful farm as they live in harmony with the environment. The world will live and respond to players’ actions as up to four can cohabit on the same planet, roaming around in fully customisable mechs, building and exploring together. Exofarmers must learn to coexist with the planet, uncover ancient secrets and develop a successful farm as they build the homestead of their dreams in their small corner of the galaxy.

• Play alone or with friends – As they say, many hands make light work! Exofarmers can play solo or with up to 3 friends online, discovering the interplanetary neighbourhood and befriending their off-planet neighbours. Lightyear Frontier will also support cross-play between console and PC, bringing more opportunities to work with other players
• Build and farm in this new world – Set down a homestead and build it up with a number of unique structures. Exofarmers can team up with friends to help nurture a prosperous farm, protecting crops from various hazards for an abundant harvest.
• Explore a vast new planet – The Frontier is full of landmarks and mysteries, complete with various biomes to discover and ruins to explore, solo or with a full expedition party
• Live in harmony with the Frontier – Gather and grow resources, for crafting and sharing with other players or trading with the Merchant, while carefully managing the natural ecosystem to create a sustainable lifestyle
• Make your Mech your own – Exofarmers can customise and upgrade their mech with an assortment of unique upgrades and components, both functional and cosmetic, allowing everyone to express their unique style across the galaxy

Lightyear Frontier has been a while coming now, as we actually had a hands-off preview of the game ahead of last year’s Xbox Showcase, where Lyle said that it “has all the makings of a fantastic co-op game, with elements of crafting, survival and farming all while riding around in a massive metal robot. I can’t wait to explore the alien world and find out more about the mysterious narrative next year, and who knows – we may even end up talking about it in the Best Multiplayer category of the GOTY podcasts in 2023″.

Lightyear Frontier is hitting PC and Xbox early access/preview program in early 2024.

The post Lightyear Frontier launch window announced, new trailer shows off multiplayer appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Ahead of the Xbox Games Showcase for Summer 2023, Microsoft’s Aaron Greenberg has been fielding a few questions about the event, and has revealed some information that really does make it sound like it’s going to be a tremendous show.

Around a week from now we’ll all be sat watching the Xbox Games Showcase, and one of Greenberg’s followers suggested they wanted gameplay of announced titles, and CGI for unannounced games, to which he replied: “None of our first party games in the show are full CG trailers. Everything is either in-game footage, in-engine footage, or in-game footage with some cinematics. Each of our trailers will be labelled so it is hopefully clear for our fans”.

This is perhaps a response to fans becoming tired of seeing CGI trailers that don’t represent the gameplay of so many titles, especially when they’re announced years ahead of release dates, which often slip even later, as well. On top of that, we now know it’ll be a long show, too, with Greenberg saying “Roughly two hours of non stop games, games, games, games, and Starfield!”.

Greenberg was also asked if it will be like last year, where Xbox said the games were all coming in the next twelve months, to which he said that won’t be the case, simply replying “no”. This, again, is likely a reaction to other titles that were shown in the Xbox Games Showcase last time, including the likes of Hollow Knight: Silksong, which in the end didn’t ship within the twelve months that was suggested. He also confirmed that “there will be no movie or TV show trailers in our games show”.

The showcase is scheduled to happen on Sunday 11th June, with the Starfield Direct happening straight afterwards. Microsoft has said that both the Xbox Games Showcase and Starfield Direct will be available on the company’s Twitch, YouTube, Twitch ASL, and Facebook channels, and the main show is set to include “news and updates about games coming to Xbox, PC, and Cloud Gaming”. For those in a different time-zone to us, here’s the full list in your region:

• PT: June 11, 10am
• ET: June 11, 1pm
• BST: June 11, 6pm
• CET: June 11, 7pm
• JST: June 12, 4am
• AEST: June 12, 5am

The show will be available in over 30 languages, including American Sign Language, British Sign Language, and English Audio Descriptions. The Starfield Direct will have “tons of gameplay, developer interviews” and behind-the-scenes footage, too.

The post Xbox Games Showcase will feature no “full CG trailers” appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

NACON has taken the opportunity to reveal the EVOL-X, a brand new licensed Xbox controller, during Bigben Week 2023.

The EVOL-X is Microsoft-certified, as you’d expect, and is designed to be “easy to use, comfortable and durable, it is ideal for players looking for a heavy-duty, high-performing controller”, according to NACON. The new controller is also available in six colours (white, black, silver, transparent with LEDs, metallic blue, metallic red) and will retail for €34.99 when it’s released in September 2023.

Here’s the feature list:

• Four vibration motors (two in the triggers and two in the grips) so players can feel the
  game’s sensations right in their hands
• Wired USB connection with 3m detachable cable for playing at a comfortable distance from
  the screen
• A reinforced 3.5mm jack for optimal durability
• A non-slip surface for optimal grip and comfort during long gaming sessions
• Larger action buttons to increase ease of use and comfort
• Concave stick heads to fit thumbs and improve handling

NACON says that part of this new EVOL-X is building on what the company has done with the Revolution X (a premium controller released in 2021 that’s more like an Elite or DualSense Edge style controller, with back paddles, etc), and that “the EVOL-X offers everything gamers need in a controller for an affordable price”.

We’re actually having a look at some of NACON’s peripherals right now, so stay tuned for the full reviews of them, but I will say out of the gate that the RIG 800 Pro headset is already very impressive on PC, with the Dolby Atmos ability, but also thanks to how comfortable the thing is. We’ll be looking at that, the Revolution X, and one of NACON’s fightsticks, pretty soon.

If you’re wondering why it was announced during Bigben week, well that’s because NACON was founded in 2019 as part of the Bigben group, and the NACON brand is used for games as well as peripherals.

The post New licensed Xbox controller, EVOL-X announced by NACON appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Microsoft has confirmed the date and time for its Summer Xbox Games Showcase 2023, and re-confirmed the Starfield Direct, too.

The main Xbox Games Showcase will take place on Sunday, June 11th at 6pm (UK BST), again offering a UK-friendly time for its reveals. But as previously announced, the Starfield Direct (a showcase that is dedicated to Starfield, and Starfield alone) will air immediately after the main showcase. The main show will feature surprises and first-looks at Microsoft’s first-party studios, but also from third-party partners, too.

Microsoft has said that both the Xbox Games Showcase and Starfield Direct will be available on the company’s Twitch, YouTube, Twitch ASL, and Facebook channels, and the main show is set to include “news and updates about games coming to Xbox, PC, and Cloud Gaming”. For those in a different time-zone to us, here’s the full list in your region:

• PT: June 11, 10am
• ET: June 11, 1pm
• BST: June 11, 6pm
• CET: June 11, 7pm
• JST: June 12, 4am
• AEST: June 12, 5am

The show will be available in over 30 languages, including American Sign Language, British Sign Language, and English Audio Descriptions. The Starfield Direct will have “tons of gameplay, developer interviews” and behind-the-scenes footage, too.

On top of that, on June 13th there will be an extended showcase, which offers “a follow-up deep-dive show with interviews focused on the news from our Xbox Games Showcase and other updates from our partners”. Lastly, Xbox says “Our virtual and in-person FanFest events are also returning this year, with opportunities to watch our broadcast with local fans in Los Angeles, Mexico City, São Paulo, Melbourne, and Warsaw”.

The post Xbox confirms Summer Showcase will air same day as Starfield Direct appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Microsoft has announced a new friend referral program for its flagship service, Game Pass, with a view to getting friends playing together.

Rasmus Mortensen, Senior Marketing Manager, Xbox said that “We know that gaming is best with friends, so today, we’re introducing the Xbox Game Pass Friend Referral offer, which lets Ultimate and PC members give up to five friends a free 14-day PC Game Pass trial. Invited friends must be new to Game Pass to redeem the free trial”.

So this means essentially if you have a subscription to the service already, you can gift a two week trial to your friends, simply by going to the service Home Screen and finding the friend referral invitations button which says “Give PC Game Pass”.

At the moment, Xbox is keen to stress that there are benefits aside the day one releases for first party titles (Forza Horizon 5, or released today: Redfall), such as XP boosts and champions in Valorant, Teamfight Tactics, and Legends of Runeterra. Of course it also includes EA Play meaning you can trial most brand new EA titles for ten hours, or for a set period before buying them.

Mortensen added “The free trial comes with all the benefits… including new titles from Xbox Game Studios on day one, an EA Play membership, and you can check out the biggest PC and mobile games on PC from Riot Games.

This also means that starting today, you can share PC Game Pass with more friends and jump right into Redfall on day one. For new members checking out the service, the best place to get started is with the Xbox app on PC. With the Xbox app you can browse games, play PC titles, and connect and chat with friends on devices”.

The post Xbox Game Pass now has a “Friend Referral” program for PC appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

It’s maybe a little later than expected, but the Redfall preload is now available for PC players using the Windows Store, as well as Xbox Series S|X users. While the original Redfall preload was the standard placeholder and took up merely 10mb of space, the game is now downloadable, so you can be ready to start the second it’s available on Tuesday, May 2nd, when it’s released on PC for Steam and Windows Store, as well as Xbox via Game Pass.

How big is the Redfall preload, then?

If you’re looking to use your Game Pass Ultimate subscription, the PC, or rather Windows Store version is a fairly hefty 95gb in size, or specifically, 94.3gb. On Xbox Series X the download is 86gb, plus the 10mb Vampire Hunter Pack, and the 10mb Bite Back Edition content. Interestingly, when actually downloading it on Series X, it says it’s 77.31gb, and not the 86gb the store says it is.

We previewed the game a while ago, where I called it a “serious game of the year contender”. You can check out our video preview, below:

In our preview, I said “There are so many questions I have about Redfall after playing it. I didn’t get a sense of scale for how big or long the game might be, I didn’t get chance to try co-op and see how well everything links up, and I only managed to try out Layla (and Jacob really does look awesome). But now I can firmly say I know what kind of game it is, and Arkane continues to be one of the developers in the industry that have my trust, and I’d be stunned if it didn’t end up being a serious game of the year contender. Is it May yet?”.

Redfall is coming to Xbox Series S|X and PC on May 2nd, 2023.

The post Redfall preload is now available on PC and Xbox appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Ubisoft has announced that the long-awaited arrival of Ubisoft Plus on Xbox Series S|X and Xbox One is here, with the service launching today, bringing together a lot of the different Ubisoft services, technically via one single subscription, sort of.

First of all, let’s explain: Ubisoft Plus on Xbox means you can get the latest Ubisoft-published titles (including DLC, and classic games) to Xbox platforms, as well as a ten percent discount on anything you spend on in-game currencies. That said, this is not part of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate in the same way that EA’s plan is. If you do subscribe you’ll need to link your Xbox account to Ubisoft Plus Multi Access, and then you’ll get access to the premium or special editions of games when they come out.

“Partnering with Xbox to launch Ubisoft Plus Multi Access on Xbox consoles enhances our subscription offering to provide more value and choice to our players”, said Chris Early, Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Business Development at Ubisoft. “Xbox console players can now have unbridled access to discover our worlds through Ubisoft’s extensive game library”.

