Microsoft Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Sea of Thieves will see the addition of a new quest called Legend of the Veil, which brings in randomised story elements.First mentioned in Sea of Thieves’ roadmap from January, Legend of the Veil is a new three chapter long quest that will be available from April 21, and has now been detailed in both a blog post and a new video. The quest will be available for pirate legends, though in the deep dive where the quest is detailed, Rare staff did note that anyone can take part in the quest as long as a pirate legend is leading the voyage.In the new Sea of Thieves quest, players will be assisting the Pirate Lord, where you will have to gather special veil stones to further the plot.Legend of the Veil’s first two chapters are designed to be randomised, with some quests more puzzle oriented, and others featuring more combat.

Microsoft is apparently working on a group family pass for Xbox Game Pass, as the subscription service currently only offers individual memberships.As outlined in a Windows Central article from yesterday (March 31), trusted sources have said that a family plan – where one account can pay more to share Xbox Game Pass across a household’s accounts – is in the works and set to release sometime this year.The higher payment tier will apparently grant access to Xbox Game Pass for five different players, and be “far cheaper” than paying for each Xbox Game Pass account separately. Currently, Xbox Game Pass retails at £7.99 a month for console and PC, or £10.99 for Game Pass Ultimate, which includes game streaming and extra perks.This means that at present a regular subscription would cost five players £39.95, or Ultimate subscribers £54.95 a month.

Xbox has announced that it has paid indie developers billions in royalties from its ID@Xbox program.Independent Developers @ Xbox (ID@Xbox) is a scheme that Microsoft started in 2014 that allows indie studios to self-publish their games on the Xbox ecosystem of platforms.The announcement of shared royalties comes from Chris Charla, who was director of ID@Xbox until 2018 and is now a partner of content creation and programs at the company.“Since the program’s inception, independent developers have earned more than $2.5 billion [£1.89 billion] in royalties, and total revenue generated by ID@Xbox partners on Xbox almost doubled over the last three years. These are staggering numbers, and it speaks to the power of independent developers,” wrote Charla in a post on Xbox Wire.Charla adds that because of the scheme, indie developers have been able to give Microsoft direct feedback regarding its back-end publishing, which has allowed developers to more easily ship their games on both console and PC.“We’ve also paid developers and publishers across Xbox hundreds of millions of dollars in Game Pass license fees,” adds Charla, although no specific figure was given here.Despite apparently having over 3,000 indie games on Xbox, Charla notes that one area the team needs to improve on is discoverability and making it easier for players to find games they may end up really enjoying.Earlier in the month an ID@Xbox showcase was also live-streamed and showed off plenty of games coming to Game Pass in the near future.

The Initiative, the studio working on a reboot of Perfect Dark, is facing significantly high turnover and issues with slow progress.As reported by VGC, as many as half of Perfect Dark‘s core development team have quit The Initiative over the last year.VGC reports that this includes “most” of The Initiative’s senior design team. Last week, it was discovered that Dan Neuburger – game director at The Initiative – was one of the senior members that left.Departures include two senior system designers, a lead level designer, two senior writers, a design director, and more.The report claims that from speaking to several senior developers, “a lack of creative autonomy and slow development progress” were attributed to this departure.

Shredders, the snowboarding game from studios I-Illusions and Let It Roll, is launching on PC and Xbox Series X|S on March 17.Yesterday (March 2), publisher FoamPunch announced the release date with a brand new Shredders trailer while reaffirming that it will also be releasing day one on Xbox Game Pass.The trailer shows off newly captured gameplay of snowboarders in action, riding snow trails and pulling off unique tricks – similar to that of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series. You can check out the short trailer below:Shredders was announced back in June 2021 as “a love letter to snowboarding” and takes inspiration from snowboarding films, as well as the Amped games that were released on Xbox and Xbox 360.As the game synopsis reads, “You and your pal are making goofball snowboarding videos at the Frozen Wood resort when brand ambassador Lisa makes an offer for a couple of sponsored videos.

