February2019
Random Is That Marina From Splatoon 2 On The Xbox One Dashboard?
What the...
An Xbox One user who goes by the Twitter handle DumbDeadDoodles has allegedly spotted the Splatoon 2 character Marina hidden on a banner within the 'Mixer' section of the Xbox One dashboard. As crazy as it sounds, other Xbox users posted images of their own dashboards, showing the exact same banner. Take a look at the right side of the...
Talking Point Nintendo And Microsoft Working Together Isn't As Crazy As You Think
Dogs + cats living together = ?
The whispers that Microsoft is preparing to launch games and services on Switch are, in some ways, too fantastical to believe; a dream-come-true for fanboys-and-girls of a certain age. The rumoured deal suggests that the company is planning not only to launch Xbox Live and Game Pass integration, but also to publish...
Rumour French Gaming Website Suggests Cuphead Could Come To Switch
Nintendo and Microsoft collaboration rumours persist
Further to last night's rumours suggesting that Microsoft is planning to bring an Xbox app, Project X Cloud and its Game Pass service to Switch, more details have come to light regarding the possible cross-pollination. French gaming website Jeuxvideo has extra details regarding the potential...
Rumour Microsoft Plans To Bring Xbox App And Game Pass To Nintendo Switch
Ori and Project xCloud also expected
At the start of this month, it was discovered Microsoft would be discussing its plans to make Xbox Live compatible with mobile platforms and the Nintendo Switch at this year's Game Developers Conference. Now, in today's update, Direct-Feed Games – known for its strong track record when it comes to rumours –...
Video Don't Get Your Hopes Up About Project H.A.M.M.E.R. Or Scalebound Making A Comeback
"Very unlikely" to return
Earlier this week, we reported a rumour about Nintendo's plans to revive a "dead and buried" game. This rumour stems from a comment made by Game Informer's Senior Editor Imran Khan on last week's Kinda Funny Games show. According to the source, Nintendo has intentions of reviving a certain project, even though it was...
News Microsoft Eager To Expand Xbox Live Cross-Platform Gaming On Switch
Beyond Minecraft
The upcoming schedule for this year’s Game Developers Conference – taking place between the 18th and 22nd of March – has revealed how Microsoft will be discussing its plans to expand Xbox Live support to Android, iOS and the Nintendo Switch. It wants cross-platform play to go beyond the insanely popular crafting-survival game...
October2018
News Sequel To Minecraft Doesn't "Make Sense" According To Microsoft's Helen Chiang
It would fracture the community
When games are successful, naturally sequels are expected. The insanely popular Minecraft appears to be taking a different approach. When Microsoft forked out a whopping $2.5 billion for the franchise in 2014, analysts expected the company would quickly churn out a sequel to make it a worthwhile transaction. It's now...
March2018
Soapbox With Microsoft Playing Ball, It’s Finally Time For Banjo-Kazooie To Return To Nintendo
And we know just the studio that could pull it off...
Soapbox features enable our individual writers to voice their own opinions on hot topics, opinions that may not necessarily be the voice of the site. In today's article, editor Dom tackles a subject very close to his heart - his rabid love for a certain seminal platformer from Rare, and...
News Xbox's Phil Spencer Is Still Open To Banjo And Kazooie Appearing In Super Smash Bros.
Rare is also open to giving IP to third parties
As we all know, Rare used to be a solid partner for Nintendo. During the N64 years, Nintendo held a significant stake in the UK firm, which created seminal games like Donkey Kong Country, GoldenEye 007, Blast Corps, Perfect Dark and Donkey Kong 64. It was also the company responsible for the N64...
January2018
Rumour Get That Pinch Of Salt Ready, Apparently Microsoft Is Preparing To Buy Electronic Arts
Keep a straight face
While the Switch and PlayStation 4 continue to sell robustly, over in the land of Xbox things aren't looking quite as rosy. Even the most ardent supporter of Microsoft's console hardware would admit that there's a serious shortage of quality first-party exclusive games on the machine right now and that's only going to hold the...
Rumour A New Perfect Dark Game Is In Development, But Rare Isn't Involved
And it's not for a Nintendo system, obviously
Reports are surfacing online about a potential new entry in the popular Perfect Dark series, which began life on the Nintendo 64. According to the rumour, Gears of War studio The Coalition has been tasked with reviving the franchise, which is now owned by Microsoft following the purchase of IP holder...
November2017
News Microsoft Wants To Reach Gamers On Rival Systems, Says Xbox Chief Phil Spencer
Focus is on growing game sales and services, apparently
Microsoft is about to launch the Xbox One X worldwide, the company's latest play in what has become an increasingly competitive hardware arena. The Xbox One has lost out to the PlayStation 4 in terms of global share, while Nintendo's Switch has seemingly carved out a whole new sector of the...