“Like us, Ubisoft strives to bring more games to more people, and today we’re accelerating that effort together”, said Sarah Bond, Corporate Vice President of Creator Experience and Ecosystem at Microsoft. “By launching Ubisoft+ on Xbox, we’re presenting Xbox console players another vibrant catalogue to explore by subscription”.

The base price for Ubisoft Plus Multi Access is £12.99 a month, which will get you games like Far Cry 6 or Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and the option to play on PC, Cloud, or console. You can check out the full list of titles, which includes The Division 2, Anno 1800, Riders Republic, and more than 100 titles total on the official site, here.

The post Ubisoft Plus is now available on Xbox Series S|X and Xbox One appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Microsoft has promised to show off the “ultra-limited handcrafted tartan-covered” Xbox Controller as part of the Tartan exhibition opening on April 1st, which has also inspired a full fashion collection created by Gordon Nicolson Kiltmakers.

It’s already been a very busy week Xbox Controller wise, as we’ve just had the announcement of the red and blue colours Elite Series 2s, and even an officially licensed Thrustmaster made Forza Horizon 5 Xbox Controller. And, on top of that, this isn’t even the only “wearable” gaming news today, as we’ve also had the announcement of a Death Stranding clothing line. Phew!

The controller was originally revealed nearly a year ago, via the video you can see below:

Anyway, the V&A Dundee’s Tartan Exhibition is running until January 2024, and presents a radical new look at a globally recognised design and brings together many different voices from around the world”, says Xbox. The press release explains that “more than 300 objects illustrate tartan’s universal and enduring appeal with examples of fashion, architecture, graphic and product design, photography, furniture, glass and ceramics, film, performance and art”, and of course, that includes Xbox, who’ve partnered with Gordon Nicolson Kiltmakers (as mentioned above) as well as weavers, Lochcarron.

This design is an innovative example of weaving, using only single green, white and black threads to create a digital pixelated effect for the tartan sett which echoes the internationally famous shades used for the Xbox console, controllers, and logo since its inception.

Following Xbox’s first collaboration with Gordon Nicolson Kiltmakers in 2022, which produced the ultra-limited handmade controller, the partnership has expanded to include the official Xbox tartan through an Xbox Tartan Edit. It features a range of fashion, lifestyle, home accessories and limited made-to-order kilts, trews and waistcoats are all available exclusively at Gordon Nicolson Kiltmakers website.

Gordon Nicolson, Lead Product Developer & Tartan Designer explained: “I was honoured to be asked to design a tartan for such an iconic brand, the tartan was technically challenging as it required a very small sett so that it could be seen on the controller.”

Graeme Boyd, Xbox EMEA Social Media Marketing Manager added, ”

“We are so pleased that we can continue to celebrate Scotland’s heritage in a fun, authentic way with our official tartan. It was awesome to see the positive response last year when welaunched the tartan, so we thought it made perfect sense to continue the relationship with GNK and create more products that our audience will love. It’s been thrilling to see the fashion collection take shape and see the controller feature in the V&A Dundee’s Tartan exhibition. We can’t wait to see what fans think of the collab.”

Microsoft said that fans should keep an eye on the official UK Twitter account “for a chance to get their hands on the ultra-limited Xbox controller”.

The post Microsoft to show off tartan inspired Xbox Controller, and fashion collection appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Thrustmaster has announced the launch of a Forza Horizon 5 modular controller that’s official licensed, and the first of its kind. It’s a timely release as well, since the Forza Horizon 5 Rally DLC was released today, as well. This also follows on from more Elite controllers being released by Microsoft only yesterday.

The ESWAP XR Pro is the first ever controller with what Thrustmaster is calling a dedicated “Racing Module”. This features 95 degree rotation, non-slip coating for better handling, and adjustable sensitivity via the ThrustMapperX app, along with full modularity. The previous ESWAP controllers brought in by Thrustmaster for the next-gen consoles (now current-gen) added mini-toggles for the extra precision and resistance, and this has been “further supported by 4x additional re-assignable buttons with T-MOD modular technology”.

Thrustmaster says the Forza Horizon ESWAP XR Pro has mechanical buttons which mean there is a 64% increase to responsiveness.

Experience incredibly immersive racing with the brand-new RACING WHEEL MODULE, a replica mini-racing wheel. Master your turns and drifts and stay in control on any type of terrain with the module’s 95° rotation angle and re-centering system.

Thanks to Hot Swap technology, the gamepad adapts to your gameplay: swap and replace the mini-stick modules as many times as you like.

The ESWAP XR PRO CONTROLLER comes with two optimized, next-generation (S5 NXG) mini-sticks for enhanced precision, plus super-responsive D-pad and mechanical buttons. You’ll be able to respond quickly and take control in your races!

Onto the important stuff, though, you’ll have to be seriously into Forza Horizon 5, or Xbox gaming in general, as this controller will set you back £169.99 / €199.99 / $179.99 (depending on your region). The wheel module is actually available separately if you already have an ESWAP controller, and that’ll cost £26.99 / €29.99 / $29.99, instead.

The controller plus the app (which appears directly in the Xbox console menu for quick and easy use) sounds a lot like the PlayStation 5’s DualSense Edge, in terms of how it works, the modularity, and build quality, The Forza Horizon 5 decal does look pretty damn nice, as well, let’s face it.

Forza Horizon 5 is out now for PC and Xbox consoles, and so is this new controller.

The post Official Forza Horizon 5 modular controller from Thrustmaster launches today appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Microsoft has today announced the release date of the Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 – Core in two new red and blue colour schemes for its Xbox consoles. The series started off with the original white controller last year, and the new colour additions not only look great but they also deliver key performance-focused benefits. With a whole host of benefits, they’re a definite purchase for players who want to get the best out of their Xbox consoles.

The new, vibrant red and blue color schemes of the core version of Xbox Elite Series 2 are sure to make a statement amongst your friends while delivering key performance-focused benefits. Turn on a dime with adjustable tension thumbsticks where inches are the difference. Make split seconds count with hair trigger locks and stay on target with wrap-around rubberized grips. Enjoy limitless customization with exclusive button mapping options to find your groove. Perfect your game day prep with assignable custom profiles so you can dominate regardless of playbook or sport.

There’s plenty more details regarding the new red and blue Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 – Core colours in an official Xbox Wire blog post. Players will be able to adjust specific settings for the controllers via the Xbox Accessories App, such as the colour of the Xbox button light, while offering up to 40 hours of rechargeable battery life across Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC. The Elite Wireless Controllers have adjustable-tension thumbsticks, shorter hair trigger locks, wrap-around rubberised grip, and re-engineered components, making one of the best controllers on the market.

According to the official Xbox store, players will be able to buy them for £124.99 when they release on April 11, 2023, and both controllers can be pre-ordered now. While not cheap, they’re sure to last players for some time, and are a good investment for the future.

The post Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 expands with red and blue styles appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Coffee Stain Publishing and Iron Gate have today announced that hugely popular survival game Valheim is now available for Xbox consoles, as well as launching day one in Xbox Game Pass.

This means that after well over a year in early access for PC (it launched on 2nd February 2021), Xbox players can now get to see what all the fuss is about, though it’s worth noting the game isn’t “finished” and is still in the preview program on Xbox consoles.

The Xbox version has been ported by an external team at Fishlabs with crossplay features by Piktiv (both studios also worked on the Windows Store version), and you can check out the trailer below:

The team says that “Valheim’s arrival to Xbox consoles also introduces a new controller layout that offers an intuitive and natural gameplay experience”. Here’s the official word on the Xbox version:

While the Iron Gate team were hard at work on Valheim’s recently released Mistlands update, featuring its new magical biome, the Xbox port has been developed by an external team at Fishlabs with crossplay features by Piktiv, both of which worked on the Microsoft Store version as well.

Valheim hit PC Early Access in February 2021 to immediate and widespread critical acclaim, as it quickly rose up bestseller lists and won the Best Debut and Audience Choice awards at the Game Developers Choice Awards. Since then, the game has seen two major content updates, Hearth and Home and Mistlands, and additional minor content drops fleshing out the existing biomes in between.

We have been playing the PC version for a while, and back in February 2022, Mick said it feels like a “grown up survival game”, adding “Having hit 2 million downloads on Steam in early access, Valheim is almost certainly going to stick around and get bigger and better. If Iron Gate AB stick to their current ethos of delivering faster-paced survival with the true freedom of opt-in PvP and community spirit, this could one day be the biggest survival game available. And considering the size of some of the current dominators, that’s no mean feat”.

Valheim is out now on PC (Steam, Windows Store) and on Xbox Game Pass.

The post Valheim launches on Xbox Game Pass today appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Bethesda and Xbox has confirmed the new Starfield release date, and it’s September 6th, but you’ll see more pretty soon, as a new “Direct” is happening in June as well.

While we all try to get used to the fact that everyone is just using the Nintendo Direct model, and even the name, a “Starfield Direct” is coming on June 11th. A new trailer was released to showcase the new Starfield release date, which you can check out, below:

Game director Todd Howard explained more at the end of the trailer, saying:

We have poured ourselves into this game and even I’m surprised how much we can pour: it is large. We’re playing the game all the time.

But also, this June we’re gonna bring you into the studio, and give you a deep dive in the game at our Starfield Direct. There’s so much that we still have to show you. The game has many of the hallmarks that you’d expect from us, but it’s also a very unique experience.

And again, thank you all for all your excitement about the game: your support, your comments, we really do read it all. We know you’ve waited a long time to play something new from us. Believe it or not, we’re kinda the same. We miss it, and we really just can’t wait for you all to play it. So thanks, and we’ll see you soon.

The Starfield release date was also confirmed via a YouTube Community Post, simply saying “For all, into the starfield 9.6.23”, which confirmed UK residents at first, thinking the game was coming in June, but not, that’s a US date format: September 6th, 2023.

You can check out all the 2023 release dates so far in our handy article. Starfield is coming to PC and Xbox on September 6th, 2023.

The post Starfield release date is September 6th, see more in June “Direct” appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Everyone’s favourite little green friend (sorry, Kermit) is back on our screens today, and to celebrate the release of Season 3 of The Mandalorian, Xbox and Lucasfilm have partnered to celebrate Din Djarin and Grogu’s return. In honour of Mando’s return on Disney+, fans will be able to celebrate in a multitude of ways, including:

• Custom Mandalorian-Inspired Xbox Gear – fans will be able to enter a sweepstakes for a limited edition, Mandalorian-inspired Xbox Series X and S bundle, featuring a custom Grogu Xbox Controller and Hoodie simply by retweeting a post on the official Xbox Twitter account. The sweepstakes will run from today until May 11.