Playground Games has released a new Forza Horizon 5 update which adds sign language support.Previously announced last year, the sign language support feature has been in development for a while but has finally arrived today for all platforms.When players boot up Forza Horizon 5, they should be able to find both American Sign Language (ASL) and British Sign Language (BSL) features in the settings.The sign language update will support 150 in-game cinematics that are shown throughout the game, making the driving game much more accessible for deaf and hard of hearing players.The newly released YouTube video shows how the feature has been implemented, with actors from the deaf and hard of hearing community signing in the corner of the screen during the cinematics, story segments, and challenges.In a new blog post detailing the update, Microsoft’s chief accessibility officer, Jenny Lay-Flurrie, discussed the new update and talked about her own deafness, saying that with the addition of signing in the game, she no longer needs to ask her family what she missed.“There are so many people with disabilities and people who are deaf. And, there are a lot of closed doors every day.

Microsoft and Activision Blizzard regarding the recent acquisition occurred days after the report on CEO Bobby Kotick.An SEC filing was published on Friday (February 18) stating that Kotick and Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer entered talks about the acquisition on November 19, just three days after a report alleged that Kotick had known about Activision Blizzard’s misconduct for years.In September of last year, it was announced that Activision Blizzard was cooperating with an SEC investigation into the allegations of sexual harassment at the company, which this filing refers to.Part of the SEC filing reads: “On November 19, 2021, in the course of a conversation on a different topic between Mr. Spencer and Mr.

Microsoft president Brad Smith has said that staff at Activision Blizzard will be “under scrutiny” following its acquisition of the publisher.Last month, Microsoft purchased Activision Blizzard in a deal worth around £50billion, with the US Federal Trade Commission currently conducting an antitrust investigation.The purchase comes after Activision was hit by a lawsuit filed by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing and another by the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission following multiple allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination, and workplace misconduct.In between that, its own staff also filed a complaint too, alleging that the company used intimidation and “coercive tactics” to stifle staff trying to improve working conditions.It’s also been alleged that Activision CEO Bobby Kotick was aware of sexual misconduct claims within the company since 2018 but did not inform Activision’s board of directors. A report by the Wall Street Journal also suggested that Kotick played a first-hand part in the culture that has embroiled Activision in sexual harassment lawsuits and investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission.Speaking CNBC (via VGC) about the accusations, Smith said: “We’re looking to the leadership team at Activision Blizzard today to make culture and workplace safety a top priority every single day, until the day when this deal hopefully closes.

Microsoft purchase of Activision Blizzard is causing concern for smaller game developersLast month it was announced that Microsoft was acquiring Activision Blizzard for around £50billion, followed by news at the end of January that Sony would buy Bungie for £2.6billion.Now multiple indie developers have spoken to the BBC about their concerns with the Microsoft acquisition, and what it could mean for them.Director at Kitfox Games Tanya Short – the developer of Boyfriend Dungeon – said: “This Activision acquisition strikes fear in us because it makes it so much more obvious – maybe they could dominate the rest of the year and then what do we do?”“Conceivably, indie games outside of these services might lose engagement as subscribers focus most of their attention on games they can access for free within the service,” adds Yura Zhdanovich, founder and director at Sad Cat Studios.The Federal Trade Commission is set to investigate the deal and whether or not it would harm the competition. FTC Chair Lina Khan is an advocate for a more assertive approach when handling deals.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has said that he doesn’t believe its acquisition of Activision Blizzard should be blocked by the US Federal Trade Commission.The deal, worth around £50billion, was announced on January 18 but earlier this week it was announced that the US Federal Trade Commission would be conducting an antitrust investigation after fears the acquisition would harm competition.Talking to the Financial Times, Nadella said that the deal would only place Microsoft as the third largest player in the video games industry behind Sony and Tencent. He also believes the fragmentation of the market would prevent it from ever gaining a monopoly.“At the end of the day, all the analysis here has to be done through a lens of what’s the category we’re talking about, and what about the market structure?” said Nadella.“Even post-this acquisition, we will be number three with a low teens (market) share, where even the highest player is also in the teens (for market) share.

Microsoft is to be investigated by the Federal Trade Commission over their proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard.News broke last month that Call of Duty and Overwatch developers Activision Blizzard were being acquired by Microsoft. But the deal isn’t actually set in stone yet, and now according to Bloomberg, the deal will see the FTC conduct an antitrust investigation over the Activision Blizzard acquisition.

Halo Infinite has now become the biggest launch in franchise history according to Microsoft. It’s worth noting that there wasn’t a delineation between the campaign and multiplayer of the newest Halo title, meaning the figure likely comes from a combination of both. As Halo Infinite’s campaign is on Xbox Game Pass – which was confirmed to have passed 25million subscribers recently – and the multiplayer is free-to-play, it isn’t entirely surprising that the launch has been so successful.Over 20million players have suited up, according to a recent earnings call and a note from the official Halo Twitter.With over 20 million Spartans joining us so far, we’re thrilled to announce that #HaloInfinite is the biggest launch in Halo franchise history!Thank you, everyone, for joining us on the next step in this great journey.

