In addition to his extensive writing experience, Chris has been interviewed as a technology expert on TV news and radio shows. He gave advice on dark web scans on Miami's NBC 6, discussed Windows XP's demise on WGN-TV's Midday News in Chicago, and shared his CES experiences on WJR-AM's Guy Gordon Show in Detroit. In terms of the differences between the console and PC games library, both lineups are largely very similar. There are a few console-exclusive titles, with games like Grand Theft Auto 5, UFC 4, the Fable series and Skate 3 purely available on Xbox platforms. But PC Game Pass has a few exclusives of its own, such as League of Legends, Valorant, Total War: Three Kingdoms and the Crysis trilogy. Xbox Game Pass is an increasingly popular subscription service, giving you access to a massive collection of games and connected services for one monthly fee. Xbox Game Pass works on Windows 10 and Windows 11 PCs as well as Xbox consoles like the Xbox Series X and Xbox One.

The most expensive plan of the bunch, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate aims to be a combination of all three of the previous plans with a few added extras sprinkled on top. After purchasing Ultimate for the month, you’ll gain access to online console multiplayer, both the console and PC Game Pass libraries, and an EA Play membership. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate – Join the greatest community of gamers and be among the first to play new titles the same day they release. With over 100 high-quality games you won’t ever get bored. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate combines Xbox Live Gold with over 100 high-quality games for console, PC, and supported Android mobile devices (beta), all for one low monthly price. Play new Xbox Exclusives the same day games launch, 2-4 free games every month, and save up to 50-75% in the Xbox Store. Try Xbox Game Pass Ultimate now and enjoy your Chris was a PCWorld columnist for two years. He founded PCWorld's "World Beyond Windows" column, which covered the latest developments in open-source operating systems like Linux and Chrome OS. Beyond the column, he wrote about everything from Windows to tech travel tips.

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In March 2022, former Arkane Studios founder Raphaël Colantonio released Weird West under the newly formed WolfEye Studios. While it swaps out a third-person perspective for an isometric one, Weird West is a joyfully odd supernatural Western game that manages to tap into the immersive sim design philosophy that made many of the games Colantonio worked on excellent. The equivalent to an Xbox Live Gold Membership, Game Pass Core focuses entirely on offering online multiplayer on Xbox consoles. Included in the price is access to Xbox’s online multiplayer services and all the discounts and offers made available for members.

With these more dynamic elements, the isometric perspective, and the narrative focus, Weird West can feel like as much of a CRPG as an immersive sim at times. As such, it might be an enjoyable follow-up to Baldur’s Gate 3 for players finally coming off that lengthy RPG. At the very least, if you enjoy games that emphasize player freedom and also find novel ways to make it influence the game’s broader narrative, then you’ll enjoy Weird West. Xbox Controllers – Find the latest special and limited edition controllers including the new Space Jam a new legacy Tune Squad controller, Pulse Red, Electric Volt, Aqua Shift special edition or Daystrike Camo designed for enhanced comfort during gameplay. The perfect companion for your long gaming sessions. There's no shortage of games to play on either console thanks to Xbox Game Pass, which gives players immediate access to a library of titles old and new. That built-in catalog is an extra value on top of all the new games available on the system that take advantage of its impressive technical specs. When it comes to first-party exclusives, the Series X is still growing. Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5 gave a good boost to the console's library following a somewhat sparse first year. More games are also on the way. Microsoft's Bethesda acquisition will bring exclusives like Starfield and the potential addition of all Activision Blizzard games would further bolster that list, but the console's real strength lies in third-party support.Upgrade your Xbox experience with the best accessories, games and subscriptions. Whatever your needs are you will always find something that suits your need at Microsoft Store, your gaming destination. You’ll also get the same offers and discounts afforded to the three previous tiers, as well as the opportunity to partake in the Xbox Cloud Gaming beta. The latter allows players with a strong internet connection to stream games to their Xbox console, PC, phone or tablet via the cloud. This means you can play games on the go or enjoy next-gen exclusives like Starfield on an Xbox One console without having to upgrade to an Xbox Series X or S. We have plenty of character costumes to let kids', and adults', imaginations run wild, plus lots of cool character-inspired clothing and accessories. We've even got footie fans covered, too.