• Win a Pram XL – if you want to own a lifesize replica of Grogu’s hovering pram (minus the hovering), you can enter another sweepstakes which runs between March 16 and May 11, by entering through the Microsoft Rewards program. “Fans in the US can enter with Microsoft Rewards for the chance to win a full entertainment package that bundles a Grogu-themed Series S console and custom Grogu Xbox Controller and Hoodie with a human-sized pram replica — while it may not be able to hover, it is a fully operational gaming station where you can both game and stream the new season of “The Mandalorian,” now streaming on Disney+ (Disney+ Subscription Required). Featuring massaging cushions, cupholders, LED lights, and holders for your controllers and headphones, it’s the greatest gaming seat in any galaxy.”
• Enter The Galaxy with Xbox Game Pass – if you’re hankering for some Star Wars games to play, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate has a wide variety to choose from, such as LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.
• Stream “The Mandalorian” via Disney+ on Xbox (subscription required) – finally, if you just want to get stuck into the new series, you can stream The Mandalorian Season 3 via Disney+ on Xbox.

The post Xbox and Lucasfilm celebrate The Mandalorian Season 3 appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

The team behind Microsoft Flight Simulator has revealed a brand new update centred around New Zealand, free to all players and available now. Some of the most iconic locations in the jewel of the southwestern Pacific will be available to admire, reproduced in stunning photo-realistic quality, such as Aoraki/Mount Cook, Auckland’s Sky Tower, and more.

Speaking in an official Xbox blog post, Jorg Neumann, Head of Microsoft Flight Simulator said, “The Microsoft Flight Simulator team brought together the latest geographic data to create World Update XII: New Zealand, including satellite imagery, aerial photography, and digital elevation models. The team even incorporated the Hobbiton Movie Set on New Zealand’s North Island that is surrounded by the region’s unique natural splendor.”

The full details of what players can expect to see on their travels are as follows:

Seven new cities

• Auckland
• Christchurch
• Hamilton
• Nelson
• Queenstown
• Tauranga
• Wellington

Nine handcrafted airports

• Gisborne Airport (NZGS)
• Milford Sound Airport (NZMF)
• Martins Bay Aerodrome (NZMJ)
• Gorge River Airstrip (NZQE)
• Rotorua Airport (NZRO)
• Lake Tekapo Airport (NZTL)
• Whangarei Airport (NZWR)
• Westport Airport (NZWS)
• Quintin Lodge Airstrip (T004)

Ten new missions

Three bush trips

• New Zealand’s North Island in a Textron Aviation Beechcraft Bonanza G36
• New Zealand’s South Island in a Pilatus PC-6/B2-H4 Turbo Porter G950
• A historic recreation of the country’s first air route in a Douglas DC-3 Classic

Three discovery flights

• Auckland, the country’s largest city, in a Cessna 152
• Queenstown in a Guimbal Cabri G2 helicopter
• Lake Benmore in a DG Aviation DG-1001E neo glider

Four landing challenges

• A strong wind landing at Wellington Airport (NZWN) in an Airbus A320neo
• An epic landing at the Ryan’s Creek Aerodrome (NZRC) in a Cessna 172 Skyhawk
• A technical landing at Gorge River Airstrip (NZQE) in a Savage Cub
• A famous challenge in an Airbus A310-300 at Christchurch Airport (NZCH).

As long as players have the latest 1.30.12.0 update, Microsoft Flight Simulator World Update XII: New Zealand will be free to all owners.

The post Microsoft Flight Simulator receives New Zealand update appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Playground Games has announced the second DLC for Forza Horizon 5 will be “Rally Adventure”, and is coming on March 29th for Xbox, PC, and even via cloud gaming. It’s the second big expansion for Forza Horizon 5 after the Hot Wheels DLC, and is going to be a massive piece of content, taking place across six biomes.

The new biomes will be part of an entirely new region for Forza Horizon 5, called Sierra Nueva. There will be ten new off-road vehicles (including an electric Ford F-150 Lightning Platinum), more EventLabs props that have a rally-like flavour to them, more new music for Epitaph Radio, and new rally parts to customise vehicles.

Forza Horizon 5 Rally Adventure features the largest number of racing events of any Horizon expansion, and these are spread across dirt, asphalt and challenging night races featuring timed point-to-point Horizon Rally stages and traditional multi-car Horizon Races. Across these events, you’ll hear navigator callouts from your co-driver, who follows the action from the Horizon Rally Helicopter, which features a dynamic night-time spotlight to improve your visibility in rally events taking place after sunset.

When in a Horizon Rally event, you will see a selection of new HUD elements which can be toggled on or off. These include a mini leaderboard showing your position relative to the other drivers who you’re competing against, a notification pop-up which appears at each timed split-gate to show whether you have improved, maintained or lost positions, and new icons representing the pace notes called by the co-driver throughout the route. It will also be possible to disable the ‘Driving Line’ just for Horizon Rally events, allowing for a more authentic and challenging Rally experience!

We loved Forza Horizon 5 when it released in November 2021, giving it a full 10/10 score, with Chris White saying “Forza Horizon 5 has it all. Loads of cars to choose from, endless races and challenges, a map ripe for exploration, and magnificent visuals. Whether you want to track down Barn Finds, cruise around and listen to the amazing soundtrack across the various radio stations, or play through the story, Mexico is your oyster. There’s so much content for you to get stuck into that you’ll never be lost for something to do. There’s no doubt I’ve missed something out here, but that’s because there’s far too much to ever mention in one review. My advice? Get this game. You won’t regret it”.

Rally Adventure is coming to Xbox, PC, and Cloud Gaming on March 29th.

The post Forza Horizon 5 Rally Adventure DLC coming on March 29th appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

A brand-new game from the team behind Ghostwire: Tokyo and The Evil Within was anounced during the Developer_Direct from Xbox and Betehsda. Hi-Fi Rush is an action rhythm anime game from Tango Gameworks, and what’s even cooler is it’s available right now on Xbox Game Pass.

During the showcase, we got to see plenty of gameplay, and exactly what players can expect to see when the game releases right now. Players take on the role of Chai, and the synopsis revealed on Bethesda’s official site reads, “After a diabolical corporation mistakenly fuses a music player to Chai’s heart, he is quickly labeled a ‘defect,’ with hordes of corporate drones (read: an actual robot horde) hellbent on recalling him! Now armed with the power to feel the beat of the world around him, it’s up to Chai to battle through each department of the tech monolith to stop their evil schemes with his new, rhythmically enhanced combat skills!”

In Hi-Fi Rush, players will fight to the rhythm, whether that’s when swinging you trusty axe or dodging out of the way of enemies. It looks wonderful, with various mechanics all fusing together to feature something that looks rather impressive. On top of the gameplay we saw, it was also announced the soundtrack would feature fully licensed songs, including tracks from the likes of Nine Inch Nails and The Black Keys.

For more details on Hi-Fi Rush, you can head to the Bethesda website, and the gameplay Deep Dive can be watched below.

The post Hi-Fi Rush from Tango Gameworks announced, available now on Game Pass appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

For those excited to play Arkane’s vampire action title Redfall, it was given a release date of May 2 during the Xbox and Bethesda Developer_Direct. Not only was a date announced, there was a good 10 minutes of gameplay shown off, giving fans a good chunk of footage to swoon over.

In Redfall, players are tasked with cleaning the streets and ridding them of vampires through a variety of missions, as well as gathering intel about the mysterious plague of throat-biters along with the vampire overlords. Players will be able to go it alone or team up with three other players, choosing various routes across the island to discover its secrets, along with plenty of vampiric encounters. It looks like a lot of fun, and with Arkane at the helm, there’s going to be a ton of interesting mechanics, some of which were shown off in the video below.

Once the very picture of Smalltown, USA, the island town of Redfall used to be known for its quaint streets, breezy boardwalks and charming neighborhoods. Then the vampires moved in and ruined everything. First, they eclipsed the sun and pushed back the tides. Then they started turning all the island’s inhabitants into either minions for their army… or food.

Along with the above synopsis, you can also keep up to date with all previous information about Redfall before we approach the release date right here. It’ll be coming to Game Pass day one, available on Xbox Series X|S and PC.

Players can pre-order Redfall or via Game Pass to get the Vampire Hunter Pack, which includes the exclusive Grim Tide Shotgun, granting 20% increased damage for eight seconds after killing an enemy. It also includes a Polar Vortex multi-weapon skin and a Blood Ravager Stake weapon attachment. You can also upgrade to the Bite Back Edition which grants the Hero Pass with two future heroes, Throwback Outfit Pack that features a unique outfit and backpack for all four base heroes, a Laser Beam multi-weapon skin, and the Tactical Knife Stake weapon attachment.

The post Redfall release date finally announced, coming in May appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

During the Xbox and Bethesda Developer_Direct, fans were treated to new gameplay and a release date for Minecraft Legends, coming April 18. Releasing on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC (and via Game Pass on day one), players were treated to footage from the game, along with the development team talking about what they were most excited for.

Minecraft Legends is an action strategy game that’ll feature a story-led campaign where players will reclaim the Overworld from a Piglin invasion, as well as 4v4 battles in PvP. Not only will you be able to team up with friends to take on other players, the Piglins will also act as a threat. The PvP elements look really exciting, as one member of the team can build the base while others go off and scavenge or fight.

When Minecraft Legends launches, there’ll be two editions for purchase. The Standard Edition will solely feature the game, while the Deluxe Edition comes with both the base game and a Deluxe Skin pack for a discounted price. More details about both editions can be found on the official Minecraft site. Pre-orders are open right now, giving players plenty of time to make sure they’re ready for launch.

According to Xbox Wire, there will be an exclusive interview coming to the site soon, where we’ll find out more about PvP from the developers, as well as how the game will adapt classic Minecraft ideas for the action strategy genre. To sum up what was shown during the showcase and to celebrate the Minecraft Legends release date, a brand-new trailer showing off the gameplay was shown, and you can watch it below.

The post Minecraft Legends gets April release date appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

A new update is coming to Xbox Series X|S that’ll automatically implement an energy saving shut down update, making it the first carbon aware console. Detailed yesterday in an Xbox Wire blog post, this one-time update to the power settings will reduce power consumption while the console is off, however, it won’t affect the ability to receive overnight updates to the system, games, or apps, as well as having no impact on performance or gameplay.

The new update will use 20x less power than the Sleep power option, becoming the most sustainable power option for the Xbox. It is part of Microsoft’s goal to become a carbon negative, water positive, and zero waste company by 2030. Xbox is rethinking how it designs, builds, distributes and uses its products, as well as considering how to create opportunities for gamers across the world to make decisions that can reduce environmental impact while gaming.

Gamers who use shutdown as a power option and have their consoles configured to support automatic updates will also get an update making their console carbon aware. Essentially, it’ll reduce the carbon footprint of their console by optimising updates and download times to when it can use the most renewable energy in their local power grid. When two consoles switch to an energy saving shutdown, it’ll be the carbon equivalent of one tree planted and grown for a decade, based on an average of Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One consoles on shutdown for 20 hours per day for a year.

It is currently only available to Xbox Insiders at present, but the carbon aware update will roll out to all players soon. Some additional points to the update are as follows:

• Improved sustainability with “Active Hours” and Sleep. Another energy setting update that will start to roll out to Xbox Insiders today is the new “Active hours” setting. For those that select the “sleep” power option, you can now adjust your console’s active hours. Your Xbox will boot quickly and will be available for remote wake during your selected active hours.
• Xbox is continuing to explore options for all players to reduce their environmental footprint. Xbox One consoles will begin to see new power mode options, including shutdown (energy saving) as early as today. Xbox One consoles will be flighting multiple options in order to test and inform players. This effort is to provide Xbox One console players an opportunity to provide feedback on their experience.

