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On August 25, Psychonauts 2 will be unleashed upon the world via Xbox consoles, PC, and Xbox Game Pass , continuing the tale of Razputin “Raz” Aquato, a former circus performer who’s left the big top behind to pursue his dream career of being a Psychonaut. If you didn’t play the first game, now would be the absolute perfect time to check it out for free with Xbox Game Pass. Don’t have time? Well then, you might want to take a look at the latest video (embedded above!) breaking down the story so far, courtesy of our friends over at Suggestive Gaming. Once you’re done getting caught up, be sure to enjoy our Q&A with the Suggestive Gaming team below, in which they share some of their process. Q: Could you run us through the typical process of putting together a ‘What You need to Know’ timeline video? A: First, I’ll play through every relevant game in the series I’m covering, capturing all of the footage along the way; sometimes this is easier than others, depending on the avail...

While there’s no denying that flashy supercars and built-for-fun off-road vehicles are the stars of the show in the Forza Horizon series, it’s the widely varied, based-on-real-life environments that really make the games shine. Whether it’s kicking up dust while blasting across the Australian Outback in Forza Horizon 3 or leaving a swirling trail of leaves through the English countryside on a crisp autumn day in Forza Horizon 4 , we’ve all got great memories of exploring the vibrant worlds created by the developers at Playground Games. With Forza Horizon 5 , the team has their sights set on the most diverse locale yet: Mexico. “We knew from the beginning that we wanted this to be the biggest Forza Horizon yet. However, if we wanted to be the biggest, then we felt we also needed to offer the most diversity and contrast as well,” says Mike Brown, Creative Director of Forza Horizon at Playground Games. “Mexico is almost like the whole world in one country: snowy peaks, tropical j...

Summary We grab our Xbox Wireless Controller and head to the skies on Xbox Series X|S. An enhanced Flight Training feature and majestic Discovery Flights highlight some of the new features available. Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox Series X|S will be available with Xbox Game Pass starting on July 27. I just flew an Airbus A320 from my couch, and I can’t believe I just typed that. Having logged some time with the PC version of Microsoft Flight Simulator over the past year and going hands-on during its lead up to launch , I’ll confess that I remained cautiously optimistic about how well the simulator experience would translate to a console. Well, as this avid fan of both aircraft and flight simulators, I’m happy to report that Microsoft Flight Simulator has absolutely nailed the landing on Xbox Series X|S, giving gamers a robust, exhilarating, and worthwhile experience that can’t be found on any other console today. Start Flying Immediately Having spent a solid day wi...

We know you’re busy and might miss out on all the exciting things we’re talking about on Xbox Wire every week. If you’ve got a few minutes, we can help remedy that. We’ve pared down the past week’s news into one easy-to-digest article for all things Xbox! Or, if you’d rather watch than read, you can feast your eyes on our weekly video show above. Come back every Friday to find out what’s happening This Week on Xbox! Coming Soon to Xbox Game Pass: Microsoft Flight Simulator, The Ascent, and More I hope you have a cleared-out gaming schedule, as we’ve got many games to look forward to through the rest of July with Xbox Game Pass! On July 27, we’re taking to the skies with… Read more Inside Xbox Series X|S Optimized: Sniper Elite 4 One of the biggest benefits of all that power in the hardware is giving developers the ability to make games that are Xbox Series X|S Optimized. This means that they’ve taken full… Read more Ultimate Game Sale is Back on Microsoft Store It’s that tim...

One of the biggest benefits of all that power in the hardware is giving developers the ability to make games that are Xbox Series X|S Optimized. This means that they’ve taken full advantage of the unique capabilities of Xbox Series X|S, both for new titles built natively using the Xbox Series X|S development environment as well as previously released titles that have been rebuilt specifically for the console. In our Inside Xbox Series X Optimized series, these creators will share the behind-the-scenes accounts of how they’re optimizing their titles for Xbox Series X|S and what that means for the future of gaming. Today, we’ll be chatting with Assistant Producer at Rebellion Thomas Waterhouse-Biggins about optimizing Sniper Elite 4 for Xbox Series X|S. Q: What excites you most about developing and bringing Sniper Elite 4 to life on next-generation hardware? A :  Sniper Elite 4 is a game we’re immensely proud of as a studio and it’s exciting to be able to return to it to furth...

I’m here to give you the inside deets of the latest dodgeball to hit the streets with the start of Season 2 – Soda Ball! Alright, who’s thirsty? Dodgebrawlers all over the city have learned how to take advantage of [REDACTED]’s signature Boba Cola blend in their glorious beatdowns across Knockout City . A revolutionary shake-stable substrate has resulted in a soda that remains fizz free no matter how much you run/jump/dodge/glide around with one in your hands. But dodgebrawlers have discovered a hidden side-effect — the simple act of charging the cola with dodgebrawler energy starts an irreversible chemical reaction. The pressure inside builds, and builds, and builds. In a matter of seconds the spherical container of bubbly boba beverage won’t be able to contain it any longer, exploding and covering everything (and anyone!) around in oopy goopy gunk! But don’t worry — the soda itself is absolutely harmless and there’ve been no reports of injuries, malfunctions, or lowered self-e...

Summary Orcs Must Die! 3 is a 3 rd person tower defense game available now for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. Set up and use weapons to defend against enemies trying to breach the rifts. Receive rewards and earn skulls to buy new traps, weapons, and trinkets as well as purchase upgrades to enhance your arsenal. In Orcs Must Die! 3 , we’ve introduced a new type of level, which we call War Scenarios. To better understand what these are, we should start with how the idea of War Scenarios came about. In a previous Orcs Must Die! title, we had a scenario called The Wall. It looked amazing, and it was basically Orcs Must Die! ’s version of the invasion of Normandy beach in WWII. However, it was missing two things: the ability for you to place traps on the battlefield outside the fortress and us giving you way more orcs to kill. This is where War Scenarios were born, at least, on paper anyway. As a concept, War Scenarios sound easy, but in practice having hundreds of high-qualit...