Sony has made some of its first comments regarding Microsoft‘s £50billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, saying it expects the games to remain on PlayStation.As spotted by Bloomberg, a Sony spokesperson speaking to the Wall Street Journal today (January 20) has said that it expects Activision to honour its contractual agreements despite being bought out by its competitor Microsoft.“We expect that Microsoft will abide by contractual agreements and continue to ensure Activision games are multiplatform.”Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming has said that Microsoft does not intend to pull communities away from PlayStation by taking games away from the platform. Analysts also suggest that due to the large number of players of Activision’s biggest franchise Call Of Duty, regulators would prevent Microsoft from making it an exclusive title over fears of monopolisation.However, Spencer made similar remarks during the acquisition of Zenimax.

Microsoft‘s acquisition of Activision Blizzard apparently came about due to the misconduct allegations against the latter.A new report from Bloomberg has detailed some of the behind the scenes actions that are said to have taken place regarding the Activision Blizzard acquisition. According to the report, when the news broke of misconduct allegations at Activision Blizzard from The Wall Street Journal, Microsoft Corp.

Xbox chief Phil Spencer has talked about how Microsoft wants to make sure all of Activision Blizzard’s studios feel safe following the announcement of the acquisition.Spencer made the comment during an investor call today (January 18) after it was announced that Microsoft would be acquiring Activision Blizzard for £50billion ($68billion USD).“We’re looking forward to working with the thousands of Activision Blizzard employees with the same approach of proactive inclusion and partnership that we extend to every member of the Microsoft family,” he stated.“We believe firmly that the great teams at Activision Blizzard have their best work in front of them, and we’re looking forward to making sure they feel safe, supported and engaged in every aspect of their work going forward.”“That includes respecting the creative vision and identity of individual game studios. We have fundamental values that we refuse to compromise on,” Spencer added.According to the call, this deal will make Microsoft third to only Tencent and Sony in terms of revenue, with it expected to go through some time in 2023.Spencer also added that the acquisition “is not about short term results.

Halo: Combat Evolved on the original Xbox didn’t have a single-player campaign at first.This comes from programmer on the title Stefan Sinclair, who told Retro Gamer magazine (thanks, Gamesradar) that at first Halo was going to be multiplayer-only, and that a server connection was required for the development team to play.“Halo had been developed for internet multiplayer even in its most primordial forms,” explained Sinclar.

Xbox Games with Gold have been revealed, with a couple of indie titles and some older titles through backwards compatibility.Starting January 1, 2022, you will be able to pick up the twin-stick shooter RPG NeuroVoider, and the classic vertical scrolling shoot ‘em up Radiant Silvergun.

Xbox co-creator Seamus Blackley has responded to a video saying that online toxicity in video games needs to be stopped.Blackley shared a video from streamer Grenade Queen, who was playing an online match of Halo Infinite only to receive abuse for being female. Blackley responded by saying that “This wasn’t the future for Xbox Live we envisioned.

Xbox has revealed that Microsoft believes its handling of Lionhead Studios was a “mistake”.Power On: The Story of Xbox is a six-part documentary series about the “scrappy beginnings of Microsoft’s video game console” and launches today (December 13). Early insight by IGN has uncovered that a short segment in the sixth episode is dedicated to Lionhead Studios.

Microsoft hints towards another Halo video game project, or maybe even something else.As spotted by Aggiornamenti Lumia on Twitter, trademarks for Halo: The Endless and The Endless have been made by Microsoft.

Xbox, Phil Spencer, has said that he believes Kinect was one of the key contributions Xbox has made in its 20-year history.The interview features in the latest issue of Edge magazine and was spotted by VGC. In it, Spencer talked about some of the best examples of what Xbox had contributed to the games industry.He explained that creating Xbox Live on the original Xbox before making it standard on every Xbox 360 console was a key inclusion.

Playground Games has announced that 20 new cars will be coming to Forza Horizon 5, giving players even more ways to get around Mexico.In the most recent “Let’s ¡GO!” stream, which can be viewed below (thanks PCGamesN), the 20 different sets of wheels were shown off in a calendar style presentation.