The post Xbox becomes first carbon aware console with new update appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Xbox has confirmed it will be holding a “Developer_Direct” showcase on January 25th, and the teaser image confirms big games are being shown.

The image (above) shows Minecraft Legends (Mojang Studios), which we know is coming in 2023, but Xbox has confirmed that the Developer_Direct will focus on “big features, extended gameplay showcases, and the latest info for Xbox games launching in the next few months, including The Elder Scrolls Online, Forza Motorsport, Minecraft Legends, and Redfall”.

While many will be worried about Starfield, Xbox also addressed this, adding: “To dedicate the proper amount of time for a deep dive into Bethesda Game Studios’ Starfield, a standalone show is in the works”.

Here’s what you can expect to see:

• The Elder Scrolls Online: Studio Director Matt Firor will unveil 2023’s major Chapter update, including the latest regions of Tamriel to become playable in ESO, as well as a major new feature coming in the game’s biggest update this year. The Developer_Direct will be immediately followed by the full, standalone ESO Chapter Reveal Event, hosted by Zenimax Online Studios, which will provide all the in-depth details ESO players will be keen to know.
• Forza Motorsport: The team at Turn 10 Studios have been hard at work, bringing fans the next generation of Forza Motorsport, built from the ground up to take advantage of Xbox Series X|S. Forza Motorsport is back, and we can’t wait to share more gameplay and exciting new details.
• Minecraft Legends: Mojang Studios will showcase an insider’s look into the PvP multiplayer experience in Minecraft Legends – the upcoming action-strategy game from the makers of Minecraft. Developed in partnership with Blackbird Interactive and launching this spring, don’t miss exclusive gameplay footage at the Developer_Direct.
• Redfall: The minds behind Dishonored and Prey, Arkane Austin, will showcase several minutes of gameplay from their upcoming FPS. The Developer_Direct will reveal single and multiplayer gameplay, showing more of how you and your friends will take down bloodthirsty Vampires on the picturesque island of Redfall, Massachusetts. Fans can expect to learn more about combat, customization, bosses, the open world, and more.

The show will air on Wednesday, January 25 at 12pm PT/3pm ET (8pm UK, 9pm Europe) on the official YouTube channel and Twitch.

The post Xbox Developer_Direct coming on January 25th, will include Forza and Redfall appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

ACE Team (the developer behind Rock of Ages, The Eternal Cylinder) has revealed that Clash: Artifacts of Chaos will feature in the Xbox Winter Game Fest promotion, with a free demo.

As with the rest of the demos in the Winter Game Fest, it’ll be available from today (December 6th) until December 12th.

Clash: Artifacts of Chaos, is the third title set in the Clash universe, following on from 2009’s Zeno Clash and its sequel. You play as Pseudo, a master of martial arts who lives as a recluse in the strange land of Zenozoik. When you cross paths with the Boy, a small creature whose mysterious powers have attracted the attention of Gemini, the Mistress of the Artifacts, you decide to protect him, unaware that much greater forces are involved.

Drawing upon both surreal and punk fantasy influences, the world and civilisations of Zenozoik are brimming with fascinating characters, creatures and landscapes. Roam this intriguing land and discover its paths, inhabitants and ancient secrets.

The developer actually did a stream recently, which you can check out below:

You can grab the demo and start it downloading directly from this link. It’s part of a larger festival of demos, which Xbox is hosting. These aren’t the “normal” demos you might play, either, they are instead more like “show floor demos” so you can experience them early and give feedback to the developers. There are a few others announced for the fest, such as Thirsty Suitors, Tin Hearts, Rhythm Sprout, and Inkulinati, with more to be announced soon (today!).

Clash: Artifacts of Chaos is set to be released on February 9th, 2023 on Xbox, PC, PS4, and PS5.

The post Clash: Artifacts of Chaos demo will be part of ID @ Xbox Winter Game Fest appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Capcom has announced that the enormously popular Monster Hunter Rise is coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, and Windows PC (Game Pass) on January 20th, 2023.

Originally released as a Nintendo Switch exclusive, the PC version came along this year unlocking the frame rate and pushing sales for Monster Hunter Rise to over 11 million units, which is — let’s face it — incredibly impressive. This new version of the game will be just the base game, with Sunbreak coming in Spring 2023.

As you’d expect, the newer consoles will give the game a push thanks to the hardware power, but it’ll also use the adaptive triggers of the PS5 DualSense as well as 3D audio on Xbox Series S|X as well. The full information is as follows:

Monster Hunter Rise features customizable optimizations, allowing hunters to enjoy their journey in 4K resolution and 60 FPS on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5, while also offering 3D audio for Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5. Ranged and shielded weapons will also make use of DualSense adaptive triggers on PlayStation 5. Monster Hunter Rise launches on Jan 20, 2023 and is available now for pre-purchase. The game also arrives on Xbox Game Pass at launch.

It’s not a secret that we are big fans of the game, with Mick having reviewed both the PC and Switch version, and Sunbreak, and giving it the big 10/10 each time, saying: “Rise is a huge, rich game, filled with things to see and challenges to overcome, which manages to feel incredibly accessible to newcomers while still catering to the veterans. It’s a superb entry to the Switch’s bustling library, but more than that, it’s a stunning example of a game created by a dev team that know exactly what they’re doing”.

The PlayStation, Xbox, and Game Pass version will be out on January 20th, 2023. Bookmark our complete guide ready for that date.

The post Monster Hunter Rise is coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox and PC Game Pass in January appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

CD Projekt RED has announced that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will finally get its “next-gen” version on December 14th. That means the PS5, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Series X will all be getting the “Complete Edition”, but it’s also coming to PC.

The Witcher 3 PS5 and Xbox Series S|X will feature “dozens of visual, performance, and technical enhancements over the original”, which will include “ray tracing support, faster loading times on consoles, as well as a variety of mods integrated into the experience, among many others”.

Having played The Witcher on an expensive laptop with a 3080 GPU and seen how good this game can look, it’s getting played again, and is probably gonna be my Christmas game.

Along with new additional content inspired by The Witcher series from Netflix, these will be covered next week in a dedicated REDstreams event on Twitch, where the studio will present gameplay from the next-gen version of the game.

The next-gen version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition will be available for purchase digitally on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, featuring all free DLCs released to date, and both major expansions: Hearts of Stone & Blood and Wine. Moreover, a free next-gen update will be available for everyone who owns any release of the game for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. A physical edition will be released following the initial digital rollout, with a specific date to be announced at a later time.

In addition to the next-gen release, the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch versions of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will also receive an update featuring numerous additions and improvements, as well as the Netflix Witcher-themed additional content. Further details, including the release date, will be announced soon.

There’s no word yet if the new version will support multi-format save files like the PC and Switch version does, but here’s hoping because that would be superb. 

So there you have it, The Witcher 3 PS5 and Xbox Series X|S is coming in a month’s time!

The post The Witcher 3 is coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X in December appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Torn Banner Studios and Tripwire has announced that Chivalry 2 is out today for Xbox and PC Game Pass, and includes the brand new update.

That update is called “Reinforced” and it adds mounted horse combat, “new Katars dual-wielded weapon and chaotic battles in the brand-new Hippodrome map in the Chivalry 2: Reinforced content update out now for all supported platforms” which includes PC (Steam and Epic Games Store), PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S|X.

Chivalry 2: Reinforced Content Update Key Features:

• New Map: Hippodrome (Team Deathmatch/Free-for-All). Designed from the ground-up to showcase the new mounted horse combat feature first introduced with the Chivalry 2: Tenosian Invasion content update, Hippodrome is set in an arena full of danger and peril with spike traps and flamethrowers – and features open spaces, providing lots of opportunities for horseback jousting and lance charges.
• New Weapon: The Katars. The first dual-wielded weapon to join the world of Chivalry 2, the katars are a matched pair of deadly, armor-piercing, daggers for swift close range attacks. Designed for the Ambusher class, it is a very fast stab weapon that does not interrupt opponents. It also encourages the player wielding it to have good footwork and make use of dodges, as it has a very weak block. The katars make for an excellent engaging weapon, allowing Ambushers to get behind enemy lines and cut down heavily armored fighters with ease.
• Mounted Combat Map Updates: The community has been asking for more horseplay, so Torn Banner Studios has delivered, adding mounted horse combat existing maps The Raid on Aberfell (Team Objective) and The Siege of Rudhelm (Team Objective).

Chivalry 2: King’s Edition Bonus Content:

• Rebel King’s Armor and War Helmet: Don the legendary armor worn by General Malric at the Battle of Stoneshill.
• Feydrid’s Aegis Armor and War Crown: Fight for glory and honor with the Steward King Feydrid’s royal set.
• Duke’s Talon and Kralle of Bridgetown Shields: Protect yourself with the Duke’s Talon (Mason Shield) and Kralle of Bridgetown (Agathian Shield).
• Surrender Flag Novelty Item: Live to fight another day with this novelty item, added to your spawn-in inventory.
• 1,000 Crowns + 5,000 Gold: Receive 1,000 Crowns (premium currency) and 5,000 Gold (earnable currency), used to unlock new armor, weapon appearances and more!

Chivalry 2 has an MSRP of $39.99 / €39.99 / £34.99 for the Standard Edition, $49.99 / €49.99 / £44.99 for the Special Edition, and $59.99 for the new Chivalry 2: King’s Edition.

The post Chivalry 2 hits Game Pass for PC and Xbox today appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Deathloop was a runaway success as a PS5 exclusive, but the game is finally hitting Xbox Series S|X on September 20, including Game Pass.

You can pre-install the game now on Xbox, and if you’re going to pre-order instead of using Game Pass, you will get “Character Skin: “Storm Rider” Colt” and “One Trinket (equippable buff)” as a bonus. The official Xbox site currently has it listed at a 39.1GB size, so if you want to remote download, you’ll need that much space or more.

In our review of Deathloop on PS5, Chris White said “It never takes itself too seriously. The voice actors for Colt and Julianna are magnificent. So too are the weird and wonderful Visionaries. If I had one negative, it would be the AI is pretty dumb. Stealth is far too easy, and they’re not always aware of you, even if you’re in their peripheral. Other than that, Deathloop is easily one of the best games of 2021, and there’s a reason Bethesda has been promoting it as much as they have.” and gave it a 9.5 out of 10 score.

According to the official description, “DEATHLOOP is a next-gen first person shooter from Arkane Lyon, the award-winning studio behind Dishonored. In DEATHLOOP, two rival assassins are trapped in a mysterious timeloop on the island of Blackreef, doomed to repeat the same day for eternity. As Colt, the only chance for escape is to end the cycle by assassinating eight key targets before the day resets. Learn from each cycle – try new paths, gather intel, and find new weapons and abilities. Do whatever it takes to break the loop”.

It’s out now for PC and PS5, and coming to Xbox Series S|X on September 20th.