September2017
News Halo Is Coming To The Nintendo Switch, In A Fashion
Yup, it's a Minecraft mash-up pack
Fans of the Master Chief, rejoice! Microsoft's million-selling Halo series is finally coming to a Nintendo console - but before you get too excited, we should point out that it's happening under the guise of a Minecraft mash-up pack. The pack will become available on Switch thanks to the launch of Minecraft's new...
August2016
Video Augmented Reality NES Gaming Finally Gives Us A Reason To Want Microsoft's HoloLens
Super Mario Bros. on your living room wall
Virtual Reality may be the flavour of the moment right now, but Microsoft is attempting to chart a different course with its HoloLens headset. This expensive piece of kit uses Augmented Reality to create unique experiences and has plenty of applications in the sphere of gaming - running NES games being just...
June2016
News Activision Was Closer To Owning Rare Than You Might Think
Xbox co-creator Ed Fries says it was a close-run thing
UK company Rare is responsible for some of the best games of the past 30 years, and was once a Nintendo second-party studio thanks to the Japanese giant purchasing 49 percent of the firm. Nintendo and Rare's alliance resulted in titles like Donkey Kong Country, Diddy Kong Racing, GoldenEye 007,...
May2016
News Microsoft's Phil Spencer Says Minecraft Partnership With Nintendo Has Been "Great"
"Nice to see Minecraft doing so well on the Wii U"
The head of Microsoft's Xbox division is quite a chilled out guy. Not only does he find the very concept of console wars "distasteful", but he can't stop saying nice things about Nintendo, claiming that the Japanese firm is a "bea
February2016
Weirdness This Is Conker As You've Never Seen Him Before, And Won't Ever Want To Again
Say hello to "Young Conker"
Conker is one of Rare's most iconic characters, largely because he's a complete subversion of everything a cute, platforming mascot should be. Originally conceived as your typical fluffy hero, Conker only really found fame when Chris Seavor - he of Rusty Pup fame - took the character and turned him on his head, creating...
December2015
News Microsoft Gets Cute About Possible Rare Replay Release On Wii U
"Suggest it to the great folks at @RareLtd"
As we all know, Minecraft on Wii U is no longer a fantasy - it's real. And, as many have pointed out, that means that Microsoft is releasing a game on a Nintendo system. Wonders never cease, right? This event has predictably triggered a frenzied response online, with some incredibly optimistic individuals...
News Microsoft's Phil Spencer "Would Be Happy" To See Nintendo Games On Xbox One
Looked at working with Nintendo on GoldenEye "many times"
Is Hell feeling a bit chilly? Are pigs taking to the skies? It might be prudent to check, because Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has voiced the opinion that he would love to see Nintendo games on the Xbox One. It's an outlandish statement, but one which has a logical root. It has just been...
March2015
Yacht Club Games "keeping an eye out" for Nintendo possibilities
Remember when Shovel Knight was a Nintendo console exclusive? Nice, wasn't it? Those days are long past now, with developer Yacht Club Games confirming that the faux-retro platformer is headed to both PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. To rub a bit more salt into the wound, it was confirmed...
September2014
Feature The Nintendo 64 Controller and the Rise of 3D Gaming
The three-handled situation
The Nintendo 64 controller is one that has fallen out of favour with some gamers – its outdated control stick and limited number of buttons leaves it and its parent system in a state of being old but without necessarily being seen by the general public as 'retro'. You could easily say the same for Sony's original...
June2013
News Microsoft Execs Thought They Owned Donkey Kong After Acquiring Rare
Conker's Bad Fur Day director tells an amusing tale
Back in 2002 Microsoft forked out $375 million to acquire UK-based developer Rare, which had previously enjoyed a long prosperous period with Nintendo. Of course that meant all of Rare's intellectual properties went along for the ride, including Perfect Dark and Banjo Kazooie. However, according...
May2013
News Violent Video Games Blamed for Knife Attack in Scotland
14-year old viciously assaulted after "an argument about Xbox games"
Violent video games are getting more bad rep this week, after a senior Scottish Police officer blamed them for a recent knife attack in Clydebank. The perpetrator — who is only 13 years old and apparently already a father — is reported to have slashed the throat of a 14-year...
January2011
News Nintendo Praises Sony and Microsoft's Contributions to Gaming Industry
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer
Gone are the days when you could call Nintendo a big fish in a small pond. Modern gaming has undoubtedly expanded the size of the waters, and there are once again, several big fish that inhabit said pond. Speaking at the Learning Without Frontiers conference yesterday in London, General Manager of...
May2010
News Microsoft Manager Gives 3DS the Thumbs Up
Takashi Sensui also reveals Microsoft's own preparations for the 3D realm
It's always professional of rival companies to give credit where it's due, but it's even more respectable when it seems genuine. It seems that Nintendo's first steps into the 3D gaming world have garnered positive comments from a Microsoft big-cheese. Speaking to the Nikkei...
