2019-04-01_Official_Xbox_Magazine

(singke) #1

RIGHT Fortnite
brought the
issue of
cross-play to
the attention of
the mainstream
media last year.


INSIDER XBOX LIVE EXPANDS


Nintendo Live


Microsoft extends the reach of Xbox


Live to other systems


and making its services available no
matter which system you are using.
It could eventually see you earning
achievements and viewing friends lists
for Xbox games on different devices.
Microsoft has been using open
language when it comes to making
and sharing content to different
platforms, first with extending its
first-party game catalogue to PC
users, and then featuring cross-play
with the Nintendo Switch for the likes
of Minecraft, Fortnite and Rocket
League. Cross-play for the latter two
has been extended to PlayStation 4,
although there was no mention of
Sony’s systems in the conference
description. There seems to be a little
way to go to break down those other,
tougher barriers. Q

Just when we thought things
couldn’t get any stranger, Microsoft
inadvertently revealed in a schedule
listing for its attendance at this year’s
Game Developers Conference that its
Xbox Live service may soon be making
its way to Nintendo Switch, as well as
Android and iOS.
The initial title Microsoft gave for
the session, which was found on
Windows Central and has now been
edited, was ‘Xbox Live: Growing &
Engaging Your Gaming Community
Across iOS, Android, Switch, Xbox, And
PC’. Its description read, “Xbox Live is
going to get much bigger. Xbox Live
is expanding from 400 million gaming
devices and a reach of over 68 million
active players to over 2 billion
devices with the release of our new
cross-platform XDK,” and continued
to mention specific platforms. “Get
a first look at the SDK to enable
game developers to connect players
between iOS, Android and Switch in
addition to Xbox and any game in the
Microsoft Store on Windows PCs.”

Play anywhere
What does this mean in the long-
run? Well, it’s too early to say just
yet but it’s clear that Microsoft’s
intention is to continue to break down
barriers dividing gaming platforms,

GAMING
WITHOUT
BORDERS

BARREL


WATCH


GAMING’S FAVOURITE
PROP RATED BY OUR
RESIDENT COOPER

Overwatch
We suggested
to Blizzard that
it add ‘Barrel Of
The Game’ to its
shooter, and
also a hero called ‘Cooper’ whose
ability is to build barrels for cover.
The devs are not returning our calls.

A Plague Tale:
Innocence
There is no
truth to the
scurrilous
rumour that
barrels spread the Black Death. It’s
a lie put about by the rats, who are
sick and tired of taking the blame.

Guacamelee! 2
That barrel is
marked with
‘XXX’, denoting
it’s full of some
kind of strong
booze. Which is just the kind
of barrel we like after a hard
day’s lucha wrasslin’.

Kingdom
Hearts III
Among the
Disney heroes
in the game is
Barry The Barrel,
friend of Frozen’s Anna. Anna met
Barry while she was alone all that
time, wanting to build a snowman.

Smoke And
Sacrifice
This is a game
about a mother
searching for
her lost child.
It’s going to be a very short game if
it turns out he’s been hiding in that
barrel all along.

014 THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE

Free download pdf