The post Deathloop coming to Xbox next week, but you can pre-install now appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

In case you missed the news with all the Nintendo Direct and State of Play stuff, Microsoft has announced that Discord Voice, a faster and more streamlined way to chat with friends via voice channels on Xbox consoles, is now live. Back in July, they said they were looking at ways to streamline audio experiences on their consoles, so that friends across multiple gaming communities can all play and chat together.

Announced on an official blog post by Eric Voreis, Principal Product Manager, Player Experience Platforms, gave more details. “With this update, you can now chat with anyone on Discord via voice channels or group calls directly from your console, making it easy to connect with friends across mobile, Xbox, and PC. This means that you will be able to see who is in the call and speaking while you are playing on your console. You’ll also be able to adjust the sound and switch between Discord Voice and Xbox game chat while you play all your favorite games.”

In order to get started with Xbox Discord Voice, players need to visit the Discord mobile app and link their Discord account to their Xbox. If an Xbox account was linked before today, it’ll need doing again for it to work. Once completed, players will be able to join any voice channel, or call and transfer the audio channel to their Xbox.

The post Xbox ‘Discord Voice’ now live appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Microsoft has announced the lineup of the “coming soon” game pass titles for August, and it’s headlined by Immortals Fenyx Rising and Immortality, among others.

Immortals Fenyx Rising actually made it into our top ten games of 2020, which you can watch in this podcast, right here.

Immortality is the next game from Sam Barlow, the creator of Her Story and Telling Lies, so getting it as part of the Game Pass sub is a huge boon.

There are other new titles hitting the service, however, such as Tinykin, which Lyle previewed and absolutely adored. Elsewhere Midnight Fight Express looks cool, and Commandos 3: HD Remaster is another brand new (remaster, anyway) to the service.

Rounding out the titles coming soon are EXA Punks, Coffee Talk, and OPUS Echo of Starsong: Full Bloom Edition.

All of these titles are hitting in August, along with some DLC and game updates in the form of Naraka: Bladepoint – Showdown, which is a whole new cooperative campaign mode coming to Naraka: Bladepoint on August 5, available to players as a free update on Xbox Series X|S and via Xbox Game Pass. Players will team up, fight against ferocious enemies, and upgrade heroes to face challenges of varying difficulties.

Sea of Thieves: A Hunter’s Cry is coming on August 18th, and is the sixth time-limited Adventure running from August 18 to September 1.

Lastly you can get an MVP pack for MultiVersus on August 23rd, the Babylon Bundle for CrossfireX, on the same date, and the Pass Tense Commando Rifle Bundle for Halo Infinite on August 17th.

The post Immortals Fenyx Rising and Immortality headline Xbox Game Pass for August appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Turtle Beach has today revealed its brand new REACT-R Controller for Xbox which is now available at participating retailers in the UK and Europe. For those in the US, the controller can now be pre-ordered with an expected release date on August 17. Along with the new controller releasing today this side of the world, a new Arctic Camo colorway for the brand’s Designed for Xbox Recon Controller has been revealed, launching on August 10 in the UK and Europe, and August 24 in the US.

“The Recon Controller was a powerful first entry for Turtle Beach into the gamepad market. It received awards and strong praise the moment it was revealed, and the REACT-R Controller offers gamers many of the same core features for a very attractive price,” said Juergen Stark, Chairman and CEO, Turtle Beach Corporation. “The REACT-R and new Arctic Camo Recon Controller are the first of a handful of upcoming controller products we’re launching this year for console, PC, and mobile gamers.”

The REACT-R Controller has an RRP of £34.99/$39.99, offering players many of the same features as the successful Recon Controller. It provides controls for game and chat volume balance, and mic mute, giving gamers access to Turtle Beach’s exclusive ‘Superhuman Hearing’ sound setting. Players can receive an instant audio upgrade when plugging into Xbox or PC via the 3.5mm wire. The Superhuman Hearing audio setting has been shown to give players a competitive advantage by hearing key audio cues such as approaching enemy footsteps. With an ergonomic shape and textured grips, handles, and triggers, two mappable quick-action buttons on the back of the controller, and dual-rumble motors in the handles, it makes the REACT-R well worth the money.

For more information on the latest news from Turtle Beach, you can visit their website or keep your eyes peeled on God is a Geek.

The post REACT-R Controller for Xbox available now in UK and Europe appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

The best month of the year is upon us, and the new Xbox Pride Controller is here to celebrate it in style. Xbox and Microsoft have created this colourful beauty using 34 different community flags, and will be available to purchase for all of us LGBTQuties and allies from June 9th. Alongside this wonderful controller Xbox is also donating $170,000 to various LGBTQIA+ charities, making Tell Me Why free to play for the rest of the month, and much more. You love to see it.

“Microsoft’s 2022 Pride campaign – Pride Has No Borders – is a grassroots movement created with and by LGBTQIA+ employees around the world. This year represents Microsoft’s most inclusive, immersive and global Pride ever.

Last year, Microsoft embraced over a dozen community flags to drive recognition of expansive LGBTQIA+ communities. This year, GLEAM (Global LGBTQIA+ Employee and Allies at Microsoft) is almost doubling the number of communities represented in its campaign aesthetic: Thirty-three flags representing LGBTQIA+ identities, one Ally flag and one Polyamory flag are at the core of this year’s work. This vibrant, energetic statement reminds us that by coming together across groups and bridging borders, we can make a difference for LGBTQIA+ communities and beyond.

Microsoft is celebrating this in three key ways:

– Highlighting employee stories: Today, the company launched Microsoft Unlocked – a new digital destination for stories from the heart and soul of innovation. The inaugural edition is all about Pride where you can explore more LGBTQIA+ stories and immersive experiences.
– Most immersive Pride product release: This year, in addition to the donation mentioned above, Microsoft worked with its LGBTQIA+ communities to celebrate their vibrancy and strength through the design of a plethora of products in addition to Xbox – including Surface, Teams, Outlook, Office, Edge, and more.
– Experiencing Pride in VR: On June 17, you can also experience Pride in VR with the “Pride has no borders” metaverse event hosted by activists, players and advocates from LGBTQIA+ communities at Microsoft, Team Xbox and organizations like the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA World) and OutRight Action International.“

The post The new Xbox Pride Controller is perfection appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Xbox has announced a range of new accessibility features to coincide with Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). Yesterday – May 19, 2022 – was GAAD and the technology firm announced more ways they intend to remove barriers for the 400 million players with disabilities across the globe. This forms part of Xbox’s ongoing mission to amplify and celebrate players with disabilities and highlight the importance of digital access and inclusion.

The new accessibility features announced by Xbox include:

• Firmware updates to the Xbox Adaptive Controller that include the ability to increase the size and add tooltips for button images on the Xbox Adaptive Controller’s remapping screen.
• The ability to search and then filter Game Accessibility Feature Tags in the Xbox Store. The Accessibility Feature Tags, announced last year, are designed to make it easier for gamers with disabilities to determine if a game is right for them. There are 20 tags in total, based on extensive user research and discussions with the Gaming & Disability Community. With this new update, players can search and then filter tags for over 400 titles.
• The recent launch of the ASL Xbox Twitch channel. Every day, the Xbox Plays team goes live on the Xbox Twitch channel, playing the latest and greatest titles from the world of Xbox. In April, they launched an All-ASL Twitch channel featuring interpretation for approximately 25 hours of live streams each week.
• The recent launch of “BuildAbility” in Minecraft: Education Edition. In May, M:EE launched an accessibility World in partnership with the PEEL school, where students can understand, identify, and work to eliminate accessibility barriers in their school and community… all within the Minecraft universe.
• Xbox Accessibility Guidelines (XAGs) 3.0 update with information on mental health. Based on community and developer feedback, the Xbox Accessibility Guidelines (XAGs) 3.0 update published in May includes a new mental health guideline, as well as info on motion sickness and expanded details on text sizing.

For a full list of accessibility features, you can read more here.

The post Xbox announces a range of new accessibility features appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

2021 was a big enough year for the service, but Game Pass in 2022 is looking set to be an absolute time-consumer, money-saving blockbuster of a service. Whether you’re on Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Series X, or even Windows PC, there’s almost enough coming to Game Pass in 2022 that you could be kept busy all year.

You can bookmark this page and be sure that whenever Microsoft and Xbox announce new games, they’ll be updated here. For now, let’s get started with the dates and games confirmed so far. You can click the name of the game and read any reviews or impressions from us as well. Handy, right?

Game Pass in 2022: January

Gorogoa – PC, Console, Cloud – January 4

Olija – PC, Console, Cloud – January 4

The Pedestrian – PC, Console, Cloud – January 4

Embr – PC, Console, Cloud – January 6

Mass Effect Legendary Edition, PC and Console – January 6

Outer Wilds – PC, Console, Cloud – January 6

Spelunky 2 – PC, Console – January 13

The Anacrusis – PC and Console, January 13

Minecraft New Year’s Celebration – PC, Console, Cloud, Until January 17

Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc Anniversary Edition – Console – January 17

Nobody Saves the World – Console, January 18

Rainbow Six Extraction – PC and Console, January 20

February

Telling Lies – PC, Console, February 3

Contrast – Console, Cloud, February 3

Dreamscaper – Cloud, Console, PC – February 3

Besiege – Cloud, Console, PC, February 10

CrossfireX – Console, February 10

Edge of Eternity – Console, February 10

Skul: The hero Slayer – Cloud, Console, PC, February 10

The Last Kids on Earth and the Staff of Doom – Cloud, Console, PC, February 10

Ark: Ultimate Survivor Edition – Cloud, Console, PC, February 14

Infernax – Cloud, Console, PC, February 14

Total War: Warhammer 3 – PC, February 17

March

Shredders – PC, Cloud, Console, March 17

The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos – Cloud, Console – March 17

Tunic – Cloud, Console, PC – March 17

Tainted Grail: Conquest – Console, March 22

Zero Escape: The Nonary Games – Cloud, Console, PC, March 22

Norco – PC, March 24

F1 2021 – Console, March 24

Crusader Kings III – Console, March 29

Weird West – PC and Console, March 31

Game Pass 2022: April

MLB The Show 22 – Console, Cloud

Chinatown Detective Agency – Console, PC, Cloud

Bugsnax – Console, PC, Cloud

Life is Strange: True Colors – Console, PC, Cloud

Lost in Random – Console, PC, Cloud

May

Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising – Console

Trek to Yomi – Console, PC, Cloud

Sniper Elite 5 – Console, PC

Pac-Man Museum+ – Console, PC

November

Starfield – PC and Console, November 11

This page was last update on April 12th, 2022.

The post Game Pass 2022: all the confirmed titles coming this year to PC and Xbox appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Another new addition to the latest (and greatest) title from 343 Industries is the opportunity to manually adjust your loadout thanks to Halo Infinite FOB upgrades. Before we get into how to upgrade your FOB (forward operating base), however, we should discuss how to actually unlock them in the first place.

The first Halo Infinite FOB is part of the story, sort of. The Weapon will talk to you and advise you to go and fight back against The Banished by taking back a FOB. Doing so, she deletes it from their network and hides you while you’re at a FOB, upgrades or otherwise. The entire system revolves around an in-game currency/mechanic called Valor, which is gained by doing all manner of activities.