Microsoft Complete – Keep your Xbox safe and protect your favourite device from any drops and spills. With Microsoft Complete if something goes wrong you’re covered. The end result is a coat of arms that features some elaborate weaponry, some gaming iconography, and lots of destructive pieces of equipment. Above it all is a scroll with your gamertag on it, while beneath is a custom Latin phrase that Microsoft’s automated tool puts together for you. Xbox Design Lab - Game with your very own unique Xbox Wireless Controller created by you inspired by your favourite game, team, colours, or trends. You can enjoy gaming with Xbox using a Microsoft Xbox Design Lab controller exclusive to you.

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The individual stories of all five of Weird West’s playable characters are emotionally captivating and quite distinct from each other. That’s very noticeable as soon as you jump over to the second story, which follows a human turned into a Pigman. Still, it’s a living and reactive world, so decisions made and characters killed in an earlier character’s journey do have an impact on subsequent characters’ adventures; you can even find and recruit characters that you previously played as. The game had some technical issues and rough edges when it was first released, so it has flown under the radar. Most of those have all been smoothed over by now, though. Post-launch updates have fixed most of the major bugs and improved the character progression, aiming, and companion and stealth systems by adding more depth and UI clarity to them. Weird West is in the best state it has ever been in, but still feels as distinct and strange as ever. Chris Hoffman is the former Editor-in-Chief of How-To Geek. Chris has personally written over 2,000 articles that have been read more than one billion times---and that's just here at How-To Geek. Starting in 2015, Chris attended the Computer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas for five years running. At CES 2018, he broke the news about Kodak's "KashMiner" Bitcoin mining scheme with a viral tweet. A wave of negative publicity ensued, with coverage on BuzzFeed News, CNBC, the BBC, and TechCrunch. The company's project was later reportedly shut down by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Unfortunately, Weird West is leaving Xbox Game Pass on September 30, so we recommend you give it a shot before it’s gone. Mine for example, in the crest above, reads “bonum,” which translates simply to “Good.” Not the most inspiring. Others, like Xbox engineering lead Mike Ybarra’s crest (thanks Gamespot), ended up with “In Ultio Pace,” which translates to Revenge is Peace, which sounds far cooler. Xbox Games – Discover game favourites, plus the newest games optimised for Xbox Series X|S. With the revolutionary new Xbox Velocity Architecture and thousands of games available across four generations of Xbox, take your gaming experience to a new level and play even better on Xbox Series X|S. Find your new favourite Xbox games on the Microsoft Digital Store. Play Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, Minecraft, and Sea of Thieves, Starfield, Flight Sim, Battlefield 2042 and Far Cry 6.If you're revamping your little one's wardrobe so they're ready for the season ahead, shop our range of kids' clothes for lots of pieces they'll love wearing, including super soft jersey kids' pyjamas. How about our stunning selection of dresses for girls too? Our jersey and sweater styles are ideal for daytime wear. It’s here where Weird West’s immersive sim roots start to shine, as a lot of emergent narrative moments with impact feel crafted by the player. This carries over into gameplay, which is done from an isometric perspective. Like Arkane’s best games, there are always multiple solutions to any objective, and going in with guns blazing isn’t always the best option. Instead, players are encouraged to stealth around, sweet-talk characters, and even use some magical abilities if the playable character can learn them as they progress through a character’s journey. Earlier this year, Arkane Studios disappointed on Xbox Game Pass with Redfall, a game that dropped much of the studio’s immersive sim expertise for an underbaked multiplayer adventure. But what if I told you that the person who founded Arkane and helped create series like Dishonored had left the studio prior to Redfall and made an excellent immersive sim that is also available on Xbox Game Pass?