Tag: Game Pass

  • RuneScape Dragonwilds Hits 1.5 Million Sales in Early Access Ahead of Console and Game Pass Debut

    RuneScape Dragonwilds Hits 1.5 Million Sales in Early Access Ahead of Console and Game Pass Debut

    RuneScape Dragonwilds, the survival spin-off from Jagex, has sold over 1.5 million copies during its 18-month early-access period on Steam. The full PC version launched on September 15, 2026, and the game is set to arrive on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on October 28, 2026.

    Console players will be able to access Dragonwilds on day one through Xbox Game Pass (Premium, Ultimate, and PC Game Pass tiers) and PlayStation Plus (Extra and Premium tiers). This broad availability is expected to drive even more players into the survival-crafting world of Ashenfall.

    Dragonwilds blends classic RuneScape lore with survival mechanics. Players gather resources, build bases, craft weapons, and fight enemies while managing hunger, thirst, and health. The game supports solo play or online co-op with up to four players.

    The 1.5 million early-access sales give the console launch strong momentum. Jagex is betting that the survival genre — popularized by titles like Minecraft and Valheim — will attract both longtime RuneScape fans and newcomers who may have found the MMO format intimidating.

    “Dragonwilds shows that Jagex is willing to take RuneScape beyond its traditional format,” the report notes. The console release, coupled with subscription services like Game Pass and PlayStation Plus, could significantly expand the game’s audience.

    With the PC version now fully released and a console launch just weeks away, all eyes are on whether Dragonwilds can replicate its early success on a larger stage.

  • Xbox Game Pass Adds 7 New Games Including Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War

    Xbox Game Pass Adds 7 New Games Including Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War

    Xbox players have a new reason to get excited this September, especially if they have a Game Pass subscription. A range of new titles are making their way to the paid service. While the list includes several exciting titles, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War drew the most attention.

    This direct sequel to Call of Duty: Black Ops is now added to Game Pass Ultimate, PC, and Premium, and players can install and dive into it without spending a single buck. If you ask what’s exciting, that’s the campaign. The game takes players into the tense Cold War era of the 1980s, with missions set across places such as East Berlin, Vietnam, and Turkey.

    Apart from Black Ops Cold War, the Game Pass lineup also includes Mewgenics, Halloween: The Game, Bus Simulator 27, Culdcept The First Saturn Tribute, Honeycomb: The World Beyond, Hole in Many, and SPRAWL Zero.

    Mewgenics allows players to build a team of cats for turn-based battles. On a completely different note, Halloween: The Game puts players in the role of Michael Myers or a hero trying to survive the night. Players can choose the perspective they want to experience. The other games range from driving, card games, survival, puzzles, and fast-paced shooting.

    Though indie games have a separate and dedicated fanbase, beating Black Ops Cold War is still tough when it comes to the player base. The addition of the Black Ops title definitely gives Xbox Game Pass an advantage. The story of the game mixes fictional events with real-world incidents to take players on exciting yet challenging missions. For Call of Duty fans, it adds more choice without needing to buy the game separately.

    The rest of the lineup also gives the service some variety. Players can switch from shooting and horror to cats, buses, puzzles or survival. This variety makes September’s Game Pass lineup useful for different types of players.

    Today’s Xbox releases give players plenty to try. Black Ops Cold War may grab the most attention, but games such as Mewgenics and Halloween: The Game could also surprise players looking for something different.

  • Microsoft’s Xbox Revenue Declines 10% as Company Doubles Down on AI and Cloud

    Microsoft’s Xbox Revenue Declines 10% as Company Doubles Down on AI and Cloud

    Microsoft’s latest quarterly results reveal a 10% drop in Xbox content and services revenue compared to the same period last year, as the tech giant continues to prioritize investments in artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure. The decline was primarily attributed to weaker third-party game sales, though first-party titles and Xbox Game Pass remained strong performers.

    The Xbox division has undergone significant restructuring this year, including thousands of layoffs and the closure of several gaming studios, some of which have since regained independence. Despite these challenges, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Xbox CEO Asha Sharma expressed optimism about the gaming business’s future.

    “We have the best IP in the industry, and talented studios around the world, and believe we can bring these strengths together and expect to return the business to growth in fiscal 2027,” Nadella said during the earnings call. Sharma added, “In FY26, over 200 million new players came to Xbox and our games, but our business did not grow with our audience. We need to close that gap by investing in what players value. That will take time, but we expect to return to growth by the end of FY27.”

    While the quarter was quieter for Xbox, Microsoft’s heavy spending on AI and cloud could eventually enhance the gaming experience. AI-driven recommendations may personalize Game Pass offerings, and improved cloud technology could make Xbox Cloud Gaming more reliable. These developments suggest that the current downturn is a temporary phase as the company realigns its gaming strategy with broader technological ambitions.

  • Xbox CTO Scott Van Vliet Apologizes After Widespread Service Outage Disrupts Digital Gaming

    Xbox CTO Scott Van Vliet Apologizes After Widespread Service Outage Disrupts Digital Gaming

    Xbox has broken its silence following a massive service outage that left thousands of players unable to access digital games and online services for nearly 20 hours. Chief Technology Officer Scott Van Vliet issued a public apology on X (formerly Twitter), acknowledging the frustration and promising improvements.

    “A licensing service that sits outside of Xbox, but which Xbox depends upon, caused some sign-in scenarios to fail, and it caused many scenarios that require an entitlement check to also fail,” Van Vliet explained. The outage, linked to error code 0x87e107df, prevented users from launching games, using Game Pass, making purchases, or accessing online features. The team restored services by 2:30 PM PDT, but Van Vliet called the situation “unacceptable” and stated that Xbox “must do better.”

    Microsoft has not disclosed every technical detail, but improving system stability is now a top priority. The outage also impacted several publishing and store partners relying on the same backend licensing systems. Going forward, experts suggest Xbox can rebuild trust by providing faster updates during disruptions and strengthening offline access to digital libraries.

    As gaming platforms increasingly depend on online verification, this incident highlights the need for more resilient infrastructure and transparent communication—lessons Xbox appears committed to learning.