What are FOBs?

Forward Operating Bases, or FOBs for short, are safe spots on the open world where adjustments can be made to Master Chief’s loadout. Doing missions and objectives around the open-world of Zeta Halo will slowly unlock all manner of weapons, vehicles, and UNSC soldiers you can equip from any FOB in the game world. Every FOB will also have an audio log hidden somewhere on or around the base. Listen out for the beeping sound to locate it.

Here’s the full list of Halo Infinite FOB upgrades. The last one is a Warthog with a rocket launcher and requires 3,200 Valor to unlock. You will have to do a lot of side-quests to get this much valor. Most playthroughs take between 12-15 hours on normal difficulty and you will end up with an average of 2400-2600 valor. So do the extra content! Don’t worry, though, you can return to the game after the credits have rolled.

It’s worth noting this list can expand if you complete assassinations to unlock special weapons Banished weapons.

• Mongoose
• MK50 Sidekick
• MA40 AR
• UNSC Assault
• Razorback
• M9 Frag Grenade
• CQS48 Bulldog
• Breacher
• Warthog
• VK78 Commando
• UNSC Scout
• BR75
• UNSC Heavy Assault
• Gungoose
• S7 Sniper
• UNSC Sniper
• M41 SPNKR
• UNSC Demolition
• Scorpion
• Hydra
• Striker Sidekick
• MA40 Longshot
• Convergence Bulldog
• Wasp
• Impact Commando
• BR75 Breacher
• S7 Flexfire Sniper
• Pursuit Hydra
• Rocket Hog

How to obtain Valor for Halo Infinite FOB Upgrades

Valor isn’t a currency you can actually spend, instead it’s something you’re awarded for doing noble duties in the fight against The Banished. Essentially, ignoring all side-missions means you will gain very little Valor and your FOB will be under-manned, under-gunned, and just pointless, aside from being a fast travel location.

There are a few ways to gain Valor. First of all, just unlocking FOBs will gain Valor. Doing side objectives such as rescuing UNSC marines from captivity also gain you unlock points. There are propaganda towers littered around Zeta Halo, too, which will broadcast lies about the UNSC and Master Chief being dead. Even taking these down will net a small amount of Valor. Basically: be good and take back Zeta Halo in every way you can. This is how you gain valor and in turn, gain Halo Infinite FOB upgrades.

Lastly, assassination missions are vital to gain you valor as they eliminate key Banished elites. On top of that, when you kill a Banished boss, you will be able to add their exclusive weapon to your FOBs as well, offering even more in the way of arsenal to combat them further.

The post Halo Infinite | FOB Upgrades and how to unlock them with Valor appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

There are so many ways to combat The Banished in 343 Industries’ latest title, but what are the best upgrades in Halo Infinite?

Similar to how Gears 5 took the mechanics and lore of that series and made it into a more modern game, Halo Infinite does the same. There’s a tac-map, FOBs you can take back and upgrade (similar to Far Cry outposts), new weapons to unlock, Mjolnir lockers to find which add cosmetics to your multiplayer character loadout, and of course, Spartan Cores to upgrade your abilities.

These Spartan Cores are littered through the large open world of Zeta Halo. They will net you a point to upgrade Master Chief and his abilities as you progress. Halo Infinite abilities are upgradable at the cost of one Spartan Core at the start. But they quickly require three to progress down the skill tree. You want a list of Halo Infinite best upgrades? Let’s go!

Halo Infinite best upgrades: Grappleshot

The core to the entire game, you want to focus on getting the grappleshot fully upgraded as soon as possible. As you progress down the four nodes on this upgrade tree, you’ll speed up how quickly the ability can be used, but also add key elements to it. For example, you’ll need the shockwave blast, which allows you to pummel enemies at the end of the grappleshot.

Electrifying the grapple early on means you can stun some enemies for an easy melee follow up and kill. You should be able to max the grappleshot out well before the halfway mark of Halo Infinite. The path is as follows: Volataic (1 core) > Quickshot (2) > First Strike (3) > Reachfall (3).

Shield Core

While not an ability, the Shield Core is a key upgrade path to also max out as early as possible. These upgrades increase how much damage you can take before your shield goes down. But they can also speed up how quickly it recharges. Like the grappleshot, this should be a focus early on. Both can be maxed out easily with just some simple exploration.

If a FOB appears on the map, take it back. Doing so will reveal hidden Spartan Core caches around the area, and then a simple visit and pickup will net you an easy core. The path is as follows: Fortress (1) > Bastille (2) > Redoubt (2) > Citadel (3).

Threat Sensor

Aside from the grappleshot, the Threat Sensor is the second-best ability by miles. At first, it may not seem that useful, just allowing you to ping enemies in a small radius. However, after going to town on the skill tree it gives you an incredible level of enemy visibility.

During boss fights, the Threat Sensor can be amazing. Allowing you to ping multiple sides of the arena and even see through walls? Game changer! The tree is as follows: Seeker (1), Operative (2), Clairvoyant (3), Omniscience (3).

Halo Infinite best upgrades: Drop Wall

In theory, the Drop Wall is incredibly useful. You’ve probably seen it in multiplayer, where people have worked out you can destroy it by shooting the base very quickly. In the campaign of Halo Infinite, the best use for a drop wall is against the Hunters. Their fire will decimate Chief even with a fully upgraded shield, but the drop wall will offer some protection while you assess the situation.

The final stage of this one adds shock damage to any projectiles fired through the wall. However, we found we were on the move far too often for the drop wall to be truly essential. The tree is as follows: Swift Shelter (1), Rampart (2), Blockage (3), Direct Current (3).

Thruster

It was the last ability we found during our playthrough of Halo Infinite, and also the one we used least. The thing, while it has some excellent mobility effects on Master Chief, it doesn’t do a lot that the grappleshot can’t also do. The only real benefit to the Thruster is that it’s a sudden movement that can be multidirection. That said, it never felt like it was moving us far enough to avoid danger or damage.

That said, the final upgrade you unlock adds a cloak effect to the movement. While it’s not useless, this is the last thing we’d upgrade, and the 9 Spartan Cores are best spent elsewhere. The tree is as follows: Afterburner (1), Thermal Control (2), Impulse (3), Escape Velocity (3).

So there you have it, that’s the best upgrades for Halo Infinite and Master Chief’s abilities. Thruster felt the least useful to us, but maybe it’ll work for you. Who knows?

The post Halo Infinite | Best upgrades for Master Chief’s abilities appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

There’s a lot of new things to learn about 343’s latest in the series, so we’ve put together some Halo Infinite tips to get you started on Zeta Halo. We’ve spent hours with the game’s single-player campaign, and surprisingly, some of the things we’ve discovered will actually stand you in good stead for the multiplayer side of the game as well.

There will be no spoilers in this article, but if you want more than Halo Infinite tips to get started, there’s plenty of more in-depth guides available on the site, which you can access by clicking here. Let’s get started with one of the most important tips you’ll ever read for Halo Infinite, especially if you plan on getting all the collectible logs in the game!

Halo Infinite tips: Sound is key

Something Halo Infinite never really tells you is that almost everything in the game has its own unique audio key. This may sound obvious. Weapons and enemies often make a certain sound. But the audio design is key to being successful, especially on higher difficulty levels. For example, the grappleshot is one of the best new additions to Halo, but since you want to focus on the combat, you might not want to glance to the bottom corner to see when it’s recharged. There’s a small audio cue that lets you know it can be redeployed. Once you notice that, you’ll never need to take your eyes off the action again.

Likewise, every collectible audio log, or spartan core, has a unique audio cue to it. They all have a different beep. Whether it’s a UNSC audio log or a Banished one, it will sound different. The audio cue will get louder as you get closer, so all the collectibles are both audible, and proximity-based. This will help you find the trickier collectibles in Halo Infinite. Sound is absolutely key.

Never stop moving and punching

With the addition of the grappleshot, I feel like developer 343 Industries is saying “keep moving”. Upgrades that let you use it more often mean you should always be on the move. The grappleshot upgrades are essential and let you stun many low-end enemies in place. Doing this means a quick melee kill is on the cards, saving valuable ammo in the process. Speaking of the melee, it will drop a shield in one hit in the multiplayer. Two melees? That’ll kill most enemies in the multiplayer, and anything below a strong elite or brute in the campaign.

Enemy Drop shields can be removed quickly

In both multiplayer and single-player, the battlefield will be littered with drop shields. You’ll know them by the glowing orange aura. Sure, you could shoot at them, lob grenades, waste power-weapon ammo like the SPNKR. Or, you could just aim a few precise shots at the projection base and take it out in seconds.

The thing is, having this knowledge renders a drop shield useless in multiplayer. If you know that you can remove it from play that quickly, it’s likely the enemy does as well. The truth is, for single-player, it’s not too bad, but for the heavier enemies, they’ll power through it pretty quickly anyway.

Halo Infinite tips: use all your abilities

While it’s easy to forget this in the maelstrom of combat, each ability has an individual cooldown. This means you can throw out multiple threat sensors, then grapple somewhere, and then use a drop shield. You don’t have to wait on a single cooldown: they’re all unique. On Xbox, you’ll need to be quick with the D-Pad, as this is how you select each of the four abilities. Master this, and you’ll be on your way to mastering combat.

The grappleshot is overpowered, so use it!

While the open world of Zeta Halo is a fantastic place to explore, the king of Halo Infinite is the new grappleshot. Upgrading it means you can shock enemies in place, but it’s absolutely key to mastering each combat encounter. For example, you can run up to the glowing blue, green, and purple-looking things that explode when shot. You can pick them up and throw them. But what if you just grappled them to you instead. The speed increase by doing this is phenomenal, and you should get used to it very quickly.

Likewise, you can pick up weapons by just flinging your grapple at them. Killed an enemy with a shotgun and want to grab it quickly? Grappleshot! Want to get rid of a Sniper who’s hiding in a small outpost building? Grappleshot and melee his face! Need to climb that rock face in a Skyrim fashion? Grappleshot!! See a Ghost racing towards you and want to commandeer it? You get the point. It’s overpowered: use it.

Use the UNSC marines at the FOBs

Unlocking weapons and vehicles at FOBs is a surefire way to increase your chances in battle. The thing is, it’s not immediately made obvious, but they will ride with you from bases to wherever you go. If you ask for a Warthog, one will be dropped at your FOB. If you’ve unlocked a rocket marine? He or she will get in the vehicle, while another UNSC member will ride the turret. This means you can attack Banished installations with a rocket launcher and turret, all while you’re just driving around. In Halo Infinite, a vehicle blowing up is now designated by an audio cue and the vehicle flashing read. Get out, Spartan, or you’re gonna die!

That’s all for now. These are some basic tips that will get you going, especially if you’re new to the series with Halo Infinite. Keep an eye on the rest of the site for guides that’ll help you in the end-game with some particularly tricky bosses.

