Video gaming brand and platform owned by Microsoft Gaming.
The Verge reports Discord Nitro members will gain a starter edition of Xbox Game Pass at no extra cost, including access to 50+ games, 10 hours monthly cloud gaming, and rewards. Additional discounts from Logitech, SteelSeries, and KontrolFreek, plus 250 Orbs monthly, are part of the package. The beta Halo integration with Xbox Game Pass is noted as a flagship move.
Xbox reports an outage lasting about 20 hours, affecting sign-ins and game launches. CTO Scott Van Vliet apologises and says a licensing service failure caused entitlement checks to fail. Microsoft will harden dependencies and roll out a fix to prevent future disruptions, amid renewed worries about a digital-only future in gaming.
Electronic Arts has been taken private in a $55 billion deal led by Saudi Arabia's PIF, with Silver Lake and Affinity Partners. The move delists EA from Nasdaq and adds $20 billion in debt. Analysts expect a focus on core franchises and potential cost-cutting. Regulators approved the deal, and governance implications are under scrutiny.
Rockstar Games has apologised after leaked Grand Theft Auto 6 footage circulated online. Netflix will host a special extended look ahead of the game’s November release, while the company investigates the source of the leaks and legal steps are being considered.
Xbox announces a disc-to-digital program that will let players claim a digital entitlement for most Xbox One and Series X titles by inserting the disc. The entitlement enables digital play, cross‑play features, and backward compatibility on future hardware. Not all titles are included and some licensing constraints apply. Sony has announced a shift toward a digital future with no more physical discs for new PlayStation games from January 2028.
Xbox is restructuring its internal studios in a bid to streamline decision-making. Halo Studios will be under Activision, Rare and World’s Edge join Activision, and Obsidian moves to Bethesda. Layoffs continue as Microsoft tightens management layers and focuses on flagship franchises.
Microsoft is reshuffling its leadership, with Brad Smith taking charge of communications as Frank Shaw exits. The move comes amid a broader AI and Copilot push, with Nadella stressing the need to align the company’s messaging with its expanding AI strategy.
Xbox announces a centralized XP division to broaden its footprint into film, TV, consumer products and live experiences, led by Kayleen Walters. Mojang overseer changes accompany the restructure, as Xbox accelerates its strategy to integrate games with broader media and real-world experiences.
Microsoft has unveiled Copilot’s enterprise-focused redesign, merging consumer and business AI tools into a unified work interface. The move aims to embed AI across Office apps, coding, and workflows, signaling a shift toward an AI-powered productivity stack. Leadership realignments accompany the rollout.
The CPI has risen to 3.7% over the past year, with a 0.6% monthly gain, driven by higher energy and fuel costs amid the Iran conflict. Core CPI has accelerated to 2.6%, complicating the Fed’s rate decisions as markets price in further hikes.
Rockstar Games faces an employment tribunal in Glasgow where 23 ex-employees allege unfair dismissal for union activity in a case linked to 34 dismissals last October over sharing confidential information. Rockstar denies targeting unionists, arguing terminations were due to misconduct and violations of confidentiality.
BioWare has closed and EA has cancelled early development on the next Mass Effect game while cutting about 400 jobs across the company, including roughly 50 roles at BioWare. EA has narrowed its studio focus after a $55bn takeover that left the company carrying roughly $20bn in debt, industry reporting says.