Xbox CEO Asha Sharma acknowledged a $1.7 billion revenue drop in Q4 FY26 but insisted the business will return to growth by the end of FY27. Over 200 million new players joined Xbox in the past year, yet hardware sales fell 29% and content revenue declined 5%. Microsoft leadership frames the downturn as a necessary reset for long-term stability.
Ubisoft and Xbox have announced an expanded partnership granting Xbox owners free PC versions of 12 Ubisoft titles via Ubisoft Connect by August 4th. The benefit applies automatically to future Xbox purchases of these games but does not extend to players who buy on PC first.
Xbox Game Pass launched in 2017 as a bold answer to the PlayStation 4's dominance, promising a Netflix-style library for $9.99 a month. Seven years and over $100 billion in investments later, the service has failed to hit subscriber targets, contributed to studio closures, and forced Microsoft to raise prices while devaluing its own biggest franchises.
Assassin's Creed Shadows headlines this weekend's best deals at $29.99, marking a steep discount for the first series entry set in feudal Japan. The roundup also includes savings on the DJI Mini 4K drone, Apple AirPods 4, and several LEGO sets.
Paramount Games Studio has delayed Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game on Xbox Series X and S to September 3, just hours before its scheduled July 23 launch across all platforms. The Nintendo Switch version will also launch without crossplay, non-English language support, or the Deluxe Edition, prompting widespread backlash from the Xbox community over the last-minute announcement and vague explanation.
Meta Horizon+ subscribers in supported regions now receive a starter edition of Xbox Game Pass at no extra cost, featuring over 50 games and 10 hours of monthly cloud gaming. The partnership between Xbox and Meta expands cloud streaming access directly to Meta Quest headsets. Eligible members can claim the benefit starting today.
Forza Horizon 5 creative director Mike Brown says Xbox Game Pass was a well-meaning idea that simply didn't attract enough subscribers to sustain its studio acquisitions. The Clutch developer believes the resulting layoffs are a direct consequence of that shortfall, not villainy from Xbox leadership.
Flyway Games' Ascend to Zero launches on Xbox Game Pass with a 30-second time limit and a time-stopping mechanic that rewrites the Vampire Survivors formula. The roguelike's exponential leveling and four distinct currency types create a fascinating systems overload that keeps pulling players back.
Microsoft has unexpectedly removed Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 from its July 2026 Xbox Game Pass lineup, despite owning the title through its $69 billion Activision Blizzard acquisition. The game was set to launch on Game Pass on July 21. The sudden removal, without explanation, sparks speculation about potential licensing issues, a common challenge for music-heavy games like THPS 1+2, which features a soundtrack with numerous licensed tracks.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2, despite being published by Activision (owned by Xbox via a $70 billion deal), has been removed from the upcoming Xbox Game Pass titles list without explanation. This move highlights Xbox's confusing Game Pass strategy amid reported subscriber decline following a price hike. The game's removal is puzzling, given its first-party status.