The post Halo Infinite | Tips to get started on Zeta Halo appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

One of the most mysterious people you’ll encounter in Halo Infinite is the Harbinger. We’re not going to get into spoilers here, because it doesn’t seem necessary to do so. Ultimately, however, The Banished and The Harbinger have teamed up. This means you’re left with formidable foes to take out in order to finish the fight. The Harbinger is easily the hardest essential boss fight ahead of you if you want to see the credits.

There are optional fights that are tough, too, but the combination of brutal attacks and phases makes The Harbinger the most difficult fight, potentially in all of Halo games. Here’s how you beat her.

Halo Infinite Harbinger fight: The right tools for the job

The fight is split into three phases, each pretty much the same. You can pretty much keep the weaponry you want for most of the battle, but phase 3 will require you to change things up a little bit. In the lead-up to the fight, you’ll have had to beat Escharum as well. We’d strongly recommend picking up his Grav-Hammer after that battle. The reason is simple: it does massive damage to Harbinger’s shields.

Next up, ability-wise we’d recommend a fully upgraded grappleshot, and ping ability. The fully upgraded grappleshot allows you to move around great distances quickly. The upgraded ping means you can reveal enemies during the horde-like sequences.

Understanding each phase of the Harbinger fight in Halo Infinite

The battle starts off with Harbinger warping at great speeds while taunting Master Chief. The key to this, we found, is when she finally stays still for a few seconds, grappleshot into to her. The upgraded grappleshot will stun her for enough time to use whatever heavy weapon you have on her (again, we recommend a grav-hammer). While you can’t do all the damage here, you can take her shield away. Doing so opens up the chance for ranged weaponry to knock her out quickly.

After doing enough damage, a horde-like phase will start. She summons The Banished to attack you in waves. Focus on taking out any snipers or flying enemies in the first and second phases. These can do massive damage, and if anyone has knocked your shield, can finish you off instantly. Systematically kill every enemy you see, as Harbinger won’t be an issue during these sections. If you leave one grunt alive, you can even get yourself prepared for the next phase.

Keep moving during the Harbinger sections

After the first phase of battling Harbinger, she will spam you with attacks that can kill you in one or two hits. You need to keep moving and wait for the moment she stops moving. Scattered around the arena there are Halo Infinite‘s equivalent of explosive barrels. Harbinger will randomly land near these, and you can shoot them for massive damage to her. She often appears between two of them, so make sure you don’t take these out during the horde sections. Save them for her. The heatwave weapon makes it very easy to hit these quickly.

Watch out for the hammer in phase 3

After you’ve knocked Harbinger down twice, the third and final horde phase will begin, and it’s a tough one. While there are many standard enemies (elites, etc), there’s also one Brute that’s fully armoured with a gravity hammer. He poses a serious threat as he’s incredibly mobile and will one hit you even on normal difficulty.

Use the grappleshot to keep your distance, remove some of the grunts from the fight and then focus on putting the Hammer Brute down. Grenades will be useful here, and if you find a Sentinel Beam it’ll greatly enhance your chances of taking the Brute down quicker.

Repeat for victory

One important factor to remember after each of the Banished horde-fights, is to be prepared for the Harbinger phases. You can’t enter the arena she is protecting, but you can prepare and be ready for her the second she appears. The moment The Banished are defeated, you need to be outside the arena waiting for her to be approachable.

The second the arena opens, that’s your moment to grappleshot her and deal damage. Remember to keep moving, protect yourself; use your ping and grapple, and you will survive to fight another day. Also, you’ll have seen the credits after you win the Halo Infinite Harbinger boss battle… so that’s nice.

The post Halo Infinite | How to defeat the Harbinger appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

As the main antagonist of Halo Infinite, it may come as no surprise to find out that a fight with Escharum is on the cards at some point. Truth be told, the game builds fairly masterfully to this fight, with Escharum goading and taunting Master Chief until they finally meet. There’s a mutual respect between the two battle-hardened foes, and while it’s not the last fight you’ll face, it’s one of the best.

It’s also quite tricky, because unlike a lot of Halo Infinite’s boss battles, optional or otherwise, you’re in an enclosed structure, and Escharum is massive, strong, and despite that, also fairly fast. Here’s how you beat him most efficiently.

Halo Infinite Escharum Fight Phase One: Shields Up

In the first phase, it’ll quickly become apparent that you can’t hurt Escharum until you remove his shields. You have to shoot him a bit which will hurt the friend you’re trying to save, and then Halo Infinite will let you know all of this information. Once this triggers, there will be a glowing icon on you can see through the walls you need to destroy. You’ve seen these before, so it’s a simple case of shooting them and it will lower Escharum’s shield.

Once this happens, give him all you’ve got. Use the outskirts of the arena to hide round corners to minimise damage. You can kite him a bit here, and put the hurt on. A fully upgraded ping ability helps here as you can fire those off to show his position at all times. Repeat this a few times and you will move on to his final phase.

Phase Two: Hammer Time

As if Escharum somehow wasn’t imposing enough, for phase two he drops his guns and pulls out a huge hammer. He hunts you relentlessly here, and if you get hit by the hammer full on, it’s game over. On the outskirts of the arena, you may have noticed a load of weapons you can use. On the left side, there’s a rocket launcher. Guess what the best way to defeat him is?

There are two ways to avoid being hit. We used the grappleshot to keep distance between Chief and Escharum. If you aren’t amazingly well versed with this, you can use the jet-boosters motion ability instead. Either way, get away from the bad dude as quickly as you can. Use the ping again to reveal his location all the time. Turn back, fire a rocket, then escape while reloading. Repeat to fade. If this doesn’t quite finish him off, or you missed a few shots, just grab any weapons and keep the hurt on him, and he’ll soon drop.

And that’s it, you’ve beaten the big bad Escharum in Halo Infinite: congratulations. However, the fight isn’t yet over…

The post Halo Infinite | How to defeat Escharum appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

After a week of 20th anniversary celebrations, Xbox has now announced Xbox cloud gaming is available on consoles.

You might be forgiven for wondering what this all means, but it’s a pretty cool idea that gives people who can’t afford the new Series S or Series X consoles a chance to play games on their current consoles via streaming.

Announced back at Gamescom 2021, this service means you could, in theory, stream a new-gen only Xbox game to your old Xbox One console. Here’s what Xbox says it means:

For Xbox One users, cloud gaming also allows you to play some next gen games on the Xbox One console you already own. This means select games that are currently only playable on Xbox Series X|S, like Recompile, The Medium, and The Riftbreaker, are now playable on your Xbox One with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and cloud gaming. We will also continue to support this capability and expand our cloud game library to include more next gen games like Microsoft Flight Simulator in early 2022.

Flight Simulator is one of the games that isn’t coming to Xbox One, so this offers a chance to play that. Likewise, The Riftbreaker and The Medium are new-gen games only, too. All three of these titles are also part of Game Pass, so it won’t cost you a penny to try them out. 

All you have to do is look for the Cloud Gaming icon, and you can just start playing it right away. There’s no wait for a download, just direct access. 

The post Xbox Cloud Gaming launches on Xbox One and Series X|S Consoles appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Did you know that the Xbox brand is coming up on 20 years old, and to celebrate that Xbox Anniversary, there’s going to be a live stream? Well, you do now.

Announced on the official Xbox Blog, it’s all going to be taking place on November 15th via Youtube, Twitch, and Facebook. The company is planning to celebrate some of the favourite moments from the last twenty years, and has been keen to tell people not to expect new game announcements at this Xbox Anniversary celebration stream.

With Halo Infinite due out in less than a month now, and Forza Horizon 5 being utterly incredibly, Xbox is getting back to doing what it does best: gaming. There was definitely a bit of a case of “the wilderness years” when Xbox was going hard after the TV and entertainment market. But now, with Game Pass being so successful, we’re starting to slowly see the fruits of the studio acquisitions and hardware power.

Here’s the details on the Xbox Anniversary Celebration

• The celebration will air on Monday, November 15 at 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. GMT  
• You can watch the broadcast on the official Xbox channel on YouTube, Twitch, or Facebook.
• The easiest way to find your preferred language is to watch the broadcast on the official Xbox YouTube page at YouTube.com/Xbox and select the “gear” icon in the lower right corner to select your language.
• You can also watch with American Sign Language (ASL) and Audio Descriptions (AD) in English on the official Xbox YouTube channel.

The post The Xbox Anniversary Stream airs on November 15th appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Places + Faces has announced a brand new collaboration with Xbox that’ll see a range of exclusive gaming accessories and apparel released. The partnership plans to combine Xbox Game Cloud Gaming (beta) and the digitally mobile ethos of Places + Faces.

Ciesay and Soulz are behind the collab, and have directed the main campaign video filmed in and around London. Plenty of talent will feature, such as Slawn (@OLAOLUSLAWN), model and gamer Jasmine Asia (@JASMINE.ASIA), youtuber GoldenBih (@GOLDENBIH) and music producer Kelvin Krash (@KELVINKRASH).

A thriving community

The community of Places + Faces is built around the world’s most inspiring talent, both aspiring and recognisable names. A$AP Rocky, Maya Jama, Mowa Lola, and Playboi Carti are just a few of the names included. With their ethos being built around being globally mobile, the partnership makes sense. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate enables players to play over 100 console games on mobile phones and tablets via the cloud. It feels like a natural fit for both parties involved.

“We’ve been fans of Xbox since we owned our first Xbox back in 2002. We wanted to create something special and exclusively designed around the controller,” said Ciesay. “We wanted to create something that inspires both of our communities; a true collaboration between our brands.”

Some of the items created include a dedicated Cloud Gaming Pouch bag that enables playing anywhere and the Places + Faces ethos to come together. Firstly, the limited run comes with a customised Xbox Wireless Controller and a 1-Month subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. The controller’s orange and red gradient design are a homage to Ciesay and Soulz cameras. It’s design is a reminder of the magic of shooting on film. Secondly, a series of hoodies and t-shirts will also be available. You can watch the campaign video below:

The post Places + Faces announce collaboration with Xbox appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Thinking of buying an Xbox Series S from game? On the eve of FIFA 22 being “properly” released (because you can get it early if you pay extra, or use a 10 hour free trial via EA Access), Game has put together a trade-in deal that, to be honest, is pretty tasty looking.

The long and short of it is that from the 1st to the 10th of October you can take an Xbox One S, PlayStation 4 Slim, or Nintendo Switch console in to your local game and trade it against an Xbox Series S and FIFA 22 for £149.99 or less, depending on which console you’ve taken in. That £149.99 price is going to require an Xbox One S 500GB model, or a PS4 Slim 500GB model.

We never actually reviewed the Xbox Series S, instead covering the Xbox Series X. However, the Series S is a fantastic bit of kit, and is even smaller in the flesh than you think it is. You won’t get the full 4K 60fps/120fps HDR power of the X, but it’s a cracker. You can get more information on the Xbox Series S Game trade-in offer at this link, to be sure. If you have a Switch you’re wanting to part with… I dunno, ahead of a certain OLED model coming out, you could get a Series S for under £100!

And now, because FIFA 22 is actually really good on the new generation of consoles, you can see our video review of the game below. Chris gave it a 9/10 saying: “FIFA 22 features tons of big changes in every element of gameplay, making this year’s iteration the best version seen to date”. Enjoy the video, and subscribe!