Microsoft has released a new online course, free to everyone, that covers the fundamentals of making gaming more accessible.The course can be found on the Microsoft Learn page and consists of five modules.

Halo Infinite‘s head of design has commented on the game’s multiplayer progression criticism, saying that it’s at the “top of the list”.Following the launch of the free-to-play multiplayer on November 15, players have reported that the game’s level progression system, as well as the battle pass, is too slow.343 Industries has since released an update allowing players to earn more XP during matches.

Microsoft has shared part of the letter it sent to Nintendo in 1999 when it wanted to buy the company.This was before the launch of the original Xbox in 2001, and can be found by going to the Xbox museum website and exploring the history of the original Xbox (thanks, Kotaku).As we learned earlier this year, the desired acquisition had embarrassing results, as Xbox founding member Kevin Bachus said: “[Nintendo] just laughed their asses off.

Halo Infinite’s early release of a free-to-play multiplayer beta has not stopped players from creating some truly astounding mods, but one seems to stick out from the rest.As noted by PC Gamer, modders have been having a field day with mods in the new Halo, and one is definitely ludicrous.

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition as a DLC next week.Forgotten Empires has announced that the Mexico civilization is coming to Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on December 1 as the newest DLC.The official blurbs reads: “In Age III: DE, the burgeoning Mexican States can choose to Revolt instead of advancing to the Fortress, Industrial, or Imperial Ages. Each Revolt offers you a whole new deck full of opportunities.

Halo Infinite‘s campaign mode won’t have new, unlockable armour pieces for the game’s multiplayer mode.According to a dataminer on Twitter who goes by the name Chaz the Jackal – as reported by VGC – they recently shared a list of 34 customisation items that can seemingly be unlocked while playing Halo Infinite‘s story.However, it looks like none of these 34 unlockable items are armour pieces that will change the player’s Spartan.

Xbox Series X/S first party games are launching at a significantly lower price point, when compared to their current gen counterparts on PlayStation 5.As spotted by Eurogamer, AAA, first-party Xbox titles such as Forza Horizon 5 and Halo Infinite have released in the UK at a £55 price point.

Halo Infinite is on track for its December 8 release, with developer 343 Industries announcing the game has gone gold.The confirmation came on the official Halo feed on twitter, with a simple announcement of the game’s gold status, and the messages “We’ll see you on December 8, Spartans.” The game will arrive on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.#HaloInfinite has officially gone gold!We'll see you on December 8, Spartans.

Halo Infinite’s free-to-play multiplayer will run multiple events through its six-month first season, and the free rewards and event themes have been detailed.Up first is the Samurai-themed Fracture: Tenrai event, running from November 23 to 30, which another three events throughout the season will then follow.

Microsoft, the University of Arizona history department gives Age of Empires 4 players credit towards their degrees. There will be unique educational content on the Age of Empires website from two professors at the University of Arizona from early next year.

PlatinumGames’ action RPG Scalebound was cancelled in 2017, and now Hideki Kamiya has come out and apologised to both Microsoft and fans over the ordeal.Positioned as an Xbox exclusive, the game would see players control Drew, who could issue commands in combat to his dragon companion Thuban. In a Cutscenes video posted today (as spotted by VGC), Kamiya talked about the games development and eventual cancellation.“We were working in an environment we weren’t used to,” explained Kamiya.

Minecraft Caves & Cliffs: Part 2 update is on its way, due to be released later this month.Mojang has revealed that the ambitious Caves & Cliffs: Part 2 update is will finally launch at the end of the month, on November 30.Minecraft’s Caves and Cliffs update promises new cave types, with new blocks, mobs, and items. There are also new underground lakes and waterfalls to find, too.“Part II gives the mountains and caves that you know and love a makeover,” reads the official announcement.

Microsoft has revealed the roadmap for Age of Empires IV, detailing the upcoming content all the way to Spring 2022 and beyond.Age of Empires IV, which launched on October 28 recently received its first post-launch patch, but Microsoft and Relic Entertainment have now shared a new roadmap detailing what players can expect from the game in the future.Patch 7879 has already been released and addressed performance fixes and system updates, but the Winter 2021 update seems to have a lot more in

Xbox Cloud Gaming has launched on consoles and is available right now for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers.Announced over at the Xbox official blog, Xbox Cloud Gaming is now available across“Today you can play Game Pass games from the cloud on your Xbox console,” it revealed.