Tag: Xbox

8BitDo Lite controller feels tailor-made for Switch Lite owners

If you’re Nintendo Switch Lite owner looking for a controller that matches the adorable look of your console, 8BitDo’s newly launched controller might be the answer. The company’s newly launched 8BitDo Lite controller is an adorable looking gamepad styled after Nintendo’s new Switch Lite.

The rectangular gamepad mimics the look of the Switch Lite so perfectly that it’s hard to say whether it comes from a third-party manufacturer. The 8BitDo Lite features largely the same buttons and functionality of a full-sized Nintendo Switch controller. The only difference being that instead of analog sticks, it has D-pads.

Priced at $25, the controller is now available for pre-order while shipping begins on October 30. It’ll be offered in yellow and teal color variants. Apart from Switch Lite, the controller also works with PC, Android, macOS, and more. It has a switch on top that lets you swap between Switch and Xbox compatible functionality. Connectivity features on the controller include USB C and Bluetooth.

While there’s no apparent reason for gamers to use a wireless gamepad with the new Nintendo Switch Lite. That said, in case you still find the new console a tad heavy to hold for long periods, the 8BitDo Lite could be the perfect accessory to go with your Nintendo Switch Lite. Not to mention, it is so compact that one could easily fit one into a small bag.

September 27, 2019
Microsoft shows off next gen Xbox code-named Project Scarlett

Microsoft unveiled the upcoming Xbox console at E3 2019 codenamed Project Scarlett. The company claims it’ll be up to four times more powerful than Xbox One X. That said, Microsoft did not reveal any key hardware details about its next console.

For now, all we know is that Project Scarlett will support 8K resolution and run content at 120FPS. The HDD will be replaced by SSD, which is an advanced storage solution with some advanced cloud capabilties.

“We’ve created a new generation of SSDs. We’re using the SSD as virtual RAM,” said an Xbox spokesperson in the unveiling video. Now, this should increase performance substantially over the current gen Xbox, with faster game loads.

Besides, the next Xbox will have a custom designed CPU based on AMD’s Zen 2 and Radeon RDNA architecture. Microsoft is also adding a fast GDDR6 RAM, which the company claims will offer resolution and frame rates never seen before.

During the ongoing E3 conference, head of Xbox division, Phil Spencer, also said that inputs from fans indicated they want something focused entirely on gaming, and not a jack of all trades. It’s not clear how this is going to work out, but most probably, the console won’t have stuff like Netflix or YouTube, which also seems highly unlikely.

Microsoft plans to release Halo Infinite alongside the next-gen Xbox console, laying the groundwork for Microsoft’s next generation console gaming.

The next-gen Xbox console is expected to release in 2020, sometime during the winter holidays. It’s still a long way to go, therefore, more details about Project Scarlett are likely to surface at next year’s E3.

June 10, 2019
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription launched at $14.99 a month

Microsoft announced Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription earlier this year, however, it was only in beta. Now, the company has finally released it to all users along with the addition of PC games. This essentially means you’ll get Xbox Live Gold and and Xbox Game Pass for both Xbox and PC for a single subscription of $14.99 a month.

Put simply, it’s a great deal for gamers who play both Xbox and PC games, as it offers a bunch of different titles for both PC and consoles. The standalone cost for Xbox Game Pass for PC is avaialble at $4.99/month, Xbox Game Pass for Xbox at $9.99/month, and Xbox Live Gold at $9.99/month. Now, that amounts to a total of $24.97. Therefore, the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription saves you nearly $10 a month if you want all three subscriptions.

Essentially, Microsoft is now offering a total of four subscription services.

These include Xbox Game Pass PC for $4.99 a month, Xbox Game Pass Console Games at $9.99/month, Xbox Live Gold at $9.99 a month and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate at $14.99 a month. The latest Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Subscription is now available at the official Microsoft site.

June 9, 2019
Mad Box console to lock horns against the PS5 and next-gen Xbox

It appears the PS5 and next-gen Xbox won’t be the only major rivals, as there could be another competitor on its way. Developer of Project Cars, Slightly Mad Studios, have announced their in-house console called Mad Box, touting it as the most powerful console ever built.

Slightly Mad Studios CEO, Ian Bell, confirmed the news on Twitter, adding that Mad Box would start shipping globally in around three years. He further added it’ll be a standlone console like the Xbox One and PS4, and would support most VR headsets in the market.

“It will support most major VR headsets and those upcoming and the specs will be equivalent to a very fast PC two years from now. We’re in early talks with manufacturers of components so we can’t say much more right now other than we have the designs specced out in detail,” Bell told Variety.

Mad Box will be priced on par with upcoming consoles

As far as pricing goes, Bell revealed that Mad Box would cost nearly the same as the upcoming PS5 and next-gen Xbox. He also added that Mad Box won’t likely be getting exclusives, as Bell believes there’s clear monoploy in the gaming industry.

“We think the industry is a little too much of a monopoly or a micro oligopoly,” Bell said to Variety Gaming. “We think competition is healthy and we have the required hardware contacts to be able to bring something epic to fruition based on our designs.”

Bell further announced that early design builds for the Mad Box console will be revealed in about four to six weeks. It’ll be interesting to see how worthy of a rival can the Mad Box turn out for the PS5 and next Xbox. More so when both are rumored to pack high-end specifications to supoort 4K gaming.

More details about the Mad Box console are liley to surface in the near future. We’ll update you as soon as we hear anything new. Until then, keep checking back for more.

January 3, 2019
New PS5 and next-gen Xbox details revealed

While Sony and Microsoft have already confirmed they’ve begun work on the PS5 and the next-gen Xbox console, though we haven’t heard anything substantial so far. We’ve come across plenlty of leaks and rumours, though nothing concrete from the companies themselves. That said, developers and industry experts keep discussing about it giving us a good idea about what to expect. The latest information comes from Cradle Games technical director Marc-Andre Jutras, who recently had a brainstorming session with GamingBolt about to what to expect from next-gen consoles.

He suggests we won’t see a huge upgrade in RAM, as most games don’t require that much memory anyways. Instead, he stated that we might see an increase in processor cores.

“I don’t think we will see 16GB of RAM, most games don’t use that much RAM anyway. I think the next generation will be between 8 and 12, probably. What you will see however is probably a good amount of cores. I wouldn’t be surprised if the next gen was Ryzen 2600 or something like that. Because it is really stable, cheap, and has a good amount of cores,” said Jutras to GamingBolt.

He also spoke about what major changes in hardware we might see with upcoming consoles, which would be the focus on VRAM. He explained that 4K games need good amount of VRAM to buffer smoothly, unlike the PS4 which currently offers shared RAM space.

“So if you end up with a 4K buffer, you need four times the VRAM. So I think you will see, you won’t see shared RAM space next gen like you do with the PS4. I don’t think you will see that because it’s a big bottleneck. You’ll see more VRAM to support 4K and 5K and whatever else comes around. Just how much of that? I wouldn’t be surprised if the PS5 had 8GB of RAM and 8GB of VRAM,” he added.

It will intersting to see what Sony and Microsoft have to offer with their next-gen gaming consoles. That said, we’re bound to come across a barrge of rumors and speculations before the big reveal. We’ll update you as soon as we hear anything more. Until then, keep checking back for more.

December 29, 2018