FIFA 22 is out on October 1 for all formats, the Xbox Series S is available now.

The post Game offering Xbox Series S and FIFA 22 for £149 via trade-in deal appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Since it isn’t long until one of the biggest games of the year comes out, Playground Games have revealed the first vehicles available in Forza Horizon 5. After the universal acclaim of the fourth game in the series, I cannot wait to get back into Forza and drive around Mexico.

“During its Let’s Go! livestream, Playground Games revealed a first look at the cars available to drive across the expansive, vibrant and open world of Mexico in Forza Horizon 5 beginning on Nov. 9 with Xbox Game Pass.

Several vehicles are making their franchise debut in Forza Horizon 5, including the 2020 Ford Super Duty F-450 DRW, the 1991 Jaguar Sport XJR-15 and the all-electric 2020 Porsche Taycan Turbo S alongside our cover cars with the Mercedes-AMG ONE and the 2021 Ford Bronco Badlands.

For players who love to get up close and personal with the cars in Forza Horizon 5, Forzavista will let players discover the unique characteristics of vehicles in exquisite detail, and those on Xbox Series X|S and Windows 10 PC will be able to do so with raytracing.

We’re just getting started on sharing all the vehicles coming to Forza Horizon 5. Stay tuned to ForzaMotorsport.net and @ForzaHorizon on Twitter for the complete list as we approach launch.”

The post Playground Games have revealed cars available in Forza Horizon 5 appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

The Football Association (The FA) has today announced that Xbox will become the Official Gaming Partner of the England National Teams.  The partnership extends across the Lionesses, eLions, and the Three Lions, as well as Wembley Stadium connected by EE and St George’s Park.

You can watch the official announcement trailer here:

The partnership is a celebration of the driving principle of inclusivity in play shared by both Xbox and The FA. Xbox has long championed the importance of gaming being inclusive, accessible, and safe for all.  The FA has a continued commitment to ensuring that all football participants in England have a great experience regardless of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, ability, faith or age. This shared vision to welcome all players is expressed in the newly announced partnership’s message: When Everybody Plays, We All Win.

Marcos Waltenberg, Director of Global Xbox Partnerships had this to say:

“At Xbox we strive to remove barriers and to empower people to experience the joy of play: millions of people around the world find common ground and connect through playing games, as they do with football.  In The FA we see a tremendous organization which has the same drive and ambition to empower people as we do at Xbox. Through our partnership we aim to bring further value to the England Football Teams and power the dreams of players and fans everywhere.”

The partnership was unveiled before the England Men’s squad’s first training session at St. George’s Park since the summer tournament, and ahead of the qualifying match against Hungary on September 2.  It sees Xbox committing to a grassroots gaming campaign with The FA, bringing exciting experiences for football and gaming fans across the nation.

More details of upcoming activities and how fans can get involved with the journey will be announced soon.

The post Xbox becomes Official Gaming Partner of the England Football teams appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Ensuring that absolutely everyone can use Game Pass in some form, Microsoft have announced that Xbox Cloud Gaming on Windows is now available for insiders. If you’re in one of the 22 countries that are part of the Insider program, you can choose not to bother with a bulky download and give this a try.

“Xbox Cloud Gaming with the Xbox App provides the same great Xbox experience you’re used to: Play over 100 high-quality Xbox console games with your friends; pick up from a saved game you started on your Xbox; or try out a whole new game from the Xbox Game Pass library to decide if you want to download it to your console.

With Xbox Cloud Gaming, you can turn all types of PCs into a gaming device, from brand-new budget computers to older machines with low specs. All you need to do is connect a compatible controller via Bluetooth or USB, launch the Xbox app, click the “cloud games” button, select your game and start playing. We’ve also added some new features to help you get started, including easy-to-access information on controller and network status, social features to stay connected with friends, and the ability to invite people – even those also playing on cloud without the game installed – to join you in a game.”

It’s great to see Xbox Cloud Gaming providing a way for people with outdated or lower spec PCs a way to play modern games, and there’s always plenty of great titles to play on Game Pass. If you’re an Ultimate member already, there’s no reason you shouldn’t test this out!

The post Xbox Cloud Gaming on Windows is now available for insiders appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Xbox has today announced the gamescom 2021 Xbox Stream, which will take place live on August 24 at 10:00am PT/6:00pm BST/7:00pm CEST.  This year gamescom will be a 100% virtual experience.  Gamers can tune in via YouTube, Twitter, Twitch, Facebook Gaming to learn more about the upcoming games lineup.

The team promises in-depth updates from some of their previously announced Xbox Game Studios titles.  In addition, we can expect to see updates from third-party partners, including titles coming to Xbox this holiday, upcoming releases to Xbox Game Pass, and much more.

For all the latest Xbox gamescom 2021 news, head over to Xbox Wire.

The post Xbox announce the gamescom 2021 Xbox Stream appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Nobody likes getting stuck in traffic, and whether you’re off to meet a mate or buy the latest release it’s never fun to be delayed. Luckily thanks to a partnership between Waze and Xbox, you can now beat the traffic with Master Chief. If you’ve already run through the Master Chief Collection on Game Pass and are looking to keep up the Halo spirit before Infinite, then why not try the Halo Experience on Waze.

“This month, we’re transporting you 500 years into the future to be part of an epic battle for the fate of the galaxy. We’ve teamed up with Xbox and 343 Industries, creators of the legendary Halo series, to bring the groundbreaking and beloved Halo universe experience to the road.

To mark the franchise’s 20th anniversary, for the first time ever you can ride along with a heroic Spartan super-soldier or a fierce alien war chief—and play your part in the fight to get humanity back on the right path.

Join the UNSC and the legendary Master Chief to help humanity tackle every obstacle thrown at them—whether it’s an interstellar alliance or rush hour traffic. Spartan-117 has dismantled the Covenant, turned the tide against the Flood, and battled the Banished—with that kind of experience in your corner, the mission of successfully making that dinner date will be no problem. Of course, having an all-terrain terror like the Warthog doesn’t hurt either.

Or perhaps you like to be on the rebellious side? For those that want to take control of their own fate—and the road ahead—look no further than the Banished war chief, Escharum. This brutal warrior will be there to lead your Ghost into uncharted territory and ensure victory—and a swift and safe arrival—at any cost.

So, buckle up and confirm your coordinates because while Halo Infinite is coming this holiday, you can drive with the Halo universe today. Click here to enjoy the Halo experience every time you hit the road, with your choice of voice in English, Spanish, French or Portuguese, and Moods and Cars—all available for a limited time. Or head to your Waze app, tap “My Waze,” and select the Halo banner to activate the experience.”

The post Beat the traffic with Master Chief and Waze appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

Turtle Beach Corporation, today announced that gamers on Xbox can now get their hands on the award-winning Recon Controller. Turtle Beach’s all-new Designed for Xbox Recon Controller was proudly designated with “Best of E3” awards from CNN Underscored and Android Authority.  It is the first controller to blend responsive and precise controls with Turtle Beach’s signature audio technologies.  These include Superhuman Hearing, Mic Monitoring, Signature Audio Presets, and more.

Juergen Stark, Chairman and CEO, Turtle Beach Corporation had this to say:

The Recon Controller was designed with the same industry expertise that has made Turtle Beach the best-selling gaming headset maker for over a decade, and its unparalleled features and design will help it make a striking entrance into the console controller market. I’m proud of how the Turtle Beach team has once again delivered an amazing product, and I’m excited to have Xbox gamers get the Recon Controller in their hands.

You can see a launch video for the Recon Controller here:

Designed for Xbox

The all-new Recon Controller is the first controller to pair Turtle Beach’s signature audio innovations with game-winning controls. Gamers on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and compatible Windows 10 PCs will be able to plug in any wired headset with a standard 3.5mm audio interface and take advantage of proven Turtle Beach features, including:

• Superhuman Hearing
• Mic Monitoring
• Signature Audio Presets

Additionally, Pro-Aim Focus Mode lets gamers tune the thumbstick sensitivity for enhanced long-range accuracy.  Up to four profiles can be saved on each of the mappable rear quick-action buttons. Feel the recoil of gunshots and the purr of vehicle engines through next-gen vibration feedback from dual-rumble motors in the handles and triggers. The Recon Controller also lets gamers play longer and stay cooler thanks to its ergonomic shape and cooling rubber grips.

Turtle Beach has launched the Recon Controller for Xbox.  The controller comes in black or white and it’s available now.

The post Turtle Beach launches award-winning Recon Controller for Xbox appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

In conjunction with the upcoming movie Free Guy, Ryan Reynolds and Xbox are joining forces to celebrate the unsung heroes of gaming with the first-ever Non-Player Character awards. This makes more sense than you might imagine, because Free Guy stars Reynolds as Guy – a bank teller NPC in an open world video game that is about to shut down for good.

There are four nominees up for this special award, and you can vote for your favourite on Twitter here. First up is Parvati, a mechanic and potential follower from The Outer Wilds. There’s also Samual Hayden from Doom and Doom Eternal, the UAC official who may end up more machine than man. Sea of Theives is also represented by Chief Trader Mollie, a quest giver that I couldn’t have named if you paid me despite having spent hundreds of hours pirating about. The last entry is Guy, a cheeky addition from the upcoming Ryan Reynolds movie.

“Today, Xbox Game Pass and 20th Century Studios’ Free Guy announced the first-ever Non-Player Character Awards, celebrating the unsung heroes of video games. This comes ahead of the release of the movie Free Guy on August 13, 2021, about a bank teller named Guy (Ryan Reynolds) who realizes he’s in an open world video game that will soon go offline.”

It’s just a bit of fun, but why not vote for your favourite (or a character from a movie I suppose). If you aren’t sure who to pick, all the games are handily on Game Pass and are well worth playing. Voting end on August 3rd, so don’t delay!

The post Behold the first-ever Non-Player Character awards, presented by Xbox and Ryan Reynolds appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.

As far as corporate partnerships go, I can’t think of a much better combination than Xbox and Krispy Kreme. To celebrate this wonderful meeting of food and video games, and 20 years of the Xbox, you’ll be able to buy the new Nexus Level Doughnut from Krispy Kreme stores and cabinets from August 2nd-22nd.

The Nexus Level Doughnut has a big ole X on it, and is stuffed full of gooey brownie batter. It honestly sounds great, and I’m definitely rushing to my local Tesco to grab one when they release next month.

“Gaming and doughnuts have been two great ways for connecting people and bringing joy during the last year, it felt natural to bring the flavour and joy of games together in an edible form. Our doughnuts are made fresh each day, all hand-decorated and checked, making each and every one delicious.”

As if a tasty treat wasn’t enough, if you purchase 12 doughnuts (the minimum acceptable amount of Krispy Kremes I will ever buy) you get an entry to a competition to win one of 110 Xbox Series S’ and a guaranteed free month of Game Pass. You might as well get ready to eat a dozen doughnuts, because that month of Game Pass practically pays for them anyway.

The post Xbox and Krispy Kreme team up to make an awesome doughnut and a free month of Game Pass appeared first on GodisaGeek.com.